[List-Cumbria] Carlisle Patriot, 07 Dec 1822 - Murder

[Petra Mitchinson]

Saturday 07 Dec 1822   (p. 3, col. 2)

 

MURDER. 

 

We briefly mentioned in our last paper, that a coroner's inquest was sitting at the house of George GILKERSON, innkeeper, in
Caldewgate, near this city, to investigate the cause of death of a boy, aged six years, of the name of James HILL, who died on the
preceding Wednesday, under circumstances of a very suspicious nature. After the jury were sworn, and had viewed the body, (which
exhibited shocking marks of ill-usage,) the coroner commenced his examination of the witnesses, of whose testimony the following
statement contains the outlines:- 

 

The deceased was the illegitimate son of Mary BULMER, upon whom strong suspicion fell of having beat and otherwise maltreated him in
such a way as to produce his death. It appeared in evidence that deceased had only gone to live with his mother some few weeks
since, from which time up to the Sunday preceding his death, he had received from his unnatural parent a succession of beating and
ill treatment, too horrible to be described. That about three weeks ago, she had kicked the deceased on the side so violently as to
occasion him to fall against a bed post, whereby he received a considerable contusion on the back part of the head. That the
deceased was very frequently heard to cry by the neighbours, and from the general appearance which his face exhibited of bruises and
blackness, no doubt could exist that the same were the effects of violent blows given by the mother. That on Saturday the 16th
November, BULMER having occasion to go before the Police Magistrates, left her children in charge of one Elizabeth CLAY, and this
woman, after she had been in the accused's house about five minutes, desired her daughter, a young child, to go into the coal-hole
(situate in a corner of the room) for some coals, who immediately returned, observing that James (meaning the deceased) was there;
on which CLAY desired him to come out, which he did, and his eyes, cheeks, nose, and all the other parts of the face appeared to be
dreadfully mangled and bruised. On asking the deceased how he became so injured, he said by "a fall;" but at the same time shewed
manifest signs of fear. It also appeared in the course of the inquiry, that on the Sunday morning preceding the death of the boy,
the accused beat the deceased most severely over the back and thighs with a broom-stick, of a considerable thickness; that she was
seen to give him two blows with that stick, when he fell prostrate upon the ground; that while in this situation she even continued
her violence by frequently repeating the same sort of blows over the lower part of the back and thighs, and that the witness saw
blood trickle down his legs, which she had no doubt proceeded from a wound which the deceased received upon the left thigh. Mr.
MARRS, surgeon, having been called and sworn, said that he examined the body, and understanding that the deceased had had a violent
lax, he opened it with a view of ascertaining how far the bowels might be disordered, so as to occasion death; that he inspected the
bowels, liver, lungs, and all the other internal organs, but they did not appear to be any way affected; that he also examined the
head, which had some deep fissures in it; and although he could not say that any of the wounds upon the deceased's body occasioned
death, yet he unhesitatingly declared it as his opinion that it had been caused by a succession of previous ill treatment. The
Coroner then summed up the evidence, making suitable comments as he proceeded, and when he had finished, further proceedings were
adjourned (at the request of the Jury, who had been sitting upon the inquiry about seven hours) until Monday last, at five o'clock
in the evening, at which time the Jury again met, and after hearing some further evidence corroborative of the above, as to the
ill-treatment received by the deceased at the hands of his most unfeeling mother, they returned against her a verdict of WILFUL
MURDER. She stands committed to answer for the offence at the Assizes. 

 

 

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