The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1849-04-03 00:00:00

THE TRIAL OF RUSH

This trial commenced before Mr. Baron Rolfe, at Nor-
wich, on Thursday morning. It excited the most intense
interest. On the seats to the right of the bench were the
Bishop of Norwich, the Earl of Leicester,: Lord Cadogan,
Lord Hastings, Lord Huntingfield, the Marquis of Douro,
and in the body of the court were several other noblemen,
a large gathering of the county magistrates, and a fair
sprinkling of ladies. The seats assigned to the bar were
completely filled ; and, under all circumstances, and con-
sidering the capabilities of the Court-house, the arrange-
ments were extremely good.
Mr. Serjeant Byles, Mr. Prendergast, and Mr. Evans
appeared for the prosecuticn.

- The reporter of The Times thus describes the prisoner :
—" He was brought into the dock in the custody of the
governor of the gaol, and of a turnkey, and advanced
with a firm but slouching step to the bar. where he depo-
sited a large bundle of papers. His features were resolute
and set, but his hands trembled excessively, not only at
first but during the day, so that it may be habitual.
Without any attempt at minute description, it may be
said that Rush is a powerfully-made man, with strong
but rather coarsely-moulded limbs, and below rather than
above the middle height. His shoulders, which are
slightly inclined forwards, support a short• bull neck, on
which a large and massive head, which a craniologist

would declare indicative of the possession of strong ani
mal passions and considerable intellectual power, is firtnl
set in such a way as to render it rather difficult for it
owner to look straight before him. His mouth, and th
general formation of his jaw and of the lower part of hi
face, betray great determination and an unflinc:ainv• will
He was dressed with care and neatness in a suit of'blac
and a wlaite cravat; his gray hair was carefully-brushed
and his appeaLitnee OtbOther was that of a respectubi
yeoman."

The indictment was in die usual form, and charged hir
with the murder of Mr. Jermy by shooting with a pisto
&c. On being called on to plead, he said in a firm an
distinct tone, " Not guilty," and put in the same answe
to an indictment on the coroner's inquisition. The pri
, •

soner having requested a few moments to arrange hi
papers, the swearing in of the jury was suspended till h
had done so. On one juror having been passed over h
asked, " Why. has he been challenged ? " and the derl
of the court informed him he was challenged by the crown
The prisoner challenged one juror only, but after th,
first two or three had been sworn, said, turning to th
jury-box,—" There is one observation I should like t,

minds which might have any influen

retire wit

hers take their p

opinion as to the trial, they ought to do so. I don'
know how many of them there may be, but I hope those
who may be influenced will retire." The jury having
been sworn, after a pause the prisoner said,--" My lord
I wish to make an observation before the counsel make:
his address."

Mr. Baron Rolfe.—This is not the time at which yo
can make any observation.

been got up in su

. -
an extraordinary way—
Mr. Baron Rolfe.—That is matter for observation a
terwards. I cannot hear it now.
Mr. Serjeant Byles then proceeded to state the case fc
the crown, and in the course of his doing so he was sev€
ral times interrupted by the prisoner, who expressed h

r.
wishes that certain letters, &c. might be read. The mai
facts of the case must be familiar to our readers; and, i
our present number, we have not room for a recapitult
tion of them. In conclusion the learned counsel (AL
Serjeant Byles) said that he might state that the unfortc
nate Mrs. Jermy was in such a state that she could not b
moved without danger to her life, and, as there wer
doubts entertained whether her depositions could be ad
mitted under a recent act of Parliament, it was thong!:
best to withdraw them, and therefore no evidence wool
be produced from, the lady. Such was an outline of th
case—it consisted of two species of direct evidence, and c
circumstantial—which was sometimes the only specie
..,—evidence, because when people meditated s.
crimes as this, they took care to surround themselv
all those circumstances of secrecy which made it impos.
They would proceed to conside

available

ble to procure evidence

the evidence calmly and dispassionately, having distill
from their minds all they had heard of the case '
`,Ted the box. The prisoner bad a right to require
should sift the evidence well and thoroughly;
after having done so, they had no doubt of his
, their duty to society required that such outrages
should be punished by the arm of the law. It was a case

they ent
that the•
but if,

of univ
blaze. a

sal publicity. The eyes of that
well as those cf their countrymet

great assem-

•
them ; but he was sure that fact would have no influence
on them, further than to make them more anxious to ad-
here to that golden rule of human conduct, which was,

