The Sun.
London, England, 1850-09-12 00:00:00

CHARGE -OF MANSLAUGHTER AGAINST
CAPTAIN BUSLIE, OF THE 59TH REGIMENT.
An inquest was held at Mallow, on Friday, on the
body of a respectable child, named John Dennehy,
between six and seven years of age, alleged to have
come by its death in consequence of a blow: from a
whip, said to have been inflicted by Henry Kendal
Bushe, captain of,the 59th Regiment,
Julia Hallisy, the first witness, deposed that she
resided with the parents of John Dennehy, and acted
as their servant.. On Wednesday, the 21st August,
she left home in the evening, between six and seven
o'clock, in company with the deceased. - Mary Hal.
lily went with them, and they proceeded to walk
through Barrack-lane. The deceased had a small
whip its his hand and was playing with it. Heard a
dog screech. When the Captain heard the •dog
screech he turned back with a large whip in his
hand and opened it; he then stamped on the ground
and said, " You young ruffian, why do you strike
my dog?" striking the deceased at the same time vio-
lently across the head. It was a large thong whip.
The child ran away quickly, and in the confusion
knocked himself against a wall. The deceased then ran
home. Does not think the child was struck with
the handle of the whip. Witness went to the mother
of the deceased and told her " Capt.-Bushe had killed
her child." The child was in perfect health when
they went out to walk. The child said to his mother
that he was not hurt, but on asking him the second
time he stated that his head was sore, and that the
knots of the whip went through it. The child was
ill several times during that night.
Mary Hallisy deposed to the age of the child, which
was about six years, and also that she was related to
the Dennehys ; she added that she- accompanied the
deceased to walk, but did not recollect the day ; it
was about a fortnight ago. She was accompanied by
the last witness and a sister of deceased, and they'
went down Barrack-lane about twelve or one o'clock.
Did-not hear the dogs make any noise. Met a gen-
•tleman coming on with a whip in his hand, and he was
accompanied by some dogs. Did not see him strike
the deceased. The child could not be struck without
her seeing it.
Mrs. Julia Dennehy examined—ls -the mother o 1
the deceased child, who was six years old at the time
of his death. On last •Wednesday fortnight the child-
went out to walk in company with the maid, Julia
Halliey, Mary Hallisy accompanied them, and w
sister of the deceased child. Is sure it was evening
when they went out. When they' came back, the-
maid said, " Oh, ma'am, the child is destroyed."
Deponent stripped the child, -but- saw no marksi
on the body ; there was a lump,- however, on the
top of - the forehead, as if it had• received a blow, and;
the child had also a welt across the cheek. The
child looked flushed. On asking him if he was
hurt, be at first said, "he was note" but on repeat-
.ing'the _question, he said, "he was struck on the
head with a whip." • In the morning the child looked
very pale
.and heavy, and in the evening deponent
gave him a little medicine. Went for Doctor Berry
on Friday morning. The child's-stomach and bowels
were greatly disordered on that night—in fact, no-
thing could compose them. The child used frequently
to start, as if about .to get convulsed, and cry out,
0` Adam :life—lcok- at him—look at
Limn: The.chlld -got Corp/410ns thesSunday
ing thaNidnesday she. Was esarticke'e'Cemplied-Wiiii
the directionseofaehte &eat**, ("tglie kikeotd
last Wednesday.
Dr. P. Berry deposed that he first attended the de-
ceased child about a fortnight ago, when it appeared
to be in a general fever. Examined the person of the
child, and found no marks of violence whatever. The
child put his hand to his head, but on witness ex-
amining it he found no marks upon it. The deceased
got convulsions about the second or third day, but or
the fifth he became convalescent from the fever. The
child then appeared so well that it was dressed and sat
in his mother's lap; but on the same evening the
convulsions returned, and continued at intervals up to
the time of his death. Was preaent when Dr. Braddel
made a post-mortem examination of the child. There
appeared to be some watery fluid in the ventricles of
the brain, and the membranes covering it were of a
bad colour. There were also minute tubercles formed
near the base- of -the brain. The substance of the
brain was remarkably soft. •
CORONER—Can you say what- is the cause of the
child's death ? Witness—Yes ; the child died from
water on the brain, which appeared to follow an attack
of fever.
The witness continued to depose that the chest of
the child was also examined, and one of the lungs
was found diseased. There were other manifestations
of disease, which must have existed prior to the child's
last illness.
CoaoNsa—Would the blow of a whip cause the
injuries you describe ? Witness—Certainly not.
However, let me qualify it by saying that a blow of
a whip, if severe enough, would predispose the child
to fever, or, if given on the head, to water on the brain.
To a juror—The disease in the lungs had nothing
to do with the child's death.
Cross-examined by Mr. Jones—Examined the
child two days after the alleged injury, and found no
marks whatever on his body. It is quite possible
that giving the child fruit or treating it improperly
would produce convulsions. If there was a welt on
the cheek of the child on 'Wednesday, it certainly
must have left some traces on Friday, when witness
saw the deceased.
Dr. Braddel deposed to having made a post mortem
examination of the deceased. The vessels of the brain
and its membranes were much distended, and filled
with blood. Thinks this state of the brain arose from
inflammation, and that the watery fluid discovered in
the brain itself arose from the same cause. Had heard
that the child was injured in the head, and therefore
made a very minute examination, but could discover
no traces of any injury on that organ. A small lump
might have existed on the head a fortnight ago. There
was nothing material in the cross-examination of this
witness. . •
In reply to the CORONER,
Dr. Berry, the former physician, stated that it had
gone abroad that as he was the medical man a'tending
the military, he ought- not 'to make a post mortem
examination of this child, and therefore had Dr. Brad-
del called in.
The CORONER addressed the jury, who retired,
and, after some deliberation, returned with a verdict
of " Manslaughter against Capt. Bushe."
The crowd that thronged the outer part of the
court seemed overjoyed at the result of the inquest,
and some of them left the place crying " Bravo.

