unconscious.' I said, 'I think you must have been drugged.'
She replied, she did not recollect anything about it. Her
arms were black in places, one of her eyes was blackened,
her cheek was all colours, and she had a bruise
under her chin. She was sensible from the time I first
saw her at the station house until the time of her death,
between twelve and one o'clock on Wednesday last.
My daughter was about twenty-two, a single woman."
Lieutenants Seymour, Knight, and Jervis, and Assistant-
Surgeon Roche, tendered their evidence; and it would
lead to the belief that the girl having got drunk, hurt
herself by falling about. They declared positively that
there was no fighting in the gun-room, and no violence
of any kind offered to the young woman. The medical
evidence, after a post-mortem examination, was to the
effect that her death had been caused by rupture of the
bladder. The coroner's jury returned the following
verdict—"We find that, according to the evidence given
by the medical men, we are bound to return a verdict
that Matilda Jane Lodge died a natural death from
rupture of the bladder; but we also find, from the
evidence given before us, that death was mainly accelerated
by ill-treatment which she had received on the
night of Sunday the 17th of September 1854, in the
ward-room on board of the hulk of her Majesty's
ship Dauntless, lying in Portsmouth Harbour; to
which we respectfully call the attention of the
authorities." A further inquiry took place before
the Portsmouth magistrates on a charge of
manslaughter against Lieutenants Knight and Seymour.
The result was, that both the prisoners were acquitted
of that charge. In announcing the judgment of the
magistrates, the mayor carefully went over the whole
case; dismissing the charge against Lieutenant Seymour
with the remark, that he left the court without his
character being affected by the charge; but censuring
Lieutenant Knight, while he dismissed the criminal
charge against him,—for having taken the woman on
board, and for having shown so little interest in her fate
as to allow her to be put in a boat without seeing her
off. There was not, he said, evidence sufficient to justify
the sending of Lieutenant Knight for trial. Mr. Knight
was therefore discharged by the magistrates; but he
remained under arrest, awaiting the pleasure of the
Lords of the Admiralty, on his own application for a
court-martial.—Courts-martial were held on the 10th
and 11th inst., on Lieutenant Knight, Lieutenant Jervis,
and Lieutenant Elphinstone, who was in command of
the vessel when the affair happened. The charges
against Mr. Knight were: 1. That on the 17th September
he brought "on board her Majesty's hulk Dauntless
two improper women; and did act improperly towards
such women, in supplying them with wine and spirits in
immoderate quantities when so on board the said hulk;
the same being scandalous actions, in derogation of God's
honour and in corruption of good manners;" 2. that he
suggested to Mr. Robert Hancock, Midshipman, falsely
"to inform the chaplain of her Majesty's ship Dauntless,
that the women which he, the said first lieutenant
Frederick Charles Knight, had so brought on board the
said hulk, were sisters of him, the said first lieutenant;
he the first lieutenant well knowing at the time that
such was not true; the same being a scandalous action,
in derogation of God's honour and in corruption of good
manners;" 3. that he appeared without "his proper
uniform; and without having obtained the requisite
permission, dispensing with the wearing of such
uniform;" 4. that he was drunk on the night of the
17th and the following morning.—Lieutenant Knight
was acquitted of the second and fourth charges, and
found guilty of the first and third; but, in consideration
of his previous high character, the sentence of the court-
martial was, that his name should be placed at the
bottom of the list of the lieutenants of the Royal
Marines. The charge against Lieutenant Jervis, was,
that he, being in command at the time, had suffered two
women of improper character to remain on board after
sunset; and that, having become aware of their presence
between one and four o'clock, he did not report the
same to the commanding officer. Lieutenant Jervis was
acquitted of these charges. The charges against
Lieutenant Elphinstone, were, that he, while senior officer
on board the Victorious hulk, did permit the women to
remain on board after sunset; did not report the fact to
his superior officer; and allowed wine and spirits to be
supplied to the women from the ward-room in
immoderate quantities. After evidence had been
heard on the three charges, Lieutenant Elphinstone
read a brief address in defence. He pleaded
that he was ignorant of his responsibility at the time,
not knowing he was senior officer; that the liquor was
passed to the women too quickly for him to prevent it,
after he had protested against it; and that it was only
after he had left the ward-room, and while undressing,
that he found from what fell from Lieutenant Woodman,
that he himself had been the commanding officer while
in the ward-room. Lieutenant Woodman deposed to
the last fact.—The Court deliberated for an hour, and
then pronounced this decision—"The Court is of opinion
that the charge is partly proved against Lieutenant
Buller Elphinstone, inasmuch as, although he
remonstrated against the disgraceful proceedings mentioned in
the charge, he did not with sufficient promptitude
ascertain whether he was or was not the senior officer at
the time he was applied to by the chaplain; and that he
did not, as such senior officer, prevent by the exercise of
his authority, such disgraceful proceedings. And the
Court doth adjudge that the said Lieutenant Elphinstone
be admonished; and the said Lieutenant William
Buller Elphinstone is hereby admonished accordingly."

A Lamentable Occurrence took place on the 5th inst.,
at Brixworth Hall, Northamptonshire, the residence of
Mr. Vere Isham. Mr. Isham had gone to London, and
his wife, Major Isham, and a young lady named
Hughes, were dining together. Mr. W. Wood, Mrs.
Isham's brother, who resides in the village, had gone
up to the hall to take his farewell of his sister, who was
about to accompany her husband abroad. Whether he
went into the dining-room or not, is not clear; but
Major Isham, from some unexplained cause, appears to
have suddenly risen from the table, and with a knife in
his hand ran towards the hall door, for the purpose
apparently of leaving the house. The lady's maid,
who was in the kitchen, attracted by his halloo, ran
out, and endeavoured to persuade him to give her the
knife. At this moment Mr. Wood ran towards him,
exclaiming "Tom, come back!" The major ran at
him, kicked him two or three times, and ultimately
stabbed him three times in the shoulder. Mr. Wood
ran out, exclaiming "I am stabbed!" and went in the
direction of his own residence. Major Isham also went
out, but turned in the opposite direction, towards the
Coach and Horses, in a state of great excitement, and
calling "Murder!" Mr. Wood reached a cottage, and
there, unhappily bled to death, it would appear, from
the want of proper aid. At the Coach and Horses
Major Isham became quite calm, and gave up the knife
to Miss Manning, the landlady's daughter, without
hesitation. Major Isham and Mr. Wood lived upon
the most friendly terms, and the dreadful act is
supposed to have been committed in a moment of temporary
mental aberration. It would seem that Major Isham
had been before subject to some degree of mental
derangement, but there was no evidence at the inquest of
any violent paroxysm like the present; and, at the
inquest, the jury returned a verdict of "Wilful murder"
against Major Isham, who was committed for trial. He
has since died in prison.

A melancholy Suicide has been committed at
Newcastle-on-Tyne. On Sunday morning, the 15th inst.,
the bodies of two young women were found in the
Tyne, above Newcastle bridge. The appearance of the
unfortunate girls was most affecting; their arms were
clasped round each other, both of them being young
and very beautiful. There was no mark of violence on
either of them, or nothing to lead to any conclusion,
except a determined suicide. From the evidence
brought before the coroner on the following day, it
appears that the girls were the daughters of a respectable
working man, named Ezekiel Robinson. Their
names were Ellen and Isabella, and their respective
ages 15 and 11 years. Another daughter, with the
parents, formed the whole of the family at home. On
Saturday evening a serious quarrel took place between
the whole of the family, the two deceased, who appeared
to have been extremely fond of each other, taking part