The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-01-07 00:00:00

ATROCIOUS ATTEMPT TO MURDER.

(From the Manchester Guardian.)

On Friday night, one of the most diabolical attempts upon
human life which it has fallen to the lot of the public press
to narrate, took place in the immediate vicinity of Oldham.
For many years, a widow woman, named Hannah Hall, in
the 72d year of her age, has resided by herself in a house at
Higginshaw, on the road between Oldham and Heyside, and
situated in the township of Royton. The house is a rather
spacious one, and adjoining another inhabited dwelling;
two having been, some years ago, made into cottages out of
a disused machine shop. Mrs. Hall has been a woman of
remarkably good health, and has retained, in an extraordinary
degree, her former activity and quickness, both of mind and
body ; and, consequently, she has not deemed it necessary to
have any assistant in the house, but has managed the busi-
ness of a small milk-farm and a little shop herself. Near
her house is a colliery, the property of Messrs. Samuel Lees
and Son, Soho, at which colliery a number of lads and young
men are generally employed ; and they have frequently been
in the habit of going to Mrs. Hall's, to purchase bread, but-
ter, and cheese, for lunch. Soon after nine o'clock, on the
night of Friday, the family living next door to Mrs. Hall
heard an unusual noise in her house. It was about her time
for retiring to rest, and they were surprised • and the man
(John Collinge) made a remark, wondering what could ac-
casion it ; and whilst he and his wife were talking, there was
anothor noise louder than the first, like a blow, or something
heavy falling. He immediatelyrushed out, and entered Mrs.
Hall's kitchen by the back-door. All was in darkness and
still ; and he shouted, " Hallo ! what's to do here ?" but
there was no reply. He went into the shop, and shouted
again, but received no answer. All was dark, and he was
groping his way back into the lobby, when he heard some-
thing like a man ; and then he returned, feeling his way
towards the 'floor from whence, as he supposed, the sound
proceeded. In some time, he touched a head, and felt that
it was wet ; and, lifting up the body, he carried it towards
the fire, when he found that it was the woman he had got
hold of. Several neighbours were alarmed and hastened to
the spot ; and the sufferer was laid on a sofa, and a light was
procured, when it was found that the old woman was nearly
covered with blood, her head appearing to be a mass of
wounds. The constable was sent for, as was also the surgeon,
who, on his arrival, found that she had received ten wounds
on the head, one of which, above the left ear, had penetrated
to the skull, without fracturing it ; and, glancing off, had
torn the scalp the length of two inches. None of the wounds
were likely to prove mortal, though some of them were se-
vere and hideous. In some time Mrs. Hall recovered a little,
and was quite sensible and collected ; and in answer to ques-
tions, she stated, that " Batty," a young fellow whose name
is John Griffiths, and who worked at the colliery, came into
the shop, and asked for twopenn'orth of bread and butter;
that she conversed with him whilst cutting the bread, and
mentioned a job she -should want him to do for her some
time ; that she stooped to the tub to get some butter, and that
moment she received a blowon the left side of her head which
knocked her senseless and she remembered nothing further.
From other circumstances it is probable, that on her falling,
the candle which she held in her hand went out, and that the
villian in aiming a second blow, which would assuredly have
kiled her, struck in the dark, a strong lid of a tnb, and broke
it, leaving thereon, the mark of a blunt instrument ; it was
this second blow, making a louder noise, which roused her
neighbour Collinge. On being aaked who did it, she said they
all knew him ; it was Batty, and he was in the shop then.
The shop and house were searched, but no person was found,
nor were there any marks to trace by ; nor any articles mis-
sing. Hatty was soon after taken into custody at the colliery.
When charged with the crime, he looked confused, but said,
he had done nothing. It was ascertained that he was absent
from the colliery at the time attempt was made, and lie had
told one of the workmen that lie was going to Turf-lane, which
is in the direction of the house ; but he now accounted for his
absence by saying, that he went " to the lower cote, to sit by
the fire." His comrades, however, declared there was not
any fire in "the lower cote." He was kept in custody at
Oldham until Monday afternoon, when the magistrates,
Messrs. Holme and Hordern, took the depositions of the old
woman at her residence. She was better, and gave her tes-
timony with great clearness ; and was quite positive as to the
man who struck her. She said he was Batty ; and when
asked if she saw him amongst many who were in the room,
she pointed her finger towards him, and said, "Ay, that's
him." He was consequently committed to Kirkdale on the
charge of having feloniously cut and wounded Hannah Holt,
with intent to murder her, or do her some grievous bodily
harm. On Tuesday morning, he was taken to Kirkdale. He
appeared to be 20 or 22 years of age ; and stated that he came
to live in this part as an apprentice from the Duke of York's
school, at Chelsea, being first bound to a fustian weaver at
Heyside, named Percival, from whom, with several other ap-
prentices, he was liberated for bad usage.

THE ROYAL BRIDAL CHAMBERS.

(From the Argus.)

The suite of private apartments now preparing at Bucking-
ham Palace for the reception of Her Majesty and her Royal
Consort, Prince Albert, on their nuptials, are on the north
wing, overlooking the Palace Gardens and Grosvenor Place.
They will extend from end to end of that range of the build-
ing, and are now being entirely remodelled and fitted up in a
very costly style, under the direction of the Earl of Uxbridge,
Lord Chamberlain to Her Majesty. Upwards of 300 men
are at present employed upon the decorations, which are to
be finished before the Ist of February next. The prevailing
colour is of maiden's blush, with milk-white mountings
throughout the suite, the cornices, ornamented ceilings, and
mouldings of the architraves to the windows and doors, are
all burnished gold ; the character of the embellishments are
what the original architect, the late Mr. Nash, called his
Athenian order, and are a compound between the Italian,
Roman, and Greek members. The following outline of the
ground-plan will afford our readers a slight idea of the ar-
rangements which, when completed, will combine perfection
with privacy. It will be seen that the Baroness Lehzen has
posted herself at the entrance, the door of her apartments
opening directly opposite to the priVate reception room, or
antechamber of the Queen, so that no person can enter by
the private stair-case without her observation, there being
but a narrow passage between the Baroness and the royal
pair.

North Wing, Garden Front