npedrazzini/19thc_murder_suicide_news huggingface dataset:
The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — 1822-12-24 (London, England)

SUFFERER.  :•ORIIID ATTEMPT AT MURDER AT LEWISHAM.  ;=nts of Lewi sherd, Blackheath, and the surrounding were on Monday morning early, thrown into greatest terror and dismay, at hearing the report of Irearms, which proceeded from a lonely lane leading front Dartrouth row, at the Lewisham foot of Blackheath, to the road' 'ere the late armoury mills stood. The watchman in Dart• nth-row, with all possible haste, repaired to the spot from ..I.ence the report was heard, when oa reaching the cottage of Jas. Smith, Esq. it was ascertained that it had been attacked by robbers, who, finding they were discovered, shot at, and desperately wounded Mr. Smith. From enquiry yesterday, at :he house of the uniartunate gentle a, we are enabled to lay before our readers the authentic particulars of this murderous attack. Mr. Smith, about 11 years ago, retired upon an immense property to the above cottage, which is constructed of 1 wood, and surrounded with a shrubbery, enclosed with wooden paling, on the top of which are iron spikes. The cottage consists of six rooms, three on a floor, the front ',axiom and kitchen are abreast of each other, and the bed-room in which Mr. and Mrs. Smith slept is over the kitchen, and the dining-room immediately over the front parlour. The family, consisting of Mr. Smith, who near sixty, his wife about the same age, a female seivint, and a little boy, repaired to bed about ten o'clock on Saturday night, and about three the next morning Mrs.l Smith was awoke by a noise on the tiles of a shed near her .bed• 100111, as if some person was treading upon them. She imisediately roused Mr. Smith. saying she was sure some person! li »ere about the house. lie instantly jumped out of bed, put ent !iis coat, and arming himself with a brace of loaded•pistels chide he always kept by his bed side, went out of his bed-1110111 into the dialog-room, sod opening the window,- Mine+ • '• W11(01 the.e ?" and at that moment one of the robbert o stood is the garden path, about twenty paces from the low, shot at him with either a gun or a horse-pistol. The et entered the muscle of his left arm, perforated his breast ..• otiose the nipple, and passed through his body, lodging seen the third and fourth rib on the right side. The en'o,,unate gentleman could not speak, but as well as he was able i4gered into his bed-room sweltering in his blood. Doctors ! car, Sheriff, and Rose were immediately sent for, and ia s w seconds they arrived at the cottage, and found the wound-1 (tutu in a state of the greatest agony, and scarcely able to ariculate. On examining the premises, it was discovered that Si., robbers had scaled the palings from the lane• and bad removed a pane of glass from the kitchen w indow, which was barr.radoed by strong iron bars which Made access impossible, they ' therefore endeavoured to gain an entrance by boring holes • I a centre bit in the panels of the parlour shutter. sad
The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — 1826-03-27 (London, England)

POLICE.  QUEEN-SQUARE. LIVING WITH RELATIONS.—Among the miseries of human life may be classed the following case, displaying the misery of residing with one's relations. An afflicted men, named John Armsteatl, came before the Sitting Magistrates at this office, to complain of the mad-treatment he had experienced from Ida son-in-law, Mr. Thomas Cooper. On Sunday the 12:11, complainant was in Cooper's garden, who is an eminent sort of bird fancier at Knightsbridge, when the deicedant thought proper to quarrel with the complainant about digging ; first assisted in tying up his hands and fact, and afterwirds kicked him till be was ready left tbr desti upon the ground. Capener, of No. 24, in Kionerton.street, knightsbridge,- three doors from Coorer's, deposed that, hearing a cry of munler, lie looked out over the wail, when he saw Armatcad with his legs tied with a line In the garden, which Mrs. Cooper cut down tor the purpose. At this juncture he was nearly black in the flee.; and witness did not think _Plat lie could have survived had not sonic one released him, wt*lt, fortunately, was acmeplishei by the witness and his uncle, who succeeded in toting the eontpininunt ME Defendant was a dealer In birds; and it was the complainant's business, as the witness heard, to look after the aviary. Mrs. Sarah Caniplan saw Armstcad while tied fast in Cooper"! garden. from her back window, when the complainant was crying nut murder for upwards of an hour, to the terror of witness and also of a lady ..)10 lodged with her. Lydia Johnson who realties next door to Cooper's, deposed to seeitter Anitstead tied fast, and then' kicked while lying in the cefentismt's garden. . .  