npedrazzini/19thc_murder_suicide_news huggingface dataset:
Northern Times. — 1859-03-08 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

WILLIAM IRVINE'S SATURDAY NIGHT'S ADVENTURE.— A powerful well dressed man, apparently about twentyeight years of age, whose name appeared as William Irvine, and said he was a joiner, was charged under the following strange and unaccountable circumstances. Mr. Bluck  appeared for the prisoner. Mr. John Smith, a wholesale butcher, living in Trowbridge-street, stated that, at a quarter past twelve on Saturday night, he was in his parlour, along with Mrs. Smith, counting his money, •after the day. There was a knock at the door, and his wife opened it, when the prisoner rushed in and commenced a furious attack on himself and his 'wife, in fact he acted more like Gleeson Wilson, than any one he (Mr. S.) had ever before heard of. Mr. Mansfield : Did you know him before ? Mr. Smith : Never saw him before in my life, if I had had a pistol below stairs at the time, I would have shot him. Mr. Bluck : Would you ? I would ; a man rushing into my house at that hour, and making such a murderous attack on myself and my wife. Mr. Bluck : If you had shot him, I am sure you would be very sorry for it this morning. Did you charge him with an attempt to rob you ? No, I did not. Mr. Bluck : What is the charge on the book; your Worship? Mr. Mansfield :*lt is so;. the charge is for an assault and an attempt at robbery. Mr. Smith : The bridewell-keeper would have it booked so, although I did not wish to add that to the charge of assault. Mr. Bind:: Was he drunk at the time ? Witness : Not so drunk ; but he was able to catch hold of, and fling me into the street. Mr. Mansfield : Had you any money there at the time ? Yes, sir; between £3OO and £4OO. Could any one see you you from without counting it ? No ; but I could be heard by some one from without—he did not actually make at the money. Mrs. Smith was examined, and said she beard a knock at the door at the time stated, and on opening it, the prisoner rushed in and commenced the attack on herself and Mr. Smith. To Mr. Bluck : I did not observe any other men about the door. Mr. Black then addressed the bench for his client, and said it was a most unaccountable, mad act. He had asked his client to tell him all about it, but he declared, and he believed him. that he did not know or remember any thing about it, as he was utterly insensible from drink. In reply to Mr. Mansfield, the bridewell-keeper said the prisoner was fined £2 six weeks ago for an assault. Mr. Mansfield said he would have, .been better satisfied with the prisoner's explanation if Mr. Smith had not had the money on the table at the time, He fined him £5 for the assault, or two months imprisonment.
Northern Times. — 1857-08-01 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

NEGRO EXECUTION.  John Dorsey, the coloured man who murdered a lel Irishwoman in March last, by cutting her throat, on vire,ll4 charge he was convicted, has been executed in the 1-'1 Prison, New York. Father du Banquet, a Catholic pri'ol was with the doomed man all night, and gave dim spire t„0 consolationepraying with him in his cell. The priest '3 up while Dorsey slept, and, upon the accused awaking priest dressing himself, the ceremony of mass wa-.; perforola and Dorsey partook of the sacrament. Shortly el nine o'clock a procession, headed by the sheriff Igo his deputies, was formed, and marched from 0 prison hall to the execution ground. The doomed rl4 was supported by his spiritual adviser. Dorsey 11370 been placed beneath the scaffold, the sheriff informedlp that he could then make any remarks that he desired. 11, made a lengthy speech, but being a mixture of Ergroil French, and Portuguese, it was difficult to understatiU that he said. The substance was as follows (IV morning, my brothers and sisters. lam thankful to _ao Jesus for leaving me my health to pray to Him and prerit myself for my God ; and I am content and preparier meat my Judgment, and I hope to see you At'aj heaven. My dear friends, I have been thien while I was in prison, that it was very hard go be hung on such slight evidence as this. In first place, in this case I would like to knolf anybody on this earth, standing before me on this gal or before God, can say to me that I am the murderer °fool girl, or to say that they saw me speaking to this girl beg time in my life. I wish to let you all know how my tr°44,l came about this girl or this murder. I gave a staterety of it to the governor first, and then to the reporter of tog New York Tribune, and he gave a statement of it as I 41 him, and it was correct. I am resigned to my fate 'V my death with Christian fortitude, and die in the grecli God. I am happy in religion and lam content, 0;1 forgive every one in this world. I am going to meet P: judge. He is above all earthly judges, and I hope he 4 forgive me for all the sins I ever have done ; and I 11°;c1 to meet you all in Heaven. Farewell, all ye brotherstg sisters." At ten minutes before 10 o'clock, Dorsey hev7, taken leave of his spiritual advisers, the sheriff and oth° the rope was adjusted about his neck, and the black 80 placed over his eyes. The sheriff then drew his sword s, ..a signal, the fatal rope was severed by the executioner, Pof in a moment the murderer was jerked up to the heighted the beam, falling upon the slack of the rope with riot violence. His struggles were but few and short. Yettos some time after being suspended a quivering of the was perceptible, After banging twenty minutes, the e 5), geons present pronounced the man dead, swhen the boil was lowered and placed in a neat coffin. The execlitl.t, was conducted in the most order:y manner, and was 1110 nessed by abaut 120 persons, including the sheriff and immediate officers.
