The Sun.
London, England, 1853-06-09 00:00:00

M U.RDE,

,EBONE.

Yesterday Mr. Wakley, attended by Mr. Brent, the
deputy-coroner, resumed and concluded a very lenthened
inquiry, at the Pitt's Head, Henry-street, Portland-
town, Marylebone, into the death of Mary Mead, aged
49, which resulted from the brutal violence of Francis
Mead, her husband, a shoemaker. The inquiry excited
the deepest interest, and the court and its neighbour-
hood were crowded with persons anxiously awaiting the
verdict of the jury. The accused, who had been out on
bail, was placed close to the witnesses, so that he might
hear their evidence, and if he pleased, cross-examine
them. He is a strong, well-built man, rather repulsive
in countenance, and club-footed. He seemed wholly
ignorant of his critical position.
Hannah Gray deposed that she lived in the same house,
20, Henry-street, with deceased, and in the room above
hers. Between eleven and twelve on Saturday night
she was startled by cries and a great noise in deceased's
room. Upon going to the lobby she heard deceased's
little boy exclaim, " Oh, father, father, don't ; you have
killed my mother." As the cries and noise continued,
witness attempted to enter the room, but could not, as
the door of deceased's room was forced against her.
After some time she effected an entrance, when she
found her lying stretched on the floor, and her husband
standing over her. After using the most disgusting
language towards deceased, he exclaimed, I'll give you
something to holloa at." He then caught her by the
hair of the head, and flinging her across some chairs on
the bed, said, " Go there, you , and lie there with
your child." Witness then left the room through fear,
and went to her own. Soon afterwards she heard more
screams from deceased's room ; but as they were fellow-
lodgers, witness did not further interfere in the matter.
She did not afterwards see deceased until Monday, when,
hearing that she was unwell, she visited her, and found
her very ill in bed. Her face was covered with
bruises, and her eyes were so swollen that she
could scarcely see witness. She died the same night.
Deceased did not complain to witness of ill-usage on
the night in question, but when ill-used on former
occasions she was afraid to cry out, or call for help.
The husband was the worse for liquor on Saturday night.
The Coroner severely censured the witness for not
having called in the police when she saw the deceased so
brutally treated.
The witness replied that she did not consider it her
business to interfere with other people's affairs.
Emma Richardson, another fellow-lodger with de-
ceased, deposed that on Sunday, hearing that deceased
was ill, she went to her room, where she found her suf-
fering severely from ill-usage. As she had no one to
attend her, witness sent for a surgeon, and remained
with her till her death on Monday night. When witness
asked her how she got her injuries, deceased scarcely
answered, and only muttered that she got a fall.
Mr. Duckworth Nelson, surgeon, 48, Acacia road,
was called to attend deceased on the evening of Sunday
week, when he found her suffering from violence. Two
ribs on the left side were fractured. Her face, head,
and arms were greatly bruised and swollen. He deemed
her case hopeless, as he found that the fractured ribs had
penetrated her lungs. He did all that skill and ex-
perience could suggest to save life, but in vain, as she
died the following night. Upon making a post mortent
examination he found, as he had anticipated, inflamma-
tion of the lungs, produced by the fractured ribs pene-
trating them, and which caused death. Witness could
not say what was the nature of the violence used towards
deceased, but it was of a most frightful character, as the
bruised condition of deceased's body evidenced.
Thomas Burke, deceased's brother, who was deeply
affected, stated that on Monday his sister sent for him,
and that upon entering her room he found very ill, her
face blackened from injuries, and eyes so swollen and
closed from the same cause that she could not see him ;
but upon recognizing his voice, she cried out, "I'm glad
you have come, for I'm dying." She said that she had
fallen down, but said nothing about her husband's
ill-usage.
Francis Mead, aged 14, deceased's son, who gave his
evidence with great reluctance and considerable fear of
his father's displeasure, said that he returned home
about half-past ten o'clock on Saturday night week, and
found his father abusing deceased for having otherwise
spent money which he had given her to buy linen for
the baby. Deceased denied that she had done so. Upon
which his father struck her in the face, knocked her
down, and then kicked her several times in the left side.
While his father was ill-treating deceased, he muttered
something in Irish, which witness did not understand.
After she was beaten his mother could not walk, and
had to support herself by holding something. Before
that she appeared in her usual health, and could work.
She was of a weakly constitution, and had been a
patient of the dispensary some months. Witness and
his father went to bed, leaving his mother crawling
about the floor. About half-past three the following
morning he awoke, and found his father bathing de-
ceased's temples. After placing her on the bed his
father went for a doctor, and fetched Mr. Smale from
the dispensary.
By the Coroner—While his father was beating de-
ceased she exclaimed, "Oh ! Francis, don't hit me any
more." Witness also said, "Father, don't hit my mo-
ther any more ; she is killed." Witness did not recol-
lect his father taking deceased by the hair of the head
and throwing her on the bed. He remembered Mrs.
Gray looking into the room while his father was beating
his mother. When his father dragged deceased to bed
the following morning, she exclaimed, "Oh ! Francis !
I cannot walk, you have beaten me so dreadfully." On
Sunday morning witness's father told him that his mo-
ther met with her injuries by falling down stairs the pre-
vious night. His father, when he beat deceased, was
evidently not sober. Witness had seen his father beat
his mother on other occasions, but never heard him
threaten her.
Mary Wynn, an acquaintance of deceased, said that
she visited her on Monday, when she saw her husband
sitting at deceased's bed-side. Witness asked how she
met with the injuries. The husband replied that on
Saturday night his wife had been drinking, and that on
running away from him she fell down stairs and fractured
her ribs. He then asked deceased if she wished to say
anything in witness's presence. She replied, " What
do you wish me to say ? I forgive you, and may the
Lord forgive you. I have nothing to say. I die in
peace." After a pause she further said, " Francis, I
am dying ; take care of my children, and don't beat
Frank." She then requested to see her brother, whom she
most affectionately embraced, and in about an hour after-
wards died.
Anne Gill and Joseph Tilley, lodgers in the same house
with deceased, heard, on the night in question, the noise
in Mead's room, but took no notice of it, as they ima-
gined that he was beating his son.
Several other witnesses corroborated the above.
Mr. Nelson recalled ; The kicks spoken of by de-
ceased's son were sufficient to produce the fatal injuries.
Mr. G. E. Smale, of the Free Dispensary, gave a si-
milar opinion respecting the effects of those kicks.
The Coroner summed up at considerable length and
with great clearness, commenting upon the nature of the
evidence given, and pointing out where it was in favour
of, and where it told against the accused. Having then
drawn the distinction between manslaughter and mur-
der, and having told the jury that it would be their duty
to return a verdict either of accidental death or man-
slaughter, the learned coroner denounced Mead's treat-
ment of his wife as disgraceful, unmanly, and brutal in
the extreme.
The jury retired, and after a few minutes' deliberation
returned into court with a verdict of " Manslaughter
against Francis Mead."
The Coroner accordingly made out the prisoner's com-
mittal to Newgate, which he handed to Sergeant Brand,
7 S, whom he also bound over as prosecutor at the next
Central Criminal Court. So strong was the feeling
against the wretched prisoner that he had to be escorted
by a posse of police constables to the cab that conveyed
him to Newgate, and which drove off amidst the yells
and hootings of upwards of 300 persons.

