at Miss Blandy then sent her whey and
broth, a quart or three pints at a time, once a day or every other
day; that she herself once drank a dish of tea on a Sunday morning out
of her master's dish, which was not well relished, and she thought
somebody had been taking salts in that cup; and this was about six
weeks and three days before her master's death; that she found no ill
effect from it till after dinner that day; she had then a hardness at
her stomach, which she apprehended was from eating plentifully of
beans at dinner; that afterwards she seemed to have some indigestion,
and had a remarkable trembling upon her; that she had no other
symptoms for three days, but afterwards, for about three days more,
she was troubled with a reaching every morning. She says she tasted
the water gruel twice, once on the Tuesday, when she was mixing it for
her master, and again on the Wednesday, but found no remarkable
disorder till about two o'clock on the Wednesday morning before her
master's death, when she was seized with convulsions. She says that
her throat continued troublesome for six or seven weeks after she had
drank the tea, and continued ill for three weeks after her master's
death. She remembered once that the prisoner had a large box of linen
and some pebbles from Mr. Cranstoun in the spring, before her master's
death, and a small box of Scotch pebbles afterwards, about three
months before his death; that the prisoner showed the pebbles to many
of her acquaintance, but the witness never heard of powder to clean
them; she tells you that about a year before his death her master had
a cold, but she does not remember he was so ill as to send for the
apothecary; that he used to be equally complaining of the gravel,
gout, and heartburn for twelve years; knows nothing particular of any
complaint but the heartburn, and that he may have complained of all
the time she has lived in the house, but she is not positive.
She says the prisoner's behaviour to her father, in general, seemed to
be dutiful, but she used undutiful expressions in her passions; that
there had been no conversation between her master and the prisoner
before her asking forgiveness, but a message sent by him to her that
he was willing to forgive her if she would bring that villain to
justice; in all he said afterwards he seemed to speak of his daughter
as if he believed her innocent of any intention to hurt him, and
looked on Cranstoun as the first mover and co
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