The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-12-26 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

secutor attempted to remove Barker, when the other
prisoners jostled round him, and he felt a wound in his
neck. A woman who was standing by heard Swarbrick
say to Nicholson, " Give me that thing, and I'll use it."
Immediately after she saw blood flowing from Jameson's
neck. There was no case to go to the jury against Barker,
and he was acquitted. The other prisoners were found
guilty of a common assault. Swarbrick, who was out on
bail, war sentenced to three months' imprisonment. Ni-
cholson, in consideration that he had been in gaol some
time, was sentenced only to two months' imprisonment.

produced, arid identitiedd From the pint pot I put some
of the porridge into a smaller pot, and about a quarter-
past nine the same morning, I fed the child from that
smaller pot. I fed it at twelve o'clock, and also at two
and three o'clock. It took its food very well. It was a
delicate baby, but it always fed well. At three o'clock, I
put a dry napkin on it, and put it into bed. About four
o'clock the prisoner entered—it might be a few
more or less. She sat down on a chair, and said she had
been purchasing a cap for her mother, and that it had cost
Is. 4d. She put the cap on the table. I said it was a nice
cap for an elderly person. She then got up and lifted her
baby out of my bed. It was fast asleep at the time. She
brought it over to the fire. It lay on her left arm. Wh n
she awoke the baby, I handed her the little pot of por-
ridge. She was then sitting with her right hand next to
the wall. We generally used to place the porridge on the
hob, but she placed it on the floor, between herself and the
wall. She put her hand in her pocket on the right side,
and I heard a something like paper rattle between her and
the bed. She then kept stooping down towards the pot,
and feeding the baby with a teaspoon. When she first
sat down she fed the baby with the porridge, then she put
the spoon in the pot, placed her hand in her pocket, and
drew out the something that rattled. Margaret Francis
then came in, and sat on the opposite side of the fire. The
baby was fed after I had heard the rattle. The prisoner
said to Francis—" You have given me the wrong ticket."
" Yes," said Francis, " I am aware I did." ""
soner then put her hand in hP" -*

ASSAULT WITH INTENT TO ROB

Moses Johnson, 20, Willia;z—lija;;l4-237 and James
Wardle, 21, were indicted for having, at Barton-upon-
Irwell, feloniously assaulted and abused Thomas Golds-
worthy, with intent to rob him. Mr. Austin conducted
the case for the prosecution. Mr. Brandt defended the
prisoners. The prosecutor, in company with a gentleman
named Gardner, was proceeding from Eccles to Barton,
about half-past eight o'clock, on the evening of the Sth
December, when they were met by the three prisoners.
Marsh jostled against the prosecutor, and said he would
either treat or be treated. He was pushed away by Mr.
Goldsworthy, who with his friend left the footpath, and
went into the middle of the road. The prisoners followed,
and Marsh seized hold of Mr. Goldsworthy, who struck
him with his umbrella. A scuffle then ensued, during
which Mr. Goldsworthy was struck to the ground and
severely kicked and beaten. Mr. Gardner ran off for
help, and during his absence the prisoners attempted to
rob Mr. Goldsworthy. They decamped just as help came
up, but were apprehended shortly afterwards. Mr. Golds-
worthy's hat, which was taken by the prisoners, was found
a mile from the place where the scuffle took place. The
prosecutor was so much beaten, that he has not yet reco-
vered; he has been under medical treatment ever since,
and has nearly lost the hearing of his left ear, in conse-
quence of the manner in which his head had been kicked.
The defence was, that the prisoners had been first struck,
and that the offence was only a common assault. Wit-
nesses were called, and proved that the prisoners had
taken supper the evening in question at the house of Mr.
Rogerson, a respectable farmer in the neighbourhood ;
that they were in liquor when they left the house; and
that they were men of good character in constant work.
They were all found guilty of a very aggravated assault,
but not of felony.

reached Francis a pawn-ticket. She stopped the feeding
of the baby whilst she was getting the ticket, but she
commenced the feeding of it afterwards. She then
put a dry napkin on the baby, and laid it on the
bed. Previous to that day, she usually put the pot on
the hob. She remained in the hnnse .1-Innt t.n

