Mary Jane Hayes was a long suffering miner\u2019s wife who finally found the strength to take her abusive husband to court on Wednesday 1 September 1886. She was the first witness against her husband, John who had been charged with committing a most aggravated assault on her for no reason at all. The witness described how they were living in a house in Smith\u2019s Yard, Conisbrough when he viciously assaulted her. Mary Jane described how he had struck her in the face on the night of Saturday 29 August, just because she had asked him for money. She told the court that prior to this assault, a fortnight earlier he had threatened her with a penknife at Mexborough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On that date, he had literally run at her with an open penknife and tried to stab her. The poor woman explained how most of such offences usually happened whilst her husband John was under the influence of alcohol. Thankfully, on that occasion, the blade hit one of her corset stays instead, and merely bounced off. The poor witness admitted that throughout her marriage, John had repeatedly beaten and punched out at her and she was now afraid to live with him again. Therefore she was asking the bench for a separation order. Mary Jane admitted that since the attack she had gone to live back with her father, as she was now in fear of her life due to her husband\u2019s violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
John Hayes denied his wife\u2019s accusations and told the magistrates that it was all lies. He said \u2018she knows I never touched her and its all a made up thing.\u2019 However a neighbour from Smith\u2019s Yard called William Hawksworth corroborated Mary Jane\u2019s account, as did a lodger who lived at the house, a woman called Mary Elizabeth Orton. Obviously feeling sorry for himself, Hayes told the court \u2018I haven’t a friend in the world, and they are all against me.\u2019 Mary Jane was asked how much her husband earned and she told the bench that his average earnings were about 30s a week. The magistrates told the prisoner that it was a very serious case and granted Mary Jane the separation order she requested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The magistrates also instructed John Hayes that he would have to pay his wife 10s a week maintenance. The prisoner was also fined 20s and \u00a31.7s.6d court costs for the attack on his wife. However that was not the end of the matter, for the prisoner was also charged with a second, much more serious assault on the lodger, Mary Elizabeth Orton. The next witness was surgeon Dr Hills who informed the court that after this brutal attack, his patient Mary Orton had been unconscious for three hours. He therefore gave the clerk to the magistrates a note to state that the female witness was still too ill to attend the court. Accordingly the case was adjourned to the following Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thankfully on that date Mary Orton had recovered sufficiently to give evidence, and a chair was provided so that she could remain seated whist she made her statement. The witness told the court that along with her husband, Henry they had both been lodgers at the prisoners house for the past two years. Mary Elizabeth told the court that prior to the offence, Hayes had been drinking for some time. Indeed he had been brought before the magistrates charged with being drunk and disorderly on Saturday 28 August, where he had been fined 10s and 12s 6d costs. She described how, on Tuesday 31 August she had gone to the colliery in order to take her husband, Henry some hot dinner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When she returned, the witness said that she found the house locked against her. Mary Elizabeth managed to get through the kitchen window, thinking that her landlord had gone out and that no one was at home. However once inside, she found Hayes hiding behind the kitchen door. Without speaking, he knocked her to the ground and jumped upon her as she lay on the floor. The next to give evidence was a police officer called Sergeant Noble who described how he had heard cries of \u2018murder\u2019 and \u2018police\u2019 proceeding from the prisoners house on the day in question. He reported how he went to the house and using his feet managed to break down the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Still hearing the woman\u2019s cries for help, he entered and burst into the kitchen. There he found Mary Orton unconscious and Hayes standing over her with a knife saying that \u2018he would cut her head off\u2019. When arrested, Hayes had told him that the lodger had provoked him and that consequently he had stabbed her in the head with a pocket knife. The sergeant then produced the knife in court, where it was said to be \u2018a large pocket knife with a blade as sharp as a razor.\u2019 The officer told the magistrates that he had promptly arrested the prisoner who, throughout had \u2018acted like a madman.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thankfully these two cases indicated the violent nature of John Hayes and he was found guilty and ordered to take his trial at the next Michaelmas Quarter Sessions. These were held at the Guild Hall, Doncaster on Friday 22 October 1886. John Hayes, was again charged with a murderous assault on Mary Elizabeth Orton. However he claimed that the woman had no right to enter his house and that he had been merely defending himself against her. He likened her assault to being attacked by \u2018a wild beast.\u2019 Hayes stated that rather than himself, it was she who had been drunk at the time, which was angrily denied by Mary Elizabeth Orton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The justices who heard the case, consulted between themselves before sentencing John Hayes to eighteen months imprisonment. As he was led away down stairs to begin his sentence, he was described by the local reporters as being \u2018a very dangerous man.\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mary Jane Hayes was a long suffering miner\u2019s wife who finally found the strength to take her abusive husband to court on Wednesday 1 September 1886. She was the first witness against her husband, John who had been charged with committing a most aggravated assault on her for no reason at all. The witness described … Continue reading A Very Dangerous Man<\/span>