The Sun.
London, England, 1834-09-30 00:00:00

A WIFE KILLED BY HER HUSBAND.

On Wednesday last an inquest was held in Leeds before
Robert Barr, Esq., Coroner, on view of the body of Mary
Jackson, who was supposed to have come to her death by
the ill-treatment of her husband. The following witnesses
were called :

Joseph Kaye said—l am a cloth-weaver, and live in Mill-
street. I knew Mary Jackson ; I have known her four
years ; her husband is a cloth-weaver. I work at Wood-
house, at Mr. James Brown's mill. I left my work last
night about ten minutes to seven o'clock, and went direct
home ; when I got there I had my supper, and then went
to my wife's mother's to sleep, who lives at Richmond-hill.
The deceased was there, along with her son. She said she
had been to see the railway engine come in, and on account
of its getting so late she came home. When she came
home she found her husband had gone out and locked the
door ; she then came back and went to my wife's mother's.
She staid there till about ten minutes past eight o'clock,
when her husband came to fetch her. He put his finger on
the door sneck. The deceased said, " I am here," and he
said, " Will you be so good as walk your bones down be-
low ?" She said, " I will." As they were going down
the steps he pushed her, and she said," Oh, dear ! do not push
me, I will go without." He pulled my wife's mother's door as
they went out, but it did not sneck ; and she said, " Oh, dear
Joe, don't push me down, I'll go without." I heard a rap when
they got into the entry, but could not tell what it was. Mrs.
Jackson then set up a loud shriek. I afterwards heard the
door opened ; then heard several shrieks ; then I left my
mother's, and ran to a window which is in Jackson's house
to see what was the matter. Two of the squares werebroken
ones. I there saw Mrs. Jackson in the act of falling on her
back. Joseph Jackson was in the house, standing with his
back towards the door ; he was about an arm's length from
the deceased ; she lay about five minutes on the flags. There
were some boys at the window crying shame, and throwing
stones at Jackson, who got a poker and went. to the door;
and said if he could get any of those persons who had thrown
stones he would knock them on the head. He then went
back into the house ; when he got there his son was on his
knees before his mother, and he said, " Father, I think she
is dying ;" he then said, " Oh, dear John, I never struck
her." The boy then said, " No, father, you have never
struck her." Jackson then said to me, "Go fetch Hannah
Baker ;" I said, " She is not at home." He said, " Oh,
Joe, do come down ;" which I did. While I was there a
stone was thrown through the window, which hit me on the
leg ; there was another thrown, which nearly bit Jackson ;
he asked me if I knew any of the boys which had thrown
them ? I said I did, and then went and got them to be
quiet.. Then I came into the house and lifted Mrs. Jack-
son on the bed. I put my hand on her breast and mouth
to feel if she breathed. Jackson said he thought she was
in a sick fit, and that she would come round. I said to him,
" I believe she is dead." The neighbours after this began
to come into the house. Jackson said, " Will no one go
and fetch a doctor ?" No one went. He then said, " Joe,
1 look to thee to fetch a doctor." I went. When Mr.
Bearpark got to the house he felt her pulse, and said she
was dead. He gave me a penknife and told me to cut the
string of her stays. I then saw a wound on the right side
of the temple ; then went to fetch a constable.
John Jackson, son of the deceased, being sworn, said—l
am ten years old. I was with my mother at the railroad
last night. When we came back my mother and I went
into Hannah Barker's, and stopped there until my father
came, which was in about a quarter of an hour ; he was not
very drunk. He asked my mother where she had been ;
she said to the railroad, and then my father said to her,
" Come home," and we went to the house together. When
we got into the house my father sat down at the table end,
and my mother fell with her head against the chest corner ;
my father had not struck her ; he was two yards from her
when she fell. The reason she fell, as I thought, was
because she was dizzy ; she did not speak when she fell,
but put her hand against the chest, and appeared to be
chewing her tongue, and screamed out. My father and I
then began to cry ; my father then took the poker to chase
some boys.
The boy prevaricated very much in his evidence, and
told the Coroner that no one had instructed him what to
say. Until being cross-examined by the Jury he admitted
that a woman named Susannah Backhouse told him to say
that his mother was dizzy, and in a sick fit.
Mr. G. Edmondson Bearpark, surgeon, of this town, was
then requested by the Coroner to examine the body, and
in the meantime the inquest was adjourned until Friday
evening at half-past five o'clock.
On that evening the inquest was resumed at the ap-
pointed hour.-
Mr. Bearpark described the appearances which he ob-
served on the body of the deceased when first called in to
see her about nine o'clock on Tuesday night, and also on
the post niortent examination. He found a mark about the
size of a shilling on the right temple, and another above the
right eye, also above the right ear, and another at the pos-
terior part of the head. There was some extravasation of
blood on the left temporal muscle and on the brain. There
was an acute inflammation of the lungs, and an effusion of
blood in the chest. His supposition was that concussion of
the brain was the cause of death, but if he had not opened
the head and found the morbid appearances there, he should
have concluded that the patient had died of inflammation
of the lungs. The marks were such as might have been
produced by the head of a poker, and the concussion of the
brain might be produced either by a blow or a fall.
The Jury retired about ten minutes, and returned a ver-
dict of " Manslaughter" against Josph Jackson, who was
consequently committed to York Castle for trial.—Leeds
Intelligences.

