The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-03-19 00:00:00

THE MURDER OF HIS WIFE

SALISBURY, TUESDAY

'oockenharo, n

Summer Assize
his wife, when

It will be in the recollection of
aler, residing at
at the late

Vootton Bassett, N

held at Devizes, with the wilful murder of
ippeared that the prisoner, abou

old, having given Up his" avocation as a pig-dealer, ha(
out his little cottage, consisting merely of the ground-floor,
to railway labourers, who were thereby accommodated in a
very sorry manner, they being huddied together like so many
nigs. This circumstance, it is supposed, gave rise to an illicit

correspondence

bourer, named Jack, and this led to an elopement, which cir-
cumstance so irritated the prisoner, that he coolly and de-
liberately fired his gun at his wife while she was in the act of
cleaning some carrots and potatoes,, and killed her dead on
the spot. But as the principal witness could not then attend,
the trial was adjourned to the Salisbury Lent Assizes, when
the jury found him guilty of the charge of wilful murder.
The only question, said Mr. Justice Erskine, for them to de-
cide was, " whether the prisoner loaded the gun with the in-
tention to destroy or not the life of his wife's paramour (the
railway labourer, Jack) •, for, if they were satisfied of that
fact, it did not matter whether the wife had been killed acci-
dentally- or not, for if the gun exploded, when in the posses-
sion of the prisoner, he having loaded it for an unlawful pur-
pose, that was, by law, murder, and equally the same as
though he had loaded the said gun for the express purpose of
destroying his wife's life." We understand that hundreds
of persons in this city sympathised with the unfortunate man,
he having taken the life of his wife under circumstances of
the most aggravated nature, and consequently a petition was
got up at Salisbury, and very numerously signed, for the
commutation of the sentence of death, but to no purpose.
The prosecutors (the authorities of the parish) and the jury
recommended the prisoner to mercy. but we are informed,
on authority of the most official character, that his lordship
most positively declined joining in that petition for mercy.
During the interim between the unhappy man's sentence
and execution, he has conducted himself in a manner altoge-
ther extraordinary.
His wife was a young and very beautiful woman, and it is
supposed his jealonsy.continned after her death, for he would
not acknowledge himself guilty of a fault, and asserted that
the injury he had sustained fully justified the act he had
committed. His conversation was blasphemous, lewd, and
insulting to the authorities—justification of his own conduct,
and determination not to repent. Even on his last day, his
first words were imprecations, alleging that the workmen
were lazy fellows for not coming and putting up his drop
(the scaffold) at an earlier hour ; and on his hearing the
sound of the workmen's hammers, when they were beginning
their labour, he gave three hurrahs with a firm voice, having
previously observed that he had two crooked sixpences to
give Jack Ketch if he would well grease the rope ! The
Venerable Archdeacon Macdonald, the chaplain (the Rev.
C. H. Hodgson), and the "Rev. Mortimer Hodgson, and
other ministers, wereindefatigable in their spiritual labours
in his behalf ; but he would not listen to them fora moment.
He would not suffer the sacrament to -be administered to
him, nor allow the burial service to be read previously to
his execution. Eleven o'clock came, the hour appointed
for his death, and when .the officers went to his cell, he
exclaimed, " Give me a pint of gin, and I'll show them
how to dance Jim Crow!" Indeed we should be pollut-
ing the ear, and demoralizing the community, were we to
publish the almost dying words of the wretched man. Find-
ing that this conduct was his determination of display at the
last, the under-sheriff and other officers were resolved to al-
low him no time to corrupt the public morals on the scaf-
fold, and a few minutes before twelve o'clock the prison bell
announced the approaching time of his dissolution—(at this
time there were thousands of persons congregated in front
of the gaol to witness the laqmoments of this unhappy victim
of jealousy), and shorly after the Venerable Arhdeacon Mac-
donald, the Rev. C. H. Hodgson: and son, preceded by the
officers, were seen advancing from the wretched man's cell,
and then next till turnkeys and prisoner followed, and the
prisoner was seen jumping, dancing, and singing "Turn
about and wheel about, and do just so, and every I turns
about I jump Jim Crow. I went up to London," &c. But
here evidently this wretch was almost broken hearted, and
seemed to be a -mere puppet of some hidden mechanical
power ; nevertheless he arrived on the fatal spot without be-
traying any very evident symptoms of intimidation, and went
readily and placed himself under the fearful beam, saying, in
a hurried manner, " Ladies and gentlemen, I am very glad
to see so many of you present—such a grand assemblage of
people to see me hanged! And mind, if ever any of you go
a robbing, be sure and take a double-barrelled gun with you
and shoot all you can!—and mind and do it as it should be.
And I got to tell you that Jane Newman and farmer James
Hathway, of Toockenham, are the greatest enemies 1 had ;
and had it not been for them, I should have been there now.
I am glad I killed my wife, and 1 don't mind being hanged"
—(here the executioner drew the cap over his eyes, and the
unhappy, man resumed)—" I don't care for that, I can keep
on talking Oh ! what a pleasant view—what a grand sight.
I likes this sort of fun !" At this moment the belt was
drawn, and he was launched into eternity. He apparently
suffered but little, and, after hanging the usual time, (an
hour,) his countenance was scarcely changed, nor his fea-
tures distorted ! His body will be interred within the pre-
cincts of the gaol this evening. The populace conducted
themselves altogether with much propriety.

RUMOURED EPIDEMIC AT ETON.—ID consequence of
three children of Mr. Tarver, the Italian and French master
at Eton College, having died of scarlet fever during the past
week, the greatest alarm has prevailed on the subject amongst
the parents and friends of the various boys (amounting to
upwards of 600) now at college. On Monday last a tine
youth, 12 years of age, the son of Mr. William Mount, of
Wasing-place, Berks, who was an inmate in the establish-
ment of the Rev. Mr. Coleridge one of the assistant-mas-
ters, expired of this distressing disorder. It was reported
on Tuesday that one of the servants of Mr. Tarver had died of
the same complaint, but she is now better, and likely to re-
cover. Dr. Hawtrey has addressed a letter to the parents of
the respective pupils, in which he incloses a letter from a
physician, who states that he Secs. no necessity for the re-
moval of any of the boys, and that were he a parent or guar-
dian, be would not disturb them at this advanced and so
neatly expiring period of their stay at Eton. The number
of boys who have been sent for by their parents amounts to
upwards of 300. No fresh cases of sickness had occurred
up to Wednesday evening. Some very extensive alterations
and improvements are now in progress in the playing grounds
connected with the college. Several of the adjacent build-
ings are to be removed, and the ground upon which they
stood, together with the gardens, are to be added to the
playing fields.