Cuorier, in his defence, said that Armstead was unfortunately the father of his wife. Several times he had dismissed him, but Airs. Coo;.er cried him back again. lie had assaulted t7te defendant on the ruoruirg in question, so early as nine o'clock, then went away, but retained at dinner time. Annstead then struck and oven bit the defendant, who, to prevent more mischief, bat tied him up ; but his busy neighbours let him loose. Thotnas Schofield. an lame:: of Cooper's, spoke to Armstead's being drunk, and refusing to come down stairs to dinner, or give up the keys, and to his striking alr. Cooper. Annstead denied that be was intoxicated.  George Yates. servant to Cooper, said that Armatead was drunk that morning at right o'clock : that, besides, he struck Cooper first, when witness helped to tic him by his hands and legs. .Me. fIitEGIORIE.—I do not belleve for a moment that Armstead was drunk. If you take your father-in-law in for charity's sake, Cooper, it is what all the world will oppland you for; but you are not. on tl•at account, at liberty to tie up his hands and legs, and leave hint in your garden for clod. I (19 not think that anything can justify your conduct to this man; and, therefore, you 111118 t find bail towards hint.  Cooper—Find bnil ! For wlint ? :dr. Gatoontc—For a viJlent and brutal assault on your father-in-law, Sir.  Several of Cooper's neighbours were present at the examination•
The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — 1826-03-31 (London, England)

RUSSEL—There were many masons at the tavern that night, perhaps more than ten or twelve; they were all the workmen of the deceased; they had received their week's wages, and they were ail drinking sonic ale. Mark Price and 1 left the house pretty much at the same time ; he followed me out; the two men I have alluded to were about 20 yards from the door. It was not so dark but that I could see a man. After the  big man kicked my dog I did raise my hand, but only to fend off the blow he made at me. His hat fell oil', but I did not knock it ofr; my hand went towards his head when defending myself. The big man knocked down Mark Puke; he was quite close to me then, while I was on the round. Price ran buck to the publichouse, and then at least a &yen men came out with Morgan Saunders, the deceased leading them. They came towards the biggest man. They did not press upon him, nor dill he retreat from them. He retreated from me, but not from them. He then struck the deceased.  He-examined—l was quite sober, and so was the deceased. The big man first kicked my dog, and was then about to strike me, when I raised my hand to defend myself. Examined by the Count —My dog had not barked at him. I gave the man no provocation whatever. I had never met with him, nor did I ever see him before. Mark Price called—l was at the Pentwynn Tavern on the night of the 12th of November. I had been receiving my wages there. I had only drank a pint of beer. and I was quite sober. Morgan Saunders was in the house, and he was quite sober. I followed Philip Williams out of the house, as we wcre both going home. I left Morgan Saunders in the house. When we went out I saw two men standing in the road a little distance below the house. There was a big man and a little man. The big man had a smock frock, and he kicked Williams's dog without any provocation whatever. Williams asked the big man why he kicked his dog, and he immediately knocked him down. lie then kicked him several times while he was down. He continued to beat Williams, who cried out " murder ;" on which I went up, and told the big man not to murder Williatna. Ile then jumped from Williams to me, knocked me down, and kicked me after I was down. He then went hack to Williams, and began beating and ' kicking him again ; on which It'illisitts cried out " murder." I then went to the tavern anal called for assistance, and said that I was afraid Williams would be murdered. I said " For God's sake let soinebody come out." The people in the house then came out. The first man that came out was the deceased, Morgan Saunders. The big man then left Williams, and came towards Morgan Saunders. I saw the deceased hold up his hand, and I heard him say " I am no lighting man; do not strike me. If you do, I will make you suffer the punishment of the law." The big man then jumped at the deceased and knocked him down. Cross-examined by Mr. C.
