The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1850-01-29 00:00:00

DiEitrat

The next annual meeting of the Manchester and Liver-
pool Agricultural Society will be held at Warrington.
" Tim Ingham," of Preston, last week, for a wager of
£2O to £lO, walked seventeen miles in eleven minutes
under three hours.

On Thursday next great rejoicings will take place at
Poynton, Stockport, and other places, to celebrate the
coming of age of Lord Vernon's eldest son.

The people of Manchester are now engaged in a serious
dispute with the inhabitants of Salford, with respect to
the terms on which the former shall supply the latter with
water.

Benjamin Pierpoint, Esq., Mayor of Warrington, en-
tertained at dinner, on Tuesday, about 15 gentlemen.
Among those present were J. W. Patten, Esq., M.P., Hon.
and Rev. H. Powys, rector.
We recently reported a case tried in the Manchester
County Court, wherein a surgeon tried to obtain from
the Yorkshire railway company remuneration for attend-
ing passengers injured by an accident. On Wednesday
the judge decided in favour of the plaintiff.
On Monday week Messrs. Byrom, Taylor, and Byrom,
of Strangeways.hali Colliery, invited their hands to a
treat, which took place at Hindley. According to previ-
ous arrangements, upwards of 250 hands sat down to
well-cooked potato pies, bread, cheese, SLc.

On Saturday night week six armed men entered the
house of Mr. Marsh, at Rivington, and stole £270. They
also took away two silver tankards, two silver watches, a
silver snuff-box, and other plate. Three of the parties
have been arrested at Wigan.
Robert Mirfield, a porter at Manchester, has been com-
mitted for trial at the assizes, on the charge of stealing
£l5O from a box belonging to Mr. J. R. Thompson, son
of the vicar of Richmond, Yorkshire, and which he was
entrusted to take to the Victoria Railway station.
NOVEL APPLICATION OF A BOWLING GREEN.—The
fall of snow on Saturday week having covered to some
depth the bowling green of the Griffin Inn, Lower
Broughton, the variable temperature has since converted
it into a complete sheet of ice; and numbers of gentle-
men have had the pleasure of skating upon it without the
danger of a ducking.
John Bowker, an old man employed as a pointsman to
the London and North-Western Railway Company, at
Hunt's Bank, has, during a period of three years, regu-
larly fed a sparrow, which has become so much attached
to him as to regularly attend at his whistle. The bird
visits him at all his meals, and in the breeding season
never fails to bring all his new fledged offspring to partake
of his bounty.
ST. HELEN'S SAVINGS BANK.--Warrants for the ar-
rest of Mr. John Johnson, the actuary, and Mr. William
Johnson, the sub-actuary, of the above savings bank, on
the charge of felony and conspiracy, were placed in the
hands of the superintendent of the district police on
Sunday. That on Mr. William Johnson was executed on
Sunday night ; he was apprehended at a public-house
which he was in the practice of frequenting. The other
brother was taken on Monday morning. Both prisoners
underwent an examination before the magistrates in the
course of that day, and were remanded. We understand

bail was refused.
DRILLING A SIXPENCE.—As a novelty in drilling, the
Liverpool papers noticed, a short time since, that Mr.
William Preston, of that town, had drilled a hole, one
4000th part of an inch in size, edgeways through a six-
penny piece. This account was copied into the Guardian
at the time, and we subsequently gave a paragraph stating
that Mr. John Buchanan, of Ashton-under-Lyne, had
also drilled a hole, one 4000th part of an inch in size, in
the same manner, through a sixpence. We have now
before us a very remarkable specimen of workmanship of
the same kind, in the shape of a sixpenny piece, lately
forwarded to us by Mr. William Hartley, who lives near
Todmorden. This sixpence is perforated edgeways by a
minute hole which, as we are informed by Mr. Hartley,
does not exceed the 210th part of an inch in diameter, so
that its size is not greater than the 44,100 th part of a
square inch. What must be the size of the drill with
which this hole was made, our readers may conjecture ;
and we are informed that the hole was drilled in four
hours, and that the same drill went through without
being altered in the least. A hole, apparently of a simi-
lar size, is also drilled faceways through the coin, and
minute wires are passed through the holes.—Manchester
Guardian.
THE TRAGEDY AT HIGHER BROUGHTON—We reported
last week in the usual telegraphic news of the STANDARD,
the awful strangulation of Mrs. Louis Novelli, by her
brother-in-law, and the subsequent suicide of the mur-
derer. Both parties were in good circumstances, and the
motives for the deed are inexplicable. It is surmised by
some that the murderer, whose brother, the husband of
the lady, died about twelve months ago, had been greatly
attached to his sister-in-law, and had pressed her to
marry him, but that she had refused to listen to his suit.
She is described as being a very charming woman, and he
has resided with her since the death of his brother, but
was about to leave for London on the following morning
(Monday.) It is conceived that he had pressed his suit,
been repulsed, and in a fit of passion committed the
dreadful act, which filled him with such remorse, that he
put an end to his own existence also. It is further said
that his family is disposed to insanity, though he was
never known to betray any symptoms of that affliction.
It appears that the inmates of Mrs. Novelli's house on
Sunday night were herself, her brother-in-law, her two
children, two female servants, and a servant boy, about
17 years old. The two deceased had, in the course of the
day, been at church twice : and, in the evening, had taken
tea with Mr. Coston, a co-executor with Mr. A. Novelli
to the estate of Mrs. Novelli's late husband. They re-
turned home about ten, had porridge, with milk and
treacle, for supper ; after which, it appears, Mr. Novelli
drank.. 4 small glass of brandy and water. The servants
retired' tit, rest, leaving them sitting in the dining-room.
They had no disagreement, nor does it appear that there
ever had arisen any dispute between them. Next morn-
ing, Mrs. Novelli was found lying dead, near her chair.
The servants hereupon, having called assistance, pro-
ceeded up to Mr. Novelli's room, where he was found
hanging lifeless, to the curtain-rod of his bed, to which
he had suspended himself by the cord of his dressing-
gown. The body was still warm, but life was extinct.
The bed was also warn,, indicating that be had recently
been in it. A medical man was sent for, who examined
Mrs. Novelli's body, and found that she had died from
strangulation. She had evidently struggled for a short
period, as her dress was somewhat disordered, and the
cloth pulled partly off the table. There was also a fresh
cut on Mr. Novelli's nose, which appeared as if inflicted
with a finger nail. His body hung low with the knees
bent as if he had drawn them up at first, and the feet had
afterwards fallen down. He had evidently lain on the
sofa some time after committing the murder, as the marks
of his boots were on the cover. It is believed that he
afterwards went to bed, and on hearing the servants stir-
ring, arose and hanged himself. The adjourned inquest
on the bodies was held on Wednesday. Several addi-
tional witnesses were examined, amongst whom were
Mr. John E. Hampson, an attorney, and Mr. Charles B.
Bowker, both of whom had been well acquainted with
Mr. Novelli, the latter for a long period. The evidence
of both gentlemen went to show that the deceased wag
irritable in temper, occasionally subject to fits of melan-
choly, and extremely violent in giving expression to hit
thoughts. After remaining in deliberation for about ten
minutes, the jury returned a verdict, that Mr. A. Novell'
had destroyed the lives first of Mrs. Novelli, and after-
wards of himself, being at the time of unsound mind.