SECOND EDITION. SUPREME COURT.

Evening Star, Issue 3787, 14 April 1875, Page 3

SECOND EDITION. SUPREME COURT.

CRIMINAL SESSIONS. Wednesday, April 14. (Before his Honor Chief Justice Prendergast.) ARSON. George Johns was yesterday indicted for having, at Tokomairiro, on January 3i, h re to a stack of oats, the property of one Ariu! ir Calder. Mi D. Reid defended.

The jury, after five Canutes’ absence from Court, returned a verdict of “ Not Guilty.”

THE TOKOMAIRIRO INFANTICIDE CASE,

Margaret Collins, a young woman, was indicted for having, at Tokomairiro, on February 20, 1875, murdered her female infant child. Mr W. VV. Taylor defended. Prisoner, on the charge being read, said, with broad accent: Not guilty, your Honor. The Crown Prosecutor opened the case at considerable length. At the time of committing the offence charged against her, prisoner was a domestic servant in the employment of Mr Goodall, who keeps an hotel at Milton, and she had been there for two months previous. The prisoner and Sarah Dawson, another domestic in the same employ, occupied one bedroom, but had separate beds. Before the 20th I ebruary the appearance of the prisoner attracted the notice of several persons who were in the habit of seeing her, and they came to the conclusion that she was pregnant. On the day in question the two women got up at the usual time —about six o’clock In the morning—and proceeded to their usual work. Prisoner cleaned out the dining-room, and having set the breakfast table (part of her work), she told Dawson that she had a head-ache and was going to lie down. After breakfast, and at about 8,15 a.m,, Dawson went upstairs and found prisoner in a spare bedroom, not her own room, kneeling on the floor with her head on the bed. In reply to a question as to how she felt, prisoner said that her head ached very badly, and that she was not able to get about her work. About 11.30 Dawson again went upstairs to the bedroom occupied by the prisoner and herself, and there found the prisoner washing part of the floor. In reply to Dawson she said she bad been sick, but that she felt much better then. At this time Dawson saw lying upon the washatand a pair of scissors (which the prisoner had used) having marks of blood upon them. Between three and four o’clock on the same afternoon Dawson again saw prisoner. At this time she was in the front bedroom making the bed, this being part of her duty. Nothing more appears to have been noticed until about a quarter to five in the afternoon; the woman Dawson then went to her own room and there she saw underclothes stained with blood lying on the floor under the prisoner’s bed. She aiso saw stains of blood on the floor. This caused Dawson to think something was wrong, and she immediately went to a neighbor—a Mrs Pettigrew—a nurse. On going out, she noticed prisoner waiting at the table at the ordinary dinner-hour, a little after five o’clock, and when she returned prisoner was still attending to her duties as if nothing had happened. Mrs Pettigrew came back with Dawson, and went upstairs to the room usually occupied by prisoner, and there saw the garments stained with blood that Dawson had seen, and on lifting upthe mattrass at the foot of the bed saw the face of a child, which so frightened her that she dropped the mattrass, and did not return to the room until sent for three hours’ afterwards, when the other witnesses who would be called were sent for. The first to see the body of the child was Mrs Pettigrew, but she did not stop to see whether it was dead or alive. He (Mr Haggitt) thought from the other evidence that the jury could not come to any other conclusion than that it was dead at that time. The body was placed between the mattrass and the bare bed, and apparently so far as the depositions showed had no clothing on it. It was next seen by Dr Stewart, who found it tied up in a bundle, pointed out by Sergeant Smith. The doctor, on examination, found that its throat had been cut by some instrument, possibly by a pair of scissors. The windpipe was cut completely across, and death must nave ensued immediately upon the wound being inflicted. As to the prisoner being the mother of the child, there was her own confession made in the presence of Dr Stewart and Sergeant Smith, and in addition, the doctor had examined her. Mr Taylor: I shall object to ray learned fnena opening that to the jury unless he is prepared to show that the examination was with the consent of the prisoner, as he would contend that the evidence of a prisoner in custody was no more admissible than a verbal statement. Mr Haggitt continued: All he was going to say on the subject was that the examination of Dr Stewart left no room for doubt that the prisoner had immediately previously been delivered of a child. These were the material facts, and there just remained for him to say that before the jury could find that prisoner was guilty of the crime of murder, with which she was charged, they must be satisfied that the child was born alive. For that proof they would have to rely on the medical testimony, which in this case he thought left no doubts that the child was so born—that was, the 1 injuries were inflicted after it was born and while it was living. The lungs of the child were fully inflated. The child had evidently breathed, as the lungs, when cut up and placed in water, floated. Common sense, too, aided the supposition that it was so born. If, after hearing all the evidence. the jury should not be satisfied that the child was born alive or that the injuries were inflicted while it was living, then, although the indictment was only framed for murder, they ndflht find the prisoner guilty of concealment of birth, if the evidence supported that view. His i onor : May she not be found guilty of manslaughter ?

Mr Haggitt: Yes, under any indictment for murder the jury may convict of manslaughter; but in this case the evidence negatives the theory that death was caused by negligence on prisoner a part in dissevering the navel cord. The jury may, however, convict of concealment of birth.

Sarah Dawson, Isabella Pettigrew (an elderly woman acting as monthly nurse at Milton), Janet Goodall, and Elisabeth Soodall were the only witnesses for the prosecution examined* when we went to press.

THE GRAt* D JURY. True bills were found against John Walters, charged with murdering James Holmes at North-east Valley by stabbing him, and against John Hartley, charged with indecent assault. The charge of murder against Thomas Eissett was reduced to one of manslaughter. True bills were also found against Sydney Hodge, Bong Si, John Miller, and Ah Toy.