after having fed the baby. In about an hour and a half
after, the baby cried, and I went to look at it. I took it
up, and observed that i t would not exit. There was a little
porridge on its night-shirt, but whether that had been
spilled or vomited I cannot tell. I gave it a little more
porridge, but it would not eat. I then put it to bed again,
and it went to sleep. Soon after it began to cry, and Mrs.
M`Manus, a lodger, went to lock at it. It then vomited.
Mrs. Al`Manus then began to feed it out of the small pot,
with a little porridge added from the larger one. I put a
night dress on the baby, and folded it in flannel. I
washed the night dress. which had been soiled with the
porridge. I went to look at it about twenty minutes after
eleven o'clock, and soon after it vomited again. When
I went to take it up, 1 found it had thrown up on the
sheet and night dress. I took the night dress off, dried
it at the fire, and put it partially on again. I put the child
to bed again, and went to bed myself. I had previously
fed it out of the same pot. with a little porridge added
from the larger one. On the following morning, Mr.
Taylor, another person, a policeman, and the prisoner,
came to my place about nine o'clock. Mr. Taylor ques-
tioned me about the prisoner and the baby. He looked
at the latter ; and told him that I was to have 4s. a-week
for taking care of the baby. He searched the house. I
said—" Good God, what's to do?" The prisoner re-
plied—" they want to make out that I purchased arsenic
for the baby.,' I said—" bast thou been purchasing
arsenic ?" and she said yes." I asked what she had pur-
chased it for, and she replied—" for to take a dose my-
self." Mr. Taylor asked for the arsenic, and she said she
had thrown it away. I said—" thou art a bad one, thou
art an unknown villain, and my baby might well be sick
and throwing-up last night." She said—" don't mention
that." I took the child to the Infirmary, and brought it
back again. The doctor looked at it, and gave me noth-
ing for it, so I brought it home. I took it to the Infir-
mary again at three o'clock, but it was five before I saw
the doctor. I brought it home, and took it again the
next morning according to the doctor's orders. He gave
me a wash for its eyes. I kept it until the Friday follow-
ing, and fed it regularly as before. It fed regularly. I
made fresh porridge for it after Mr. Taylor came. With
the exception of the eyes, I thought it healthy.
Cross-examined.—The prisoner's family are very poor.
The reason I called the baby Rosanna, was because the
prisoner and her mother reused to give me a name. I
generally washed the bread for the child. It was a very
delicate baby, but it always had an excellent appetite both
before and after this occurrence.
Ann M'Manus said, I lodged with Mrs. Brown on the
27th of November last. I was in the house when the pri-
soner came in about four o'clock. It is a cellar. She
laid her cloak on the table, and a new cap which she said
was for her mother. She then took the baby out of the
bed and sat down near the fire, laying the baby across her
knee. A small porridge cup was on the bar of the grid,
which she put on the floor at her right side. I sat oppo-
site to her. She then put her hand into her pocket, and
I saw her bring out a paper. I only caught a glimpse of
it. It was rather of a light colour. She put it between
her and the baby. I did not notice any rattling of the
paper at all. She put one hand into the other when she
had the paper out of her pocket. She then stooped down
and fed the baby out of the pot on the floor. I was sit-
ting almost opposite her, and about four yards from her.
I came in again about ialf-past eight o'clock, when the
child cried. I took it up, fed it, and after putting on a
dry double, I put it to bed again. Before feeding the
child, I stirred up the porridge, and it eat freely. I left
at the time Mrs. Frances came in.
Margaret Frances was next called, and she stated that
on the afternoon in question she went into Mrs. Brown's.
She met Mrs. M'Manus coming out of the door. The
prisoner was sitting at the fire with the child on her knee.
Saw her feed it. On witness going in the prisoner put
her hand into her pocket and said witness had given her a
wrong pawn ticket. Witness replied she was aware she
had. The prisoner took a pawnticket from a paper which
she had taken from her pocket, from which she took out
a pawnticket and handed it to witness, and then returned
the paper to her pocket. The prisoner then put a dry
napkin on the child, and placed it in bed. Witness had
care of the child about three weeks. It eat its food heart-
ily, but it passed through it rapidly.
John Taylor, Superintendent of the Manchester Police,
stated that he apprehended the prisoner on Tuesday, the
28th of November, at bar father's house in Ardwick. He
told her she had been buying arsenic, and he came to in-
quire about it. She replied that she had never purchased
any, and whoever said she had, told lies. Witness
searched her, but found no arsenic or any paper. There
was no stable near her house, and witness asked her father
if there were any rats about, and he said he did not know
of any. He then asked the prisoner if she bad not a
little baby, and she said she had, and took witness to the
house of Mrs. Brown where it was. Witness asked her
again if she had not purchased arsenic, and she said she
had, she intended to take it herself, but had thrown it
away.
Mary Lee, a nurse at the workhouse, was then called,
and she deposed to the child being brought to the work-
house on Friday, the Ist December. It had bad eyes, but
she did not see anything else which was the matter with
it. She took it to the Infirmary, and the surgeon gave it
something to wash its eyes with. On the Bth December
it became worse, and was convulsed. The surgeon recom-
mended that some castor oil should be given to it. It
was a very sickly child but appeared to get better the
first two or three days after admission. It died early on
the morning of the 9th.
Mr. Holland, an apothecary at the infirmary, deposed
to seeing the child on the 28th November. It was a
weakly, unhealthy child, with an affection of the eyes.
He saw no external symptoms about it which indicated
that the child bad taken arsenic internally. He saw it
again on the Friday following, and did not observe any
other symptom except such as might have appeared in a
weakly child, brought up by the spoon. He made a post
mortem examination of the body, and found appearances
internally, which could not be accounted for except on the
supposition of the child having taken arsenic. Vomiting
did not always follow taking arsenic. He tested the con-
tents of the porridge from which the child had been fed,
and also the vomit, but did not discover any arsenic ; but
he_was not an experienced chemist

His LORDSHIP, in passing sentence, said the prisoners
had been indicted for assaulting Thomas Goldsworthy,
with intent to rob him. With respect to Marsh,-who
seemed to have been the worst of the three, thksenWnee
on him was, that he should be imprisoned fOl- ;oven
calendar months, and kept to hard labour; with respect
to Johnson, the sentence on him was, that he should be
imprisoned for six months ; and as to Wardle, who seemed
to take the least part in the transaction, the sentence on
him was, that be should be imprisoned for five calendar
months. The prisoners were removed from the bar,
weeping bitterly.