The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — 1826-07-29 (London, England)

LORD CHIEF HARON.I Samuel. rniiie was indicted for the wilful murder of Mary Ana Randall, at the parish of Overton, in this county, on the 4th May lea. It appeared from the evidence, that the unfortunate deceeteet had been to the family way by the prisoner, and that, wishing to conceal her situation, or to tl.reroy the fruit of the illicit inter• course, the prisoner had bought some arsenic, under the line preesion that, taken in quantities of a quarter of an ounce at a time, it would produce the desired effect. A feilow-servant of prisoner's and the deceased had slept with Selith on the night that the unhappy girl died ; he went to get a surgeon for het ; she reached heavily at the etontach, and then died. The prisoner expressed great regret at the melancholy effct produced by the arsenic, and never denial the parpOse for which he gave it her. The mother of the girl saw her a fete trindtes before she exe pirrtt, and she said to her, " Sam gave it tome." The surgenn who examined the body proved that her death Wa4l produced by taking corrosive poison internally. Three grains of arsenic would be sufficient to destroy life. The LORD CHIEF BARON recapitulated the evidened, and told the Jury they had three points to consider in this case. Fir , was the petition given to take awry the life of Mary Ann Randall? Secondly, was the poison given to procure abortion ? and, Thirdly, was it merely given with a view to awe in her a regularity of body, such as was referred to by one of the wiliettees. In the first or se• cond case, if the Jury should find him guilty, then he would be gully of murder; but not so in the third case, however wherwiree culm,ble lie might be. There was, in his opinien, no evidence to show that he meditated the young wernlin'e death ; but it was for the Jury to decide on all the circumaances as they appeared before them in evidence. Toe Jury consulted fin about a quarter of an hour, and then re• turnA the to lowing .verdict—" e find the prisoner guilty of ad. mi,istering p&son with intent to procure abortion." The Leen lime BARON said he could not take this qt alified verdia. and the Jury must say either guilty of not guilty. The Foreman—We arc unanimously of opinion, my Lord, that the prisoner Is guilty. Sentence of death was then .pronounced upon the wretched mar., and It was ordered for execution on Saturday next. During the trial he seemed to labour under extreme mental agony. but bore the awful sentence with evident resignation. On the Civil Side, an action, Doe on the Demise of Sabine t. Walton and others, occupied the Court on Wednesday and a part of Thursday, respecting the validity of a will made by a man named Greenaway, who was stated to be non comput at the time of his signing the instrument. After hearing evidence at great length, the Jury, on Thursday, returned a verdict for the defendants against the heir of Greenaway.
The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — 1826-03-18 (London, England)

MARRIED. seiviii accompany het' own family to Paris : and deprecated ti•e proved that he was now in • state of mind which ;moved ail ob. Liverpool, to. see if he could drew. Mr. Blackburn was to take have adjourned twice for the purpose of obtaining the advice of a on Wednesday, at the district church cf All a4,ti1,1, John, the son ie•,l*,' surenwition of nee infltier cc of Mr. %V. in that transaction. In Jectlone to his haver,g the care of them. In that cese lie him to Liverpool. He sold hint on the Friday, and he was to go metlical gentleman, for which the parish-officers of St. :deepen:Cs, late J. R. Carlow, Esq. Member of Council it Bombe- to klarOi .1......;`,:: November Mrs. IV. had written a letter, in which sbe mid that she shnuld be inclined to admit, or at least pass over spew part of the there on the Saturday. • , Westminster, were applied to, but refueed to furnish one." third daughter of the late S. Davis, Esq. of Portland-Sac "e Bud li rai t Ter...leo that Mrs. B. liquid not return Kt her (aridly, end it Was affidavits. The allidavits of Dr. Bulkeley showed that there Ira? lie-examined by Mr. Wietteem-lie did not know how he BARBAROUS MURDER AT BRomLEY.-An inquisition was Lodge, Surrey. „,to il tin the 16th-init at Tottenham C b in • Rica Esq. of etn-:-' et -er mat nrohiee improper had then paseed between bl!'. W . and mute feel:ne rankling in his mind on which prompted bhp to ositt. .(A laugh.) Ile was a good•looking one, only five year% yesterday taken at the Rose and Crown public-house, on view of n. - ' bare , Ile s Is_ f ~!,,,,,a. , ill, to el ilhelmlna, second daughter of 1.. Burnam/. de+ ° 7•lrs. B. A leiter was written by her to the fetber of :MT. %Vence- do every theig he possibly could to theme Mr. %Vellesley in 'eld in the spring. Tbe money was to be sent from Liverpool. the remains of an Trish labourer named Helmet Sullivan. In eli. lane. •• i py. elm much pathoe no doubt ; but no one could read It withou t les application. This was very obvious from the case of the time- Patrick .111• G to es-entitled by Mr. tecener.TT-fle is not part citing the circummenees connected with his death, time Jury had a Oti tbe 16tb inst, ag Alt souls, Church, Mr. Meld Wawa, OA *002: ii ertiesvg glutton the very moment when she prof-mud east etiettail piece, which was so minutely and perfectly described seed 'oweer of the horse. He has not iadcmnified the attorney fur the difficult task, as the witnesses not wily came forward reluctantly, J. Watson, Esq. of Makin Hill, Paddington, to Catherine, t'"crel;:: • repro* . ion she would cosily have heen teetteed toe 'forgive her utanage4 with imeli dramatic effect, to &newer the purlieu of coots. . but gave their testintoi.y in a vety contradictory style. The bodiy, daughter of the lute T. R. Hobblus, Esq. of Stratford-on-Avon, Wits. * hitir mild if he returned repentant., Mr. ilinchineoronefficitor tor the n wooer, but was now admitted to be entirely. f.eiltioue. Tee Exainieed by Mr.
