The Sun.
London, England, 1836-02-01 00:00:00

SHOCKING OCCURRENCE.

At the latter end of last we a very considerable excite-
ment took place in the neighbourhood of Berkeley-square,
in consequence of a prevailing repert that a young female
domestic in the establish
111('
committed sitin:A- • " t the Earl of
.J.erse.; 'flad
•
having first destroyed 11:::
illegitimate
~,,spring. Upon the rumour r(1:,-,,,ng the ears of the
parish officers they immediately instructed Mr. Chappell,
clerk to the Board of Guardians, to send Cole, an officer,
to Berkeley-square, to ascertain whether the report was
correct, and, if so, the extent of the calamity. On Satur-
day morninc, Cole went to the Earl's residence, and saw
Webster, the porter, who informed him that the report was

that the occurrence had not taken place in town,
but at Middleton Lodge, in Oxfordshire ; that the name of
the young woman was Susan Garrett, and that she filled the
situation of under-lady's maid in the family of the Countess.
From information obtained from the best sources it ap-
pears that the discovery of the dreadful affair was made by
Edward Gould, valet to the Hon. Frederick Villiers, one of
the Earl's sons. On Saturday se'nnight, at an early hour in
the morning, he was engaged in preparing to attend his
master, who was going out on a hunting excursion, when, in
passing through a room in which there is a large cistern that
supplies the mansion with water, his attention was attracted by
a female's cap floating on the surface of the water, which he
recollected having seen worn by Susan Garrett. At the
same time he. observed unusual appearances upon the floor
in a track leading from an inner room in the house. The
side of the cistern was also discoloured as if by a person's
hand. His suspicions• being aroused, he
.traced the marks
to the door of the room in which Susan Garrett was ae.,
customed to sleep ; and subsequently he informed se:veral
of the female servants of what he had noticed.,• •who in-
stantly entered the room, and were shocked at. linding Gar-
rett absent, and also at the appearance tins', was presented
to their view. Further suspicion, amounting almost to a
Conviction, now possessed the minds of all as to what had.
taken place, and the cistern was immediately searched,
when the body of the Unfortunate young woman was found.
On a further examination of the cistern the body of a fine
male infant was also discovered. The bodies of the mother. •
and infant were placed in an adjoining room. The 'utmost
sensation prevailed upon the melancholy occasion, and so
• sudden was the shock to the Countess, that she suffered
from indisposition for some days afterwards. The young
woman had been in the service of her Ladyship since a
mere child, and had always been considered a prudent girl.
On the discovery above alluded to, Mr, Davis, a surgeon,
attended, and for a length of time endeavoured to restore
animation in the mother, as well as the infant, but ineffec-
tually.
Mr. Davis gave it as his opinion that the unfortunate
young woman had delivered herself ; but whether the child
was born alive, and had bees drowned by the parent previous
to her own destruction, it was impossible to say. For some
time before the rash act the mother was in a very low,
dejected state of mind, hist, notwithstanding her fellow-3er..
cants had a suspicion of the cause, they never could ascer-
tain who the man was that had been the cause of her ruin,.
and the ultimate destruction of herself and innocent off-
spring ; and, upon more than one occasion, she was taxed
with being enciente, but she positively denied that such was
the case. The last time she was seen alive was on the
Friday evening, in the presence of Mrs. Sadler. the Principal
lady's maid, and Mrs. Grimsley, a nurse in the- family, at
which, period she was unusually dejected, and, complaining
of a head-ache, went to. bed early, occuPying a room alone.
The Noble Earl was absent at the tine, ; had he been at
the Hall the deceased would have f'6'und'a difficulty in car-
rying her deadly•purpose in t 9 •eireet, as his Lordship's valet
slept in a room water-cistern.
An inquest has peen held upon the bodies of the mother
andinfant, bellge the Coroner for Oxfordshire and a moSt..
respectable Jury, when a verdict was returned" That the
de:Taserl, Susan Garrett; drowned herself in a state of
temporary mental derangement ; hut whether the infant
was born alive and destroyed by the mether there was no
evidence to the Jury." The unfortuaate young woman
was-tWenty-one years of age, and of very pre'possessing
appearance.