The Sun.
London, England, 1844-04-02 00:00:00

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1 EXTRAORDINARY SUICIDE.
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Last evening, at seven o'clock, a protracted inquiry took
place before Mr. W.-Payne, corover-flpr the city of London,
'at Andertoifs'llotel, Fleet-street, jonChing the death of Mary
Griffin,, a remarkably fine yOnng woman, aged about thirty
y-earsellitelY Bang the-situation. a himSeleeper to Mr. (r.
Scratchlcy, surgeon, of 168, Fleet-street. .
Mr. Charles' Scratchley, who degcribed himself as ipiivate
tutor in a family resident at Peckham, said'he was on a visit
to his brother on Saturday last, and went to bed in the sur-
gery betlaißd4hcbshop.shortly-liefop ;one o'clock on Sunday
morning. b-out _quarter past one be heard some person come
into the room,: and. upon calling out " Who's•that?" the de-
liceasedl-eplied ," Mary:" Witness inquired what ,she bad
come into AN room' for, and the deceased SaicLto „request
lugs to intercede for her with_ his brother, who had threat-
ened-to give her into custody for some TobbeirieS Which he
charged her with having committedin his house. Witness
said that if slieconfeSsed.the -truth; he Was willing to do so,
and die dectiased's answer Was a solemn denial of the charg
imputed-to her. IVitnees.thought she was intoxicated, and
desired her 03 g 0 to,bed, adding that the morning he would
.speak_lo her,`on the subject she had alluded to. The deceased
then said she • liad taken poisoll,
.but considering it an idle
.threat witness took no.notice' and.shortly after, she went up
strliri.' -In Omit n quarter of an hour she -came do4n again
,into fie sho,p, and tamed 'the -as on; When witness, fearing
something serious,. got' tip; aud'en Inking through 'the sur-
gery -window, found slie.haila largo.bottie to her mouth con-
taining laudiumni. Before•witneye-:c:ould wrest:` it from her,
she had-drunk &Considerable qtr City, immediately after
which-she became •insensible; and witness having laid her
downon the floor of the passage, "went up stairs to call the
assistant, brother beingfroin home at the time. Witness
also at-iit for,,Ers bfother and Mr *Day, of Salisbury-squart-
find in- the' interval, befbi-e.tliejr. rrival, administered four
powerful emetics, which had no .effect. When; Mr. Day
i earache allplled• tho•stemach-purnp, but deceased never
rallied, and die4about half-past 6-o'clock on:Sunday morning,
A .Juror ,(AroWatsoti)—You say that you.are a private
tutor; are4ott itot •aaleigyinan ? 'Witness—Yes, lam a
.minigtbr of 14:Church,- ' -- •
• MirWat4enr-Diiring, the time the deceased was in the
:surgery with Yoll# did ihe„iii.(.gusery bitterly? Witness—
Yes, she did cl a'great-dcal,.and.wry bitterly. •
Mr7Watsen4l-1)Id ,s'ou..hear; her make a charge, against
some_person.i? WittreV:::Nsci; • •
Mr.-Watson--Did her say that some person
had been the cuse et all.her.t.rouble?;.=..•Witness-Ye.s I did.
MilpWatsgnigainst *ht;l4 Unit 'll,4'lnake that 'charge?
`Witness--0.11, against ine; • • •
Mr.-Watson—Did ss..cliaiLroxtrAist.twith having
.seduced
her? ; I.thinklnott ;rl.-lelieVe the words were
that I had ritin4d her. ---• • :•••• ... ''
Me..:Waisen.asked the witness whether he did not recollect
deceased saying " God antl.:.you only know that you have
seduced the sin is all. on your head." The witness
r?pliid, that ;14110 naieltnntattention_to what deceased said,
and chid not recullect the ConiirSation which occurred. If the
jury would put quest ions, .he. would answer.
A juror thought the witness *might recollect so serious a
Matter, having occurred so short a time prei-ious.
Thp-ConicoaAs-I.oid the deceased say- anythiug similar to
the observations you ihzire just heard? Witness—She did,
Mr:•-Watson—Were you-in--the -habit of coming to your
broth-d's on Saturday ?-- Witness—Yes, I came to preach.
1 Mr—Watson—Sot at tWelve-O'clock at night? Witness—
Yo on the next day, . .
I Mr.Watson=Why did• you not.',:mention that which has
last been elieitekl2. Witness—My reason was that I thought
it was not Material to the Case.

