The Sun. — 1844-08-24 (London, England)

SUMMER ASSIZES.  CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT. OLD COURT. INFANTICIDE.—Sarah Hyland, aged 22, spinster, was placed at the bar charged with the wilful murder of her new-born child. After the evidence had been heard, Mr. Ballantyne addressed the jury for the prisoner, when Mr. Baron GURNEY summed up, and put the case to the jury as one of concealment of birth. The jury deliberated for a considerable time, when they retired to consider their verdict. They were locked up nearly eight hours, and at length they returned a verdict finding the prisoner Guilty of concealing the birth, and not guilty of murder. Faith Bowerman, 17, was also indicted for the murder of her female illegitimate child, by casting it upon the ground, and thereby giving it divers mortal wounds and fractures, of which it then and there died. Mr. Simon conducted the prosecution. Mr. Charnock appeared for the prisoner. In this case it appeared that the prisoner was a country girl, and in the month of April she came to London on a visit to her brother, who resides in the Belvidere-road, Lambeth. Shortly before the Ist of July the prisoner had complained of being unwell, and her sister-in-law went out on that day to get some salts for her. Upon her return the sister saw some appearances which induced her to suspect that the prisoner had been delivered of a child, and she taxed her with it, but the prisoner denied that it was the case. Shortly afterwards, however, the body of an infant alive was found in a gateway close to the house where the prisoner lived, but there was no distinct evidence that she had been delivered of an infant. At the time the infant was found it had some marks of violence upon the head and upon the body, and the inference was that the child had been thrown over a wall that adjoined the prisoner's brother's residence to the place where it was found. When the prisoner was questioned she denied all knowledge of the child, but appeared dreadfully weak and agitated. Mr. Oliver Duke, the surgeon of Lambeth parish, who examined the child at the workhouse, proved that the head was very much contused, and the bones of the skull were fractured. The back was also very much bruised. The infant, notwithstanding these injuries, was alive when he first saw it, but it died about two hours afterwards, and he attributed that event to the injury that was received upon the head. In cross-examination the surgeon said that the injury that appeared upon the head might have been occasioned by falling upon the stairs. He also said that the loss of blood consequent upon the delivery of a child would in some cases almost occasion a state of frenzy in the mind of the mother. Mr. CHAENOCH addressed the jury, and contended that the evidence was altogether insufficient to warrant the jury in convicting the prisoner of the heinous offence of which she was accused. Mr. Justice WIGRTMAN having summed up, the jury found the prisoner guilty of manslaughter. Judgment was respited. Amelia Alfrey, 26, was indicted for feloniously assaulting Mary Anne French, and casting her into the water, with intent to drown and murder her. Mr. Charnock defended the prisoner. William Alfrey, a little boy, deposed that the prisoner was his sister, and he lived with her, by the water-side, at Wandsworth. On the 29th of July he was on Wandsworth-common, and saw the prisoner there, accompanied by her two children, a little girl and a boy; their names were Henry French and Mary Anne French. The prisoner lived with a man named French, and the children went by his name. Shortly afterwards he heard the prisoner scream, and on going to her he found her in a pond with her children. It was very shallow water, and he ran in and held up the children's heads, and also tried to hold up the prisoner's head. A little time before this occurred, he had seen the prisoner walking about, and she told him to go home., He did not see the prisoner carry the children into the water, but he thought they walked in.  NORTHERN ClRCUlT.—Liverpool, Aug. 22. CIVIL SlDE.—(Before Mr. Justice