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Taunton Courier, and Western Advertiser 25 Nov 1903
Page 5 Column 3 and 4
TAUNTON
BOROUGH POLICE-COURT.
WEDNESDAY. - Before the Mayor (Councillor A. VILLAR), Councillor J. STANDFAST (the ex-Mayor), Alderman W. LOCK, Mr. T. PENNY, and Mr. G. SAUNDERS.
A WARRANT ISSUED. - Henry ADAMS, of St. George's-place, High-street, did not appear to a charge of being drunk and disorderly. - P.C. HALL proved the service of the summons, and Mr. DURHAM said that the defendant had previously failed to appear, and it was treating the Court with contempt. - A warrant was issued.
THE VILE TONGUE. - George CROSS, labourer, of East Reach, pleaded guilty to using obscene language at East Reach on the 14th inst. - P.C. BOURNE stated the case in default. - He said he would do the seven days.
GIVING HIMSELF UP. - Wm. Charles THOMPSON, a labouring man, of Bristol, was brought up on his own confession of having deserted his wife, at Bristol. - Defendant adhered to his statement, and said he could not get any work. - Superintendent DURHAM informed the Bench that the defendant gave himself up the previous night at the Police-station, stating that he had deserted his wife. He had since had a wire from the Chief Constable at Bristol, having communicated with him on the subject, stating that they would send for the man. - Defendant was ordered to be handed over to the Bristol police authorities.
OCCASIONAL LICENSE. - An occasional license was granted to Mr. A. ATHERTON, of the Half-Moon Hotel, North-street, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on the 25th and 26th inst., in connection with the poultry show at the Corn Exchange.
HUSBAND AND WIFE. - Henry HARRIS, labourer, of Eastbourne Gate, was summoned by his wife for assaulting and beating her in such a manner as to cause her to leave him. - Defendant, who pleaded not guilty, was represented by Mr. C. P. CLARKE. - Complainant stated that she had been married to defendant 20 years, and had eight children, the oldest of who was 19 years. On the previous Friday week her husband found she had pledged some things unknown to him, and he hit her on the head, but the blow was not a serious one. She had had several previous rows over the same thing, but he had only hit her once. She pledged the things to provide food for her children. She left him at the time of the last assault, but had returned since. - Mr. CLARKE said it was necessary where a separation order was applied for for the parties to be living apart. This was the technical objection he raised in the case, but apart from that the husband would have proved that the complainant had pawned things from the house without any reason for it, as she had been allowed 15s a week by the defendant, in addition to which she had the wages from three of her children. While he was at the war in South Africa she omitted to keep up his Club payments, and that had deprived him of the benefits of the Club.
MISCHIEVOUS BOYS. - Thomas DAVEY, a boy, residing in Gray's-road, pleaded guilty to damaging a wall to the amount of 3s 6d, the property of William HARRIS, contractor, living in the same street, on the 8 th inst., and Arthur HILL and Ernest COLLINS, two other boys, pleaded guilty to damaging a tree to the extent of 10s, belonging to the same person. - Prosecutor stated that he had taken these proceedings in order to protect himself against the boys of the neighbourhood. - The cases were adjourned to the following Wednesday to give the defendants an opportunity of paying the damage and costs.
AN OLD OFFENDER COMMITTED FOR TRIAL. - Robert REDDICK, a tramp, was charged with begging for alms on the 17th inst. - Defendant pleaded guilty. - Emma SLOCOMBE, a nurse, in the employ of Mrs. WICKENDEN, Tone House, North-street, Taunton, said that REDDICK came to the house about 1.30 p.m. on Tuesday, and asked her to help him, but she refused. A policeman afterwards called and she told him defendant had been begging. - P.C. GREEDY also gave evidence. Mr. F. EARLE, magistrates' clerk's clerk, proved a previous conviction against the defendant as an incorrigible rogue. - Superintendent DURHAM mentioned that the defendant had been convicted 30 times for begging and four times for drunkenness in various parts of the county, and had served several terms of imprisonment, including one of 12 months. - The Bench committed the prisoner to take his trail at the next Quarter Sessions.
LIVELY SCENE IN A TAUNTON PUBLIC HOUSE – A report of this case appears on page 8.
MONDAY. - Before the Mayor (Councillor A. VILLAR, and Mr. W. POOLE.
ADANDONING AN INFANT IN TAUNTON.
A YOUNG WOMAN'S PATHETIC STORY.
Considerable public interest was manifested in the hearing of a case in which Lucy SOUTHWOOD, a respectably-dressed young woman, whose age was given at 25, and who had been in service, was charged with unlawfully abandoning her infant child, age five weeks, in Wood-street, Taunton, whereby the life of the said child was endangered. - Mr. A. G. TAYLOR appeared for the prisoner, who during the hearing of the case wept bitterly, especially when the infant, a bright, healthy-looking child, who seemed to be none the worse for its exposure, was brought into court.