Northern Times. — 1857-09-26 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

CHESTER AIIIMIN MEETING.  THE TRADESSIENS' WELTER CUP of 40 sovs. in specie, given by the Grand Stand pr.prietors, added io a Handicap Sweepstakes of 50 sovs each. Winner of any handl cap of 100 sovs clear, after the publication of the weights 51b, of the Shorts Handicap or Innkeepers' Plate 7lb extra, but not to be accumulative. To be riden by members or sons of members of White's. Brooke's, Boodle's, the Jockey Club, Goodwood, Heaton Park, Eglinton Park, Bibury, Southdown, or Liverpool Hunt Club, and Officers on full pay in the Army and Navy. Arty Gentleman (having the consent of the Stewards) not being a member of the above Clubs allowed to ride on payment of 3 sovs to the Fund. Jockeys allowed to ride' on carrying 5 lbs extra. Winner to pay 5 sovs towards expenses of the course. Mile and a half.-10 subs. Weights to be published in due time. Age Age St. Patrick Little Davie... .......... Pretty Boy . . • . Commotion .  Tha Sluggard . 5 Mast!r  A CLEVER Roauv.—ln the course of Tuesday and the day previous; a person wearing the garb of a gentleman, succeeded in passing off no fewer than 16 counterfei• sovereigns in different shops in Glasgow. The plan which he adopts in most cases is to ask for a certain article and throw down a genuine sovereign in payment. Just, how ever, as the shopman is about to give him change, he suddenly recollects that he has some silver, and rc-pocketing the genuine sovereign, begins fumbling for the silver. Of this however, with a disappointel look, he finds be has not s flicient to pay for the article, and accordingly hands the shoptnan a sovereign—a counterfeit one this time— and having obtained his charge, walks off.  DEATH OF A CHARACTZILLA woman named Martha Heath, aged 83, living at 16, Sandford-street, was, we regret to hear, found drowned in the river Chelt, near Barratt's mill, at an early lima yesterday morning. Police-const,bles Lewis and Wilkins were shortly afterwards on the spot, and life being Extinct, the oiy was removed to the stables of the Swan Inn, High-street' where an inquest was held in the evening, before J• J. Lovegrove, Esq., coroner, and the jury, after hearing evidence to show that deceased had thrown herself into ihe water, returned a verdict of " Temporary insanity." We understand that although deceased went by the name of Heath, her real name was Martha Probert. She was the wife of a man of that name, who was, in company of Thurt, II and Hunt, engaged in the robbery and murder of Mr. Weare, whose death some thirty years ago caused so much xcitement throughout the country. Oa that occasion Probert saved himself from the gallows by turning king's evidence. His two companions in crime were convicted and hung, and Probett himself was some time afterwards convicted of horse-stealing, and the crime at that time being a capital offence, he suffered the same fate as his former accomplices. Mrs. Probert then took upon herself the mane of Heath, and has since resided with her relatives in cheltenham.—Cheletnham Lzanancr.
