THE MURDER AT NOBLE'S.

Grey River Argus, Volume X, Issue 773, 31 December 1870, Page 2

THE MURDER AT NOBLE'S.

An inquest was held at the Ahaura, on Thursday, on the body of George Pate r naude, before Caleb Whitefoord, Esq., coroner, and a jury, of which Mr Bowman was foreman. The Coroner briefly explained that they were called together to ascertain the means by which one George Patenaude, of Noble's, came to hi 3 death. After viewing the body, the following evidence was called : — , . Colin Algie : I am a storeman, in the employ of Mr Jame3 M'Laughliu, at Noble's. I know the deceased George Patenaude. I last saw him alive on Tuesday, 27th December, behind the store at Noble's, about five o'clock. My attention was drawn to him by Miss Quiyley, the accused. . I saw there was something the matter with him. I ran over and caught hold of him. All he said was " Oh, my God !" Mai'garet Quigley told me he was stabbed. She then offered me a knife. I ran my fingers along it, and saw that it had blood upon the blade. The man was not more than ten yards from the door, and when .seen by mo had his hand against his side and over his heart. [ put my hand round bis body to support him. I then brought him into the store. He was unable to. walk. I laid him on ihe floor aud placed a bag under his head. I saw that he was bleeding from his side. He had his clothes on. I told the accused ~to go away aa J was troing to strip down his clothes. Miss Quigley was at the door when I led the deceased in, and I .said, " Oh, Maggie ! Maggie I what's, this ] " and she said, "He broke iuto my bedroom last night." I bathed his face with vinegar and water. He only lived about ten minutes. There was no external flow of blood from the wound. I gave the knife to Sergeant Jeffries, but immediately after the accused gave me tbe knife I dropped it on the ground and rushed iq tak^e hold of deceased. I know the knife, it is one I use in the store. I gave it to tSe accused about twenty minutes before. She came into the store and requested mo. to lend it to her. ' The knife when given by me to her was blunt. She looked at the edge. of it and pointed out that it was blunt. I said 1 would sharpen it, and J did so at her request. I asked her what she was going to do with it, and she replied that she wanted to cut some meat. She has been in the Habit of borrowing knives, forks, and spoons from me. She lives about fifteen feet from the store. There is no house between the store and that of Miss Quigley. Charles Mori lives on the opposite side, right abreast of the house of the accused, and is distant about 15 feet. He is a married man. John Gillam lives opposite to the .store. Gillam is a miner. His place is about 25 feet from the houseof the accused, who keeps an hotel, and lives by herself. I have known the deoeased for 18 months. He was a sober ftian. J ne,yer saw him drank. He lived in the creeif between "Noble's and Napor leon, and is distant, about a mile from the store. Two hours before he was stabbed I saw him walking down the street. No one was with him, After the deceased fell nothing further and no other conversation took place between the accused and myself. The accused never complained to me of the conduct of Patenaude, nor am I aware of their having had any quarrel. By a juror : I can't say that when she came to the store for the knife the deceased was in her house. When she came there were two other m§n in the sEore. I'saw'nVon.e but $9 deceased and the nccuaod outside. One of men, Johu M'Cafferty was sitting in the store with me. Phillip Dngan is the name of the man. who was sleeping. I recognise the knife now shown as the one lent by me to the accused, and it is the saute I gave to Sergeant Jeffries and the one I received from her. She was not excited when she borrowed the knife. I don't know whether she used it to cut meat. If . there had been any noise I should, in my opinion, have heard it. If there had been any call for assistance I should have heard it. The deceased only spoke once after I ran out, when he said, "Oh ! my God!" By the Coroner : I recognise the clothes produced as the things worn by the deceased when he lost h'w lffe. * ' '" Duncan Fisher ; lam a miner, residing : at Noble's. I was there on the 27th imt., and was at my own hut in the evening of that day. My hut is about 80 yards from M'Loughlin's store. I saw the deceased on that morning as he was coming down — this was about 11 o'clock. He had to pass my hut. I saw him go into Miss Quigley 's house,. I can't swear how long- he remained, but I again saw him coming out of the house between four and five in the afternoon. He was coming out the back door. The accused followed him gut. They walked along the track together, and passed behind M'Laughlin's store. 1 should think about 30 yards. They were walking slowly together. I was not more than 80 yards away. When I last saw them he was a little in advance. She made a quick turn round at a little bush, and struck him about the breast. I did not see anything in her hand. She then ran back towards the store. The deceased stood still when he got the blow, and looked after- her, and : then moved a few steps towards the store. Shortly after this I went towards the store, and found deceased had been stabbed. 1 then saw,. Miss Quigley coming out of the back doox^ running up the hill. She had her hat on. ; Previous to this she was bareheaded. I saw a man called M'Cafferty going up tv Napoleon's to get the deceased's mates. Miss Quigley was also going, but she took the horse track. When I got in the, deceased was on his backjaind on the floor.