The COIiONER Sitio:tit was very material, in order that the
jtiry might; judge:* deceased's state of mind: whether she
was iii der la,false.lmPression; might be considered afterwards.
In answerio a queStiOn from, the Coroner, whether he had
been intimlate with the young woman, witness said, I deny
the eisarg". My impression is (checking himself.)
No, Sir, I wish to,saY
The witriess here sat
Mrs. MOT Watson, wife of Mr. Watson, of 167, Fleet-
street,: said srh4' lived next door to Mr. Scratchley, and while
in her lick patilohr, about 'one o'clock on Sunday morning,
she heard 4 woman crying, 'Neu bitterly in that gentleman's
surgery.; The partition between the rooms was very thin, and
witness`he'ar'd de.ceated say, "You have seduced me—you
have brought pie to this." Some " You are a
liar;" and deceased said; " I am no liar--God.and you know
lam notes-du alone have brought me to it." Witness heard
much talking afterwards, but could not catch the precise
words, and about an hour after heard a great moaning as of
a person-in:extreme rain.
Mark Gosling, an errand- boy in Mr. Scratchley's service,
deposed to having heard deceased threaten to stab Mr. Chas.
SeratChley bet Ween eight arid liin:e'o'Clock on Saturday even-
ing, when she was perfectlY.sOber. Re said she had been in a
desponding state for several weeks, and generally cried .very
muckwlicu Mr; C. Seratchley came.

The CoUormit having" remarked On the extraordinary na•
tare of thii ease, said he thought it. was most desirable before
the inquiry was closed, that some' of the 'deceased's friends
should' be present, an' opinion in Which the jury unanimously
concurred, and the imiti.iry.Wa§. accordingly adjourned until
'Thursday next,' the Coroner giving directions to the sum-
moning officer to insure their attendance on that day.

WOLVEATIAMPTON, APRIL I.—On Monday next a
great rieg tradequeeting will be held here, for the purpose of
receiving. deputation from, the National Anti Corn-law
League, ceasistmg of Mr. Cobden, M.P. ; J. Bright, M.P. ;
It. Moore, Esq., and the meeting will be. attended by the
borough Members, Hon. C. B. Villiers, and S. Thornely,
M.P. As we have no building large enough to contain one-
half of the people that will attend at this gathering, an im-
mense: pavilion—is now being erected expressly for the
occasion ; and there is no doubt but this meeting will be by
mauy thousands the more numerous, and by far the most im-
portant in-door.ineeting ever held in Wolverhampton.
BATTLE EXTRAORDINARY.—As Mr. Qompton, of
Southfield, near Lea, Wilts, was walking through a field in
the parisltwith hit gunflais attention was engaged by a hawk
hovering over isliat.hh imagined to be a mot*. After_ due
delibefation, he. suddenly made a dart at his intended victim,
and which proved 'to be a weasel. The old adage. " catch a
-weasel- asleep," held good in this instance;. the weasel saw
his danger, l and instantly seized the hawk by the head. A
:severenstruggle here ensued,, but at last the hawk succeeded
:in' disengaging himself, :and: got away. Nothing damted,
however; he returned to the conflict as game as at the first;
flie jstinggle then recommenced, and very soon after the
'weasel was seen dragging the dead hawk towards the hedge,
when Mr. Compton:shot the weasel, and found the hawk, as
beftlre described, (juite•dead; and his head bitten entirely
through )u feVcrat placesiliinip,shire Advertiser.

SUICIDE' OF THE GROOM OF Sln J. KEY.—Yes-
terday' Mr. \Yaklev, M.P.,coroner, held an inquest at the
Watermen'S Arms, Old: DrentfOid, on the body of Charles
'She:Thant aged '23.years, groom to Sir John Key, whose body
wasTOuthl floating in the river Thames on Friday last. On
the tank had been discovered deceased's hat ; in it was found
a pair of leather gloves, in which was the following letter in
the deceased's handwriting, in pencil :—"Dear Father 'and
'Mother,—l 'wrote this with a broken' `heart to you, and dare
'say it ivill'hurt yours as well 'When you'll hear of my last
end. I had a good place, that you know, but Mrs.
hindere&rhe of it by giving me such a shameful cha-
raeter,—ivhich I did not deserve. I know I have done
wrong.,._ but I could not help it. After my travelling
about -with an empty stomach day after day, and suf-
fering so much as 'I did, and then getting a place, I thought
Mrs. would not hinder me from it ; but she is capable
of saying anything, and very likely she will suffer-first, if
not in this world, in the next to .come. So goodbye and God
bless you all. Give my love 'to all my sisters, and I•hope
they, gill' do well iri the World and take care of themselves.
I have one wish before I die, which is, that my sister Jane
should have my Bible that Lady Key gave me. It is at Mr.
Pearnion's,'and I hope she-will take care of it for my sake.
o no more from year broken-hearted broth,er,Charles Shep-
hard." •- On the envelope was Written, ." Charles Sheppard
now lies beneath the water, till through MrS. preventing
me from a good 'place, and made •rle broken-hearted."
Terdict—" Found drowned, supposed by his own act; but as
to the state of his, mind; there was no evidence•to show."
While the jury ,'were signing the verdict, Hughes, the con-
stable of Brentford; • asked the Coroner What was to be done
with' the deceased's clothes. The reason of his asking was,
that the friends of the deceased were too poor to bury him,
and othe .expense would, therefore, fall on the parish of
Ealiffg;Abe officers of which had,' directed him to_seize the
.clothes on their behalf, towards defraying the expenses.
Mr. Wikleyy who, with the jury, appeared much surprised
l• at the orders of the parish officers, said, " Give the poor fel-
low's things to his mother, and leave the body for the -pariah
officers."

