The Sun.
London, England, 1805-06-01 00:00:00

OLD !WIRY, MAY jt.

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William 'demos was ini Aed for the wilful
murder 'of Elizabeth, wife of William Smith, by
giving her a violent blow on th: tight side.
William Smith, the kusbind, stated, that he
was a watchman in Mary.le.bone Parish. He was
married to the deceased is the year 1787, and they
lived together until June, t So+, when h►s wife lett
him to cohabit with the ?cis tier ; before the ca-
tastrophe she had returoed again to him, and he
agreed to forgive her for her infidelity. It was on
Tuesday last sho cosine to his box between three and
four in the morning ; they had a conversation about
her miscondutt, and the manner in which the Fri.
loner treated her. Milne hours afterwards the Wit.
ness went to the Globe public house, in Baker-street,
and there met.the Prisoner. They had an alterca.
Lion, in which the Prisoner used Many violent expres-
sions respelling the witness's wifer—said he would cut
her head off, break her neck, &.. and that he would
serve the Witness the seine, or any body who took
her part, After the witness left the Globe public
house he took his wife home to his own ludgiegs
in Little. Chesterfield-street, and both of theta hay.
ing been up all night, they agreed to go to bed,
which they did, having first locked the door of the
apartment. It was about four o'clock last Tues.
day afternoon when they went to bed, and as he
apprehended, slept ti►l between six and seven,
when he was awakened by the screaming of his wife.

He jumped up and saw the Prisoner standing by his
wife in a menacing attitude, but he did not sec hire
strike. her. He seized bold of the Prisoner, and
they had a scuffle, in which they had several falls.
The last time he rose he perceived his wife lying
still, and her lips black.
Mr. Mott) a Surgeon, deposed, that he came to the
deceased, and Made several unsuccessful attempts to
,bleed her. He asked who had dune it The bus.
band replied it was the Prisoner. He asked the
Prisoner if be had struck her ? He said, Yes,. yes.'
He asked, where have you struck
,her lie- replied,
1 know nothing about it.' Ihe following day he
opened the body., and found a concussion in the ca.
vity of the chest, but nu external mark or bruise.
---.There was also an extravasation of blood- on the
brains, which he believed the,immediate cause of her
death. He • apprehended, that the blow might have
been struck upon the breasri and caused a spasm of
the heart, which propelling the blood to the brain,
might have ruptured the vessels. He was not,
however, quite certain, that fright might not have
prodUced the same consequences. He knew of a case
when two men fighting, one dropped dead in an
apoplexy, without any Wow from the other.
Mary SVcst Stated, that she saw the Prisoner
break open the aloof, and heard the subsequent scuffle
between him and the husband, but she did sot hear
any scream. When the Prisoner was told that it
was Mrs. Smith, he exclaimed that he would die
with her, and went up to the bed and. kissed her.
The Prisoner in his defence said, he never strut k
bee; when he burst openthe door the deceased mute
a bit of a noise and waked her husband, -upon
which he jumped up, and they bad a seal:. Af.
ter some .atrugglcs they both fell across the bed
and upon the deceased. He did not know how she
Caine. try her death.
The Learned Judge summed up the evidence, and
commented with great 1:11t1131iity uti the several parts
of it ; Miele the Jury after a short deliberation found
the Prisoner—Aot GOO.
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