The Sun.
London, England, 1857-12-18 00:00:00

WESTERN CIRCUIT.-ExETEE, DEC. 10.

(Before Mr. Justice Willes.)
Jonathan Rcose was indicted for feloniously as-
saulting Jane Stone, and causing injuries dangerous
to life, with intent to kill and murder her, at Tor-
quay, on the 11th of November.
Mr. Carter and Mr. Bere were counsel for the
prosecution, and Mr. Coleridge for the prisoner.
It appeared that the prisoner, who was 21 years
of age, lived with his uncle Mr. Mitchelmore, who
was a wine and spirit merchant at Torquay. The
prosecutrix, Jane Stone, who would be 20 years of
age to-morrow, had lived in service at Exeter, but
about Christmas last she went to live as
servant with Mrs. Mitchelmore. After some
time familiarity commenced between the pri-
soner and Jane Stone, and in the course of a few
months she told the prisoner that she was in the
familyway. He asked her if she was sure of it,
she said she believed it. He asked her if she would
take some medicine, and he fetched her four pills,
which she took. Some weeks afterwards she told
him she was in the family-way. He begged her to
put it off upon another. She said she could not,
for she had known no other man. He then
earnestly urged her to put it upon his uncle or any
other person. She however refused. On the sth
of August she left her place and went and visited
some friends, and on the 15th of August she entered
the service of a Mrs. Willes, at Varleigh-cottage,
Torquay. The prisoner occasionally went to that
cottage with wine and ale for Mrs. Willes, and
upon one of these occasions she told him she wanted
to speak with him about the child that was coming,
and they were to meet for that purpose. On the
11th of November, after she had done her work,
with the permission of Mrs. Wiles, she went to
see her aunt, who lived about a quarter of a mile
off. She remained there till a quarter before 8,
when she left. On her way home she met her uncle,
and they talked for a few mingutes together. She
got to Mrs. Willes at 8 o'clock, and after she had
rung the bell the prisoner came up to her and said,
"Jane, I want to speak to you now." She an-
swered that she would come out again as soon as
she could, but as she had rung the bell she :must
go indoors first. The door was then opened and
she went in. A stonemason named Lemon was in
the kitchen. She spoke to him, and then went
upstairs, remained only a short time, and then re-
turned to the kitchen. Lemon gave her soma
directions about the flue, but he thought at the
time she was.not paying much attention to what he
WAS saying. Lemon was then leaving the house.
Jane Stone:opened the door and lighted him out,
and wished him good night in the garden. The
girl then looked about the garden for the prisoner,
but could net find him in the front garden. She
then went up some steps into the back garden,
and there she found him. Thera was a light then
shining upon them from a window of the cottage.
The prisoner put his arms round her waist and led
her to a dark part of the garden. As they
were walking along the girl said, "I sup-
pose you think I have got all right now ?"
He said he thought so, but she mid she
was not right—she was in the familyway, and she
must go into the union, for she had no money. The
prisoner, with a selfi4tuess which he had previously
exhibited, not caring at all for the poor victim of
his passion, said, "Then it is a done job for me."
The answer of the girl was, "It will be a pretty
deal worse for me." They had angry and wrang-
ling words. He then removed her into a darker
part of the garden, further from the house, and then
without saying anything to her, he put her down
on the ground, and with his knee leant upon her
let's side with great force. He thrust his hand down
her throat as far as he could, and with the other
hand he pinched her nose, so as to prevent her
breathing. She attempted to bite his hand, which
he thrust still further down her throat. She strug-
gled as much as she could, and with a great and
almost dying effort she uttered a slight scream—
that little scream was heard, but not by human
being, except the wretched villain. Her senses
reeled and she became unconscious. In Mrs. Willes's
house a little pet dog was kept, and, although hu-
man
ear had not heard that faint scream, that little
dog was roused,—it commenced barking most vio-
lently, scratching at the drawing-room door where
the ladies were sitting, and could not be pacified.
Mrs. Willes, and Mrs. Crawford who was with her,
became alarmed and went into the garden. They
called out, butreceived noanswer; but they thought
they heard the moans of some one in distress • they
then went to the house of a neighbour named Ham-
mersley, and he with a candle proceeded to the spot