A SUSPICIOUS CASE.

Early in the year 1849, when the cholera was
mowing down a plentiful harvest in Glasgow, Mr.
----, a clerk in the employment of a well-known
firm in that city, complained one evening of symp-
toms which seemed to give him some uneasiness as to
his fate. Next day he was later than usual in ap-
pearing at his desk, and just as his employers were
about to seed to his home to inquire into the cause of his
detention, his brother called and informed them that
he had been taken ill overnight with the cholera ; that
he had died at an early hour of the morning, and was
already buried. Similar cases were then of daily
occurrence, and the employers had no doubt but that
death had created a vacancy in their establishment,
which it was incumbent on them to fill up.. The,
deceased was bnried with no greater haste' than was
usual on such occasions, in a private burial-
lot, belonging to himself while living. Shortly after
his death, his employers discovered that he had em-
btzzled money belonging to them, to a considerable
amount, although the precise extent of his pecula-
tiuns could not be readily ascertained, owing to the
ingenious manner in which he had managed the
books which were under his charge. Some property
which he left behind him was applied to make good
his defalcations, to the amount of 1,5001., but there
was reason to believe that the total sum misappro-
priated by him considerably exceeded that amount. Im-
mediately after his death it appears that his brother
waited upon his own banker, in whose custody was
but a very small• sum belonging to him, and de-
posited no less than 1,000/. in notes of different
Scotch banks ; a farge proportion of the notes being-
spic and 'span new, although not of very re-
cent issue,' judging from tt.eir dates. It was
known to those familiar to him that the deceased
bruther was very fond "of new notes,, for which he
always exchanged old ones whenever an opportunity
afforded of so doing. He was also fond of new coins
of all kinds, and at his death a number of shillings
and half-crowns perfectly new were found in his
possession. The money was tendered at the bank in
a more disordered state than that in which such sums
are generally kept, and the explanation given was
thrt the sum had Just been received from the country,
and that it had been carried to the bank in the state
which' it came to hand, the depositor not having
had time to arrange it in better order. All
this occurred upwards of eighteen months ago,
and the --whole matter had been well nigh
forgotten, when a circumstance took place, on" Sun-
day,. the Ist instant, which not only revived it, but
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has also imparted to it a public interest, which is
ot
oc ctubpea tti on,
sons of acting in the capacity
sons of one of the members of the firm. During the
time of his being so engaged, he was in the habit of
attending St. George's Church, which was also at-
tended by the family in which he acted as tutor. On
the Sunday named a man, with overgrown whiskers,
and a portentous moustache, appeared in the church,
a short distance from the pew occupied by the family
in question. Service had scarcely commenced when
oti,laissepderbsoandage observed
tangbt, the
wbispertiwngo boysear whom the
nestlytoeadoe-
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other, 'with their attention riveted, upon him. lie
no sooner observed this than he became very un-
easy,olsed andkiis aftafter t
ahned first
,walkedpsalindelibbaedratebelyennusut ngo;
church. Since that, time he has neither
_been seep
'nor heard of, bui inquiry has been instituted 'as to