On the afternoon of 4 March 1879, Darcy was seen leaving Hunslet around 1.30 p.m. by a man named Edward Ellis, who had walked part of the way with him. When the men parted, Ellis saw Darcy walking down the road which led to Oulton, and he noted that he was wearing a brown coat and a billycock hat. Darcy was next seen around 4 p.m. at the John O’Groats public house, where he drank two pints of beer. The landlady noted that he left after only half an hour and also that it was raining outside. He was next seen at Oulton at around 5 p.m., where he once again knocked at the cottage of Emma Wright and enquired about the timepiece he had cleaned a fortnight previously.
The next sighting of Darcy was actually inside the lodge by two girls delivering milk. Carrie Ingham was 13 years of age, and had walked down to the lodge from the hall with her friend Amy Jowitt, aged 12. At approximately 5.30 p.m. they knocked on the lodge door, which was answered by a man who Ingham said she had seen before. He told her to put the milk just inside the door. Later, both girls identified Darcy as being the man who answered the door. Some time afterwards, at around 5.40 p.m., Amy Jowitt spotted him again from her house, which was adjacent to the lodge. Later, three other young boys also gave evidence of seeing Darcy in the vicinity of the lodge on the evening of the murder.
The next person to see him was Sarah Jeffreys, who was passing the lodge gates at 5.50 p.m. when she heard a frightful scream coming from the house. She crossed over the road and went towards the lodge, where she heard Metcalfe saying, ‘Oh please don’t murder me!’ As she approached the partly-open door, it began to close slowly. She listened with her ear to the door and heard the sound of scuffling from within. Suddenly, realising the danger that she was in, she ran to the house of a man named Alfred Morley and told him what she had seen and heard. Along with another man, John Walker, the three of them returned back to the lodge. Jeffreys remained at the gates whilst the two men looked through a window at the back of the house. There they saw a man holding the room door closed with one hand; in the other he carried a pistol which he had pointed towards the door, as if he was going to fire. They could not see Metcalfe – who by this time was already dead – on the floor of the lodge. Morley and Walker then went to the back door and, peering through the small window, spotted a man opening the drawers and looking inside. Morley described him as being a young man dressed in a brown coat and a billycock hat. Walker went towards the front door, and as he was trying the handle to establish whether the door was locked or not, the handle began to turn in his hand from someone on the inside. Through the door, which was half glazed in glass, both men then saw Darcy holding the pistol in full view.
Aware of the danger they were in, the men backed away and Morley ran to fetch a constable. By this time, the head gardener of Oulton Hall had heard from Sarah Jeffreys of the man in the lodge and the scuffling noises she had heard. He grabbed a gun and he went to the lodge, where he found Mr Metcalfe motionless on the floor. He was covered with blood, pouring from a wound on his head. He looked at the clock owned by the deceased man and noted that it was 6.10 p.m. Shortly afterwards, a search of the area was made by the constable and Morley showed him several footprints, which were later identified as being Darcy’s. Also, the old man’s empty purse was found about 110 yards away from the lodge.
At about 7 p.m. Darcy was spotted at a public house, the Old Mason’s Arms, having two pennyworth of whiskey. The landlord, William Chadwick, later told the court that his pub was approximately 400 yards away from the lodge, and that Darcy drank the whisky quickly and left. He, along with the other witnesses, spoke about Darcy being dressed in a brown coat and a hat.
James Chapman was the next to see Darcy on the road from Oulton to Leeds, where he was driving his horse and cart along the road. As he passed Darcy he shouted, ‘Goodnight Sir.’ Darcy stopped and asked the man where he knew him from, and Chapman said he recognised him from the chapel that he frequented, on Accommodation Road in Hunslet.
Darcy had started to walk towards Leeds, but now, finally becoming aware of the several witnesses who would be able to place him at the murder scene, told Chapman that he was going to Woodlesford station to catch a train back to Hunslet. Bidding him goodbye, Chapman rode away. Darcy passed the station at Woodlesford, but, presumably still trying to create a diversion, kept walking a further 3 miles to the station at Methley, where he bought a ticket for Hunslet.
