QUEER STORIES OF REAL LIFE.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 208, 3 September 1927, Page 23

QUEER STORIES OF REAL LIFE.

On Monday, September 6, 1852, two persons were landed (from a boat which at once returned after disembarking them) on the little island called "Ireland's Eye," near Howth, off the east coast of County Dublin, a picturesque and famous rocky islet which is a favourite spot for picnic parties. It was ten o'clock in "bhe morning of a day which promised to be bright and sunny. The little party consisted simply of a middle-aged gentleman and a lady apparently his wife. They had with them a basket, a carpet bag, two bottles, and an artist's sketch book. During the day two other pleasure parties landed on the Eye. Each of those parties saw the gentleman and lady with whom this strange story is concerned. Those other two parties, however, returned to the mainland before four o'clock. Thereafter, it is clear that no one was on the islet but the pair who had come at ten o'clock. It had been arranged that at eight in the evening - boat should go to fetch them. At about six a man named Campbell— a casual frequenter of Howth Harbour— was leaning idly against a wall in the harbour, sheltering from a slight shower and gazing over the water toward the rocky Eye. Suddenly he heard a cry from the islet. It was loud, as of 6omeone in distress, and was repeated two or three times. Other persons on the shore and some men in a boat which was being rowed past the Eye, also heard the sounds. However, nothing seems to have been done to investigate. At eight o'clock in accordance with the arrangement which had been come to, the boat left Howth Harbour to fetch away from the Eye the gentleman and lady. It was rowed by four men, of whom two, Patrick and Michael Nangle, were brothers. It was quite dark when the boatmen disembarked on the Eye. Ireland's Eye is should he stated, is situate directly opposite Howth Harbour. The nearest point to the harbour on the Eye, is a place known as "The Broad Patch," on the east end of the islet. A place much used for landing on the Eye from boats was a long strip of sand at the extreme west from the Broad Patch. It led to the ruins of an old Martello tower. It was at this strand that the lady and gentleman had been disembarked in the morning. Between the Martello and the Black Patch was an old ruined church. Behind the Black Patch was a place popularly called the "Long Hole." The tide filled that hole to the brim at full-in, bat when the tide went out, the Long Hole became empty of water. The four rowers from the boat then landed at the strand in the dark* and called the names of Mr. and Mrs. Kirwan: the two persons they were to fetch. At first there was no reply. The night was dark, so the men called again. Presently they perceived the gentleman coming down to the boat —alone. "Will one of you go np and fetch my ' bag?" he asked. A natural question was " then put to him. "Where is Mrs. Kirwan?" asked the ; boatman Patrick Nangle. f|r A Grim Mkovery. "Oh," replied Mr. Kirwan, "I haven't seen her since the shower. She was then going to the martello to have a bathe." A shower of tain, it may here be mentioned, had fallen at about six o'clock. £ "Well," replied Nangle, "let ua go and ft look for her."

i The two . Nangles and Mr. Kirwan— after searching a large part of the islet— came" to the Long Hole. Michael Nangle went to the west, while Patrick went to the east. In the middle of the Long Hole vas a very lofty rock. The water in the Hole was low, for the tide had begun to go out at half-past three.

Patrick and Michael Nangle each went to one side of the high rock. All of a sudden, Mr. Kirwan slipped, and seemed about to fall into the Long Hole. The others rushed to his assistance, and pulled him back to safety. The search was thus slightly delayed. Just as Mr. Kirwan had slipped, Patrick Nangle had given an exclamation of surprise, and pointing into the Long Hole, had said: "I can see something white."

