Suspected Infanticide.
The Times, 1824-02-12T00:00:00

Yestertday morning, &t nine o'dock, . coroner's juy was emitate. led at the Swan-with.two.Necks, Lad-lane, befote T omas Sheltor, q t'coroner, on theobtSy of an infant child, supposed to have.been orn e,ed, unde~r circumstances of grreat atrocity. Efztabeb Merm, seist'tat tiBe.Swosv.at-witlh.two.Ne',pet1,. that on Sutn,dasymorag has: she was- ill in bed, inii-rocw 3 sister oSanotber. servant hadslept that f-night theT capet;wbiel?y bv the side of het bed was imbeuedwvithsl qod, and Ihe bed WaS al5o disenloured. Sht exnmim luridaynight, only,as.a gyest; but witness bellevesliertistressivas abouttoemploylherin the capactyofservant. The caMbermaid came to bed about two onFridayi~o1ninafld wit-. ness heard,the stranlger (Elizabeth Alert) say, ' Fray-brig me k Candle." The candle -was brought, and otier words passed.. when Elizabeth Alert seemed anxious for ber to go down staits, which she dide On Sundots night she went to Br'istol by the Reeent, inside; on the' fbiltowiig. morning (Monday), witness, Sarah' Nurse, and -nother maid-servant, went t6 clean the bed on which tne woman Elizabeth Alett bad slept; Sarah Nurse then said, " Fed, there is *1nethiny'in the bed ;" and witness took a pair of scissors anti CUt the ticXing, put her hand among the.feathers, and to her titter astanislirnent took'out the child, after which she lai( itin a cloth, and put it where the jurors now perecive it; witness was too miuch frightened to look if therc were any merits of violence on the child at the time, Ssvah Sr es, another servnnt at thc Swait.with-two-Necks, dc- posc-i that she slept in thes aiec lied with Elizabethl Alert on Satur- dav night, and went to bed about 12 o'clock. Alert Was then sitting up in tbe f!?. dAnd said she had the head-acli. Witness then went to bed Alert ask`6,d her taoleave alighled canidle, which witness did. Alert was restles5 in the nighit, and once awoke witness, who asked if she could dlo any- thing for'lher, and was answered in the negative. Witness knows Alert went out of bed once in tile night, but nothing struck witness in psrticplar. Witness got up tie next miorning, and left Alert in bed. The follow'ing night. witness slept in (ie bed alone, and said to hetr feDoow-servant, there was SOmething in the bed ; she could not bear to touch nor could she li'e near It. The lst witnczs cut open the .icking, and took out a child, victh so flur. ried witness, that she ran dowiv,slairx. Mr. Francis Henrr Rnnasbothani, ;i7, Broad-street-buildings, sur.eon. deposcd, he' hadl dissected tie bnlv of tilh- tecea'ed Cliiffl, which is that of a femkale. fill grown) ritc 'facc and the lips wcre livid, but not more so thani Woild happen int a still-born child, at times; the loings had evident marks as if the child bad respired; at tse roo t of tl.he ongue on thie r:ghit aide, tlere wvas a considerable laceration fnun tbe gullet, corresponding wvith the scratcl andi mark befare described, wihich extended nearly as low as the breast-bone; which miaht have been occssioned by thc finger, or anyi substance being thrust violently into the gullet. WVitntestss decided opinion was, front the appea.ramnces, that the child had been suf1bcated bv the instrasient which had been thrust into its imouth ; that the child was born alive, and suffbeated. Mr. James Luke, surgeon, corroborated last witness's testimony, except that lie believes the coagpdatekS bloot on the clild'S lips must have originated fi'oni the vbundK. The female witnesses were all galled back, and deposed, that they never heard the cry of' t child, and that Eiizabeth Alert is above 30 years of age. Another mnelical gentleman corroborated the aforesaid,testiniony. The Jury, after a very loig itisemssion, returned a verdiet thilt- The child was stili-born." After this verdict the Coroner said lie did not feel himselftjustifietd in esaying beforev what lie should now relate-that if this woman had been sent for trial, she would have been ac luitted, he thougli of the capital off nce, and punished for the minor crime; but now The law was evaded. There waq ani evident concealment of the birth, wshich the law could not now punish, and thereibre this woman had totally escaped punishment. SUSPECTBD INFANTICIDE. ,