• CITY OF LONDON GENERAL PENSION SOCIETY.-•••
Yesterdav a' general meeting of the donors and subscribers :
to this.eharity was held at the London Tavern, Bishopsgate-
street, for the purpose of.electing six pensioners out of a list
Of fourteen candidates, to participate in the benefits afforded
by the institution. Thomas Davies, Esq., in the Abair. The
report of the last year stated that the society was founded in
1818,, for providing a permanent relief to decayed artizans,
mechanics, maninheturers, tradesmen, and the widows of
such persons, above sixty years of age, by a monthly allow-
ance,'which at the preSent time amounts 'toll. 2s. per menth
to men .and 15s. to 'women. .The income of the society during
the past year amounted to 1,794/. 12s. 6d., and the expendi-
ture (including 628/. 7s. paid to pensioners, and 500/ in-
vested in the life fund) to 1,477/. I7s. Ild., leaving a balance
at the Bank of England in favour of the society of 316/.
14s. 7d.' The sum collected at the last annual dinner, at
. which terd John Ruasell presided, amounted to 9341. Is. 6d.,
an amoune,Rxeeeding, by nearly 250!., that received at the
previous festival. 'The bank stock of the society now amounts
to 5,60446* 4d: .The number of pensioners on the society's
hooka are ,et preient: sixty:Six. The election of. yesterday
will increase them to seventy-two. The ballot closed at
three o'clock, when the names-of the successful candidates
were announced.
, . PAcTottrEs (N 0.2) BILL.—The new Factories Bill,
brought into the liOnse of Commons by Sir James Graham
AitsrhaepnpdetairlaenLcaelyins
racip4rtiinntg.edtcsilago.
anti Mr. H. Manners Sutton,___ M.i). (the Secretary and Under-
Secretary of State for the Home Department), has just made
urlitn i senti
Factories,"tl e d A
and Bill ill tci
con-
tains- as many as 73 cfausei;'with schedules, &c. The Act is
to take effect on the .Ist day of October next ensuing. The
ktory inspectors are authorised to appoint certifying sur-
geons, foi the purposes of the•Act,-• and to fix the amount of
their fees. Full powers are conferred on the inspectors of fac-
tories, for the purposes of ascertaining the real age of chil-
dren to be etriployed therein. Special provisions are enacted
for the Uinta' limevtashingeof -factories, the protection of
the workers in wet-spinning 'fig-X-mills, the due guarding and
boxing-ofl'of machinery, and the general prevention of acci-
ibints, as well as for their cure, if any should unfortunlitely .
. ociur.. The hoUrsOf working for children and young persons
arc to be observed with strict, regularity. Respecting the
peculiar 'clauses relative to the time "of working, we may
simply state, that children may be ' employed in fac-
tories at eight years of age; that no child is to be
employed more than six hours and a-half per diem, except
in certain cases (hereinafter specified); that no woman
above 18 years of age -is to 'be employed in any ThctoiT, save
for the same time andin the same manner as " young per-
°stills" May. he employed in factories; and that work is to
tease on Saturdays at half-past four o'clock, r,m., Stc, In any
..
-faCtory in which di* labour of young pet-ions is restricted Co
test haul it:day, it will be lawful to employ any " child" t6ri
hours in anyone day, on three alternate days of every week, .
provided that such child shall not be in any 'way employed
in the same or in any other factory on two successive days,
&c. • Provision is. made for recovering the time list by par-
tial et oppages; and additional regulations made with respect ,
~talnew times, and_holidays,•atathe attendance of children at
'sOlool. silk mills are exempted from certain prorisions of
this Bill,-it being enacted that any child above eleven years
oftemployed solely-in the winding and throming of raw silk
assay- wort_withonfany proof of having attended a school for
ten hours.a day, but net after half-past four .o'cinck on Sa-
turday, aftetnoons.- The -73 d or " interpretation" claw
eiiketsAh* the Factories'Act as. amended by this Act, tern
.this A:4t, situ:1111)e nstrtied togetlif as one Act '; that the
*ad, "ichile hall-be taken to mean' a child under 'thirteen .
years of age and the words " young person," a person aged
thirteen ancl undereighteen years of age, &c. Thus. It will be
.4e611 that:the isputed question of ‘,ten" or "twelv-0 hop* y,
At
ti rich has ali dy been so strongly contested in therHoustrof .'' ,
thinipons, is,. • the•presentor new Bill?taeitly consigned" tti.", 4.
[ the shelf. The Bill will not, of course, be read,ivseconcl time" '• t
1 until after the forthcoming Easter- feCet,t " ' '