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DEEMING: PREHISTORIC MAN STORY OF A SKULL.
The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1956) Saturday 25 January 1930, page 6
Article
ChangedByOld LinesNew Lines
2012-05-10 21:15:44.0anonymouscold was at the back of the base as in
cord was at the back of the base as in
2009-03-18 12:13:24.0user:public:jhempenstallHuent remoial» of the rainuis of it inn
nais Circuited m the Melbourne Oiol
nfToidid in opportunity for n careful ex
nninatioii of the skull ot 11 tilt i iel
BIA lex Deeming the murderer winch vv is
made bx the duector of the ins
trilnn Institute of Anatomy (Piofc-»oi
Sn Cohn M ickeiuic) xxho AXIS, istouishcel
to luid that in Deeming bj uti cetra
ordimij lapse of natme n piehistoin man
of tho cal best pnnutixp tjpt known to
¡science bid bein bom io the mnetcinth
ceiiturj The evidence of the remains
proxe- that Dcemiiu was little less thin
a dangeious minmi
In Marilt 1892 tin body of i aroman yx is
! found undet a hearthstone embedded ni
connut in a house in \\ indsoi The clime
vv as traced to Doominc. w li i auder tin
n une ol Baitoti few nison hid lle.1 to
Southern Cu»s (\\ \ 1 xvheie be uns
it-rested and whcnic In was bimnht b nk
to Melbourne lu tin iniintmii tuquiin»
ni-titutcd bv The Argus throut,lt its Lou
don tcpresentitiye biought to light tin
ÍTct tint Deeming bul ni* a murda ed his
tv ile iiiil fottr childi en at Rimhill neal
Lia ci pool m Lnt-hud The bodies had
been dt-posid ot in a manner similar to
that of hist victim nt Windsor These elis
CIOSUIL* Deeming s callous and indifferent
belnxioitr aftot hi» nne=t and the bru
talitj of tin Ulmes amused populir feel
mi deepl) The mtndeted vvoniau pioycd
la be html} Mather with wlietn Di oniing
hal lorn thioiiaih the leieniotn et mir
nile in I nglan I He bul betomi engi"eel
aftei the inurdei to t Miss Rounsevell and
ii Southern Cio»s he ha. I ah euh proxulnl
the lenient fei the disp>snl of her lindi ,
Deeming s li lal which listed ti iixi
elixs axis begun liefcne the lite Mt Ins
dei Hodges at tin end of \pnl 1S!)2 The
evidence lift no possible doubt of Ills'
guilt Hie otiK possible hope of ptoeiir
tug a xpidict in his faxntn Ina in a. plei
of instnitv x\ Inih xx a« not upheld despite
evidente In Dr T W Ipimgthoipe and
tin lite Di J "i T-isliboume Denmire,
wn» an extnordinaul} glib liar and Dr
Spinigtlinrpe hld the gleitest tltflicultj in
uliving nt the tnilh The v-imtv ot "-he
pii»onci ins nnmeasunblc and he tits
pi iv eel nn ultu lnil of it mel se for Ins
enmi lie putendeel that when he eli iti|.eil
lils n nut he eli ingiel his identity Ile ad
mitti 1 tint lie In nk W \lli uns-Hie n uno
he hil used at 1 nnhill-h id killie] (lie
women and ihildtcn time also
(hit 1 letlcnck Deeming had 1 ilk 1
I linly Mather at Wintlsn but neitlui ot
these ci une- I e nisi-le 1 loitld IK. alleged
ii mist Bit ron Swanson the minc he hid
issiimed in Western Austialii and lie aun
onslv dissociatitl Inmsilt fiom the nts
ol \\ illi-ims and* Deeming Dr fepi HIL,
llioi pe s summing up of the life of Denn
nig vv ib tint it bal bein an i\ti ivagin/a.