The other evening a London pick-pocket, in Mil-
ton-street Theatre, picked a man's pocket of a purse of coun-
terfeit sovereigns, and was immediately apprehended. The man
robbed of course will not appear, and the question will turn
on a point of law as to the pick-pocket exhibiting the coin ill
traffic, not knowing it to be counterfeit.

______.......---
The name of merino, which with us marks a partk
cular kind of sheep, signifies in the language of
tee
-
country, wandering, ambulatory ; and is highly
scriptive of their habits. They do not always remain in
the same farm, or the same province ; but they travel
from one to another. * # # Towards the begin'
ning of May, nearly five millions of sheep leave the plains
of Estremadura, Andalusia, Old and New Castile, and
h
Leon ; and are conducted by the shepherds to the
mountains of the two Castiles, those of Biscay, N
and even Arragon. On these more elevated spots,
they find a fresher herbage, less dried up by the bura;
ing sun ; which in summer destroys all verdure in thh
plains. The high ground near Segovia is very tinted
frequented by the sheep. * * # The details
their march are very curious. The rich proprietts;
th'at is to say, those who possess the greatest nor
a 0011:1
of sheep, have formed themselves into
called the " Mesta ;" this association beinif neceni
sarily ti monopoly, it is difficult to avarre,
alter aue
of its laws. It would have been inle have
for - a few proprietors with small flocks tc) et,
undertaken these yearly peregrinations ;—this secidejr
was formed to do away this inconvenience : and totii,
the superintendence of Persons chosen for the purPend
the flocks are led to the uncultivated lands sen
mountains of Spain. The Mesta employ bet A
forty and fifty thousand shepherds, who lend,
wandering and almost savaae life, who never 0,
vate the groundandrarely b
confined wholly to sheep, and in that departrnen Mesta
marry ; their knowledge bre;
are very skilful. * * * The flockS of the leeP
are divided into smaller troops of ten thousand
chics:f.
each ; at the head of which is .a. mayoral, c 4, and
shepherd, to direct them, fifty inferior shephert's'
the
the same number of dogs, who keep watch over a
sheep. * * * Every shepherd Inal.heewn;
n certain number of sheep and goats of 'as f- the
but their wool belongs to the proprietor • the
flock. The shepherd has only the indk',,, *
flesh, and the young ones they produce. * Sheep
Abunnt supplies of salt are provided o
eat ascotch of it as they like. The annual cans haw
tion for a thousand animals, is two thousand five,,,iie-
dred pounds. The Mesta is composed of Pr'''ity
tors possessing, some four, and others pity
thousand sheep. * * # The march of t de-
, large flocks is regulated by particulars -laws' have
• rived from immemorial custom. The sheep lauds
a right of pasturage in all those waste
'ller
fixed,price to the proprietors, beyond which
fixed
are reserved for that purpose, Par °Caa
theYvated
exact nothing. They cannot enter upon °itl theta
grounds ; but the owners are obliged to reserve vel
passage, forty-five fathoms wide. The shell, y‘o
two leagues a day in their own pastures ; 13,,,nt,Trein7i;
six when they pass through arable lands. J-'l,e„" (ken
grations extend to a hundred and twenty and a "--n
and fifty leagues.—Spain Yesterday. and To-ilag.