The native American., 1838-09-15
INTERESTING TRIAL FOR MURDER.

The last trial OF interest that Witnessed In the
Crown Court was one which took place on the
next day, or the day after. 1t was that of man
for the murder of his wife. He seemed about
80 years old, and was dressed in respectable
mourning. He stood at the bar with an air al
once of frmness and depression lie was lit.
tie under the average height and his countenance
rather prepossessng than otherwise. From the
evidence in chief of the first two witnesses il
would have appeared clear that he had been
guilty ofa most barbarous murder. On their de-
positions before the coroner, a verdict of man
slaughter only had been returned; but in reading
them, Mr.. Justice Pateson had felt it his duty
to instruct the grand jury to bring in bill for
murder-a step which seemed most amply irlsti-
fled by the evidence which they now gave 1t
appeared from the testimony that the deceased
had been very far advanced in pregnancy; that
the prisoner had had some dispute with her
being most violent man, they said-and knock
ed her down, her head falling against the sharp
corner of chest of drawers, which cut it open,
and the wound bled profusely; and that while
she was thus PROSTATE and insensible, the pris-
oner furously kicked and struck her repeatedly
death, on the same evening, or the evening after,
forget which, being the consequence.
AS far as this evidence went, nothing, of course,
could have been more brutal than the conduct of
the prisoner; but, on cross-eXamlnation of the
first witness, little Unlocking old woman, the
mother of the deceased, and who gave her evil
dencc maniestly under the influence of the most
bitter resentment towards the prisoner, the case
began to assume a very different aspect. 1t was
wrung from her after great prevarcation, and was
also established by other witnesses, that she had
herself, on the evening in question, been drinking
gin with the deceased, at the residence of the lat
ter, miserable cellar. That she had herself
fetched five quarterns Of gin for the deceased on
that occasion. That the deceased and the wit
ness at her request, had frequently pawned all
her husbands clothes, and those of her children,
whom she had once or twice sent to bed early
| in the afternoon, to enable her SO to dispose of
their clothes. That the prisoner pilot a
remarkably steady and hard working man, and
earned amply sufficient to enable himself and
family to live in very comfortable circumstances;
but this accursed propensity of his wile's had
beggared them, and driven them from their for
mer comfortable dwelling to the wretched cellar
in which had occurred the catastrophe then the
subject of inquiry. That on the evening in
question he had come home from the sea wet and
wearied, but found that every article of his cloth
ing had been pawned by his wife, and that his
children were lying in bed almost naked, their
little clothes having shared the same fate; and
that his wife was drunk, as was also the first it.
ness. Furious words very naturally ensued, and
it was under these truly exasperating circum-
stances that he had struggled with his wife, so
as to occasion-but it was clear uninentonally-
her fall; and it certainly did appear that, either
while she was falling, or Immediately afterwards,
he had more than once struck her with some
violence, but not in way to have alone caused
her death, which the medical evidence showed to
have been occasioned by the injuries which she
had received upon her head in falling upon the
drawers, added to the effects of violent excite
ment and excessive liquor upon person III her
situation.
The third witness brought forward against the
prisoner was, alas! his own daughter, little girl
about five or six years Of age, decently dressed
in black. When her name was called, the prs-
oner, with an agonized countenance, looked away
from the spot where she was to stand; his lip
quivered, his chest heaved, and, in spite of his
efforts, tears forced themselves from his eyes.
Mr.. Justice Patteson observed his agitation, and
seemed himself not little affected when he
beheld the little thing, in obedience to the sum-
mons of the loud-voiced officer, was brought into
court, and placed close beside him, to give evil
dence which might seal the fate of her father.
She was so very short, that he handed over to
|
order that she mi ght stand upon it, and even then
the head of the little witness did but Just come
above the top Of the witness box. She was
rather pretty looking girl, and her face was
very sad and pale. She did not, however, cry,
though her eyes seemed glued to the figure of her
miserable father, who never once ventured to
look towards her, and whose tears, silent evil
dence of the anguish he enduring, fell fire.
quently. In all other respects, he preserved a
stern composurc throughout the proceedings.
"My child,' said the Judge, as thought, with
a little emotion, as he bent down his ear to
her, ''do you know that you have come here to
speak the truth?''
Eyes, sir.
"And will you, my dear, speak the truth--and
tell us all the truth, and nothing eIse!''
Eyes, sir"
"What will become of you. do you think, if
you tell lie!'
She paused; the Judge repeated the question;
and she answered distinctly, Il shall be burned
i'll everlasting fire."
"Where did you learn that"
.The Bible, sir"
"Have You ever been at schoo.?'
eyes, sir at the Sunday school"
|. Il .l~o :.