binkiii bv lill ot tumis) at nitciv ils
Hie Clown 1 ipt tin méditai w Unisses
fu tin tleftnce stititlj to Hie tunis
ot what is lnovxn is the MiNnughtun
test nanielj ivhethei it the time the
until w is romniitUd Decinin«, was
aw ne of the nattne mid qiulitx of In-
actions lins list vi as hil elown b) a
committee of the House of Louis m ISH
is determining guilt and ni 181)1 it had
b« in i ciflu mod bv tin i ii toi i m 1 nil Com t
Di »"piingtlioipe could not eon-lien
ttouslj M i ii to the statt of Dtetu
HIL, b mind it the time In committed
the clime in cidu to ovuconn tin,
Mi\million te»t Hi- p isi»tenic ni
munt titinit. Ins own tom niton ot iii-uiiti
bioiuht lum into eoulliit with the Couti
and Mi Instilo Hotlgis sonnvvhat ib\u\tli
tuiniuated Ins cvidinic Hie icidict of
guilt) Avas t foulon ionilu»ioii and
Heemmg w is sentotiied to de ith
1 J he cMinimliou of the H m lins bj Su
Cohn Mukcn/ie levuileil some veil
mtciestiiig leitiius Wb n mini fu»t is
sumed the upiigbt posluic lils he id wits
pined ou the spin ii column tow u d the
back of the skull, siheie aI»o w is the open
tug known as the foiainen 1111,41111111 tiiioui.li
is huh the spinal cold 1 cubed the linn
Tn 01 dei to ketp the lie ni fi0111 singing
foi AS aid 1 broad bind it muscle vv is it
Itched to the luck of the F1 nil wilclo it
AVIS nichol ed to i tony tidi,e When
the upiikbt postme of mail became iumlv
estibhshed the spin ii column uni the
foi mien uingnum Mond for« ntl to the
eetitte of the bise of the skull vi line the
beni bceime b ii meed md then usefulness
hem., pissed, the heavy muscles md the
bony tidge disappeared lbe»e chingos
loot» pine slowly osti t lions aids of yens
1 sen 111 the now e\ttuct 1 ila ihtlne lis
main in natisc the foi um n niviiuni w i»
in the untie of the bysc as 111 moJein
mm uni time w is ii) ti ne ii Mu bony
ud"e at the bick of the si "11 It AVIS
then foie willi lu little is(i iu»hmi nt Mut
Sn tollu Mieken/ii discerní ed tint 111
Deeming « si ull the opening foi Ui< spin ii
cold AVIS it the b iel ot the ln»c is 111
the antillfipoid lill lons nd"i it the
bul» vv is ii o elenlv 111 evuleiie
Jins hrwcsei, w is not ill Helund e ich
eu then is i »mi]| bone piojeetun on
tile si nil luown is the niu-toid piocess
In moduli nun these point du citlv dr vv n
w nd and shejith foivv u 1 lu the mist
plimitive type ol man thcv «loped bid
wini In lleeimivs si nil the mistend
pioicsses nave biekwnd J he nell of the
si nil is iKo distinctly smuau \ cist of the
oldest lunn in idle known to science the
Tisi »kuli when pi iced upon lleeinmgs
ltts it bl e te ip Dei min,, h id al o the
chaiacteiij)tle anthiopoid heavy bous stiuc
tmc ot the binns J he cubic content ol
the skull is iKo s-crv lis» uni there is
no fiontil ties clopim ni show HIL, th it the
bunn AVIS of i sen low and iniiiitisi
ts pc J be skeleton of L)ccmiu" uko le-
ve lied two s ei A distinct an 1 ty pu al untbio
poid chnnctcustics J lie oriole at whieh
the thie.li bones were »et in the bip »ml ets
give lum the shimblnie. ipe bl e tviit th it
was "-o notice ible in linn md lie ul»o li id
imineiisels long urns which i cached to his
knees Hie deductions to be ihavvn lu ni
these estiaoidinaiA pecilhiuties ile tint
Deeinuv ssis ti diei Util in icluom in He
w is boin thou»nula of veil's too late loi
the biologic ii en to ii huh be belonged
md complied with modem m ni he vi is
but one step in development ti oin the un
tbiopoid suth i moi ii mil intellectual
capacity to ni itch
The Scientific Viewpoint
Like Sn Cohn ifackeiuie Di ««pi mt,
thoipe, who his iKo e\mimed the eist
made ftom the skult is astoni»lied Deeming
must bise been tut-illy lncipnbli of
piecittiug any nioial piCLcpt His iiiind
vi is ".oi el ned cmlv bv Ins muteual need
WhaltAci he leepiued ho icquiied bj the
most diiiet metiis If 1 illnig wuc the
eisicst method of ittnnmcnt he lilli 1 His
1 now h dee of light ol wiong vv is símil ii to
thit of i nt oi a dog winch li is no mot ii
sense, but which realises ssiong doin^, be
cause of foi mci punishment Just us an
mun ii detected ni theft will use cimmiii,
to evade punishment so Deenune, used his
liiejici mdci of nminil miming lie w is
not inpible of lemotsc foi his crimes und
that f ictoi accounts foi Ins enlloii»ue«s
The Trial
Recent removals of the remains of crimi-
nals executed in the Melbourne Gaol
afforded an opportunity for a careful ex-
amination of the skull of Frederick
Bayley Deeming, the murderer, which was
made by the director of the Aus-
tralian Institute of Anatomy (Professor
Sir Colin Mackenzie), who was astonished
to find that in Deeming, by an extra-
ordinary lapse of nature, a prehistoric man
of the earliest primitive type known to
science had been born in the nineteenth
century. The evidence of the remains
proves that Deeming was little less than
a dangerous animal.
In March, 1892, the body of a woman was
found under a hearthstone embedded in
cement, in a house in Windsor. The crime
was traced to Deeming, who, under the
name of Barron Swanson, had fled to
Southern Cross (W.A.), where he was
arrested and whence he was brought back
to Melbourne. In the meantime inquiries
instituted by "The Argus" through its Lon-
don representative brought to light the
fact that Deeming had also murdered his
wife and four children at Rainhill, near
Liverpool, in England. The bodies had
been disposed of in a manner similar to
that of his victim at Windsor. These dis-
closures, Deeming's callous and indifferent
behaviour after his arrest, and the bru-
tality of the crimes aroused popular feel-
ing deeply. The murdered woman proved
to be Emily Mather with whom Deeming
had gone through the ceremony of mar-
riage in England. He had become engaged
after the murder to a Miss Rounsevell, and
at Southern Cross he had already provided
the cement for the disposal of her body.
