The Sun.
London, England, 1850-08-13 00:00:00

OXFORD ClRCUlT.—Gloucester, Aug. 12.
(Before Mr. Justice WILLIAMS.)
CHARGE Ca MURDER Br STARVATION.—EIiza •
Seth Bubb, a repulsive-looking woman, aged 40,
was charged with the wilful murder of Melia
Hook, at Churcham, in May last. Mr. Huddleston
and Mr. Powell were counsel for the prosecution,
and Mr. Pigott defended the prisoner. There was
also a charge of manslaughter against the prisoner
together with a man named Richard Hook, but the
court first tried the female prisoner on the more seri-
ous charge. Mr. Huddleston having addressed the
jury, called
Mary Easthope, a married woman residing near
the prisoner at Churcham, who deposed that the man
Hoek was a widower, and that the prisoner lived
with him. Remembered seeing the deceased, on fre-
quent occasions when the children of Bubb were at
meals, grovelling on the floor and picking up the
crumbs that fell from the breakfast table. She did
not ask for food, but picked up anything that she
could get. She was in a very filthy state in her per-
son, and appeared to have no clothes on except an old
frock, which was open at the back. The prisoner's
children were well fed, but the deceased appeared
" cast away for want." There was plenty of food
for all, but witness did not see anything given to
Maria Hook. The witness spoke to the prisoner
having on several occasions spoken of the deceased as
a " nasty little devil." As she was lying on the
ground picking up the crumbs, the prisoner said " if
she did not get up she would kick her in two." On
one occasion when she went out to work the prisoner
left a piece of bread about as big as her three fin-
gers for Maria Hook's dinner, and two larger pieces
of bread, one for each of the other children. She.
(prisoner) told witness that the deceased had been
telling her father about it, and added, " sooner than
the nasty little devil should tell her father any-
thing she would kill her."
The witness was cross-examined by Mr. PIGOTT at
some length, and admitted the child was dirty in her
person, apparently habitually so.
Emma Jackson was next called. She bpd known
the prisoner about twelve months. Mrs. Hook, the
mother of the deceased child, died about twelve
months before the child's death. The prisoner was a
sister of Mrs. Hook, and went to live with Richard
Hook on his wife's death. Hook had three other chil-
dren besides the deceased; they were all older than
Maria. The prisoner had two boys of her own, aged
6 and 12 years, and they all lived together in Hook's
house. The deceased was 4 years old when she died.
Witness lived in a room adjoining Hook's house under
the same roof, fur about twelve months before the
child's death. At the time of Mrs. Hook's death the
deceased child was a nice little girl, and appeared
perfectly well. After her mother's death, however,
she began to waste away, and got gradually into a
very ragged and dirty condition, and looked worse
and worse every time the witness saw her. The pri-
soner did not give the child food enough, and when
she went out in the morning to work she would give
her a piece of bread.to last her for the day. The child
would ask for food. The prisoner cursed her instead
of giving her food. Prisoner was continually in the
habit of beating and ill-using the deceased child.
Had seen Mrs. Bubb eating toast and butter at a time
when the child was crying for bread, but she gave her
none, though she would send her a small bit up
stairs about as big as three fingers. The prisoner's
own children were treated well and had the same food
as the prisoner herself. The child at length got so
weak that she was not able to stand, and was in the
habit of crawling about the room on her hands and
knees. Towards the last she was placed in the
chimney corner upon a heap of rags. Witness
had frequently given the child food, which she seized
hold of in both her hands and devoured ravenously.
Had seen the prisoner beat the deceased more than
twenty times. Had seen her washing the child in
cold water some two or three months before its death
(it died on the 24th May). Saw her pull the child
out of the tub, push her across the room, and exclaim,
" You d—d young bitch you'll never die, and nothing
'll ever kill you." Had frequently heard the prisoner
wish the child dead, curse her, and call her bad
names. Saw her beat the child three weeks before
its death. On the morning of its death, at four
o'clock, witness was called into Hook's house by Bubb,
who said she thought the child was dying. Witness
found the child on Babb's lap, groaning dreadfully,
and it died at eight o'clock. Bubb cried a little just
as the child died, but her tears seemed to have been
drawn forth by fright at the child's dreadful appear-
ance in the agonies of death.
Mr. Potter, a schoolmaster, living at the distance
of about a quarter of a mile from the cottage of Hook,
deposed that he had known Hook and his family for
years past, and had played with and nursed his chil-
dren. One day, on coming home, he found his wife
feeding the child at his gate. His wife gave her
three pieces of bread and butter, which she ate vora-
ciously, and appeared in a most destitute condition.
The child was in a filthy condition, and the _only
article of dress on her person was an old stuff frock.
She would have eaten another piece of bread and
butter, but witness thought it would not be right to
give it her in her weakly condition. Witness told her
to come again next day, when he gave her some din-
ner. She was there for hours before dinner time,
waiting at the gate. She came daily for weeks, and
appeared always in the same pitiable plight. She was
a perfect skeleton in body ; but when he saw the
body at the inquest he could not recognise it as the
same child, from emaciation. When he first saw the
child at his gate he supposed the child to be some beg-
gar's child, and did not recognise it as Hook's from
neglect
and ill-treatment of
its altered appearance since its mother's death. Wit-
ness fed another child of Hook's which also came to
his house for food.
they
Severalotghaevrepoerfsotnhse
who
lied in the neighbour-
hoodeatmen were examined, and they all agreed in the ac-
counts
the unfortunate deceased by the prisoner.
The surgeon who examined the body was not
called when our report left.
It was stated that the deceased's body •
weighed only
Gibs. ,the usual weight of a child on its birth. The
deceased was more than four years of age at her death.