The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — 1826-03-02 (London, England)

ABOLITION OF SLAVERY. Mr. W. PEEL presented a petition from the inhabitants of the town of Tronworth. in Staffordshire, praying her the abolition of slavery. He said, as it was not his intention to take any part in the debate which was expected to take place that night relative to the cordition of negro slaves, he would say a few words in reference to the petition which he held in his hands. It was numerously and respectably signed. The petitioners approved most highly .of the resolutions entered into by the House itt Inn, and were desiroils that the principle of those resolutions should be carried into effect. They did not urge the immediate and sudden manumission of the negroes, but wished the House would adopt such measures as woniti lead to their emancipation. They went a step further than other petitioners who had preceded them ; they were willing to contribute (if called upon) towsrds indemnifying any loss that might be sustained in forwarding that measure of relief towards the slaves in the West Indies. There was one point to which he would call the attention of the House. As the law of evidence at present stood in the West India Colonies, the testimony of a slave could not be received concurrently or in contradiction of the evidence of a white; so that ff 6 merttftlid been annoritted lit the presence of one white and several negro slaves, the testimony of the white only could he received as evidence of the fact, and should even this white he the brother of the murderer, it was only by his evidence that the culprit could he convicted. This was certainly a great grievance, and, in his opinion, called upon the House for interference. He concurred in the opinions of the petitioners, and he trusted the object of the petition would soon be effected. Similar petitions were presented by Lord Althorp. from Kettering, in Northamptonshire ; from Rowell and Desboroueh, by Mr. Ilyng ; from lirentford, by Sir Thomas Acland ; from Devonport, by Mr. Drummond ; from Falkirk, by Mr. Tremayne ; from Iles; ton, by Mr. 'Nodal° ; from Birmingham and its vicinity ; by Mr. • Curti is, front Cliff- Lewes ; by Mr. Wyvill. from the city and vitrinity of York ; by Lord Lowther, from Appleby, in IVestmorI land. aid from Stowmarket, in Stiftlk, by Mr. Chaplin : from South from Holbeach, bong-Sutton, and Halcsborough ; Iby Mr. Dickinson, from NViveliacombe ; by Mr. Hume, from I Kingston ; by Sir IL Ferguson, from Burntisland ; by Mr. Len. ears, from Ipswich, and front the Protestant Convocation of I)isseoters the same place ;by Mr. Legh Keck, from Butterrth ; by Mr. Allen. from Pembroke : by Mr. Whitmore, from Oswestry ; by Mr. Woilehouse, from Norfolk ; by Sir Philip Mositraye, front the city of Carlisle ; by Mr. W. Smith, from Ports,' tonth. Mr. FLEMING presented a petition from a meeting of the inhabitants of the Isle of Wight. assembled at Newport. praying for the abolition of slavery, and a reduction of the duties on West (nein produce: also from Gosport and Eornsey. Mr. Om tiv,/ presented a petition front Ellesmere; and Mr. WHITMORE front Oswestry, to the same effect.
