Murder.
The Times, 1824-11-08T00:00:00

[From the atHPs)tire Tclegraph.l On Tumsday last an inquest was taken by Mir. LOyaCiROFT, at North Stoneham, on Aew of the body of Mary Page, who on the Thursday Vzevlous died. iA the parish of St. Peter, Cheesehill, near NYinchester, and on Sn,dav was conveyed Lo Stonehain for Inter- ment. sWhen 'the corpse was renoved from the house in wbich the unfortunate woman died. the 4tmost confusion took place: a rob of wom,e tssembled ro-qp4 the cart, atnvith every rnark of anger and disgust, proWsted sgamat the rcmoval Zo the body, of which tbev Opn,lclz 0 redjJames Fage, her late husband, to be the murderer K AhxiprM,uie* much public talk, and the sielghbourhood beeainue, ac,en, of general agitation; reports were circulatedtof too positive& natnr,q to be heard with indi'lbrence, and the func;al was pestpontd until a coroner's inquest could ascertain the truth. As soon, therefore, as the necessary evidenee Could be collected, and such prtparAtiona made as the irnipyta=ce of the case required, a jury was sumuoned, and on thed.yabove inqutioned proceeded on their investigation. J{t sppare4 that the deceased bad been married to the accsed, J.Ames ]P,age, about eight isionthis, previous to which te,sh WSet been a donestic in the house of' John Fleming, 1&q., of ctuneham..parlt, and had there established, what to the-bour of' her death sheo maintained a most unexceptionable character. Her husband, on the otter hand, wsa, to use a lenient tetsn, a man of indifferent re,putation, fonder of the public. bouse than of his domestic hreside and the society of his unhappy wife. In hbi daly OCcupation,, indeed, (that of a barge!nan on tte raver Itclmen), he was not neglectful; but hir ge. neralb'ablts anl disposition were well.knewn to be far fron the pthrectitude. The witnesegs produced on the inquest were the t nre and cotmL panions olthe deceased during her illness, a person who had,, on a particular occasion, witnessed her bad treatmuent, arnd' the ourgeon who had attcnded her. The sabstanceof thelr cf'ien.-e V~ to,th f, o' inga%t:-b naniwj-nthj It biaa beein weU knownto f2hez~agh hoad-t atimtesPpanea his- wife had not ive on micbleterms, and the deceased h2,d often camn. pisnedofThemot unmanly abuse and cruel treatment from her huobnd.One f te witnesses,. who mei'ledi lthesame horuse~, had, freqenty ben aarned by hier cries, and interferecl In her behalE. She thewitesa)hadnevr seen ant' blowr given, but haid listened to detilsof he ostbre,tal-condilct tin thje Piart of the hsrband,which. hadbee veifid b marksa Of recent violence, andI his own unreel. ing expiessions.....Anotlier witness had see the deceased lknocked diown by, her hwilband in a public fair, which.h _b wa enucating hit to leave ; a crowd collected -ound them, som of eho cored the ecesed While other seized on Page, saving that he bad "killed 'the, womtan." Hlig reply was an exprmsion of iii- difierence, too coarse to be repeated. On one occasion, a *t ness was called into the room by thle cries-of the deseased, whoa was in a state, of extreine alar-m -and agitation, anid showed witness a hearth-bruih, of whic'h the handle was broken in ~two, and whl,,h slae complainie her husband I-ad jutt broken by heating her. On theuwitnessexpastkl-ating with im iafr hisconduct, Page coolly replied " that she (the deceased) had.- deserved it, and ten times mora," Various othier instancesof il treatment were- spoken 0of, but the mnost imnoorcent, and that on which the jury ex- pressly founded their verdict wvas thiq:..ln the latter end of the mon"th of Aik'ust last, the deceased complained to an acquaintanees one of the wii'nesses, that hier busband had been crxaely bent. ino ber, and produced a large knotty' faggOt stick, withl which she said he had Kiven her a violent blow on the back of the headl; the witness looked at the place where the blow wras rece ved, and observedl a bruise or dent there, whichs appeared to~ hir rcently produced. of steaydy half an inch in depth. After that time thie decen4ed frequently, especially daring her ill- ness, com-)plained ofTpainsinbher head, but neverstated to the sur- geon any probable caLuse ; anad thiat genztleman, not having reason to, suspect anv thingi improper, ofcourt;attuributed theng to naturul c4uses. and-hbe edhect of her illncs" Toaddwth trcty-' above transactions, it shouldl be nmentionied, that the deceased wuas during zthegreater part of the time, in es;tate of pregnancy. Humanl nature could not bear such treatm-ent withiout rinkiuc:- on the Ifith of October, the poor woman was seized with conv%:Ijons, wirhin two days slhe was prematurely delivered of a still-born child, and oux Friday the 29h, the. pwor Creature ended her imseriesin death! While wItizeses were deposing the above revolting; facts, the surgeon (W. f..- IVickharn, jun. Esq.) and his assistants were em-ployed in a uiinute examination of thie body, so as to frat-n a juidgment on the catuse of the death. Ott the external surface of the back part of thie skull corresponding with thie ?lnce alludedl to in the deposition of a forrmer witness he ha-d discovered an indenture or brrise On the inner sari'.ce of the skull, immediatelf under that in- dentLure, he haLd foand a formatCion or depesit of bone, which must have been increasing for somne con-siderable pe-riod of timie, and which,by pressing on the brain, would produce convulsive fits- N'ow, thouh ~ovuisone ay b prnuced-by, other causes, yet, in the preentinsanc, i wa hi epnin that they had been produced byr the pperanc abve dscrbed an'd, finally, he had no doutbt tha thse oavlt.oos were the simmedi;tte. cause both of the prematur conIfinemenrt, a.'d of the death of the unfortLunate subject o thie inquiry. The Coroner recapitulated the impor.- taut patrso the evidence, and explained to the Jury such points of law as ere necessary for their consideration. WVithoxut leatv- ing the room and wvith a very short deliberation, they individually (forin o hporanta cse he eroer thought it riht to queatioss eachjurmam sCias~,Oandunaimosly declared teir convictioe thatthesai May Pge ameto er eath la~y wilful murder, by the bans o he hubad, he aidJatesPage. The Oorotner insanedi.. atey mde uthiswarentofcomittl,and thie wretched mtna now lie inWinheser aol awitig hs tialat the next assfzms - MURDER.