Deeming's trial, which lasted for five
days, was begun before the late Mr. Jus-
tice Hodges at the end of April, 1892. The
evidence left no possible doubt of his
guilt. The only possible hope of procur-
ing a verdict in his favour lay in a plea
of insanity, which was not upheld, despite
evidence by Dr. J. W. Springthorpe and
the late Dr. J. Y. Fishbourne. Deeming
was an extrardinary glib liar, and Dr.
Springthorpe had the greatest difficulty in
arriving at the truth. The vanity of the
prisoner was immeasureable and he dis-
played an utter lack of remorse for his
crimes. He pretended that when he changed
his name he changed his identity. He ad-
mitted that Frederick Williams-the name
he had used at Rainhill-had killed the
women and children there, also
that Frederick Deeming had killed
Emily Mather at Windsor, but neither of
these crimes, he insisted, could be alleged
against Barron Swanson, the name he had
assumed in Western Australia, and he vigor-
ously dissociated himself from the acts
of Williams and Deeming. Dr. Spring-
thorpe's summing-up of the life of Deem-
ing was that it had been "an extravaganza
broken by lack of funds at intervals."
The Crown kept the medical witnesses
for the defence strictly to the terms
of what is known as the McNaughton
test, namely, whether at the time the
crime was committed Deeming was
aware of the nature and quality of his
actions. This test was laid down by a
committee of the House of Lords in 1843,
as determining guilt, and in 1891 it had
been reaffirmed by the Victorian Full Court.
Dr. Springthorpe could not conscien-
tiously swear to the state of Deem-
ing's mind at the time he committed
the crime, in order to overcome the
McNaughton test. His persistence in
maintaining his own conviction of insanity
brought him into conflict with the Court,
and Mr. Justice Hodges somewhat abruptly
terminated his evidence. The verdict of
guilty was a foregone conclusion and
Deeming was sentenced to death.
The examination of the remains by Sir
Colin Mackenzie revealed some very
interesting features. When man first as-
sumed the upright posture his head was
placed on the spinal column toward the
back of the skull, where also was the open-
ing known as the foramen magnum, through
which the spinal cord reached the brain.
In order to keep the head from sagging
forward a broad band of muscle was at-
tached to the back of the skull, where it
was anchored to a bony ridge. When
the upright posture of man became firmly
established the spinal column and the
foramen magnum moved forward to the
centre of the base of the skull, where the
head became balanced, and, their usefulness
being passed, the heavy muscles and the
bony ridge disappeared. These changes
took place slowly over thousands of years.
Even in the now extinct palæolithic Tas-
manian native the foramen magnum was
in the centre of the base as in modern
man, and there was no trace of the bony
ridge at the back of the skull. It was
therefore with no little astonishment that
Sir Colin Mackenzie discovered that in
Deeming's skull the opening for the spinal
cold was at the back of the base as in
the anthropoid. The bony ridge at the
back was also clearly in evidence.
This, however was not all. Behind each
ear there is a small bony projection on
the skull known as the mastoid process.
In modern man these point directly down-
ward and slightly forward. In the most
primitive type of man they sloped back-
ward. In Deeming's skull the mastoid
processes curve backward. The arch of the
skull is also distinctly simian. A cast of the
oldest human relic known to science, the
Java skull, when placed upon Deeming's
fits it like a cap. Deeming had also the
characteristic anthropoid heavy bony struc-
ture of the brows. The cubic content of
the skull is also very low, and there is
no frontal development, showing that the
brain was of a very low and primitive
type. The skeleton of Deeming also re-
vealed two very distinct and typical anthro-
poid characteristics. The angle at which
the thigh bones were set in the hip sockets
gave him the shambling ape-like gait that
was so noticeable in him, and he also had
immensely long arms which reached to his
knees. The deductions to be drawn from
these extraordinary peculiarities are that
Deeming was a dreadful anachronism. He
was born thousands of years too late for
the biological era to which he belonged,
and compared with modern man he was
but one step in development from the an-
thropoid, with a moral and intellectual
capacity to match.
The Scientific Viewpoint.
Like Sir Colin Mackenzie, Dr. Spring-
thorpe, who has also examined the cast
made from the skull, is astonished. Deeming
must have been totally incapable of ap-
preciating any moral precept. His mind
was governed only by his material needs.
Whatever he required he acquired by the
most direct means. If killing were the
easiest method of attainment, he killed. His
knowledge of right or wrong was similar to
that of a cat or a dog, which has no moral
sense, but which realises wrong-doing be-
cause of former punishment. Just as an
animal detected in theft will use cunning
to evade punishment, so Deeming used his
higher order of animal cunning. He was
not capable of remorse for his crimes, and
that factor accounts for his callousness.
The Trial.

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