The Sun. — 1861-04-15 (London, England)

AND SUICIDE.  A singular case, involving charges of murder and suicide, occurred at Carlisle on Friday. On the morning of that day a young man named William Horsley, 23 years of age, a draper's assistant, was found lying dead upon a "settle," or seat, in the kitchen of a small inn called the Packhorse, in Water-street, kept by a woman named Jane David• son, about 40 or 50 years of age, whose husband works as an agricultural labourer in the country. Horsley had been married to a daughter of Jane Davidson, but his wife had died about 18 months ago. He used frequently to go to the Packhorse after he left the shop in the evening, and often stayed there all night, sleeping upon the settle in the kitchen. The woman Davidson appears to have become enamoured of her son-in-law. She had, however, cause to suspect that he kept company with a young woman, and therefore induced a neighbour, Esther Short, to watch him and see if her suspicions were well founded and who was her rival. Short did so, watched him to join a young woman on Wednesday night last, after ho had left the shop, and she followed her to where she lived as domestic servant. Following out Mrs. Davidson's instructions, Short told the girl that the young man she had been with was engaged, and subsequently, on behalf of Mrs. Davidson, Short wrote to the girl's mistress, telling her that her servant was keeping company with a married man. In her evidence at the inquest, which was held on Friday afternoon, Short made some extraordinary revelations. She said that on Thursday last the woman Davidson had told her that she had been consulting a fortuneteller, who had said that her husband would soon die and she would be married again. She asked Short to go to a druggist for her and get her some " dragon's blood," which was to be burnt in the fire as a charm to prevent her son-in-law from keeping company with her rival. The " dragon's blood" was procured on Wednesday. On Thursday night the deceased Horsley went to the Packhorse Inn and was left in the kitchen with his mother-in-law and lover, Mrs. Davidson, when every one else had gone to bed. The other inmates of the house were another son-in-law of the landlady, named Robinson, and his wife, and two children. No noise was heard during the night, but about midnight Robinson heard Mrs. Davidson go to her bedroom. Next morning, before going out to his work at 6 o'clock, he saw the deceased lying on the "settle," but thinking he was asleep, as he had been many times before, he did not notice that anything was the matter. On his return to breakfast at 8 o'clock, however, he found that he was dead. He had bled at the nose considerably, and much blood was on the floor; his head was on a pillow, and he was partly covered with a sheet. There was a slight blue mark round his neck, and a mark from the tightness of his shirt collar. Meanwhile Mrs. Davidson was found to be very ill. She had frequent vomitings during the night, and these continued at intervals during Friday until the afternoon, when she died, just as the jury were in the house viewing the body of her son-in-law. At the inquest on the young man the medical men gave their opinion tnat there was no external mark to account for death, and the - inquiry was adjourned in order that a post mortem examination might be made, The body of the woman was also viewed oy the same jury, as the two cases will constitute only one inquiry, and it was determined that her body aloo should be opened.