Northern Times. — 1857-12-19 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

MURDER.  LIVERPOOL. BZFORR MR. R. GLADSTONZ.  BAD Housza.,7—Thomas Horrocks, and his wife Margaret, were brought up by Inspector Hough, on a eharge of keeping an improper house, at 31, Norman-street The Rev. Mr. Green, of St. Sila:: Church. Mr George Rake, a Scripitre reader, and John Irving, a working man, were exam;ned, and they proved to the disorderly conduct carried on in the house. The evidence being sufficient, the prisoners were sent for trial. Subsequently, Mr. Black applied to the Bench to allow the prisoners out on bail, aml the application was granted. His Worship agreeing to accept two sureties in £lO each, for their appearance at sessions.  PREPARING FOR OURISTIIA3 —John Brown was charged by police cffi?er 277, on sutpicion of stealing a dead sheep. The constable e-as on duty in Scotland-road, on Thursday night, when he saw a spring cart pees, loaded with dead sheep. Scene time after he saw the prisoner going up Ben 4-oneon-street, with a dead sheep on his back, and, knowing him to be a thief, he followed him. When the prisoner sate that he was observed, he ran into a passage, followed by the officer, who got the body of the sheep in a yard, but the prisoner had got into a house, out of which the officer " abstracted " him. He had not time to look after the owner of the sheep. The prisoner was remanded. ROGUISH WO EK3lEN.—Thomas Pritchard, a night watchman at Mr. Green's brewery, Soho-street, George Boeth, foreman baker at Mr. Allison's bakery establishment, 170, Richmond-row, Samael Millar, and Thomas Daffy, two bakers in the same employment, were brought up by detective officers Scaife and Thompson, on the following charge :—lt appeared Mr. Allison called at the Polleeoffice, Dale street, and, stated that he suspected his men were robbing him, at an early hour in the morning. 'The officer went to the place, in Richmond-row, for two or three mornings, but found nothing. About five o'clock that morning the constables went again, and saw the man Pritchard leave the b ewery and go to a side window that looked in the prosecutor's premises, where he gave a signal, and then a door adjoining was opened, and Pritchard admitted. Some time after he came out, and in a coat belonging to one of the other prisoners, they got six loaves of bread lapped up and he said the other prisoners gave the broad to him. The officers then went into the bike-house, where they got the other prisoners, but they denied having given the bread to Pritchard. In reply to his Worship, Pritchard said the other men had given him the bread, saying it was broken bread, and that he might take it home to his children. The other prisoners denied this, when his Worship said, these mutt be enchanted loaves ! The officers said they got a quantity of bread in the bake-house which the prosecutor said had no right to be there. The prisoners, with the exception of Duffy, were sent to jail for three months each, and Duffy for one month.
Northern Times. — 1857-12-01 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

OCT. 23.—Tho latest into firms the statements given above. The eels divisions of the Lucknow force have, it se ass certain, effected a junction, and General o°, treie has now therefore some 2,300 men with him Residency. This force is strong enough t°s, any native enemy, but it is donbtful if it i 5 tee ciently provisioned. A desperate attack 01309 Queen's palace, headed by Outram himself, 59000/ to have been repulsed, and the British forse-t,eeo remains for the moment inactive. Rounu lies immense bands of armed Sepoys and pees:4o-00 numbering in the aggregate at least leg men: With one exception, every landir the in Southern Oude has declared against don British, not from any dislike, for the slam° bate saved British officers; but from a desire t° °troll the spoils of a falling dynasty. If General Oe t for has or can obtain provisions he may hold °u ore any time; if not, he must cut his way to Caciw ri(000 sword in hand, with, I fear, frightful loss. u°ollo Greathead has gone into Agra again. Thel3-13et proceeds to Mynpoorie, and so to Cawnpore. the ho cannot hope to reach Lucknow much bef°cdief4 end of this mouth, and meanwhile men, scusd to especially, must eat. There is no force to se"bale his aid, except this column, and the question turns on its arriving in time. Rewah Rajah, it is reported, though still To fill, has fled from his palace to some fort. ,oSora