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INQUESTS.
1 MOTHER COMMITTED FOR MURDER OF
HER INFANT.
At tho morguo yesterday an leanest was
held on tho body of Alice Williiiina, tae infant
Who was thrown over the Falls-bridge by her
mother on tho 1st December, nnd was drowned.
Dr. Youl, tho City coroner, presided. The
mother of the child was present in custody, but
did not 6eem xnuch auooted by uer position.
The opinion prevailed that she was mentally
deranged.
Dr. Stirling deposed that tho cause of death
was drowning.
Catherine Evans, a young woman residing at
Port Melbourne, gave evidence that on tho
evening of the 1st iust. Mrs. Williams came to
her houso nnd asked her to mind ail her
children except tho infant, whom she took
away in her arms. Witness promised to miud
them, as the prisoner said shu wauted to go aud
meet her husuaud. Mrs. Williams then weut
uway.
Lucy Evaus, a young woman residing at
South Melbourne, and a stranger to tlw pri-
BouiT, said she was crossiug over the Falls-
bridge about seven o'clock that evening, when
she saw tho prisoner, who was carrying a child
in her arms, walking slowly along ou tho foot
way on the west side of tho bridge. She mot
her husband near the coutro of tho structure,
and commenced to abuse him. (Tho pri
soner her contradicted tho witness, and
said she did not abuse her husband.) Sho
asked Williams what eho was to do with
the child. He replied, "1 dou'tknow." Where
upon tho prisoner replied, " Look at it Look
ot it I 1 will show you what I will do with it.?
After this she walked uDout six yaras iroui ma
husband und throw tho child over the rail of
the bridge iuto tho river. "Williams, who was not
sober, immediately jumped in after it.
William Howard deposed that he was going
across tho bridge about tho samo timo as tho
last wituess, and saw the child thrown iuto the
water by the prisoner. Ho jumped into a boat
and tried to save tho child, but couid not do so.
He and the watchman, however, drew Wil
liams, who was. at this timo much exhausted
aud the worso for liquor, out of tho water.
Ou regaining tlio bridge tbey found tho
prisoner still there. She ut first ctonied that
she was Sirs. Williams, but afterwards admitted
that was her name ; and she contended that she
had thrown the child towards her husband.
The witness, Lucy Evans. re:examiued, stated
that the prisoner had throwu the child away
from her biubaud, nnd not towards liiin.
Constable Canty deposed as to tho arrest, and
Countable Conway as to tholindiug of the body.
The coroner, iu charging the jury, said that if
they believed tho evidence it was a caso of
willul murder.
After a short retirement tho jury returned a
verdict 10 this effect, and the prisouer was com
mitted for trial at the Supreme Court sittings
to bo hold on the 15th iust. Williams, the
husbaud of tho prisoner, was present during
some portion of tho proceedings, but being
somewhat affected at tho narration of the cir
cumstances of tlife case by tho wituossos even-
tually lett tho room oeioro a conclusion «aa
arrived at.
Shocking Accident. — Tlio city coroner (Dr.
Youl) held an inquest ut tho Melbourne
Hospital yesterday respecting the death 01
a lad named Sydney Swanuoll, whicii re
sulted from injuries received by his being
run over by a cart at Kensington. Johu
bwannell, butcher, M'Crackeu-street. Kon-
siugtuu, deposed that the deceased was his son,
and ho was 5 years old. Mary Walsh, a liLlo
girl, gave evidence that on tho 8th inst. eho
6ftv; the deceased in a incut cart, and, on after
wards looking round, she saw the child under
the cart with liia leg broken. She did not
know how tho accident happened. Peter
Kennedy, a young lad, deposed that he was ou
tho cart with the deceased, who put his leg
over tho side and got it caught in the wheel,
thus breaking it and causing him to bo thrown
,out. John E. Stanley, driver of tho cart,
staled that the deceased jumped on # to
his carl on tho afternoon in question,
as he was driving down tho street.
Suddenly he noticed him fall over tho side, and
then observed that he had one leg jamiued be
tween the box of tho wheel and the bed ui the
axle. Witness immediately jumped down,
pulled up, and skidded the wheel, but when the
child was exlriiuicd his lug was found to bo
almost torn off, hanging merely to the body by
a shred of Bkin, which was afterwards cut off
with a pair of scissors by a lady who was near
at hand. Ho could not prevent children crowd
ing into the cart, as they made a practice of
constantly iollowing him. Dr. J. C. Wight, of
tho Mclbourno Hospital, deposed that tho child
was brought in ou the night of the 81I1 iust.,
Bufft-ring iroiii tho effects ot having one of his
legs torn off. lie was already weak Irom loss
of blood, and it became necessary to amputate
tlie thigh higher up. Tho child died tlie next
morning. A verdict was relumed of acc.dental
death.