The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — 1826-07-10 (London, England)

MACCLESPISLD, JULY T.—Very considerable alarm prevailed here on Wednesday evening, from a report that a man named Albison had murdered his wife : and as it was known that lie would be examined at the Guildhall on Thursday, hundreds, of persons pressed forward fur admission. The woman is not dead, but so dangerous are the wounds she has received, that there is little likelihood of her recovery. It appeared that a quarrel arose at a public house, where the prisoner, his brother, and wife were drinking, and on their return home, having some reason to suspect his wife's fidelity. as she had been scat with his brother under very suspicious circumstances, he attacked her in the most savage manner, jumped upon her repeatedly, and nearly beat her head to pieces with a clog. A person having stated that the woman teas in very edit danger, Albison was remanded for a day or two, to wait the result. I have been this morning to see the poor woman. She was quite insensible, and has been so dreadfully beaten about the head, that not a sh.gle feature in her face can be discerned; her nose and chin are absolutely level with her cheeks, and altogether she presented a most horrifying spectacle, and her countenance is anything but human. 0,1 IVetlnesday the city of Coventry was visited by a most tremendous thunder-storm, accompanied with a deluging shower of rain. it commenced about one o'clock, and, for upwards of an hour, the vivid flashes of the lightning, and the deafening peels of the thunder, were alarming beyond description. About a pine! past two, the eltetrie floid descended against the house of a, Mr. Careless, in Much Park-street, and struck the iron hinge of a window shutter on the ;,,wittiid ti tor, on the east side of the building ; it entered the premises, dashing to splinsters the window and window frame ; and taking a perpendicular direction, forced its way through the ceiling into the chamber above, where part of the tinnily were at rest • the window and frame here shared a similar .fate with those below; several splinters being thrown on the bed of the terrified inmates. The fluid proceeded across the chamber, forcing large pieces of wood and brick from the wall, and entered the shop above, which'cohtained several engine looms •filled with silk. From the appearance of this plat-, the electric matter had lost none of its power. In several plates titicks were torn from the wall with tremendous violence, and considerable damage was done to the looms. The destructive fluid afterwards made its egress through a window on the west aide of the house, tearing out the window frame. A young man, son of Mr. Careless, who slept in the shop, terrified by the violence of 'the storm, rose for the purpose of ernsing the window as the electric fluid entered. Ile was immediately struck to the ground, but received no further personal injury than being for a almet time stunned. lie describes the sen. sation he experienced as simibir to that of a person whose head was surrounded by a flame of fire.
The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — 1826-07-08 (London, England)

JULY 7. CROWN SIDE.  CHARGE OF MURDER.  Jaws Arnett was indicted for wilfully and maliciously murder. ing Thomas Maley, by tiring at and against him a certain gun loaded with gunpowder and leaden shot, at Enaham, in this county, on the lith of April last. Mr. CARRINGTON opened the pleadings. Mr. CURWOOD stated the case to the Jury. The Learned Counsel said it was his melancholy task to detail to the Jury the circumstances of this case, in which the prisoner was charged whit an offence, not only by the law of England, but by the law of all other nations, and by the law of God, pronounced in thunder from Mount Sinai, ranked as the deepest and the blackest in the catalogue of human off:nee.. It therefore became an imperious duty on the Jury to weigh well the circumstances of a case, in which a fellow-creature was charged with a crime, his conviction of which might subject him to almost instaataneous death. The Learned Counsel then went on with much candour to preface a statement of the facts, with a remark that in his judgment the present was but a case of manslaughter.  Charlotte Smith was then called, and stated that she lived at Ensham in this county. She remembered the 17th of April last, and on the evening of that day, at a little after eight o'clock, she was opposite the prisoner's house, who was a respectable farmer at Ensham. There were a great many persons near the house at the time, and among them the deceased. She heard " Murder" crie d in the house. Mrs. Arnett, the prisoner's wife, presented !terse' f at the down-stairs room window, and cried out, Do pray come in, or I shall be murdered to.night." She requested the deceased Thomas Maley, particularly to go tn. The deceased 31aley then got over the pales, and took the key of the little gates from Mrs. Arnett. Ile came bark, and unlocked the gates, and others went in also. The deceased entered at a window, which Mrs. Arnett pushed up, while she had a candle in her hand. Cross.examined by Mr. Sergeant YEagg—lt was dark at this time, and there were a good many people in the street ; but I did not hear any of them use any galling Jeering expressions to the deceased. Ileis at timer; an irritable neon, but at others a very kind and good-natured man. Mary Ann Smith, the sister of the last witness, corroborated her evidence. . _ .  Several other witnesses were then called, whn proved that the prisoner fired through the kitchen door after the deceased had entered, and shot him deed. At the time the prisoner fired, a woman 1.13 burg pulling hint back by the collar, and he prisoner's face was not towards the door through which he fir. Mr. Justice Boanotron c the Jury, and they found a verdict—Guilty of Manslaughter, The COURT sentenced hill to one year's imprisonment in the gaol of this county. _ ,  •- ----WE