QSR1859/4/5/8

Depositions of James Everitt of Luton. Mary Ann Hughes, single woman of Luton. Sarah Ann Marshall, single woman of Luton. Thomas Jeeves, blocker of Luton. George Smith, police sergeant of Luton and Kitt Tomson, surgeon of Luton. In the case of Willoughby Marshall accused of stabbing and wounding James Everitt.

12 September 1859

From: 1859 To: 1859

Mary Ann Hughes: she lodged in the prisoner house at 6 Farley Road in Luton. On 27 August she went home to her lodgings about 11am. She told the prisoner not to swear so as he had been calling her names. He told her she should not stop in his house another Saturday night and order her out of the house. He told her he would give her a ‘damned slap of the head’. Marshall then got up and hit her. He had been sitting in a chair and he got up and hit her twice on the head. Mrs Marshall told her to take out a summons for him and she would be a witness. James Everitt came in and took hold of the prisoner and hit him. The prisoner said he would not hit him again and she saw blood running down at the bottom of James Everitt’s trousers. The prisoner went into wash house and washed his hands and then went into the street. She noticed his hands had blood upon them. James pulled his shirt off and there was blood on the shirt. She saw the wound on the left side of his breast. It was bleeding very much. He went and put flour on it to stop the bleeding. Sarah Ann Marshall: the prisoner’s daughter. On 27 August Mary Ann Hughes came into the house and her gather was swearing at her. Hughes told him not to swear so and he told her if she said anymore he would hit her. He got up and hit Hughes about the head. Her mother told Hughes to get a summons for him. Her brother James Everitt came in. He was her mother’s son by a former husband. James took hold of her father and shook him and struck him. They scuffled and she saw a knife in her father’s hand. She called to her mother and said ‘oh mother the knife’ several times. She heard her brother say he had been stabbed and she saw blood though his shirt. She went and fetched Mr Tomson, the surgeon. Her brother hit her father several times on the head and face. Thomas Jeeves: a blocker at Luton and next door neighbour to the prisoner. On the night of 27 August, in consequence of something he heard, he entered the prisoner’s house. He saw the prisoner and asked him what he had been doing. The prisoner replied he had only been standing his own defence. He went up to Everitt and told him to pull off his shirt so he could see the wound and on pulling his shirt from his trousers, Everitt’s shirt was covered in blood. Everitt went to the cupboard and got some flour to put on the wound. Everitt seemed faint and said “Oh dear, what shall I do”. He showed the shirt to the prisoner and told him he’d done it now as Jem was dying. The prisoner replied it was a good job too and that he did not want to go away. Marshall asked a young man to go with him to fetch Pope, a policeman and the young man told him that if he wanted a policeman to go himself. Marshall went out of the house and came back with a policeman. Sergeant George Smith: on the night of 27 August he had been going up Chapel Street with PC Dorrington when they met the prisoner. The prisoner said he had come to give himself up to them and when asked what for, he replied he had stabbed his son in law. The prisoner continued that they had said they would send for the police and so he had come to give himself up to save the trouble. The prisoner said he had meant to do it and should have done it sooner, so must suffer for it. The prisoner said he did not mind going to Bedford and that Castle had got off and so would he. They went with Marshall to his house and saw James Everitt who was bleeding very much. He was present when Superintendent Pope asked Everitt if the prisoner was the man who inflicted the wound and Everitt replied he was. Marshall said he had done it but Everitt had struck first. Everitt said he did strike Marshall because he had been striking out at lodgers. He asked Marshall where the knife was and he said he should not tell. He was able to produce Everitt’s waistcoat and shirt which were covered in blood. Kitt Tomson: he was sent to the prisoner’s house on the night of 27 August. He found James Everitt sitting in a chair and the upper half of his chair was naked. He saw blood on his left side and a mass of flour adhering to it. He removed the flour and saw the wound. It was about 5/8 of an inch long. Everitt was very pale and faint and his breathing was difficult. He applied an application to the wound and assisted him to bed. He had attended Everitt since. It had been a puncture wound and he did not ascertain the depth of it as he thought it would be dangerous to do so. The wound was below the heart and seemed to pass between the 7th and 8th ribs and puncture the cavity of the chest. Everitt was still under his care and he considered him out of immediate danger but it would be some time before he recovered from the wound. He believed the wound could have been made by a sharp knife. It was his opinion that the lung had been wounded. James Everitt: on 27 August about 10.55pm he was in the passage of the house at no.6 Farley Road in Luotn. He heard a noise and looked into the house. Willoughby Marshall was punching a female. He went in and shock Marshall to stop him. He heard Marshall’s daughter saying “the knife” “the knife” and he found he had been stabbed. He held Marshall as long as he could to prevent him from going to his mother and sister. He had been stabbed in the left side and had been under treatment since. His mother, sister and Mary Ann Hughes were present when he was stabbed. Statement of the accused: nothing.

item

Marshall, Willoughby,
Everitt, James,
Hughes, Mary Ann,
Marshall, Sarah Ann,
Jeeves, Thomas,
Smith, George,
Tomson, Kitt

LUTON, surgeon, blocker, stabbing, wounding