Accident on the Railway. — At an inquest
held yesterday ou tho bedy ox James Malouey,
aged 40, James Lane, carpenter, West Jlel-
uourue, uepuaeu iuai> u«j uwvtvut —
subordinate to him in tho employ of the Rail
way department, had asked him on Wednesday
morning for leave to attend a funeral. Witness
told him to go aud ask Mr. Oruwiord, and in
proceeding up tho yard to seo this gentleman
Malouey was caught between two trucks and
crushed. He died at tho hospital about twenty
minutes afterwards. Thu deceased loit a wife
and two children. George Groves, &humer,
Mated that he saw tlio deceased between tho
buffers of the trucks after the accident
occurred. Ho appeared to be in great agony,
and said he was cookod." Medical eviueuco
not being tendered within a reasonable time,
tho jury independently returned a verdict of
accidental death, and the inquiry closed. Tho
inquest was conducted at tho Melbourne
Hospital by Dr. Youl. \
A tiAXLon Okusilbi) to Dbath.— Tho City
Coroner held nn inquest on Tuesday at tho Mel
bourne Hospital on tho bedy of Thus. Williams,
a seaman belonging to the ship Anucsdale, wno
was accidentally killed on board that vessel the
previous day. According to tbo evidence of
William M. Lloyd and Cnarles Fitsou, seamen,
tho deceased was stauding at tho end of a large
log of wood which was being hoisted ashore
from the vessel. Whilst the meu were at work
on one log another slipped, and rolled partly on
deceased, throwing hitu down. When ho was
taken from underneath bo was alive but in
sensible, und he was taken at once to the
hospital. Dr. Pardey stated that the man was
dead when admitted at about thirty minutes
past three p.m. The vertex of his skull was
fractured in all directions. There was also a
compound fracture of the left tibia. Tho jury
returned a verdict of accidental death.
A vHtLl) UltUSHEI) TO DRATH. 1DO Ulty
Coroner htld an inquest on Tuesday at Fort
Melbourne, on the body of Samuel Foloj, aged
3 years, son of James Foley, a laborer. Ac
cording to tbo evidence of Mrs, Ann llcddau, a
widow, who witnessed tho accident, tho child
was killed by tho wheel of a lorry passing over
htm in Stokcs-streot. The vehicle was being
driven by a man named Sullivan. Several
children were playing about the lorry, on which
was a boat, and this attracted their attention.
The child was stauding beside the boat, closo
to one of the after wheels of the lorry, when it
started $ and Sullivan was iu a cart in front,
and ho could not see the children behind him.
The deceased was shockingly crushed by the
wheel; when picked up he was still alive, but
he died a few minutes afterwards in Mrs. Kcd-
dan'a arms. Tho jury returned a verdict of
accidental death.
Death of a Drunkard.— Tbo City Coroner
held an Inquest yesterday, at tho morgue, on
tho body of Thomas Hughes, aged 57, who was
found dead in his room at a lodging house iu
RusseU-strcct, on Wednesday. His wife stated
that she bad been seven years separated from
deceased owing to his drunken habits. He had
left soven children. The lodging house keeper
said that deceased went to ueu intoxicated
nearly every night. Dr. Stirling, who had made
a poU mortem examination, was of opinion that
the cause of death was pneumonia, the direct
result of habitual druukeuness, and a verdict to
that offoct was returned.
Death From Hbmoiuihaob.'— An inquest was
held at Footscray yesterday by Mr. Candler 011
the body of a male child unknown, which was
found on the 8th inst. in the Saltwater River,
at Kensington. Constable Carinody deposed
that he found the body wrat pod up iu part of a
petticoat, a towel, and the skirt of a woman's
dress. The whole was tied together with a
piece of twine. Dr. C. H. Bowser stated that
the naval cord of tho child was uncut and un
tied, and that the child had been born alive,
but bad apparently died from loss of blood. Tho
jury returned a verdict to tho effect that the
child had died from hemorrhage for want of
proper treatment at birth, but there was no
tviuonce to show how it camo into the river.
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