Meanwhile, in a twist of fate, Darcy had been recognised by the many witnesses, and a constable, PC Ross, boarded the train at Woodlesford in order to arrest him at Hunslet. He was undoubtedly seen by Darcy, who didn’t get off at Hunslet but stayed hiding on the train until he arrived at Leeds. In an attempt to belatedly create an alibi, he then went to a pre-arranged meeting at South Parade Baptist Chapel, arriving twenty minutes late for the service at 8.20 p.m. Despite all his attempts to escape justice, Darcy was arrested by Sergeant Lamb and two officers from the police force at Hunslet, who had been watching Mrs Smith’s lodging house. He was searched and a silver watch belonging to Metcalfe, as well as a sampler, which Sarah Metcalfe identified as the one she had embroidered for her uncle, were found in his possession. It was her uncle’s habit to wrap the silver watch in this sampler. Darcy also had a sum of money in his possession, yet it was known that when he left Hunslet he had little, if any, money at all.
Darcy claimed that he had not been to Oulton but had spent the day in Methley. However, the many witnesses disproved this story and he was arrested. Whilst Darcy was in custody, there was some confusion about what sort of hat he had been wearing at the time of the murder. Some witnesses stated that it was a billycock hat, whilst others said it was a silk hat. When one of the witnesses who came to identify him asked if Darcy could wear the hat for them, the prisoner stated, ‘Why ask me to put on my hat? You might as well tell me to stand with the poker in my hand.’ Despite the fact that Darcy had been already charged with murder, no one had mentioned that the old man had been killed with a poker at this point.
By the time Darcy appeared before Mr Justice Manisty at the York Assizes, held on Tuesday 6 May, he had grown a beard. Maybe he thought this would make it harder for witnesses to identify him. Mr Wheelhouse, Mr Lockwood and Mr Green were for the prosecution, while Mr Vernon Blackburn and Mr Lawrence Gane defended the prisoner. It was reported that Darcy entered the court with an ‘easy, jaunty air’, and when asked if he was guilty or not guilty, he replied confidently, ‘I am innocent, praise the Lord.’
Several witnesses gave their account of seeing Darcy at the lodge, and on his journey there and back. The surgeon, John Whitely, told the court that when he completed the post-mortem on Metcalfe, he found several marks of violence on the body. But it had been the two severe lacerations on the left side of the head, both of which had penetrated through the skull, that had finally killed him. He told the court that three portions of bone had penetrated deep into the brain tissue, which had been caused by a heavy object. He was shown the poker, which was bent and misshapen, and he stated that it could have been the weapon which caused the injuries.
By the time several witnesses had been heard, it was growing late and the judge ordered that the case be adjourned until the following day. He told the jury that suitable accommodation had been found for them to spend the night within York Castle.
I wonder how many jurors slept well that night within the castle’s ancient, sinister walls. At the same time, the prisoner contemplated his fate whilst walking in the exercise yard of York Prison.
PC John Ross stated that when he heard about the murder, he went to Oulton Hall lodge to see the deceased man. Sergeant Lamb gave evidence that on finding that the prisoner was not at home at his lodgings, he and PC Ross went to some abandoned buildings across the road, where they could clearly see the door. When Darcy was seen to go into the house at around 10.10 p.m., Sergeant Lamb knocked on the door and, without waiting for a response, walked straight into the house. The prisoner was identified by PC Ross, and Sergeant Lamb took Darcy into the sitting room of the
house, where he arrested him. A silk hat had been found in the kitchen of the lodging house, which Darcy identified as his own as he went to put it on. Ross told him that this was not the hat he had been wearing at Oulton and, searching his room, found a billycock hat. Darcy refused to wear it, as he said it was too small.
Margaret Smith, the lodging housekeeper, revealed that whilst the police were in the house, Darcy appeared normal and didn’t exhibit any excitement or anxiety. Another constable, PC John Oulton, stated that on the morning following the murder, he had found the misshapen poker lying on the road from Oulton Hall to Methley. He had found spots of blood and grey hair on it. He had also examined the footprints left near the lodge and compared them with Darcy’s boots, to find they corresponded exactly. He told the judge that he visited Darcy in his cell at Leeds Town Hall, and had asked him to take part in an identity parade. Identity parades were often held in corridors, where prisoners would be lined up. When one of the witnesses asked to see Darcy in the billycock hat, and a warden put it on his head, the prisoner dashed it to the ground, denying that the hat was his. Contrary to his previously reported passive demeanour, he appeared to be very violent whilst this exchange took place.