political agent, Lieutenant Osborne, is 61% 0; left alone. His position and conduct area:6 £41 collent illustration of the scenes taking P'e'd till over India. )pile is a young Madras officer, file ;1,4 this outbreak but little known to any one' now living in Rewah in a tent without a' are" companion, without a friend within one htlt 000 miles. He is so ill with liver eemplai° jo 6 he cannot lie down, taking rest only finals' chair. He has no guard, no soldiers, sea or reliable servants. Every day a" •ae to the soldiery surrounded his tent, threats"l put him to death by torture. e theiraaltilitßst siS power, but tells them he can take at lee Se lives before he dies. And so, day by day, tilde seitall lives, sick almost unto death, all alone, 031. s eat, murdererstall round, confident only that 11, oaf: is to remain at his post, and that God is tee him still. It is not such men RS the.seeeech Sepoys • can subdue. So magical, weedy is the influence of character, that to thin 10 Lieutenant Osborne, the sole European iate's Rewah, is felt by the natives to be at least a 14terefor the regiment around him. To this hour, 'force, fore, they are willing, when not stopped bfwands; to convey his messages and obey his c°ll3 Two more companies of the 321 Native ego have mutinied at Rampore Hat. Their olei;owsee away safely: The remaining companies at. eerei. have demanded to be led against the a somewhat dangerous experiment.  ........... LANC  ill other; radaray a T44:el whol L.effence t seriou 4)4 4,11 d thi calendar the ki„, sun, of t] been oat count Oeitster t.'4l3ltantS 1441 t of wh,riagdo is c tb.4,) a and 2, ''4oeu tf et frai bitolll'PriE  !'..a.°  ring reguonittea ; or q  ms Ellcltllci  hAS fc
Northern Times. — 1857-07-03 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

THE GLASGOW POISONING CASE  TRIAL OF MISS M. SMITH, FOR MURDER  HIGH COURT OF JUSTICIARY, EDINBURGH.  We yesterday gave a portion of the evidence taken on the first day in this extrao-dinary case, and now append the evidence afterwards adduced—yesterday summarised In our telegraphic despatches—up to the adjournment of the court:— Thomas Ross, auctioneer, Glasgow : I recollect being In St'rling . . .  on 22nd March last, and leaving by afternoon train for Glasgow. I went to Coatbridge by the train. I saw a foreign gentleman when I got out of the,traln. I did not know his name. The guard introduced him tome as a gentleman who was going to walk to Glasgow. I had nothing to eat, but the other gentleman had some roast beef and a small bottle of porter. It took us ra,her more than two hours to walk to Glasgow. It is eight miles. lie had a Balmoral cap on his head. [Shown the cap.] It was one like that [Shown coat.] That is not the coat he had on. He walked well, and was not tired. He was smoking several fines, and appeared to be In good spirits. We parted at top of Abercrombie-street, in the Galloweate. He told me he was go'ng to the Great IVesterna•cad. Ido not know whether Franklin-place is war that. Cross-examined : He told me he had come from Alba that morning. He said lie bad walked from A lea to Stirling. Ha said it was eight mils. He said nothing about Bed: a of Allan. Our conversation was merely on local affairs. I was not in any house with him from Coathridge to Glasgow. I am quite certain of that. We were in no shop. By the Lord-Advocate : We left Coatbridge at twenty minutes after five. William Stevenson. lam warehouseman in the employmmt of llnggins and Co. The late If. L'Angelier was in our warehouse. He was in the department under me. He was unwell ha March. lam aware of his being unwell one day in my absence before that. Ha got leave of absence in March. He was going to Edinburgh. lam aware he afterwardswent to the Bridge of Allan. Tend not see him between his going- to Edinburgh and then to the Bridge o: Allan. I got a letter from him from the Bridge of Allan : March 20. Dear am happy to say I feel much be' ter, though I fear I slept in a damp bed, as my limbe are a'l sore, and scarcely able to bear me. But n day or t ..o will put me t rights. What a dull place this is ; I went to Stirling to-day, hut it was so cold and damp, I soon hurried hone again. Am I wanted? If so, lam ready to come home at any t. me. J rat drop me a line al the post-office. You were talking of taking a few days to ymrself, so I shall coati up whenever you like. If any letters come, please vent them to me here. I intend to be home not later than Thursday morning.—Yonrs, P.
