The Sun. — 1853-02-01 (London, England)

THE CASE OF CRUELTY IN THE GREENWICH UNION.— Yesterday Mr. Carter concluded the inquest on the body of John Gaywood, aged six years, whose barbarous treatment by a nurse lately created so much public horror. It will be remembered that at the last sittings of the Central Criminal Court, the woman Oldham, who is about 50 years of age, and was an inmate of the union, was tried for assaulting the child by placing a piece of red hot coal in the palm °fits right hand, 'and keeping it there, for some five or six minutes, for which offence she was sentenced by the Common Serjeant to 14 days' imprisonthent. Sometime elapsed ere the cruel act was communicated to the authorities, and medical aid was afforded the little sufferer. A few days after the trial an unfavourable change took place in his state; he gradually pined away, and died. After nearly,an hour's absence, the jury returned into court, and the foreman announced that their verdict was, that the deceased had died from water on the brain, accelerated by the injury inflicted by the nurse, Mary Ann Oldham. Coroner—That, gentlemen, amounts to a verdict of manslaughter ; is that your verdict ? Foreman=lt is, The coroner then issued his warrant for the committal of the woman Oldham to Newgate, and bound over the witnesses to appear at the  MURDER AND ATTEMPTED SureipE.-,--Last. Saturday the family of Mr. W. H. Hart, - East India merchant, residing at 7, Gloucester-place, Hyde-parkgardens were thrown into the most fearful state 'of terror from the following tragical occurrence. Between 7 and 8, a.m., Mary Mitchell, the cook, finding that Marian Griffin, the hougemaid, did not make her appearance, went to her bed-room, when she found her rather agitated, and she also heard a smothered noise in Griffin's box, which induced her to approach it for the purpose, of. ascertaining whence the noise originated •, but Griffin endeavoured to prevent hez.. The cook, however' seeing a pair of scissors smeared with blood, lying near the. box, she insiste upon opening the box, where she found a newly born. infant alive, and bathed in blood, which issued from a wound in' <its throat that e'xtend'edfi-oin ear COZir. Sho instantly Rished down stairs and gave the alarm, when Messrs. Pollock and Galiando, surgeons, were instantly sent for. Upon those gentlemen entering Griffin's room, they found the unfortunate woman in the act of cutting her own throat with the scissors. Having disarmed her, they applied the necessary remedies to her wound, and then so secured her that she could not repeat her suicidal attempt. After which they turned their attention to the infant, whom they found in a moribund state, the wound Wing of so extensive a nature, that upon the body being raised the head fell backwards. Singular to say, although death is inevitable, life still lingers in the body. There is no doubt that the wound was inflicted on the infant with the same scissors with which the mother attempted to cut her own throat. The mother, who hitherto bore an irreproachable c)aracter, had been only two months in Mr. Hart's service. Last evening she was removed to the infirmary, where she remains under the surveillance of the police.