A Terrible Record of Crime.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 7137, 20 November 1894, Page 4

A Terrible Record of Crime.

The present year will long be remembered for the number of murders which have been committed ; and the list is a fearful one. Since the beginning of the year Mrs Knorr has been convicted and hanged for the wholesale murder of infants committed to her charge ; Jordan, the negro, suffered the last penalty for the murder of his paramour, Minnie flicks ; the Frenchman Eugene Posset met his death in a mysterious manner in North Melbourne, and in this instauce two raei; named Mitchell and Watson were convicted and sentenced to death. The sentence was, however, commuted by the Executive to long terms of imprisonment. Mrs Cecil Anderson was sentenced to death for the murder of John Fraser, but the sentence was commuted to one of imprisonment for life ; Ernesb Knox died on the gallows for robbery under arms, his crime resulting in the death of young Crawcour at Williamstown. A man named Dobsou, at Springhurst, murdered his children and then committed suicide. Mrs Needle died on the scaffold for the poisoning of Louis Juncker, and Elijah Cockrof 1 was hung in Ballarat gaol a week ag<> for the murder of Fanny Mott. The man Setford, who cut his child's throat at Richmond, was found to be insane. A similar opinion was arrived at in the case of Sarah Howe, who killed her child at Ballarat ; and au old man named Grant some little time ago gave himself up to the police at Horsham for the murder of his wife, and his case has not yet been tried. The manner in which the children of Mrs Vennel mcc their death remains a question for the Criminal Court to decide. Weymouth George Wash, tried on a charge of murder, was convicted of manslaughter, and received a sentence of ten years for killing hia wife. Morrison, of South Melbourne, was charged with murdering his wife, and a jury could not agree upon the point of his sanity. Ho is hi present under observation in the Melbourne Gaol. Quite lately, a bootmaker named James Toner cut his wife's throat in the most deliberate manner with « a bootmaker's knife, and James Patman, a labourer residing at Orreroo, shot hie wife with a gun, killiug her almost instantly. The police arrived on the scene, and found Patman in a state of great excitement holding the dead body. They secured his hands, and in a tew minutes he dropped dead, it is believed from having taken poison.

AI. Meulien, of Algiers, has announced after careful experimentation, he has inrented a process for concentrating wine in tablets. Henceforth, wo are told, travellers will be able to carry great casks of wine in diminutive boxes. The process may roughly be described as follows :— ■ JMU Meulien takes ripo grapes, and, after having removed the stalks, the fruit is pressed. The liquid is then poured into a vacuum, evaporates, heat is applied, and, at a temperature of 30 to 45 centigradee, vapour is produced. This vapour is pumped into a refrigerator. The result is a thick and syrupy liquid, which is next mixed with the grape pulp and pips. This mixture can be pressed into tablets, and will keep, it is alleged, almost indefinitely. To make wine it is only necessary pa add the amount of water which has