Star. — 1828-08-02 (London, England)

OXFORD CIRCUIT—STAFFORD, JULY TA. CROWN Stns.—Before Mr. Baron Varranas. Ann Jones was 'indicted, charged with having attempted to poison her master, Wm. Jackson, by ad. ministering to him a solution of corrosive sublimate. Mr. TALFOVRD, who appeared for the prosnution, said the prisoner was charged with One of the most serious crimes which could come under the consideta• tion of a Court of Justice. She was charged with putting corrosive sublimate into the tea-kettle from which her • master was to receive his breakfast. At the tme the offence was committed, by the law then in existence, it was only a misdemeanour. By a recent Act of Parliament (Lord Lansdown's), attempts at murder of this desirtption were declared to be capital offrnces. The pro. secutor (Mr. Jackson) was a surgeon, residing at West Bromwich, in this county. In the year 1825 the prisoner had been apprenticed to him as a servant by one of the parishes of Birmingham. For some misconduct,-in December last, she had, at the instance of her master, been committed to gaol for a month. He (Mr. Taff urd) did not mention this to aggravate the charge against her, by showing any srries of misconducr, but as probably affording some motive for the horrible offence she was charged with. On the 14th of January she returned to the service of her master, and almost imme.liately after the occurrence which formed the subject of their present Mquiry took place. The Learned Counsel then pro= ceeded t') detail the facts subsequently given in evidence. Lavinia Jackson, aho stated herself to be a daughter of the prosecutor, said that the prisoner was apprenticed to ber father. She remembered her returning to her father's house in therbeginning orJanuary, two or three days before the teaLtettle business. Witness's father always took tea for breakfast, and the rest of the family coffee ; it was the duty of another servar.t, Selina Hopkins, to prepare her father's breakfast. On the morning of the 16th of January the family had breakfasted on coffee before her father came down stairs. The kettle remained in the breakfast room. Witneis. was sitting in the breakfast room, and the prisoner cave in and !took Ithe,kettle and placed it on the kitchens‘se, for about half a minute. Wi:ness had a flew of' flit kettle from the position she was sitting in, all die time 41 her father came down stairs. She heard her father call to Selina Hopkins to get his breakfast ready. Ile then went into the surgery. Witness took-the tea-pist out of the breakfast room into the kitchen, to Ppsir some water in it. There was nothing in at the time,,,On putting the water in, she observed it looked like sow suds, and took it to her mother to look at, and from donee to her father in the surgery. He took the tea-pot ftom witness, and went into the breakfast room, antlValled for Ann Jones and Selina Hopkins. Ann Jones was in the brewhouse at the time, and Selina Hopkins .came down stairs. Witness's father asked who had put-the kettle on for breakfast ? The prisoner said she had not any thing to do with it, and Selina Hopkins said the same. Witness's father then got the whip, and said he would soon make them tell, and gave them two stripes each across the shoulders with the whip. While the kettle was on the kitchen fire, no one could have touched it without witness seeing it. Cross-examimed—l saw Ann Jones come into the breakfast-room and take the kettle. She was not half a minute gone with it, from the time she left the parlour till she returned with it to the kitchen. There is a pump in the yard. close to the brewhouse door. I was present when my fatbai flogged the two gills. William JACkSon, the prosecatOr, said-he had been  ;"  y