The Sun. — 1846-06-08 (London, England)

SUICIDE. On Friday, at six o'clock, Mr. W. Payne, coroner for the city of London, and a jury of 16 inhabitants of the ward of Bishopsgate Without, assembled in the Boardroom of the East London Union, No. 1, Devonshiresquare, to investigate the deaths of John Toomey, aged 57, and Mary Toomey, his wife, aged 38 years, the victims of the horrible tragedy which took place in Widegate-street, on Wednesday last, under the circumstances detailed in our columns of Thursday. The proceedings excited ccnsiderable interest, and the Rev. Dr. Russell, Rector of Bishopsgate, the chairman, and several other members of the Beard of Guardians of the East London Union were present during the inquiry. The jury, having been sworn, proceeded to view the bodies, which lay in the second floor back of the house No. 13, Widegate-street, Bishopsgate-street, On their return the following evidence was entered into:— Elijah Myers was first called. He said—l reside at No. 12, Sandys-row. On Wednesday afternoon last, about a quarter before 4 o'clock, I was in Widegatestreet, opposite No. 13, when a girl came running out, and said her father, she thought, was in a fit. I went up stairs at No. 13, with a person named Taylor, and found the door fastened, sad a chair placed against the door on the inside. I burst open the door, and saw the deceased man banging by a handkerchief from the rail of the bedstead. I saw no other person in the room at this time. I gave Alfred Taylor a knife, and he cut him down, There was a letter pinned on the outside of the deceased man's coat, and Taylor took it off and gave it to a policeman. We laid the decased man on the bed, and Mr. Gilbert was sent for, but he was quite dead. I saw nothing of the body of a woman. The Coroner here read the paper found pinned to the deceased man's coat, which was written on the back of the title-page of a pamphlet entitled " The Magazine of Popular Information on Capital and Secondary Punishment." It was as follows :—" With all her faults I love her still, if she would but reform. I have tried all the means I could try, but in vain. She would not conform to anything rational, consequently, rather than be bound to allow her a single shilling, I'll suffer this a score times. No jealousy, both share alike, old girl. Oh, friends of humanity ! console my poor afflicted and distracted orphan girl." Mary Crawley said—l reside at 11, Knight's-build. ings, sun-street, and knew the deceased, Mary Tourney. I went to her house in Widegate-street on Wednesday afternoon, and was there when the room door was broken Open. About three-quarters of an hour after the man was found hanging I found the woman under the bed, lying on her right side. She was quite dead, and her hands and legs were tied up. Ann Barrett examined—l reside at 6, Widegate-street The deceased, Mary Toomey, was my sister. She bad been married to John Toomey 18 years. They have two children surviving, but neither was staying with them. I saw my sister on Wednesday afternoon last, about 4 o'clock, in Petticoat- lane, and conversed with her. On the previous day I met the deceased man, and offered to give him some beer, but he refused it, saying that there was something the matter with his heart, and he could not drirk it. He went to my place and had some coffee, and left about half-past 9 o'clock, and I gave him 6d., as he said he had no candle. He was in the greatest distress, and deceased and his wife had pawned all their things to buy food. They were allowed 2s. a week and two loaves of bread by the union. He was latterly a porter, but he had had no work to do for the last three months. They paid 2s. a week for rent ; but I think they were a week In arrear. The deceased man had pawned his shirt off his back to get food. The deceased woman was not a druilard, but she and her husband quarrelled very much about their distress. On a previous occasion, last Christmas, I believe, he got a bottle of poison with intent to poison his wife. I think he was induced tocommit this act solely through distress. Several witnesses were here called, who spoke to the dreadful distress in which the deceased parties appeared to be, and to their continual habits of quarrelling. Mr. C. H. Gilbert examined—l am a surgeon, and reside at No. 1, Raven-row, Spitalfields. About four o'clock on Wednesday last I was called to 13, Wideeatestreet, and I folind the deceased man dead from hanging. About half an hour after I was called in to see the de• ceased woman. I found her under the bed, covered with a sheet, and quite dead from strangulation. The woman's hands were tied in front of her, and the legs were also tied with some shreds of old bed coveri ig. Both deceased persons had, in my opinion, been dead seven or eight hours. The deceased woman was in the last month of pregnancy. By the jury—The woman's hands were tied so loosely that I think she might have released them if she had thought proper. There can be no doubt but the man had placed her where she was found under the bed before he committed the act himself. Mary Anne.foomey, the daughter of the deceased persons, was next called, and having been interrogated as to the nature of an oath, was sworn. She said the deceased were my father and mother. I was at place when this happened. I saw my mother last alive about four o'clock on Tuesday. She was then sober. I saw her on Monday night, when she had been drinking. I saw my father on Tuesday night at home, and he told me he wanted me very early next morning. I cannot tell the cause of what has happened, unless it was in consequence of my father being out of work, and being so poor. They had nothing but the 2s. from the union to live upon for the last three or four weeks, as my mother, who worked at tailoring, had had none to do. When she got work she used to earn Is. per day. They used to quarrel very much, and he used to say, " She might view in him her butcher." By the