He expireS immediately after. The last 11 witness and othera were in the store and m around the body. I have seen the accused Jl and deceased walking out together on "^ more than one occasion" in the same * direction. When I saw the accused turn " round and give a blow I thought it was V merely done in a lark, and that she was ~-f merely going to the store to get some' \ thing she had left behind. 1 did not J hear any altercation. Deceased went f\ round a little bush, Miss Quigley took a '" short turn, and struck him. She quickened her pace and got partly in front of i, him.' She struck with the right hand, .' and just about the heart. He never * lifted a hand to the accused. I don't think they knew I was present. }.. By a Juror : Deceased was in the habit •] of frequenting the house of the accused, \ and thought they were on good terms. '* I When the deceased went into the bouse • ■ ; I believe they shook hands — this was in ' the morning. There was nothing mote' took place than 1 have related. When | they were walking they were aide by side. ■•■: I pointed out to Sergeant Jeffries the spot where the deceased was struck and where I stood. My view was quite uninter- Ji rnpted. I never heard from Miss Quigley |j before the. occurrence that he had broken. 3 into the bedroom. She never complained Jfl to me about him. ' . T? Calum. M'Cafferiy : I* am a miner, :■.■*.- working at Noble's Gully. I recollect the 27th December ;it was Tuesday. I wa» at M'Laughlin's store on that day, was there in the afternoon. It was njtar -t dinnertime when I reached .Noble's/ I '■'■ was at the store and other places about four hours in all. I was in the. store when . ' the deceased was brought 'in by Algie. / I saw the deceased first at dinner time, : ; I don't know where he was going to. I saw M him after this go into Quigley's house and close the door a.ftey him. Shortly after I saw the deceased at the baker's. I then went to Quigley's, and the .deceased and the baker also cams in ; we had drinks together. This was about eleven and a half horn's before the time of his death. I left the deceased in the house of the - accused — he was laying down on the sofa. I believe he was sober. The deceased was 3eated at the fire, and they all seemed to be on good terms, though' they did not to my knowledge converse together. The conversation was between us about waterraces. I dcm't know what made Algie get off the counter 'to/ go to tj}£ back door. " I met him bringing in the,* -deceased. --I saw Margaret Quigley there. The shirt now shown me is the one the deceased had on. He was wounded in the side, about the heart. I saw a knife there, ft was lying on tjjeijoor. J don't know who placed it there. The deceased did not speak after He was brgught ju— r^ he died almost immediately. "~~ Regis Jacques : lam a miner at Noble's, and have known the deceased for years. I last saw. deceased on Tuesday morning, about ten o'clock. I had been with him on the preceding day, and he was with me the whole night. We remained up the greater part of the night,., / On Tuesday ;'J morning, we went down together to th,e township of Noble's. Deceased went into. ' { Miss Quigley's, but I declined. I wanted him to come to the sports, but he difc I sented, alleging that he had no money. I -,;■ replied, "Never mind; I'll give you \ some." WJien nejft I sxvf him he was a, ;\ corpse, : ;j % By a Juror : On the Monday night, the j deceased showed me a handkerchief that "** he had obtained from some g ; rl, and said he would show it to " Maggie." I never heard him say anything about stopping at Miss Quigley s. It was impossible for the deceased to have been to Miss Quigley's on the Monday .night unknown to me. :•£ When I asked Colin Algie how deceased, met his death, he replied. that he had stabbed himself . I asked him to show me the knife, and he refused. r i William Lock :lam a baser, residing j at Noble's Creek. I remember Tuesday, ' °/rth December. I saw the deceased at ■ Sfotye's on that day, abqut three, o'clqck^ ■-■_.'; I was in his company about t t na| time' at " Margaret S3uigley T sl We had a drink together. I left him there. The deceased. , ; and Margaret Quigley appeared to be^H >k good terms. They were in the one iwffiJ he at one end, and she at the oth^/ 1 - next saw him when he was brought into the store. He only lived about a quarter < of an hour. I never heard him speak. I have seen the deceased at Miss Quigley's . house several times. By a Juror : I never heard Miss Quigley complain of the deceased breaking into her bed- room. John Jeffries, constable in Nelson police force : From information! received I went on Wednesday, December " 28, , to Noble's, and saw the deceased lying l dead there. I examined, the body and J found an incised wound on the left m breast. I gjt the knife produced, and on '-■ my arrival at Napoleon Hill I arrested J i Margaret Quigley. She said she wishe^B to make a statement. I cautioned f--|jj9 and told her I arrested her for murdei.^H She admitted her guilt, and said she hadfl done it under the impulse of passion. '^N She said she had known the deceased twelve or fourteen months. The firstjew^i months they were on good terms, but J| lhat latterly he had never visited the^B house without insulting-her, and she had^| denied him the place but he would come.BH Qn her return fr, om Mackley's sports ahti^B went to bed, and had 'been in bed abo\\t H an hour when some person broke in, she fl thought it was two, but was not certain. 'jM When she was going to get up the party JH left the room. She said she felt quite ?■ certain it was the deceased, andiV she did nob speak to him till the iB following day, when he came in between -'■ II and 12 o'clock, asked people to drink, I and remained there three or four hours. I She challenged him with breaking into I her bedroom the preceding night, and he J admitted it and apologised, and hoped J she would forgive him and be friend?. She consented. The deceased left about four o'clock, and she went to cut up some :| meat ; but as she had only the common table knives, which were very dull, she proceeded into M'Longhlin's "and borrowed a knife, and that as the knife she had was equally as dull, she had re * quested Colin to sharpen it. He did so, and she returned to her own place. She was engaged in cutting up the meat when ■'„ the deceased enter^^a^fj^jS&d- ifndiSij ' doorfor_the purpose of -g^t^^p^^pf him, taking the liW;deceased followed, and ac^in^'t^^^^te impulse of passion she ttirneoliN^P]^^ran the knife into his side. She said that no other peraoiy whe implicated, and exprewed sotfow lor what she had done. [The witness here described the situation ■

