1935-05-01 — Page 17

THE

HONGKONG TELEGRAPH

WEDNESDAY, MAY

1985.

DRAMATIC SCENE IN

MURDER TRIAL

JUDGES AND ACCUSED AT HOUSE OF TRAGEDY

For more than an hour a woman who is charged with the murder of her 70-year-old employer took part, to gether with her judges, in a dramatic reconstruction of the finding of the dead man at his lonely farm at the Camp Joinet, St. Andrews, Guernsey.

The woman is Mrs. Gertrude Elizabeth de la Marc, 27. She is alleged to have murdered Mr. Alfred Brouard, to whom she was housekeeper, by cutting his throat with a knife on Feb. 6.

She is being tried at St. Peter-Port, the island capital, by eleven purple-robed jurats, presided over by Mr. A. W. Boll, the Bailiff of Guernsey, whose position-is-equivalent. to that of a judge in England.

of

Shortly after the court had ad-said the prosecution anggested that journed, the jurats and the bailiff the charges relating to the forged went In a fleet of car to Camp will were links in the chain Joinet to inspect the room in which evidence proving that the woman

murdered Mr. Brouard. Mr. Brouard was found.

a

On Wednesday, Feb. 6, at 8.15 A little later Mrs. de la Maro was driven there in company with fam.. a telephone message was re- nurse and warder. Behind ceived at the police station. It had locked doors, and with the blinds heen sent because Mrs, de in Mare and shutters placed in position, had gone to the premises of a Mr. and in the presence of judges, Nicelle and had told him, "The old is dead. He has cut his police official and defending ad-man

Will you please telephone Tocate, the scene,. as Mr. de la throat. Mare described it to the police, of to the doctor and the police 7 how she found Mr. Brouard dead, was re-enacted.

As part of the reconstruction, a Guernsey police officer lay on the bed in the position in which Mr. Brouard was found.

CHARGE IN FRENCH

The trial was conducted with the ancient ritual which characterises criminal proceedings in the Chan- nel Islanda,

j

Before she went to Mr. Nicolle, Mrs. do in Mare had told a Mr. Bougourd that she thought Mr. rouard had done something to himself; that she had seen a kulfe by his het; and that there was blood on the knife.

Wax

1,

Mr. Brouard paid. Mra do la Marc 88, a weok." "A really miser- able pittance, cónaldeṛing how hard she worked for him, and how good she was," commented Mr. Shorwill; "But she had been given to under- stand, and was perfectly justified in beliovlug, that at his death ho would leave her everything he passessed if she remainded in his employ.

"The prosecution suggest that she was not satisfied with her wago

and her position, and contemplated leaving Mr. Brouard's service.

"The prosecution suggest aleo that she determined to secure

everything he possessed, and as a mere Incident in a predetermined plan she murdered him to enrich herself. On the very morning of his death he took to the manager of the Midland Bank an envelope addressed to him, containing letter and a document purporting to be a will written and signed by

Mr. Bronard. This letter naked the bank manager to sign the will. The prosecution

will prove that "neither"will"nar letters were writ- ten by Mr. Brouard, They will

soner," prove they were written by pri-

JEALOUS OF ME

At the police-station Mrs, de la Mare was, sked to write a state-) ment. She took ono and a half hours doing it, and the prosecution that what able then would show

wrote was not her accustomed style of writing. She had not then been charged with forgery.

In a statement made to Inspr. Sculpher, hend of the Guernsey police force. Mrs, de la Mare suid: "He was very jealous of me and would curse very much if he saw me speaking to

man. He me speaking to the objected to

I heard nothing neighbours. during the night. I went down stairs, then went upstairs, and saw him full of blooi,

JOY

"He always called my knife The Butcher. He has told me he would Heaven will in my favour. When

There is always much interest la Germany in the latest naval construction.

Crowds on crulaer at Swinemunde.

did not dislike him.”

Mr. Sherwill's opening statement i fasted nearly two hours.

Mr. Bougourd repeated what

The first witness was insp. W. R. Mrs, de la Mare had told him to a

several occasions I have "On Mr. Browning, who collected milk heard him threaten to commit sui-Sculpter, head of the Inland Police, He once said If the ban who said that when he had caution- from Mr. Brouard every morning. ride. They went into the house together,nisters were high enough he would Mrs. de la Mare on the forgery and discovered Mr. Brouard dead. do it. Sometimes when handling a charge, she said: "I can prove is It is the first time in the historyHe was lying in bed. The pillow cord he would say I think that is not my writing. In this case of the Channel Islands that

was saturated with blood. On the would be strong enough for the it means to say it is me who has woman has been arraigned on the floor near the bori was a blood job,'

committed suicide of the old man. It is not my writing. I know I capital charge, and the first murder stained knife, which looked like a

brend knife. 11. trial in Guernary for 20 years;

That I know suggested

have not done it. The indictment, a document of that the murder did not happen nearly 500 words, printed in earlier than 6.45 h. French. the official language of the island, was framed in the curious centuries-okl phraseology which is invarintly used in local trials. By Sherwill said: "It was very ex this document she was accused of tensive, passing through the lower beard and stretching having, "elther alone or with ac-end of the complices-in a condition devoid from ear to

It severed im- of the

fear of God-feloniously portant blood vessels and the wind- killed

murdered Alfred pipe, and caused a superficial eut Brouard."

on a section of the bone of the spinal column. It required

n

THE FATAL WOUND

Describing the fatal wound, Mr.

ear.

