The Warwickshire Herald. — 1892-04-07 (Birmingham, West Midlands, England)

ATTEMPTED SUICIDE BY AN ASTON MAN.  A STUANt;I: C  At ti e Aston Police C..:airt tm We Itie4dtty— before MCPSIts. F. S. Bolton, R. P. Yates" R. Peyton, and Alderman A. Ash—Matthew Cane, War, b,a-etaan, 90, Wainuright-street, Asten, was el. trgol with attempting to commit..adeida by jutopiog into dm canal at Witten, on the 4th inst. -- Po:tectconstable Whale stated that at 7.30 p in. on the 4th met,, he was on duty at the Police Station when prisoner came in and said lie wanted to givo himself up. Witness nickel him what for. Prisoner replied that he had tried to drown himself by jumping into the canal at Witt on. His clothes were wet, and prisoner, was locked up—Prisoner, a respectablyairesBc,l man, about fogy years of age, stated that ho had beim in Africa where he had a sunstroke. Ile had also been it. tho hospital for six necks, suffering from an abscess inside his head. He occasionally had aberrations of his mind, and drink made him worse. He was a reader of the papers, and he' had been lately studying the accounts of the Rainhill murders to such a degree that he wonderrd if he should do the same. This thought -n maddened him that he decided to run away. H wrote a note to his wife, and left home to go to Hasten and Wolverhampton on a visit to his frieotls, thinking that, this might improve his state of mind. He got too much to drink, spent his money, end pawned his watch and chain. The drink so maddened him that he felt he could not go home, and ho wandered about like a maniac. He did not know what to do, but the devil urged him on. Ho wandered about, and at length found himself at home on Sunday night. kle then had no money, had pawned his watch, and coat and Waif broken-hearted. He lay down on the sofa and the next morning he went to bed. lie woke up maddened with the thought of what he had done. He went downstairs with the intention of going away again when he saw a Largo knife which lie took upstairs with him. He stood in a determined manner before the glass, and was about to cut his throat when the thought of his wife and children prevented him. He went out and wandered about all day on Monday, along lance and canal sides till night. He then made up his mind to commit suicide. He tied his legs together, and commending his spirit to God, he  -- . SETTING FIRE TO a Miens. —Walter Cornwall (13) was charged with maliciously setting firo to some dead grass, which lay under a hedge in a field of Mr. Thomas Thompson, Solihull, on the 30th ult., causintr damage to the amount of Prisoner pleaded guilty to the charge, but said that he didn't know what it moant.—Fred Perks, Yew Tree Cottage, raid that on Wednesday, about 4.30, he was in a field with the defendant and he had seen him strike several matches and throw them down, and one of them he had thrown into the dead grass. It had caught tire and they could not put it out, and the hedge caught. Defendant went and told them at the farm, but it was not put out until about 80 yards had been consumed.—Thomas Ellen said that he was a labourer on the farm, and on the day named the defendant had come to him and told him about the hedge. Ha did not say he had set it on fire, but said he had seen some men running away who he supposed had done it.-11. Thompson said he had gone to defendant's home on the night of the same day; in company with Policeconstable Clifton, and he had admitted to them that ho set it on tire, and said ho did not wish to , press the charge. Mr. Hemel, employer of defendant, spoke as to the charactar of the boy, and he was discharged with a severe reprimanding, on condition that he behaved himself in the future. STRAYING lIEIFERS.--Williaan Bewley was sum maned for allowing six heifers to be straying in the highway adjoining his tields.--Dalendant said that the fences were very weak at present; and the heifers had broken down live or six yards.— lie was ordered to pay the costs, 7s.