Mexborough and Swinton Times May 20, 1892
Sad Suicide at Brampton Bierlow.
On Wednesday afternoon Mr. D. Wightman, district coroner, held an inquest at the house of Mr. Joseph Pepper, Bull’s Head Inn, Brampton Bierlow, as to the circumstances surrounding the death of Mary Ann Eccles, of whom a very sad story was related.
Joseph Eccles, of Willow Main, Brampton Bierlow, fitter, said the deceased was his wife. She was 40 years of age. The last time he spoke to her was on May 2nd, when he turned her out of home for her bad conduct. She was addicted to drinking, and had also been in the habit of getting goods from packmen and pawning them. He had partly sold his house furniture up at the time, and had disposed of the rest since. He had but seen her once alive since the time he turned her out, and that was one day leaning up against the pump at Concrete Buildings. He believed she had committed suicide, because she had often threatened to do so in a drunken mad fit.
A Juror asked how she could have got drink unless the husband gave her money.
Witness replied that she got things off packmen regularly paying 1s. on them, and then the next thing was that the bailiffs were put in for what was owing, and he would know nothing about it till then.
Annie Hatmore, a girl of 15 years, living at Concrete now, said she knew the deceased. The last time she saw her was last Saturday night at 10 o’clock, when witness went with her to Eyre’s, where she lived. She was crying and said “she would go down to Eccles, and see if he would have her, and if he wouldn’t, she’d go and drown herself.” She gave witness her hat and umbrella. Witness said she would go down to Eccles with her, but deceased gave witness a message to take to the woman with whom she lived that she would soon be at the bottom of the canal. Witness watched her go down to the pit-gate, and later on heard her scream three times. Witness told Mr Heppenstall who went after deceased.
Benjamin Heppenstall, labourer, of Greenland, Hemingfield, said he had known the deceased for three years. On Saturday night, after returning from the market, he heard a scream from the canal, and went there to see what was the matter. He heard a faint splash, and believed it was when deceased was sinking the last time. He got a drag, and the body was recovered at two o’clock on Sunday morning. He found a note on the towing path from the deceased to her husband asking to be taken home. He believed the woman had been very intemperate.
The note to which Heppenstall referred was handed to the Jury. It was in rough big scrawl, and ran as follows
Mary Ann Eccles, Willow Main. Joseph Eccles : Take me to my home again, Willow Main.”
A Juror asked if there was no way of bringing a woman round better than letting her go and drown herself ?
The Coroner replied that it reminded him of the old saying, ” Every man could manage the devil except he that had got him.”
Eccles begged to be allowed to make a statement, and said he wished to say that on the day he turned his wife out he gave her live minutes in which to consider whether she would act better for the future, and if so, she could stay. But she would not promise.
The Jury returned a verdict that the “deceased committed suicide.”