Frederick Charles CHIDGEY was the first witness. He stated that he was a railway porter, employed on the Great Western Railway at Taunton, and lived at 3, Portman-street, Rowbarton. On the previous Friday evening he was on the Taunton platform when the 5.30 train arrived from London. It was customary on arrival for porters to ask passengers if they were going on any of the branch lines. He saw the defendant get out of the train, and she was carrying in her arms what appeared to be a child wrapped in a shawl. He asked her where she was going, and she replied Dunster, and he then told her that the train was waiting on the left of the platform. She said that she had two boxes address Southwood, and labelled Dunster, and told him that she was not going by that train, but by 7.10 p.m. Nothing further was said, and subsequently he took her boxes to the platform for the 7.10 train. He met her at the train, and he did not see her carrying anything in her arms on the occasion. He labelled her boxes, but did not wait to see her get into the train. The same evening, after the departure of the train, he saw P.C. BARTRAM, and made aa communication to him. He had no doubt that the defendant was the person he saw.
By Mr. TAYLOR: He was not positive that it was a baby, but what she was carrying was dressed up as one.
George COLLARD, labourer, residing at No. 1, Wood-street, gave evidence that on the evening of the Friday previous, about 6.30, he was at home with his wife in his house. He was in the kitchen, which adjoins the lane in Wood-street. His attention was attracted by the hearing of what seemed to be like a young baby crying in the street. He heard it crying for about ten minutes, and then went into the lane. He there saw a bundle lying under the wall close to his back door. He called his wife, who also came out, and she picked up the child. It was wrapped in a black cloth, and his wife took the child indoors. Witness subsequently informed the police.
Annie COLLARD, wife of the previous witness, corroborated as to her husband calling her and to her picking up the child. She carried it indoors, and found that it was a male infant. It was well wrapped in juvenile clothing, and on the outside was covered with a black piece of serge, and had a white woollen shawl inside. The child appeared to be well nourished and healthy, and had no marks upon it. She kept it for a few house, and after information had been given to the police, at their request she took it to the Taunton Workhouse, where she handed it to the assistant-matron, Miss POYNTER.
Mary Grace POYNTER, assistant-matron at the Union Workhouse, Taunton, spoke to receiving the child, by the authority of the Master, from the last witness. She produced the infant in court, which was a chubby youngster. Witness added that it was warmly clothed when she received it, and wore the same clothes then.
P.C. BARTRAM stated that in consequence of a communication made to him he went to Taunton Railway Station the previous Friday evening and saw the witness CHIDGEY. The following morning he went to Dunster by train, and after making enquiries he proceeded to Wootton Courtney, where he saw the defendant at the house of a friend. He was in company with P.C. CARTER, stationed at Timberscombe, and witness called the prisoner. As he was in plain clothes at the time, he told her he was a police-constable, stationed at Taunton. She replied “I know I have done a most wicked and cruel thing, and I am very sorry for it.” He then cautioned her, and charged her with abandoning her infant male child by leaving it in Wood-street the previous evening. He told her that he should want to look in her boxes, and she said that whatever he wanted she would give him. She took out of her box a piece of skirt corresponding to what the baby was wrapped in. She also gave him a certificate of the birth of Clifford SOUTHWOOD, born on the 13th October, 1903, in London, the child in question. Witness told her that he would have to take her to Taunton, when she replied, “Oh dear, I was dragged into this trouble, and I have suffered for months. I have had to live in London in lodgings for some time, and what with paying my lodgings and of my confinement my money is almost all exhausted. I have never hurted the baby, and have always looked after it, and been kind to it. I wrapped it up and placed it down there, as I knew that the people who had lived there once were kind people, and thought they would soon find it, and would either keep it or send it to the Workhouse, where it would be well looked after better than I could, as I have been under the care of a doctor until I left London, and he told me I should not be strong enough for service for some months.” Witness then brought the prisoner to Taunton, where she had since been keep in custody. She has a father and mother living in Taunton, but witness did not think she had lived with them much.
Prisoner, when the charge was read out to her, made the following statement:- “I am very sorry I did it. Last Wednesday I wrote to my mother and told her I was passing through Taunton, thinking she might meet me, and that I would give her the child. When I did not see her I could not sum up enough courage to go to her, and I took the child to Wood-street to some people I used to know. I laid it carefully down, thinking it would either be taken in or taken to the Workhouse and taken care of, as I did not wish to hurt it. I was going to some friends, and did not know what to do with the child.”
Prisoner was then committed to take her trail a <sic> the next Quarter Sessions, to be held at Taunton in January.
Mr. TAYLOR, in applying for bail, mentioned that the father, who worked in Taunton, was unable to be at the Court that morning, as he had work out of the town. He had been wired to, and would return that afternoon. - The Bench allowed bail in two sureties of £10 each, and the young woman one surety herself in £10.
A TAUNTON LABOURER'S RECORD. - Henry ADAMS, a young labourer, of East Reach, was charged with having, on the 14th November, been drunk and disorderly in East-street. - Defendant pleaded guilty. - Defendant was further charged with having used obscene language at the same time and place, and also with having, on the 18th July last, been found drunk in High-street. - Defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge of having used obscene language, and guilty to the last offence. - P.C. BOURNE stated that the man committed the two offences on the evening in question about half-past eleven. He was very drunk, and used horrible language. - Mr. DURHAM said the defendant's record was a bad one. He had been before the magistrates over twelve times, and had undergone several terms of imprisonment. - The defendant was sent to prison for one month fro being drunk and disorderly, fourteen days for using the obscene language, and fined 10s and costs, or seven days, for the third offence, the sentences to run concurrently.