Mr Lawrence Gane ably defended his client, stating that when Darcy approached the two men at the back door, it was not a pistol in his hand, but the poker. He also alluded to the fact that Darcy’s boots were of ‘a very ordinary make’, and could have been bought anywhere. Gane questioned the testimony of the children, claiming that they could have easily been mistaken. He pointed out that the meeting at the Baptist Chapel had been prearranged and that Darcy had gone in his capacity as a Sunday School teacher. The defence declared that, although it had already been established that the old man was covered in blood, no blood had actually been found on the prisoner’s clothing. By the time Mr Gane had concluded his speech, the second day of the trial was coming to a close. The witnesses for the defence would be heard the following day and the jury was requested to spend yet another night in York Castle.
The court convened at 10 a.m. on the third day. More witnesses were brought forward to give evidence that Darcy was seen in other places, and therefore could not have been in Oulton at the time of the murder. Mr Gane said, ‘A man could not kill another and then join in prayer at a chapel immediately afterwards.’ Mr Wheelhouse, for the prosecution, stated that there had been no discrepancies about the testimony of the many witnesses, who had seen him at Oulton, apart from the question of which hat he had been wearing. He also questioned, ‘Why would an innocent man grow a beard, other than to disguise himself from witnesses?’ He claimed that the prisoner’s remark about the poker was made after he had found out that the murder weapon was in fact such an instrument, from one of the police officers.
The judge summed up for the jury, reminding them that they were ‘called upon to perform their most solemn duty, which could devolve upon any human being’. The jury retired at 5.20 p.m. and returned at 6.10 p.m. The verdict was that Darcy was guilty of murder. When asked if he had anything to say as to why the sentence of death should not be carried out, the prisoner hesitated. The judge, assuming that he had nothing to say, placed the black cap on his head, but before he could deliver the death sentence, the prisoner spoke:
My Lord and gentlemen of the jury, I am innocent, praise the Lord. At the same time I cannot but return thanks to my Lord and the jury for the carefulness in the examination of this case. No doubt it has been fearfully and wonderfully got Up … The guilty one might be found out one day as he will be surely, but it will be when it is too late. I also wish to make another remark before I cease. The police and various others know that their statements are false and unfounded … I am so horrified at the scene which is laid before you, that I cannot express myself with propriety. I am astonished and I may as well say that I am cast down. But God will raise me up.
He then requested that the judge continue to pass sentence. The judge told him that he agreed with the jury, ‘who had come to the same conclusion’ as he had. He continued, ‘I hoped that you will not leave this world without revealing the truth of the case, and I warn you not to hold out any expectation of mercy.’ He then passed the death sentence and Darcy walked swiftly from the dock with his hands clasped in front of him.
It was agreed that Darcy’s execution would take place on Tuesday, 27 May 1879 at Armley Gaol, Leeds. Whilst in prison, he appeared to be resigned to his fate and willingly sought solace in prayer. On 22 May, it was reported that despite being a Protestant, Darcy had converted to Catholicism whilst in prison and was receiving daily support from a Roman Catholic minister, Reverend M.C. Fryer. His defence team sent a petition to the Home Secretary, asking for a new trial and stating that he was condemned by circumstantial evidence alone. However, it was all to no avail and on the morning of the execution day, Darcy was removed from his cell at precisely 8 a.m. by the hangman, Marwood. On the scaffold, when Reverend Fryer asked him if he had anything to say, Darcy replied, ‘I am innocent according to the evidence of the witnesses but I acknowledge the justice of my sentence.’ Was he truly an innocent man?
Case Eleven
Murder at the Tea Shop
The Death of Margaret Laidler, 1883
During the Victorian period, professional men were treated with great respect and reverence, particularly if they were doctors. Witnesses were sometimes openly dismissed by judges if they tried to criticize a professional man’s opinion. So when a doctor was involved in a murder case, particularly a sordid case of alleged abortion, it was hard for the judge or jury to take anything he said seriously.