1
t believe
.him, to do their duty, and eave the

.quences to God

As goon as the learned serjeant had finished his opening
speech, the prisoner requested that the witnesses misfit
not all be in court at once, and that SOME

might be made by which what one said might not be known

The Judge said that his request should be attended to,
but declined to order some attorneys out who were en-

gaged in the case

The first witnesses were Mr. Robert Kerr and Mr. J
Grey, of Norwich, surveyors. They gave evidence as to
plans and models of the Potash farm, the residence of the
prisoner. These witnesses were cross-examined by the
prisoner, as to the distances Of the various spots men-
tioned in the opening speech of Mr. Sergeant Byles.
Mr. John S. Cam, solicitor, said, I went on the 2nd of
December to Potash farm, attended by several police-
officers. I entered a closet in the parlour, and a board in
the floor having been moved I took a box from the aper-
,_____

The prisoner said, " It is most infamous that the wit-
nesses, particularly the police, are permitted to be present
in court before examination."

Thereupon they were ordered to withdraw.
The witness then gave an account of the finding of cer-
tain (fictitious) deeds, &c. He underwent a long cross-
examination by the prisoner. He denied that he had
kept back any documents which might be useful for the
defence of the prisoner, whose solicitor had seen all the
originals.
The next witness was James Watson, the footman and
butler to the late Mr. Jenny. After describing the attack
of the assassin at Stanfield-hall, and his (the witness's)
escape to the pantry, he said—" When the man came in
I saw him drop two papers in the passage with covers like
those produced. He was low in stature, stout, and had
his face covered—with what I can't say. There was light
enough to see his appearance and gait, but I did not ob-
serve how he carried his head.

Serjeant Byles.—Who was that man ?
Witness.—l believe it was Mr. Rush.
Prisoner.—That is a very wrong question to put.
The Judge.—lt is the only way to put it, and the ques-
tion is a very proper one.

Witness.--:-The man wore a black cloak, and he bad in
his hand what struck me at the time to be two large pistols.
This witness was cross-examined at great length by the
prisoner. He said he did not see arty part of the man's
legs. In answer to one question, witness said, I have
seen a curly wig put on a man's head at the inquest to
ascertain if that recalled to my recollection the figure of
the person who fired at Mr. Jermy, and it did not at all
,resemble that man. (Sensation.)
Eliza Chestney was borne in upon a litter, amidst the
breathless silence of the court. Her face was very pale,
and she appeared to have suffered much; but she gave
her evidence with great decision of manner. She was
examined by Mr. Prendergast, and said, I was house-
maid at Stanfield-hall at the time of the murder of the
two Mr. Jermys. On the 28th of November, I was in
the servants' ball about eight o'clock, and heard a gun
fired. I then heard another, and a groan. I then went
into the passage which leads to the butler's pantry, and
there I met Mrs. Jermy. She said, " Watson !—Wat-
son !—Eliza !—go to Mr. Jermy." I threw my arm round
her waist, and with the other took her hand, and said,
" Good God !my dear mistress, what is the matter ? For
God's sake, don't go." She did not speak, but looked
wild, and we went down the passage to the staircase hall
together. I got as far as the doorway, when I saw young
Mr. Jermy dying on the floor. I then saw a man. alma-

rently coming from the dining-room door, with what ap-
peared a short gun or pistol in the right hand, and up the
right shoulder. He levelled it, and shot me. I did not
fall ; and then another shot followed, and I saw my mis-
tress's arm whirling in the air. My mistress then ran up
stairs. I twisted round several times and fell down, giv-
ing three violent shrieks, and said I was going to die and
no one would come to help me. The butler then came to
me and said, " Lord, have mercy on us; what is the mat-
ter ?" I remember no more till I awoke at the bottom of
the staircase. I found Mr. Jermy had been removed, and
that I had been seriously wounded in the leg, near the
hip.
Mr. Prendergast
man was who shot you ?