„
A NOVELTY OF PRODUCTIVE SClENCE.—Strange
documents are at times sent to the Academie des Sciences.
In the last batch, for example. is one of a man who pretends
that, by means of bleeding, milking, and some other opera-
tions' he can make cows ” in an interesting situation " give
birth to calves of what sex he will; and he hints very
broadly that, by the employment of similar means, it will not
be difficult to enable papas and mammas to have baby-boys
or baby-girls a vomate!—Paris correspondent of the Literary
Gazette.

Mourning was assumed by some of the New York
iouruab4 ou learning the (loath of the late Sir Robert Peel.

II
Hector jeweller, living at No.
20, Peter-street, ft
e rr
Hume,
with having criminally
assaulted his two daughters, one aged ten years, the
other nine years.
The mother of the children, it appeared, had been
dead some time. The children and their unnatural
e rmer
parent occupied a back attic—all slept together in one
bed. The eldest girl was assaulted about a month
ago. She did not tell what had happened, as her
chargedk working
father threatened to beat her. She did tell a Mrs.
Jackson some days afterwards, and this, added to
what had occurred in her younger sister's case, led to
the prisoner being given into custody.
Mr. Tothill, surgeon, 8, Charles-street, considered
that an asslult had been recently committed on the
eldest of the two children.
The prisoner denied the charge. He admitted that
when drunk he might have exposed himself more than
was proper to his children.—Fully committed.

ALMSHOUSES FOR ST. PANCRAS PARISH.--Follow-
ing the example set a few years back by the ratepayers of
St. Marylebone in the erection of almshouses for decayed
householders of good character, a movement has been set on
foot for the establishment of a similar institution for the
parish of St. Pancras. A committee has been formed, at the
head of which is the vicar, the Rev. Thomas Dale, and the
churchwardens, Donald Fraser and Thomas Eld Baker,
Esqs. Miss Burdett Coutts has consented to become the
lady patroness, and the Marquis of Camden, K.G., Lord
Dudley Coutts Stuart, M.P., Sir Benjamin Hall, Bart., M.P.,
the vice-presidents. The design of this institution otigi-
.nated with some leading members of the present reformed
vestry, and several hundred pounds have already been sub-
scribed, amongst which is a donation of 1001. from Michael
Prendergast, Esq., an old and highly-respected member of
the vestry, upwards of eighty years of age, who has promised
that as soon as 3,9001. shall be collected he will give an addi-
tional 1001. The principles on which the institution is
founded are of a most liberal character.

We state with much satisfaction that we have just
seen and examined a large lump of auriferous rock or stone,
just arrived from the neighbourhood of Annatto Bay, Ja•
maica. Split open, it appears almost one compact mass of
gold and silver, the pure silver ore laying in small lumps,
thickly interspersed with gold particles. This lump will yield
about seventy per cent. of the precious metals. This is
considerably richer than many of the Californian speel-
raena...,Eferalc4

SUICIDE OF A SURGEON.—On Saturday Mr. W.
Baker, jun., held an inquest at the White Hart, Turner..
street, Commercial-road, relative to the death of Mr. Wtn.
Wheatley, aged 45, a surgeon, who committed self-destruc-
tion by shooting himself with a pair of small holster pistols
through the heart, at 13, Turner-street. Dr. Thomas
Robertson, Mile-end-road, surgeon, stated that he saw
deceased a few minutes after the melancholy occurrence.
He found two perforations near each other, under the left
nipple. The shot had not passed through his body. He
felt one of them close to the spine. He had known deceased
intimately for the last twenty years. He was for many
years in the service of the Queen of Spain. About two
months ago he returned to England from South Australia.
He had been a medical officer on board the Kate, which had
taken some emigrants to Sydney, forwarded there by Go-
vernment. A charge was then preferred against him for
neglect of duty, that he allowed the men -to% go into the
berths of the single women. An investigation took place at
Sydney, the effect of which was shat he' lost a gratuity he
would have had of 601., and he was prevented from ever
again having a Government appointment in that capacity.
Deceased protested his innocence of the charge, and said it
was when the women were unable to come on deck for water
owing to the weather he allowed the men to take water for
them. That was no charge against his moral character.
Had no doubt but the imputation on his character affected
his mind. Verdict—" Temporary insanity."

A FACT FOR THE PROTECTIONISTS.--AS a satis-
factory proof of the improvement in the employment and
condition of the poor, we learn that at the board-day, on
Monday, Mr. Strait, the relieving officer, had not a single
case of application for relief from the parish of Bocking, and
only two on his books from the parish of Braintree—a cir-
cumstance unprecedented in his twenty years' experience as
overseer and relieVing officer. Further, it may be added that
last week a poor-rate was made for the latter parish at only
6d. in the pound, the lowest sum to be found in the pages of
that walking parochial record, the oldest inhabitant.--
Chantiford Chronicle.