Mr. Davies, lecturer on chemistry at the Manchester
Royal School of Medicine, deposed to analysing the con-
tents of the porridge, and of the stomach and bowels, from
which he produced a very small portion of arsenic in a
metallic form. He used various tests, which produced the
same results, and in a most learned manner described the
various means he adopted. In cross-examination, how-
ever, he admitted that the human body contained arsenic
in the phosphoratic lime, of which some portions were
composed, and that the tests he had used would detect
less than the one-thousandth part of a grain.
The Jury then retired for a short time. On their re-
turn, hiS lordship recalled Mr. Davies, who described the
tests he used. He said he used the silver test, the cop-
per test, and the sulphuretted hydrogen test, and, besides,
that he reduced the arsenic to a metallic state by Marsh's
test, the black flux.
This closed the case for the prosecution.
Mr. POLLOCK addressed the jury for the prisoner, in a
speech which lasted for an hour and ten minutes.
No witnesses having been called for the defence,
His LORDSHIP charged the jury, recapitulating and
commenting upon the evidence as he proceeded, and
winding up by telling them that if, upon any part of the
case, they had any reasonable doubt of the prisoner's
guilt, they were bound to return a verdict of acquittal.
The jury retired at twenty minutes to five o'clock, and,
after an absence from court for one hour and fifty mi-
nutes, returned a verdict of Guilty, with a recommenda-
tion to mercy.

His Lordship put on the black cap, and sentenced her
in the following terms I—" Ann AlTormack. you have,
after a careful and deliberate consideration of your case
by the jury, been found guilty of a foul and unnatural
crime—the murder of your own infant child, in violation
of one of the deepest feelings of the human heart, that of
a mother for her own child. It is no part of my duty,
and certainly not any part of my inclination, to aggravate,
by any observations of mine, the horrors of your situa-
tion. The jury have recommended you to mercy; but it
seems to me that yours is one of those cases in which, if
guilt be proved to the satisfaction of a jury, there is no
ground for mercy. By the laws both of God and man,
you have incurred for your offence the fearful penalty of
death. It is not for me to hold out to you any hope
of mercy. Let me earnestly entreat you to cast your
thoughts beyond the grave, and by earnest prayer and sin-
cere repentance, endeavour to obtain that mercy which
you cannot expect to have on earth. One only, distress-
ing, painful duty is on me : it is, to pronounce the dread-
ful sentence of the law,—that you be taken to the place
from whence you came, and from thence to the place of
execution, that there you be hanged by the neck till you
are dead, and that your body be buried within the pre-
cincts of the gaol in which you have been confined. And
may the Lord have mercy on your soul !"
The prisoner received the verdict and sentence with
composure; and, as she was being led away by the turn-
key, we thought she manifested symptoms of great weak-
ness of body, if not of insensibility of mind.

off, mixed it with a spoon, put it on a saucepan on the SATURD
fire, and poured some milk on the top. It was a clean
ARSON AT it
saucepan. The same bread, water and milk were used
Thomas Hayes (not in the ca
for my own family% breakfast on the same morning. having wilful') and maliciously
hat'-ley, the property of James
From the saucepan, pat the porridge into a pint pot,
which was made of earthenware. rThet nint not was hers AA-

Jar) was indicted fur

prosecution • the prisoner was undefench
It appeared, from the statement of cou
of the witnesses, that the prosecutor m

Lirktry, and that, wh
with hia wife and nephew, on the ni
I and approaching his farmyard, the
Idoor of the shippon partly open.
's to go to the front entrance of the f

ht of tl

;1 and evidence 1

4th of D

observed the
ing close by,

on their attention ben

DOCK COMMITTEE.-T

The Committee of Works recommended that a piece of
"•aented to Sir John Hall. 5p,rpt.....-

:e be p

to
tarnishing Kinaness every information in his power when applied
to on matters connected with the 130,,ck Trust.
The Harbour Master's Committee recommended that
the dock-Gatemen ha . r . .

.‘,l that notice to that effect bt
lent in each of the Liverpool papers.
der of the gas company for lighting seventy-five
lamps on the clock (-Nay was

giTen by adver:

The ten

I
ne saw the I oeverai parties having offered to supply the printing
door of the shippon closed, evidently by some person on and stationery connected with the Dock Trust, it was
the inside; but the lad was so mpch alarmed that he was decided, after some discussion, that theprinting should
afraid either to communicate what he observed to his be given to Mr. Carter, of the Mai/.office, and that the
uncle or to enter the shippon. The family then went into stationery should be supplied by Mr. Webb.
the farmhouse_ fin,l in thd. L-ti; L_

NEW DOCKS

A communication was receivec

nan of