The Poole Telegram. — 1882-02-10 (Poole, Dorset, England)

SHOOKINO MURDER OF A LITTLE GIRL  IN KENT.  The mystery which envelopes the fete of the little girl G o gine Moore has only been partially dissipated by the revelations made at the examinati in of Esther Pay, who is charged with hiving caused the child's death, at the inquest hit at Yalding. From inquiries' made at the scene of the finding of the body, it would seem that the come-et:on of the accus .c 1 with the die appearacce of the child is much more apt arent than the evidence adduced at those itiqtt'r et ten led to show. Esther Pay, the accused, is one of right taught ire of William Humphreys, bailiff to Mr. Alfred White, of Nettlestead, • village hich adjoins the parish of Yalding, being divided from it ly the river Medway, which at that point is n'y about twenty yards wide. She has recently been s•parateti from her husband, but for what reason is nut apparent. For some titue previous to their removal to their present address in Winchester-street, Piratic ), the parents of the child Mo .re resided with the Pays in a n ighbouring street. and here it would seem the father of the deceast d child made the acquaintance of the accuw.d. This acquaintance was of such a nature as to allow of Moore paying a vilt to the accused at her father's house at Nettlestead during the hopping sea on. Since th.t time neither he nor the accua-d have been seen in the v.l'age until Satirdey bait; hut about three weeks ago a man and a women, the latter of whom attesters to the d-scription of the seemed, went int ) a public-house at Nettlestead, where thy were clo-ettel in a private room for three hours. The identity of the man has not been estabished. At the point on the river's bank where the warner, Alfred Tinhorn, found tie body of the little girl, a pathway leads up from the towing path over . the railway, thence aero-s a hopfiel I and meadow, to the Maidetoneworei„ where it comes out by the aide of the house of the bailiff Humphreys. It thus forme a direct line of communication between the spot where the body was found and the bailiffs. It was by an extra. ordinary inalv.wtence that the holy was diacovered by Pinhoin. It app ears that Pinhorn was • stranger to the locality, and not koo wing the bed of the river over welt, he allowed his titir..:e to owing roun.l ti the shallow portion of the stream rear the bank, and it was here by Vie merest accident that he inserted his boom to pu..11 the barge cif, and by doing so brought up en object whi h proved to he the body of the missing child. From the careful manner in which the body woe hound it is aseuliset that more than one person assisted in the a tcompliettment of the deed. Scveral turns of wire were made totted the body, end two loops were mate at the Get to held bricks ti sink the body. One had slipped out, and it is expect !d will bs found in the le d of the river when the water is drawn off on Friday. It is also thought that the child was !wintered before being thrown in, as the body was quite fresh when found. The solicit w who conducted the defence of Lefrny, Mr. Hutton, has been engaged for the defence of Esther Pay, who is eharged with the Pimlico murder. The bed of the river Medway at Yalding WWI starched on Friday, but nothing wee disc wered calculated to throw tiny light on the mysterious affair. It is now believed that the tidy was in the wahm at any rate before the 12th of January, and this opinion is arrived at from the fact that on that day the river OVlrflowed considerably, partly covering tt.elteld in which the bat of the deceased was subsequently found. James Humphrey, of Kenward, an uncle of Mrs. Pay, picked the hat up on the 15th inst ,and placed it on a hedge near, without thinking anything furth tr of the discovery of the article, and it was again noticed there after the body had le en taken from the water. Rain fell heavily on the night of Thursday, the 12th, causine the water to 51W very fast, and it is I elievel that the hat ef the de eased was by tl.is means carried from wl e e th 3 body had le en sunk in the river, er from the bank, to the spot white it was found by Mre. Pey's uncle.