The Weekly Gazette for Middlesbrough, Stockton, Hartlepool and Cleveland District. — 1880-09-04 (Stockton-on-Tees, Cleveland, England)

THE EVEN WOOD TRAGEDY.  PRISONER OOMMIITED FOR WILFUL MURDER.  On Friday week William Brownless, who is scanned of the wilful murder of his sweetheart, Elizabeth Holmes, by cutting her throat, and who afterwatds out his own, at Evenwood on the 18th inst., was brought up in custody before the Rev. G. P. Wilkinson, at the Bishop Auckland Police Court. Mr E. Milburn, of Crook, prosecuted, and the court was crowded.—Evideuce was given by Annie Mills, deceased's twin sister, who said deceased had stayed with her aim* a fortnight after May day, and worked in the fields for Mr Vert at Brick Heads. Prisoner had been courting her, and on the night previous to the murder she left them in the house together for a short time, and on her return she found prisoner sitting at the table. He looked downoittit, and she asked Lim what was the matter. He ieplied "Nothing," but on being pressed said some one had been telling tales about him, and he would have a " spree" before Saturday. Deceased went up the ga,den for water, the prisoner following her. When she came back they bade each other good night, and the prisoner went away. Deceased said to witness she had told him she wanted nothing more to do with him.— Wm. Tetuadale deposed to finding the prisoner and deoeased lying side by side in a pool of blood. She was dead, and prisoner, who had his arm over her, raised his eyes when witness spoke. Witness gave an alarm to some women working in a field close by. There were other pools of blood and marks of a struggle for some distanoe to a dyke, where he found prisoner's hat and deceased's hood, shawl, hoe, and satchel.— Margaret &Elates, the hind's wile, who worked along with deaeased the day before, said she heard the other women teasing deceased about Brownless in the field, and she told them she had told him she would have no more to do witli him.—Thomas Priestely said he saw prisoner that morning, about seven o'clock, going towards the spot, and spoke to him.— James Davis gave evidence as to listening to the prisoner and deceased in the garden the night previous. He wanted her to give him a kiss and to be friends, never to part no mare, and she refused.—Dr. Todd and Dr. Kilbuin, who had made a postmortem examination, said there was a wound . on each side of the chin, and a flag of skin hanging from beneath the chin to the neck, as if sawn away when the head was down, and a slash right across the throat, severing all the structures. This had caused death, and was apparent'y inflicted by some person in front of deoeased.—Evidence having been given by Supt. Banks, the prisoner was committed for trial at the next Assizes on the charge of wilful murder. Prisoner was removed to Durham in the afternoon.  In the beginning of the present year the Abyssinia, bound from Aden to Zanzibar, shortly after leaving the former port was found to be Gn fire in the main hold. She was taken back to Aden and beached, when, on unloading her, a leaky sulphuric acid jar was discovered, and from the appearance of the case in which it had been packed, the court of enquiry, held at Aden. came to the conclusion that the leakage of the acid had set up "spontaneous combustion" in some inflammable portion of the cargo. The court was led to this conclusion by a statement in " Taylor's Medical Jurisprudence," to the effect that a mixture of strong nitric or sulphuric acid has a tendency to set up combustion in straw, wool, and other substances. There seems a general carelessness evident in the stowage of cargoes, especially where risk of fire or explosion is in question, and people who stow powder barrels and, inciter matches in Move proximity in ships' holds can scarcely be expected to be particular in packing vitriol; but it is well that this additional danger to seamen and passengers should be generally known.  g."..i"