Northern Times. — 1857-09-15 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 18.57.  THE DAY'$ NEWS.  The main topic of news relates to the state of affairs in India. The Globe of last night contains some fur,her particulars than that Liven in the telegraphic despatch published in yesterday's NORTHERN MIES, from which it appears that Bith .ior is report( d to be destroyed.by General Havelock, who afterwards had proceeded on to the relief of Lucknow. It is also said that there were sorties by the rebel garrison of Delhi on the 14th, 18. h, and 23rd July, with what result we have not heard. Taster lay there was a Towns M eting held in the Sessions House, at which the Mayor presided. The object of the meeting was to raise subscriptions to aid the sufferers in India. Among the gentlemen who addressed the meeting were Mr. William Benn, M.P., Mr. Mackay the Rev. Dr. M'Neill, Mr. Stitt, archdeacon Jones and Mr. William RAthbonc- All the addresses were temperate and suitable to the of j pct of meeting. A subscription list was opened, and before the close of tho proceedings, upwards of £2.000 was sub.scribed ; certainly, in point, of numbers, the meetwas a failure, but this must .not be matter of wonder, seeing that the hour appointed was the busiest and most important portion of the day to commercial people. They who did attend, seemed quite enthusiastic in he cause, and Ire. quontly applauded each speaker as he announciatcd a patriotic or benevolent sentiment. The intelligenco contained in the telegraphic; despatch was decmed, on the whole, as good as could be .expected.  The people of Belfast had another field day on Sunday. The magistrates read the riot act Some of the more vicious persons kept firing guns and pistols, to the great annoyance and terror of tha well disposed inhabitants. It is somewhat singular that the magistrates should have been so remiss in not repressing with a high hand the weekly attempt of these fanatics to ft:l the town with riot and blaAshe,(l. We hope now that the -Commissioners have commenced to investigstit these inexcusdlle, tumults that the authorities will not fail to adopt stringent measures to put down a course of procedure which wouli di&grace the Hottentots of Caffir Land. _ .  Turning to matters of a heal character, we observe that a man called J,,hn I:3l,,lancy, a labourer, was charged before Mr. Mansfield yesterday, with murdering a man name] Michael Lyons, on Saturday week. As yet th, invesliation is not complete, but the evilence produced give the case an ex.;eedingly ugly aspect.  Among th© miscellaneous news of the day will be found an account of a dreadful collision in the channel, accona?anled by a great loss of life. The vessel run down was the Dutch steamer Sophia, snd the ship causing the disaster was the screwAteamer Willikan Hutt. No less than twelve ou tof a crew, including the captain and his wiro, Were drowned. . . . _ _  For some time the fri.mds and admirers of the late Douglas Jerrold have been getting u? a commemoration of the gifted writer. Mr. Blanchard Jerrold has at last felt it his duty, out of respect to ;the memory of his father, to repudiate the
Northern Times. — 1857-09-29 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

NENA S.tHin and his myrmidons would meet with a rather formidable enemy, and LucknOw be set free. Respecting Delhi there is little or no intelligence. The latest date from that-city is the 12th August, at which time it was still in the hands of the rebels. A number of_sortics had been repulsed, and it was confidently hoped that an early attack would be made upon the city by the British as a large reinforcement under the command of General NlcaoLsoN was in the immediate vicinity, and would be enabled to surround the walls in a few days.  We are glad to say that the mutiny, which had spread to the Bombay and Madras Presidencies, had been all but suppressed. A number of regiments who had refused to do duty were quietly disarmed, and but very few co:Epanies of that once powerful army are now in existence.  From Lahore we have intelligence respecting the 26th Native Infantry. That regiment had mutinied, and murdered their commanding Officer, Major SPENCER; but they met with a terrible retribution, for a number of English officers and soldiers immediately set upon them, and so signal was their vengeance that hardly a soul of the rebels escaped.  Such then is a complete synopt-is of the leading features of the news now to hand. It w)uld be very hazardous to say that it is not of a most unpromising character. We have just begun to feel the difficulties under which we labour, and the East India Company are not, we are afraid, in a position to put down this mutiny. It does not possess the funds, and, ere long, we may be sure the East India Company will be asking a loan. They have been urged to apply for fifty thousand men and some eight or ten minions of money, and it is said they must do so if they want to subdue the revolt. But if the Government were to supply fitly thousand men, who are to pay them ? The sooner the Queen's supremacy in the East Indies is proclaimed over and above the Leadenhall-street potentates, the sooner will the rebellion be crushed, for the mutineers will then see that they have to cope with a powerful kingdom, while they now think  that they have only to expel from the country a private company.  " HE that is wise in his own conceit is stronger than seven men that can render a reason." The Rev. HUGH HANNA, of Belfast, is the man. Nothing moves him ; nothing puts him out of conceit with his own notion of street preaching for the glory of GOD, and the assertion of an abstract right to preach, under all circumstances, in the open air. The town has been retained in a state of chronic disturbance and indefinite alarm, and blood has been shed, and there is danger of more ; but what cares this minister of peace ? Two thousand soldiers of the line are called out to keep the peace of Belfast, when they might so much better be spared to keep the peace of Calcutta, or end the siege of Delhi. But this is all to the, glory and notoriety of the church militant in Ireland, led on by that redoubted officer the Rev. 11.