Margaret Laidler (or Nesbitt) was a young woman of 30 years of age, and was employed as the manager of the Globe Tea Company shop at 115 Kirkgate, Wakefield. It was in the flat above the shop where she was found dead on Tuesday, 12 December 1883. A Leeds man, Dr Noakes, was in the habit of visiting Miss Laidler at her dwellings on quite a few occasions. She had been employed at the shop for almost two years, when on 13 November, a shutter fell on her head. As a consequence of this accident, she had been confined to her bedroom for three weeks, where she was treated by Dr Noakes. The 47-year-old doctor, who had his own practice in Halton near Leeds, had been seen on several occasions by Miss Hardisty, who served in the tea shop. On one occasion, he had been accompanied by a female, who she thought was his wife. During Miss Laidler’s illness, Miss Hardisty took the post up to the patient’s room on a daily basis, and she noted that some letters had the initials S.N. or S.J.N. on the back of them. She was certain that they were from Dr Samuel James Noakes, although she admitted that Miss Laidler received many letters.
The inquest on the body was held at the British Oak Inn, Wakefield, on Monday 18 December, in front of the coroner Major Taylor. The first witness was Miss Hardisty and she told the coroner that a letter with the doctor’s initials on had arrived the week before her death, on Monday 4 December. After reading the letter, Miss Laidler told her that she would be going to Leeds that day. In actual fact she did not leave for Leeds until the following afternoon, telling Miss Hardisty that she was expecting to return back to Wakefield on the Friday or Saturday. A Leeds cab driver confirmed that a man and a woman, who he identified as Dr Noakes and Miss Laidler, had taken a cab from the Leeds station to the Mechanics Institute on 5 December. Whilst descending the cab in order to attend to his horse, he witnessed the couple walking up Vernon Road, Leeds.
Dr Noakes and Miss Laidler were next seen entering the house and shop of Mrs Sarah Hobson, a married, second-hand clothes dealer of Vernon Road. Following their arrival, neighbours confirmed that Dr Noakes had visited the shop every day for a week. A further witness at the inquest was the employer of Miss Laidler, Alexander Wallace, the proprietor of the Globe Tea Company. He told the coroner that on 8 December, Dr Noakes had written to him, informing them that Miss Laidler had been taken ill whilst visiting some friends at Ilkley. The doctor stated it was unlikely that she would be able to get back to Wakefield on Saturday as arrang
ed, but she would probably be fit to travel back on Monday 11 December. Mrs Hobson told the coroner that she had been at New Station, Leeds on Saturday 9 December, to see a friend off on the train, when she saw a young lady she did not know who looked very ill indeed. She said her name was Margaret Nesbitt and she’d been travelling from Ilkley, but was not well enough to travel further that night. Mrs Hobson told the inquest that she took the girl home with her and put her to bed, applying hot flannels to her chest and feet. Miss Nesbitt was still ill the following day and Mrs Hobson had written to Dr Noakes, who she was acquainted with, and asked him to come and attend to the girl. He attended the patient every day, where she remained confined to bed. After the weekend, the doctor told Mrs Hobson that Miss Nesbitt insisted that she was going to return to Wakefield on the Monday ‘even if she died on the way’. So, on that morning, Dr Noakes arrived and sent for a cab and paid some money to Mrs Hobson for Miss Nesbitt’s keep. Hearing all the evidence had taken some hours, so it was at this point that the coroner stated that he was going to adjourn the inquest until Thursday 21 December. It was clear to the coroner and the jury that the evidence given by Mrs Hobson and Dr Noakes did not seem compatible with the evidence from other witnesses. On Wednesday, 20 December, Detective Inspector Burton of the Wakefield Borough Police went to Leeds and arrested Dr Noakes and Mrs Hobson for the wilful murder of Miss Laidler/Nesbitt. Dr Noakes said, ‘Morally I am guilty but I think I will be able to prove my innocence.’ He then refused to say anything further until he had spoken to his solicitor.
Murder & Crime Leeds Page 8