THE WEAVERS OF SPITALFIELDS.— This large dis-
trict, inhabited by silk weavers, is but little known,
except to those whose business is connected with
the place ; it has, however, remarkable features, and
is well worthy of a visit. Some of the streets
are composed of well-built houses from three to
four stories high, having, in the upper rooms, glazed win-
dows extending the whole length of the houses, which
gives them a peculiar appearance. The general aspect
of the neighbourhood is cleaner, and less squalid than
the other regions of the " East," and the inhabitants
are also better clad and neater in their appearance.
The weavers are mostly of French descent, their fore-
fathers having been driven to London by religious per-
secution about 150 years since, and it is curious to note
how much they have to the present day preserved the
national style and peculiarities. There is an immense
number of them, and they are mostly remarkable for
intelligence. They suffer much privation, struggling to
some extent as they do against machinery elsewhere.
In Spital-square, which is close to Bishopsgate-street,
the master-weavers live. Leading from this are streets,
black and dilapidated, which are becoming more and
more crowded in consequence of the removal of
houses by the Eastern Counties Railway Com-
pany, who have purchased part of the neighbour-
hood. In other districts owners of houses will not per-
mit the looms to be set up. If this should aid in leading
some of the weavers to seek other employment it would
be fortunate : their present condition is miserable, nor is
there any prospect of improvement. Amongst the prin-
cipal streets thus occupied, are Grey Eagle-street, Black
Eagle-street, Pearl-street, Phoenix-street, and Hope-
street. The Spitalfields weavers are fond of flowers, and
few houses, even of the poorest, are destitute of a bit of
"greenery ;" they complain that they have now short
time for the healthful recreation of their gardens ; still,
however, some of them do a little, and many rear
pet pigeons and canaries. The Spitalfields weavers
are greatly attached to their own neighbourhood, and
many old men are known not to have travelled
during their long lives farther than King's-crois on the
one side, and London-bridge on the other. The weavers,
like the Northumbrian miners and other class workers,
almost invariably intermarry with each other. Spital-
fields weavers' sons have constantly intermarried with
Spitalfields weavers' daughters, and thus to the present
day have preserved the peculiarities to which we have
alluded.—The Builder.
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