, When Mr. Kirwan had steadied himself from his fall, the party climbed down to the place whereat Patrick Nangle had said [ he. saw the white. A grim discovery awaited them. A dead body was lying on a small rock it the bottom of the Hole. The rock was quite dry, the sea having receded two fathoms beyond it. The body was that of a woman. It lay

t' on its back. A bathing costume was gathered up under its arms. Drawn partly under the corpse was a bathing-sheet. The cap of the bathing-costume was missing. . The body itself was still warm. This tragic discovery was made at ten .-o'clock. Mr. Kirwan, exhibiting great grief and excitement, threw himself on the Sgbody, exclaiming, "Oh, Maria! Maria!" Then, to one of the boatmen, he Baid: "Go and fetch her clothes." '''* A search for the clothes, by Patrick and Bfichael Nangle, was unsuccessful. When -- Mr. Kirwan was informed to that effect, t he eaid, *T will go with you myself." He went, however, alone, and soon re- • turned and said, "If you will go up to the rock you will find the clothes." Patrick Nangle then went up and found the clothes in a place in the rock where they had already searched. He was cer- ' tain they had not been there on the occa- - aton of that former search. The bringing along of the boat to the «pot was a difficult job, and occupied an hour. At last, however, it came, and the body, wrapped in a sail, was placed in it. The corpse itself, as we have mentioned, had been found stretched on its back. The face had some scratches, and blood was 'coming from the breast, ears and other imparts of the body. When the boat got to Howth, the sail round the body was found to be saturated with blood. p The pathetic burden was taken to the house where the Kirwans had lodged. The landlady was a widow, Mrs. Campbell. A Charge of Harder.

At the inquest—held next day—Mr. Kir•ran was the chief witness. He repeated iat the last he had seen of his wife had V: when she had gone to the martello > bathe. After the evidence of the boat«n, as to iiading the body and of a feOiedical student as to its condition, had also heard, the verdict returned was -hat Kirv.an Lad been drowned 'lile bathing in Ireland's Eye." However, the case was not to end there. Ie police arrested Mr. Kirwan •on a t arge of having murdered his wife, and V; -5 was tried at the Commission Court, ' 'hlin, on December 9th. His full names sV William Bourke Kirwan, and he was sty-five years old. His wife's names Sarah Maria Louisa. Kirwan and his wife had been marfor twelve years, but they had no - imily. Nevertheless during the whole of • sat time he had been living with another J Mian, who had borne him eight children. gjUr. Kirwan was an artist by profession. | *fj*P en t most of his time with his misTheresa Kenny. Strange to say, gneither Theresa nor his wife had had any «idea of each other's existence, or that Mr. an was leading a double life. T j ® x m °nths before the tragedy on Ireland's Eye, however, Mrs. Kirwan S|3?ems to have formed »' suspicion that S wniething was wrong.

THE KIRWAN MYSTERY.

(By J. W. POYNTER).

At the trial, it came out that Mr. Kirwan had treated his wife with some cruelty, once or twice even beating her. However, Mrs. Campbell—their Howth landlady—said they had seemed to her ' a very united couple." Mrs. Campbell had also heard Mrs. Crowe—the mother of the deceased—caution her daughter to be more careful in her bathing. The counsel for the Crown, in his opening speech, said it could not be a case of suicide; the position in which the body had been found precluded that. As to accident, the position of the arms, the scratches on the face, and the general appearance of the body were against that theory. Patrick Nangle, in the witness box, stated that he had rowed the couple out on the fatal day. He had seen Mrs. Kirwan on the Eye when he had taken another party out later. When the last party had left the Eye at four, Mr. and Mrs. Kirwan were there alone. Nangle went on to describe how he had fone out at eight, as had been arranged that he should, and he detailed the incidents (already described) leading up to the tragic discovery in the Long Hole. Signs of Strangulation.

Dr. Hatchell, a physician and surgeon, deposed that on October 8 he had made, at the Clasnerin Cemetery, a post mortem examination of the body, which had then been dead a month. Its decomposition had been accelerated by the large amount of water which had collected in the coffin, ihere were no marks of violence on the head. There were abrasions on the right eye, the right cheek and the right arm Ihe eyes were bloodshot. In the lobe of the left esr was a ring, but the lobe and ring of the right ear were missing. The upper lip was swollen and the tongue was protruding and was marked with teethbites above and below. There was a deep scratch on the right) breast. From the right arm, down to the knee, was a large livid mark; "but," added Dr. Hatchell, that is generally present in dead bodies." ifie lungs were congested. From the appearance of the body, witness was of opinion that death resulted from a sudden stoppage of respiration. "I think trom all the appearances of the body, that pressure must mave caused that stonPage 'j ply drowning would not have caused those appearances to the same

