The Times 1891 - 1900 Jan 11, 1897 - Joseph BELL is back!

Jan 11, 1897 - Joseph BELL is back!

The Times, 11 January 1897 (page 4, column B) A REVENGEFUL TICKET-OF-LEAVE MAN. At the County Magistrate's Office at Carlisle, on Saturday, Joseph BELL, a mason or miner, aged 41, was brought up charged with having changed his residence without notifying the fact to the police as he was bound as a ticket-of-leave man to do; also with carrying firearms with intent to murder. The prisoner was convicted at the Cumberland Assizes in October, 1882, of attempting to murder his brother John BELL, grocer, Dalston, near Carlisle, and his brother's wife, by the use of dynamite or tonite. The prisoner had gone to Dalston in the summer of 1882, and at night had thrown an explosive missile into a room which he believed to be occupied by John BELL and his wife. He had, however, mistaken the house. The occupant of the room into which the missile fell was a Miss BROWN, who, on being awakened by the hissing of the fuse, called out that the house was on fire. Her nephew on hearing the cry of alarm ran into her bed room. He saw the missile on the floor - it was an india-rubber tube a yard and a half long, with a hard ball at the end - and, picking it up, he threw it out of the room into a lobby. There it exploded and did great damage to the building. Mr Justice DAY characterized the prisoner's crime as a diabolical and carefully-planned attempt to gratify his feelings of revenge against his sister-in-law Martha BELL for some fancied wrong, and sentenced him to 20 years' penal servitude. Last September, when he had served between 14 and 15 years of his sentence, he was liberated on licence by Sir Matthew White RIDLEY, Home Secretary, in compliance with a local memorial which had been presented to him. On December 26 the released convict went to Dalston and visited his brother, who offered him supper, which he declined. The prisoner seemed friendly, but refused to say why he was in the neighbourhood. The brother accompanied him part of the way towards Carlisle, and before they parted the prisoner showed him a revolver and remarked, "I would be the end of your missus if it was not for you." On January 2 Police-constable FISHER apprehended the prisoner for failing to report himself. He had a revolver in his pocket and 25 ball cartridges for it. To the officer he remarked, when at the police-station, "I'll do for the old woman Martha, at Dalston." The magistrates said they must forfeit the prisoner's licence, and BELL was sent to complete the unexpired portion of his sentence of 20 years' penal servitude. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

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