The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 363: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

848 “Tt is indeed very terrible—very shocking,” ob- served Lady Saxondale. “ It quite makes one shudder.” CHAPTER LXXIIIL THE INQUEST. AT a publie-house on the outskirts of Gainsborough | nearest to the point whence the mournful procession had started with the two dead bodies on the pre- ceding night, the coroner’s inquest was holden at mid-day. Asmight be expected, the tragedy had produced the utmost consternation throughout the town and neighbourhood; and the public-house where the corpses had been deposited, was sur- rounded from an early hour in the morning by a crowd of persons, all anxious to obtain any ad- ditional particulars that might transpire. At twelve o’clock, as above stated, the coroner THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. night. The peasant, in answer to the coroner, stated that it was perfectly evident that Mr. Gunthorpe and Mr. Deveril were totally unknown to. the two females previous to meeting them there, as he gathered from the conversation which passed be- tween them at the time. The lady and her maid took their departure: but no one inside the cottage at the time had any opportunity of perceiving in what direction they proceeded. The two gentlemen waited perhaps ten minutes longer, and gave his (the peasant’s) mother five sovereigns on account of the kind treatment one of them had experienced, as previously described, at the cottage. It was per haps three quarters of an hour afterwards that Mr. Deveril came rushing back with horrified looks, bearing the intelligence that the two females were murdered, and ordering him (the peasant) to pro- ceed at once to Gainsborough and give the alarm. William Deveril was the next witness called in, He stated that he had arrived with his friend Mr. Guuthorpe at Gainsborough on the previous day, arrived; and the proceedings were opened in the and that in the evening they set out along the bank largest room which the public-house contained. A_ of the river for the purpose of proceeding to Saxon- jury was speedily sworn in; and the various wit- | dale Castle. He then described how he and Mr. Gun- nesses were kept together in an adjoining apartment, thorpe had called at the cottage—how they met the —Mr. Gunthorpe, Deveril, and the peasant being two deceased females there—how one of them had amongst them. | introduced herself as Mademoiselle D’Alembert, of The coroner and jury, having viewed the two the Italian Opera—and how she had likewise men- bodies,—which were in a third room, and had in the tioned her knowledge of Lord Saxondale and Lord meantime undergone a surgical examination,— ) Harold Staunton. Here the coroner asked Deveril commenced the proceedings. if there were any reason to suppose that the deceased The first witness called, was the landlord of an hotel the town. He deposed that the deceased lady, accompanied by her maid, had arrived at his establishment about three o’clock on the pre- ceding day. They had travelled post from Lincoln ; and on the lady’s box was the name of Mademoiselle bD’Alembert: but she appeared to be an English woman by her speech and accent. She had dined by herself in a private room at bout five o’cloek, her maid having previously partaken of refresh- ments in the servants’ room of the hotel. At seven o'clock Mademoiselle D’Alembert had tea; shortly after which she and her servant went out together, Mademoiselle intimating to the landlady that they were going to visit some friends whom she had in Gainsborough, and that they might not be home till eleven o’clock. The landlord had noticed that the maid carried a large brown paper parcel in her hand: but what it contained he did not know, and had not given the matter a thought at the time. From that moment he had not seen the deceased females again. The peasant was the next witness called in. He stated that at about nine o’clock the lady and her maid approached the cottage where he dwelt with his mother and sister; and as he was standing out- side the door at the time, they asked him to be per- mitted to sit down for a little while, as they had taken a longer walk than they had at first intended, and were tired, They were invited to enter: they sat down; and such refreshments as the cottage afforded, were offered, of which they partook. Soon afterwards two gentlemen came to the cottage, one having been there before some few days previously. The peasant then described how Mr. Deveril saved a woman from drowning on the occasion to which he referred, and how that circumstance had ren- dered him an inmate of the cottage for a whole a eS ts ph were on their way to Saxondale Castle: but our hero could not hazard a conjecture on the subject—much less speak with any degree of certainty. He then proceeded to describe how himself and Mr. Gun- thorpe, after leaving the cottage, had heard the pistol-shots and the scream. There was an interva. of not more than a few moments between the shots; and it was immediately after the first that the ery was heard,—the inference being that on one female being suddenly shot dead, the other had screamed out and the next moment met her death likewise. Then William Deveril detailed how he had sped tc the cottage to give the alarm, and had subsequently rejoined Mr. Gunthorpe to keep watch until the authorities should come. It appeared that they both noticed that the parcel which the maid had carried, was missing. The coroner having heard Deveril’s evidence, thought that the jury might dispense with that of Mr. Gunthorpe, as it would merely prove a re- petition of the testimony just given. The magistrate who had proceeded to the spot where the murder was committed, was the next witness called in; and he deposed to the circum- stance of being summoned thither, and finding the bodies in the condition in which they were almost im- mediately afterwards removed to the public-house at Gainsborough. He had subsequently superintended the search which was made about the persons of the deceased, and had seen that their money and their trinkets were all safe about them—so that the mur- derer or murderers had not rifled the victims of their property, beyond the large parcel which had been proved to be missing. The head constable of Gainsborough was next examined. He deposed that he had visited tne scene of the tragedy with some of his men on the preceding night, and that he had returned thither GoOmicdoo S (€)