In the witness said that it was very possible the appearance presented were such as might have been brought on when death had been produced by a fit brought on by congestion. 1 think it was probable that in this instance death might have been caused by such a fit. If a person were to fall on their back in a fit of epilepsy it might blacken the body." The witness added: "If a person were attacked with a fit of epilepsy he would give a scream and fall down. I never heard of a person giving more than one scream. Mr. Davis, the coroner who had conducted the inquest, said that he had examined the body with care. In his opinion the marks of wounds on it "were such as were occasioned by crab bites. I have seen fifty or sixty cases of crab bites." The counsel for the defence (Mr. Butt, Q.C.) then addressed the jury. He contended that it was quite clearly not a case of murder at all. Death had resulted probably from a fit which had come on whilst Mrs. Kirwan had been bathing. Would the prisoner, had he desired to kill his wife, have scratched her eyelids, or cut her breast to effect his purpose? As to the cries which had been heard by people on the shore, very likely they had been those of Mr. Kirwan calling for his wife when he had missed her. Counsel was then very severe on the evidence of Dr, Hatchell, with the changes of opinion which it showed, declaring that it waa of such a nature that the jury could not with any regard to their oaths safely act on it. Two well-known surgeons gave evidence to the effect that, in their opinion, all the symptoms were quite consistent with death from epilepsy. The large flow of blood might have arisen from great congestion; and congestion would be produced by bathing or immersion in cold water on a full stomach. "I have," eaid one of the- witnesses (Dr. Rynd), "once seen a patient from all parts of whose body blood was exuding. It is not uncommon for persons to scream frequently whilst in epileptic fits; the first scream would certainly be the most violent." Transported to Australia. Dr. Rynd added that pressure on the chest, sufficient to produce the effects now in question, should have left some external mark. After a long and very detailed summing up by the Judge (Mr. Justice Crampton) the jury retired. They failed at first to agree on a verdict, and were sent for by the Judge with an inquiry as to the likelihood of such agreepient. The foreman said it did not seem likely; but the jury retired again. At eleven o'clock at night they still had not agreed; but once more they retired. The court was crowded to suffocation. Outride in the street a crowd hung round the court, waiting in great excitement for the fateful tidings. At length, close on midnight, the jury slowly filed into the court. The prisoner was fetched from below to hear his fate. He seemed calm and confident of an acquittal. "Gentlemen of the jury," said the Clerk of the Court, "how do you find the prisoner: guilty or not guilty?" "Guilty," replied the foreman. The prisoner "seemed startled but not appalled by the verdict," as a report at the time said. He was then asked if he had anything to say why of death should not be pronounced against him.

Rising calmly in th« dock, _ the convicted man addressed the court in a quiet, collected voice. He went over hie version of all that had occurred on the Eye. He said he and his wife had gone there to spend the day; that Mrs. Kirwan had gone to the tower to bathe; and that he had no knowledge as to how she had come by her death; in regard to which he protested his entire innocence.

However, Mr. Justice Crampton, pronouncing sentence of death, expressed his concurrence with the verdict of the jury, and he told the prisoner to abandon all hope of mercy. Kirwan, however, was not destined to die by the hangman's rope. The case had excited great public interest It was held by many people not only that the evidence had been purely circumstantial but thsft it was not a case of a crime at all, and that the unfortunate lady had died as a result of a fit. In the end the Secretary of State reprieved the prisoner, who was transported to the penal settlements m Australia for the term of his natural life. An unsatisfactory ending of this strange case! If the prisoner had been guilty, whv the reprieve? If he had been not _:u_ whv the transportation? It seems one of Those cases where the authorities salved an uncomfortable by a compromise which lacked both m logic and in justice. However, the grave has long ago sealed up the knowledge—guilty or innocentin Kirwan's breast.