The Sun. — 1846-07-04 (London, England)

WANDSWORTH. EXTRAORDINAIX CASE OF POISONING.—Thursday, as Mr. Clive was about to vacate the bench, Inspector Busain, of the V division, brought into the Court, and placed in the dock, Mary North, a sullen-looking girl, aged eighteen, housemaid to Mr. Barker, coach proprietor; the charge, as entered in the police-sheet, against the prisoner being that of administering a quantity of vitriol to Mary Anne Barker, aged four months, the infant daughter of Mr. Charles Barker, Wandsworth, with intent to murder or do some grievous bodily harm to it. Mrs. Mary Barker, the wife of Mr. Charles Barker, omnibus proprietor, living in North- street, Wandsworth, having been sworn, said—The prisoner was in my service as a servant of all work. I have a child, which will be four months old the sth of this month, now lying ill. Mr. CLlvE—When did you first observe anything materially the matter with your child ? Mrs. Barker—Last evening, a few minutes to seven o'clock, the child was brought to me by the prisoner foaming at the mouth. She was much altered in appearance. She had been a little cross during the day, and had.not slept much. She had been vaccinated recently, and this might account for it. When the prisoner came to me, she said, " 0 dear me, ma'am, what is the matter with baby?" I did not make any reply, but immediately sent her for Dr. Howell. The lips, tongue, and the whole of the mouth were quite burnt. On the chin was a brown spot, as if something had been spilt upon it. I had sent the prisoner that morning for the ingredients necessary to make blacking for the harness, and one of those ingredient was four ounces, of oil of vitriol. I used about half of the vitriol, and gave the bottle ccaitaining the remainder to the prisoner to put on the top shelf in the kitchen, because the children should not get at it. She knew that the liquid contained iu the bottle was dangerous, because Mr. Leach, who had served her with it, bad, according to her own statement, told her that be would not have let her have it had he not knwn who it was for. The bottle produced by the inspector, labelled " Vitriol, poison," is the same the prisoner fetched me. The prisoner can read, not only printing, but writing. Mr. George Tatham, surgeon, said he was sent for at seven o'clock the previous evening, but not being at home when the message arrived he did not see the child until half past nine o'clock ; it was then sitting on the prisoner's lap. with its head lolling upon its right shoulder. On seeing the child, he immediately exclaimed, "This child has had vitriol." There were then present the mother, the sister, the servant, and Mr. Howell. He looked at the child's mouth, and found portions of it excoriated. and the gums, roof, and tongue were white, and showed marks of an acrid or corrosive poison. Witness at once knew that vitriol had been administered, having had a previous case of poisoning by vitriol. He asked Mrs. Barker if she had any vitriol in the house, and she admitted she had. The cloth produced by the inspector (a child's napkin) he had not examined until that morning; the light green marks on it were produced by the child's vomiting; the brown marks were such as would be produced by vitriol. They might have been caused when wiping the child's mouth. It would be difficult for him to say positively that the cloth was stained by vitriol, but he believed it to be so. Dirs. Barker said, there were so many napkins used when the child vomited, and they were all put away together, that she could not undertake to say that the one produced was that with which the prisoner wiped the infant's mouth. Mr. Tatham said, the child was at present in a very precarious state. It was possible that she might live four or five days longer, and she might recover. Mr. CLIVE asked the prisoner if she desired to say anything? _  Tiie prisoner (in a firm voice) said, I never touched the vitriol. I never went nigh it. I never put my hand on the shelf, after mistress gave it to rue to put there. Mr. CLIvE remanded the case for a week.