The Sun.
London, England, 1866-12-22 00:00:00

fore the magistrate, alone and unaided, she charged
the man with this murder. But the jury were not
called upon to decide that the man was guilty ; the
evidence was not sufficient to warrant them in say-
ing that the woman was guilty, and, if there was
doubt in the case, she was entitled to the benefit of it.
Mr. Baron Channell then proceeded to sum up
the case. It was to be inferred from the evidence
that the child was murdered in the morning and not
over night ; and there was a strong inference that
either the man or the woman murdered it. If the
evidence led to the conclusion that the prisoner was
guilty, it would be a fearful thing that she should
be acquitted because an adequate motive could not
be assigned for the crime. It would be desirable to
endeavour to ascertain as nearly as possible the
time when the child was murdered. It would be
convenient, therefore, in the first place to refer to
the evidence of the policeman May, who first saw
the murdered child. At five or ten minutes past
six he touched the child's face and it was warm.
Referring to the other evidence, Mrs. Taylor, who
lived next door, said that about 15 or 20 minutes
before six she heard both a man and a woman cry
" murder." Ilighams' account was that he was
roused from sleep by blows of a billhook on t':c
head, which the prisoner held in both hands. Did
this explain her getting the better of him as she did?
He said he did not hear of the death of the child
until he went next door, but other witnesses said
that the prisoner charged him with killing it in
front of his own house. One witness said that
to this charge he made no answer. Another wit-
ness said that he answered, " You are a dear
woman." A policeman stated that he found in
the bed a piece of skin, which appeared to have
been cut from Highams' finger. In reference
to:the evidence of Dr. Davey, it was to be observed
that he drew rather a fine distinction. But he ad-
mitted that, if the shirt of Ilighams were soaked
with, his, own blood, that might have obliterated
the sprinkling of blood which would have come
from the child if he killed it. There was no pos-
sibility of any other verdict than that of guilty or
not guilty of wilful murder. The jury were not
called upon to inquire into the prisoner's attack on
Highams, except as throwing light upon the ques-
tion they had to decide.
Upon the jury retiring, one of their number stated
that he was under medical treatment, and requested
that they might be conducted to a room in which
there was a fire.

Mr. Baron Channel' referred to the words of the
oath of the officer in whose charge the jury were and
said there was some doubt as to their construction,
and he must decline to interfere.

It appeared that the jury were to be taken to a
room where there had been a fire.
The jury retired about a quarter past 1 o'clock.
Shortly after 4 o'clock the jury returned into
court and give a verdict of guilty.
Sentence of death was then passed in the usual
form.

James Fletcher was indicted for the wilful murder
of James Boyle, at Gillingham, on the sth of Sep-
tember last.

Mr. Poland and the Hon. E. Stanhope prose-
cuted ; Mr. Barrow, at the request of the learned
Baron, undertook to defend the prisoner.
The prisoner was a convict under sentence of penal
servitude at Chatham. The deceased was an assis-
tant warder of the Convict prison. The prisoner
struck him on the face with a hammer and caused
his death. He said before the magistrate that he
thought he would do this act, and get quit of life.
Ile had been brought before the Governor of the
prison for using foul language on the report of the
deceased, and was sentenced to two days' solitary
confinement on bread and water and to lose marks.
On coming out he joined a gang of convicts who
were breaking stones, and in the course of the after-
noon he, without any altercation:or previous warn-
ing, struck the deceased two or three blows on the
face with the hammer which he used for breaking
stones. Of these blows the deceased died.

The jury, without hesitation, found the prisoner
guilty, and he was thereupon sentenced to death in
the usual form.

This case was tried while the jury, in the ease of
Ann Lawrence, were deliberating, and immediately
after sentence had been passed upon Fletcher the
jury in Lawrence's case came into court and returned
their verdict, and sentence was passed on her. Thus,
within the space of a few minutes, two capital sen-
tences were passed.