of the ground.] The knife produced I identify as the one given by the witness Oolin Algie. J also identify the shirts— they were cut clean through — the knife exactly fitted. v Joseph Lee : 1 am a duly qualified surgeon. I have made a post moHem, examination of the body of George Patenaude. 1 found the body in a coffin with his clothes on. I discovered two shirts cut through, and on lifting them up saw a wound on the left-hand side. The shirts were stained with blood. The body was then undressed. I found the heart and lungs perfectly healthy, and an incised wound clean through the liver, and ample enough to cause death. There were no other external marks of violence. He could not live more than ten or fifteen minutes after receiving such a wound. The knife now shown to me would inflict such a wound. The knife fits the cut in the shirts. It has blood upon it. I don't think a man could speak long after such a wound.. No man with such a wound would be capable of walking far. The Coroner then summed up, pointing out the distinction to be drawn between murder and manslaughter, and after carefully reading the authorities left the case in the hands of the jury. The jury retired, and after an. absence of twenty minutes returned with the following verdiot : " That the deceased, •Qeorge Pflteiiaude, came to his dea,th by j reason of a. wound in the 3ide inflicted by a knife, and they do find Margaret Quigley guilty of Wilful Murder.'' Margaret Quigley was present during the proceedings, and fainted on several occasions. The Coiirt then closed,