The North Cumberland Reformer. — 1891-02-26 (Carlisle, Cumbria, England)

MURDEROUS ATTACK ON A WOMAN. _ ---- Carl Muller, 29, a German, shabbily dressed, described as a brewer, and residing in Newman Street, was on Monday, at Marlborough Street Police Court, London, charged—before Mr. Hannay —with cutting and wounding Alice Seymour, a young woman, with intent to do her serious bodily harm.—The prosecutrix, whose hands were bandaged, said that shortly before twelve o'clock on Saturday night she met the prisoner, who was a perfect stranger to her, in the neighbourhood of Oxford Street. They got into conversation, and she accompanied him to a room he occupied on the third floor of a house in Newman Street. When she got into the apartment he signed to her to pull down the blind, and she did so. As there WAS no light in the place she struck a match for the purpose of getting a candle or lamp, but she could find neither. The accused locked the door, went to a chest of drawers, and pulled a dagger out of a case. He then seized her by the neck, tore the collar of her cloak asunder, and was in the act of drawing the dagger across her throat when she put up her hinds and seized the blade of.the weapon. Her hands were cut, and so was her cheek. They struggled together for about ten minutes. She screamed " Murder ! " many times, and eventually two of the lodgers in the house burst the door open and came to her rescue. She had done nothing to offend the :accused, who kissed the dagger before he attempted to cut her throat. At the time in question the man was the worse for drink.— Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Cleaver, the landlady of the house where the affair occurred, said that the accused came to lodge with her on New Year's Day. She heard the prosecutrix screaming " Murder I" but was afraid to enter the room occupied by the accused, because she knew he had a dagger in his possession. The door of the apartment was, howevcr, burst open and her husband entered, and subsequently sent for a constable. The witness saw the girl crawl out of the room covered with blood. She believed the accused had no occupation, but he had told her that he had come to London to obtain a situation in a restaurant. Constable Hayes said that he was called to the house in question, and on going to the room where the struggle had taken place the prisoner tried to prevent him entering, but he pushed the door open. The prisoner then got behind the door and held up the dagger produced in his left hand. He was told to put the weapon down, but instead of doing so he made a stab athim with it. The witness then drew his truncheon, and, having knocked the dagger out of the man's hand with it, seized him, threw him on the floor, and eventually conveyed him to the Tottenham Court Road Police Station, the injured woman being taken to the Middlesex Hospital.—Mr. Charles Ernest Souby, house-surgeon at that institution, said that when the woman was brought to him shortly after midnight on Saturday, her clothes were covered with blood. Her nose was bleeding, and there were some cuts on the ends of her fingers. She had a large bruise on the back of her left hand and another on the back of her head. The wounds were not dangerous. —ln defence the prisoner said that at the time in question he was intoxicated, and had no recollection of anything that had happened.—Mr. Hannay committed him for trial.