whence the moans came, and there he saw the boJy

of a woman lying on the ground; she was making
a low moaning sound. He looked at the face, but
it was so beaten and bloody that he could not re-
cognise the features. He went and obtained fur-
ther assistance, and he returned with some other
servants, but they could not recognise her. One of
them, however, said "Jane," and she answered in a
low voice, "Yes." She was asked who had com-
mitted the injuries, and she faintly told a name.
Tae poor girl was then removed into the cottage,
and the poice and a surgeon were sent for. She
was then taken to the Toray dispensary. As she
had mentioned a name the prisoner was sent for, and
was found at his mother's. He was also taken to
the dispensary. On arrival at the dispensary the
girl was examined, and it was the belief of the
surgeons that she had not very long to live. It was
therefore thought proper for the purposes of justice
that what was supposed would be her dying de-
claration should be taken, and a magistrate and an
attorney were sent for, and in the presence of the
prisoner she named him as the person who had
committed the injuries. The surgeon proceeded
to examine the unfortunate girl's head and face.
They found eigh lacerated wounds about the head
and face ; there were two fractures of the skull
over each eye ; a fracture of the upper jaw and
lower jaw ; the lip was slit, the nose broken and
flattened on the face, and the whole head and face
were such a mass of bruises that with a sponge all
the flesh might have been swept from the boner.
It was not imagined possible that she could re-
cover, but by extraordinary care and attention she
lived, and to-day stated the facts we have narrated
up to the time of hEr becoming unconscious. She
presented a dreadful spectacle in court—her face
and head had the appearance of being completely
bound together, or rather mashed, with plasters.
In cross-examination an attempt was wade, but
unsuccessfully, to show that there had been a
struggle between the two parties. After the girl
had been attended to, the magistrate and some
other persons went to re garden and found pools
of blood in it. They also found two stones which
were covered with blrol and human hair, and it
was ascertained that these two stones had formed
one stone, 91b. in weight and a foot in length, and
it was evident that with that stelae the injuries had
bean inflicted, and the stone had broken in two
pieces. From the face of the poor girl bits of stone
were taken. At the spot by the blood there was a
distinct footmark. The shoes of the prisoner were
brought, and the left shoe completely corresponded
with that footmark. There was mould upon the
shoe similar to that in the garden. There was
nothing particular in the shoe. It was the shoo of
a small man, and not on© that a labouring man
would buy.
Several witnesseslwere called, who swore to the
above facts, but we give the evidence of the
surgeons in detail.

Sir. Goldstone—l am a surgeon. I was called
in and saw the girl. My first impression was that
it was a dead body, but discovering a feeble pubs
I gave her some stimulant. Her mistress wished
her to be removed to the dispensary, and I ac-
quiesced in her wish, and she was removed there.
Mr. Stabb—l am house-surgeon at the dispen-
sary. Jane Stone was brought in. I found her
head, face, and chest covered with blood, and found
eight lacerated wounds and four fractures, two on
the head and two on the face. The bones of the
nose and upper jaw were fractured ; the teeth were
loose ; I removed them with my finge:.s. The lip
was cut through ; the ears were both lacerated.
I removed a small piece of stone from the left tem-
ple, in which it was imbedded ; it was of the same
description as the large stone. She was in a very
dangerous state ; we bad not much hope of her rt.-
cove, y. I hive been in constant attendance on lier
ever since. She must have lost a great deal of
blood. We arou-ed her to consciousnt s.!, when she
answered que:tio•.s, and I examined the prison( r'a
hands. Tuere was an abrasion on the knuckles cf
both hands ; the skin was knocked off. It might
have been done by the teeth of a person. The in-
jeries on the face and head might have been pro-
duced by this stone. •
Cross-examined—If she had been knocked down
and fallen on a stone one wound might have been
predne.:d, but here there must have been several dißtinct blows. The prisoner came in with his
uncle.
Re-e •
been causedxatnuled—
by
Mr. Coleridge, all these
mitted that the prisoner had for'
on the poor girl, but he Cont
no proof of his having any
onewoirlotw iwzds could not have
Murder hey. -wo...r4.(ciscohraddingpatsaseedtuhdbe:
the prisoner, ad
tauwi
rteile:sua to, t;enemr c
.; t
na
,wa t t •
tlet
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inflicted the inj ries
deliberate intent was
themost reasonable conclusion was that the prisoner
' ment angry