The Sun. — 1860-11-05 (London, England)

RECHBERG."  TILE CHILD MURDERS .AT BRAD.FOIf.D.  Margaret Gowland, otherwise Sutton, who murdered her two children, Elizabeth Jane and Annie Gowland, the one four and the other two years of age, at Bradford, on the night of Sunday, the 21st ult., and at the same time inflicted a severe wound on her own tl.roat, died in the Bradford infirmary on Friday morning, at six o'clock. The Rev. John Wade, one of the curates of the parish church, had been unremitting in his attendance on the unhappy woman, and was with her during a part of the night before she expired. She was occasionally delirious shortly previous to her death, but at other times calm and rational. She frequently spoke about her. late children, and stated several  times that she had murdered them. On Thursday she asked the nurse in attendance what day of the week it was, and on the nurse answering her question, she remarked that it was just a week since her children were buried, and added words to the effect that " It it had not been for that bad man (meaning John George Gowland, father of the children) she should not have committed that rash deed." On another occasion, not long before she died, she remarked that she should only live a few hours, and then she manifested considerable emotion, saying she would have to be buried at eleven o'clock at night, and without any religious service. She told the matron at the institution, on Thursday morning, that she was very happy, and thanked her for all her kindness. It does not appear that the woman ever said anything about the manner in which she murdered the children, the particular hour at which she committed the act, or which of the children she first put to death. To the night nurse she stated on one occasion that one of the children, when the other's throat was cut, made an appeal to her to be spared, exclaiming, " Oh, dear mamma ! don't do it to me." It has already been mentioned that the woman had, while in the infirmary, expressed a wish that after her death certain things belonging to her might be distributed among her friends, and that her directions were taken down in writing. The property she desired to dispose of included her clothes, some money (about 205.), her ring, and her Bible. Mr. Grauhan, the chief constable, is in possession of what may be called her " will," and he will, no doubt, see that the property is forwarded to her Mends according to ,the written instructions. Some persons who were neighbours of the deceased woman during the time she resided with Gowland in Bradford have begun a subscription for defraying the expenses of re-interring the two children in a grave with the mother, and Mr. R. Spencer, of 12, Bolton-road, has been appointed treasurer. The unfortunate woman appears to have been respected by her neighbours, and to have cared something for their opinion of her. On Thursday while sitting up in bed she made the policeconstable who was stationed in the room to watch her understand that she wanted to speak to him. On his going to her bedside she touched some of the buttons of his coat and said, " Were you on that walk ?" meaning the police beat within which she and Gowland and the two children _ _  lived. He replied " Yes," and she then inquired, as well as she could, what the people said about it, or about what she had done ? He endeavoured to divert her attention from the subject, but she repeated her question, and at last he told her that " all the people thought it was a great pity, and sympathised with her very much." She then said, " Well, I should never have done it if it bad not been for that man. I was a decent, hard-working girl until I knew:that villain."