—Can you form any notion who the

Witness.—Yes; I saw his head and shoulders.
Mr. Prendergast.—Were they remarkable in shape ?

Witness; the head was flat on the top, with the hair
set out or bushy on the sides. The shoulders were very
wide.

Mr. Prendergast.—Have you any doubt as to who the
man was ?

Witne
mind about it

—I can't say I 'nave any doubt in my own

Mr. Prendergast.—Who do you believe it to be ?
Witness.—That man (pointing her finger to Rush.)

Mr. Prendergast.—Did you know the appearance of
the prisoner before ?

Witness.—Yes, I had seen him several times at Stan-
field-hall. I could observe nothing about his dress. He
was looking towards the porch door when I first saw him,
but he turned, and when he saw me he levelled the gun
at me. I saw the side of the head and the front part.
I could not see the features, but I could the form. He
has a way of carrying his shoulders which cannot be
mistaken, and he keeps his head a little on one side. No
person of the same appearance was in the habit of com-
ing to Stanfield-hall. _

The prisoner examined Miss Chestney at considerable
length, but did not shake her evidence in chief.
Margaret Reid was the next witness. She was one of
the servants, and gave an account of the attack of the
murderer : Mr. Serjeant Byles—Did you form any opinion
who it was ? Witness.—The moment I saw him my im-
pression was that it was Rush. This is my belief still.
Miss Jermy and I ran from the servant's hall to the
stable, and so lost sight of the man.
Two surgeons who had examined the bodies of the
murdered parties, were then examined, bnt their evidence
was not very material.

Edward Harvey having been called as the next witness,
The prisoner said he had applied a week ago for this
witness's depositions, and had not been supplied with
them till last night; he therefore begged that any other
witnesses might not be called that evening.
The Judge, on this application being made to him, im-
mediately adjourned the court.

The appearance of the prisoner has undergone little
change from his long confinement. His hand trembled
very much occasionally, and his body now and then was
slightly agitated, but his voice and bearing were perfectly
firm, and tempered by an air of submissiveness very like
what might be expected in an injured man. He looked
very confidently around him, but not with any expression
of bravado, for he seemed to feel perfectly the danger of
his position, and it was a most remarkable spectacle to
see the resolution with which he went through long cross-
examinations of the witnesses produced—asking the most
minute questions, and yet never appearing to give way to
any flippancy of manner. Little incidents during the trial
appeared to affect him much. The judge complained of
the noise in the court, as very injurious to the fair hearing
of the prisoner's cause, and instantly his voice became
broken and his frame agitated by the strength of his emo-
tions. The description of the murders by Serjeant Byles
seemed to affect him ; and hi, voice lost its firmness, and
his whole manner its resolute tone, at the most telling
parts of Eliza Chestnev's evidence.

Baron Rolfe tdok his seat oil Friday morning, at nine
o'clock. The prisoner looked pale, arid appeared as if
he had spent the night without sleep. The first witness
was a young man named Edward Hervey, who was called
in corroboration of proof adduced the day before, with re-
spect to the firing of shots by a man of peculiar figure. His

was not specific upon this point. Tilt; prisoner
cross-examined him at considerable length. The next
witness was Emily Sandford, who passed under the name
of Widow James. She was attired in deep mourning.
When her evidence- commenced, the prisoner protested he

evvid,m

was innocent of the crime laid to his charge. He was
quite willing she should speak the truth, but he must tell
her she must consider the evidence she was about to
give.—The judge said he could not permit these observa-
tions.—The piisoner interrupting said—he was not angry
with the woman, but she ought to consider what she said.
The judge here told the prisoner that he was entitled to
be in court whilst the evidence was given, unless he mis-
conducted himself. After this hint perhaps he would be
nmeJiately discontinued his re-

quiet.
marks

—Emily Sandford

1114, for upwards of

but he did not succeed in shaking any material points of
her evidence, or eliciting any facts in his favour. On the