The Sun. — 1848-09-18 (London, England)

MURDER OF TWO CHILDREN. WILLENHALL, FRIDAY.—This afternoon an inquest was held beforo Mr. T. M. Phillips, coroner for this district of Staffordshire, upon the bodies of two children, named Edwin Jones, aged 18 months, and Sarah Spt ncer, aged 12 years, who were murdered late on Wednesday night by a woman named Maria Jones, mother of the first and aunt to the second unfortunte victim of her undoubted insanity. The facts of this horrible case may be told shortly. The woman charged with the murders is the wife of a working man named Enoch Jones, in apparently comfortable circumstances. She is a remai kably interesting-looking young woman, and appears from littr conversation when in a right state of mind to have received an education superior to those moving in her sphere of life. About three months since her husband noticed a change in .her usual behaviour; she negltct, d her household affairs, and seemed absorbed in religious speculations. Her manner became so strange, that ultimately it was deemed advisable to place her in the lunatic ward of the Wolverhampton Union Workhouse. She was, however, discharged on Wednesday last, at the instance of two of her relatives, named Maria Hadley and Martha Jones. She then appeared to be in a rational state.  During her short stay at the union workhouse her child was at the house of a sister-in-law, enw on her return she took it home with her, being accompanied by the little girl, Sarah Spencer. About nine o'clock that night the neighbours were alarmed by the woman's cries from a window, declaring that she had murderedth children; and she then attempted to cut her owne throat, but she only succeeded in slightinflicting.af waiwt:fewitsnd.The ieheehaeds eneetigirheblyoueresveernetderferde,manitdo fhoeudnyd, thaehldinapt i but the appeared eberaead the ppt, e'k parties i el l fromwas int only half The severedgirl 'is throatfron thew a s abody,s ycalunet, si lying threatening time to have struggled considerably.wea hands on her. She was, we wAets entered the whoeuseehethueld laym h any ypveerrsoh h soon secured, and taken back to the workhouse at Wolverhampton about twelve at night. It was said that during her stay at the workhouse it was not deemed necessary to place her under particular restraint. Her husband is what in this country is termed a " whimsey" man, and necessarily at some periods works at the pit all night. The next morning the woman entered into conversation with Mr. Abbot, the governor of the workhouse, and in the presence of Colonel Hogg, deputy chief constable of Saffordshire, narrated the manner in which she committed the crimes. She stated that she sent the little girl to bed with the child before eight o'clock, and then walked down the lane wtth a neighbour, named Mrs. Cave. She returned, bolted the door, and went to bed herself, but did not sleep. She then got up and searched for a razor with which to cut the child's throat, as she believed it would be damned owing to its having been christened by a Catholic priest. Not being able to find a razor, she got a black-handled knife, which she sham pened against a steel, went up stairs, then cut the throat of her niece, but did not cut the head quite off: She the-n declared she ought to suffer for spilling the poor !Jahn, blood. At times the unfortunate woman appeared calm  and collected; and renroacited hE Togolf bitterly for the crime, but at oth:r73 she was,exceedingly viol" 4 threatened to• kill those around her, and had she nut been prevented by the rarties wt.tzbing, would hare strangled herself. The inquest stands adjourned, bat mo person seems to entertain a doubt es to the prisoner's insanity.