In the Central Criminal Court, yesterday, another trial for bigamy
occurred. Edward Jones, aged sixty-three, pleaded guilty to marrying a second wife in the lifetime of his first wife. The first wife left him ten years years ago, and repeated endeavours to reclaim her were unsuccessful. So swore the daughter of the first wife herself. The second wife was living happily with him when he was arrested. He was sent to prison for a month.
Mary Rook, formerly Mary Wallis, was tried for the murder of her daugh- ter Elizabeth Wallis, by starvation and beating. Rook is u hard-working laundress, who has a family of children by a second husband ; her second family displaced the first child in her natural affections, and she persever- ingly treated it with revolting cruelty. While the others were at meals tins child remained in an outhouse, only to come in when called, and have
a small crust of bread thrown at her; which she carried off and devoured I like a brute in its lair. For a period of four mouths, says one witness, not ten minutes passed of any day in which the unnatural parent did not beat her daughter ; frequently tearing her hair and covering her face with blood. Repeatedly she swore she would be her child's "butcher," her "murderer": cautioned that she might some day strike a fatal blow, she replied with foul abuse. A neighbour offered ,,some potatoes ; the girl was grateful, and said there was a chop in the cupboard, sent for her by the parish' but she feared her mother would be angry if it were given her the neighbour gave her the food and bore the blame. The child languished and died. After her death an inquest was held, but the Jury found a verdict of "Na- tural death." At the trial, yesterday, medical evidence showed that beating and starvation were not the immediate causes of death ; which was ascriba- ble to inflammation of the lungs and general debility. Mr. Baron Platt in- structed the Jury, that, although the charge was one of murder, they might convict the prisoner of assault ; and, after argument, he refused to reserve any point of law on this dictum. The Jury instantly found a verdict of as- sault, and expressed their thanks to the parish-officers for prosecuting the • case. Rook was sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment with hard labour.
Hannah Curtis, now under sentence of death at Gloucester for the murder of her former husband, has been respited until her Majesty's pleasure shall be known. The messenger is said to have left London on Tuesday, for Sir George Grey in Scotland, and to have travelled day and night to get to Glou- cester by Thursday; though the execution was fixed for today.
Maurice Murphy and Patrick Sullivan were hanged yesterday, at Mon- mouth, for the murder of the old woman Lewis, near Newport. They de- clared that they did not think they had killed Lewis; and that they attacked her hoping to rob her of food, for which they were famishing.
At the Coroner's inquest on the body of Patrick Hayes, who was killed by the falling of the roof at the Bricklayer's Arms station, the following verdict was returned—" Accidental death ; the deceased man being killed by the falling of the roof of a certain shed, being part of the railway terminus, re- sulting upon the collision of a railway carriage against an iron column sup- porting the Brune."
An inquest has been held into the circumstances under which the fire at Gravesend broke out. The verdict assumed that the fire commenced in the houses Nos. 65 and 66, tenanted by Mr. Adlington and Mr. Reed , but af- firmed that "how, or by what means such tire originated, no evidence thereof has been adduced."
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