In addition the indictment greater measure of force than could charged her with having forged | have been used by deceased in his and attered a document purporting position in bed. `s

to be the dead man's will, either alone or with accomplices,

TRIED BY JURATS

The trial was hoki, as stated, in

"The provention will prove that the cut was from left to right, and the cut could not have been in- |flicted in any case by the left hand

the Royal Court at St. Peter-Port; Mr. Brouard. Yet his right hand was, underneath him, and the wherr Mrs de la Mare-faced the knife was on the floor to the left semicircle of purple-robed jurats. These jurats are not only equi-of the bed. He was right-handed." valent to permanent jurymen, but

At the time of his death Mr. they are also in some degree the Brouard had a balance of nearly Cabinet of the island government. £60 at the bank. Mrs. de la Mare, To be appointed a jurat is one of who had been his housekeeper for the highest honours that the islandįtwo and a half years, sometimes can confer on its residents.

cut stack of hay at the farm.

When the police-court procecil- "She appears to have been a ings were held a month ago, allį vigorous, hard-working woman." the evidence was taken in camera. continued Mr. Sherwill. "I use This invariable practice in indict-that word vigorous deliberately, able cases at Guernsey is mainly because, besides giving her due designed to prevent the possibility credit as a worker, evidence of her of jurats knowing anything of the vigorous will also tend to establish circumstances of n charge before her ability to use the foreo meena- they hear the complete story un-ry to inflict the hideous wound folded at the trial.

from which Mr. Brouard died."

The two Crown officers of the Mr. Sherwill also said that living Island, Mr. A. J. Sherwill, theat the farm was Mrs, de la Maro's Procureur Delegue, or Attorney-little daughter. There is not the Cenera, und Mr. G. J. P. Ridgway, slightest suggestion that relations the Controle, or Solicitor-General, between prisoner and Mr. Brouard prosecuted. Mrs, de la Mare was were other than those of employer defended by Advocate H. 1. and housekeeper. Randell nnl Advocate W. H. Arnold.

COUNSEL'S BONNETS

black All the advocates wore yowns, with the traditional bonnets similar to those worn by French barristers. There was only room for 76 members of the public, and the remainder of the big crowd waited outside.

"La Cour," cried an usher, and then the bailiff and 11 jurats åled Into court with everybody stand- Ing.

The Greffer (the clerk of the court), M. Q. Lepelloy, recited the Lord's Prayer in French, and ́im- mediately after the accused woman was brought into court accompani- ed by two nurses in hospital uni- form.

Mrs de la Mare was not called upon to plead. Sko had already plended not guilty at the poilée court.

The preliminary formality of presenting the 40 Crown witnesses in a body before the jurats occupied sovoral minutes. They were all} there with the exception of Sir Bornard Spilsbury and Dr. Roche Lynch. They were all sworn to gother.

COUNSEL AND MOTIVE

Lying on the chest-of-drawers in Mr. Brouard's room was a letter marked "Police," which stated:

"A. Brouard, Camp Jolnet. Dear Sir, I am just leaving you a few lines to let you know I am doing this, na there is no blame attaching to Mrs. de la Maro. I know it is going to be very hard for her,

"Now the reason why I am doing so. I am always suffer ing, and I know that Jam a worry to the publle and n worry to myself. One thing I strong- ly object to, that is, no relations to go into the house. They did not come before and I do not want them to go and worry her.

"I have made my will in favour of my housekeeper. I would never have found one to do what she has done for me. She has her faults, but we have. I

hope the Lord will forgive me. A. Brouard, Funeral arrange- menta to be left to Mrs,, E. G. de la Mare.”

There were a number of mis- spellings in the letter and those were very material, as Mr. Brouard woa a man of some education and Mr. Sherwill, in opening the case, wrote correct French and English.

The inspector produced a sheet of blotting paper prefusely stained I first went to live there he said, with lok marks. "I found it in a cininot give you high wares, but i thest of drawers in Mrs. de n it you stay with me I will give you: Mare's bedroom," he said. "I heki all have 1 have never seen a will..

SETTLEMENT DAY

SHANGHAI AVOIDE A CRISIS THANKS TO BANKS

Shanghai, April 30. A crisis, which threatened on the approach of settlement day, to-day, has been fortunately avoided, as the majority of long term financial commitments have been promptly discharged, with the support of the eating Chinese banks, which have freely granted credit Innas to sound įtarado establishments, --- Central

Nera Agency.

before the mirror and there that one is script and the other I saw the word 'police. It corres-is not 7-She has several, from ponded with the word police on what I have seen of the lettera

envelope found in Mr.

Replying to another question, the inspector said: "The only time I have seen her disturbed was when it was proposed that her child should be taken away from her.”

"I sometimes told him I would the leave him. He would then cry, and Brouard's bedrooni."

would stay on.

I felt sorry for} Mr. Randell (cross-examining): him, bad as he was. I cannot say I put it to you that Mrs. de la i really liked the old man, but 13lure has two styles of writing and

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SILVER JUBILEE ILLUMINATIONS

APPEAL TO PUBLIC

On May 6 and 7, from 8 p.m. onwards, Statue Square, the waterfront from the Hong. kong Club to the Post Office, the waterfront at Kowloon from the Hongkong and Kowloon Wharf and Godown. Company's premises to Holt's Godowns, and several public buildings, will be illuminated by the Silver Jubilee Committee.

The Silver Jubilee Committee hope that every householder, shopholder, hotel, hong etc, will illuminate their houses and premises on the evenings in question and that in any event everyone will display at least one lantern.

This appeal is issued by the Silver Jubilee Committee of Hongkong.