Crown vs Kate Dover
The trial of Kate Dover of February 1882, before Mr Justice Cave, was a major event at the criminal court in Leeds Town Hall, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was attended by many people, and attracted much newspaper publicity. It followed the death of Kate Dover's 61-year-old employer and lover, Thomas Skinner, from arsenic poisoning. Known as the Queen of Heeley for her fashionable taste in clothes, Dover was 27 years old at the time, and was Skinner's housekeeper. She was convicted of manslaughter, and sentenced to penal servitude for life, which she served at Woking Female Prison. By 1901, she was out of jail. She lived her remaining years with her sisters in Rotherham.
Kate Dover, perpetrator
was the daughter of a woodcarver. She lived with her family at 4 Thirlwell Terrace, Heeley, Sheffield, in the West Riding of Yorkshire. According to The Scotsman and The Sheffield Independent, Dover was known as the Queen of Heeley due to her use of make-up and fashionable clothes. She became a housekeeper to Thomas Skinner of 24 Glover Place, Sheffield, who was also her "sweetheart".Thomas Skinner, victim
Thomas Skinner was an etcher, inventor and amateur oil-painter. When he met the 26-year-old Kate Dover in 1880, he was a widower aged 60 years, a drunkard, and was fairly well-to-do as a result of the income from his invention which related to etching on steel blades.Events
Background
A previous employee of the victim played a major part in the events surrounding the crime. She was Mrs Jane Jones, who before her marriage was briefly a shop assistant at Cole Brothers, Fargate, then entered service as Skinner's wife Mellond's nurse in 1874, becoming his housekeeper in 1876 when Mellond died. Jane married William Jones in February 1878 and he moved into Glover Place with her and Skinner. That situation continued until 1880. Skinner had taught Jane his trade, and she "assisted him considerably" in his work. "So proficient had this woman become that there was a kind of partnership between Mr and Mrs Jones and with regard to the household expenses; they shared the profits." In total, by spring 1880 Jane Jones had been Skinner's housekeeper "for nearly three years."In 1880, Dover "kept a confectioner's shop", also described as a spice shop, in London Road, Sheffield, and Skinner was still living at 24 Glover Place. Dover and Skinner met at the sweet shop in April 1880, she asked to see his paintings, and they began to visit each other. In response, Jane Jones and her husband left Skinner's house in September of the same year because they "objected to the conduct" of Dover. "From what was observed by Mr. Jones, and Mrs. Jones also, Mr. Jones did not think it advisable his wife should stay longer in the deceased's house." Later, Ada Wheatley gave an example of this behaviour, which she observed on the day when the onions were delivered: "Kate Dover was sitting on Mr Skinner's knee, and he said to, Lay down, love, and let us have a nap." Roasan Biggins, a niece of Skinner, took over as housekeeper for six weeks, then Dover took over her position. By that point, Skinner was already courting Dover "with a view to marrying her." The neighbour Elizabeth Guest at number 25 said that Skinner gave Dover ten shillings per week as household expenses, but expected a daily quart of beer and quart of milk out of this money, so that the limited funds forced Dover to pawn Skinner's belongings, such as "his tea service and suit of black clothes." Unlike Jones, Dover did not live with Skinner, but returned "home to Heeley at night." The 1881 Census shows Skinner living alone.
Although the relationship between Skinner and Dover was initially "amicable", by June 1881 it had deteriorated into "quarrels", "bickerings" and "many complaints" from Skinner that Dover had "been in the habit of taking his property out of the house and pawning it. The best tea service, he said, had gone, his best suit of clothes had been pawned, and the quarrels continued up to that time with aggravation." Once, Skinner "resorted with actual violence" towards Dover. This state of affairs continued through November and early December 1881. The last two major quarrels were witnessed by the neighbour Elizabeth Guest, who said that Skinner was angry about the pawning of his property, and used "very bad language" to Dover, "who, after being reviled, threw her arms round his neck and pleaded for forgiveness." Nevertheless, Dover said later that they had spoken of marriage. Elizabeth Guest said that Dover had spoken of marriage with Skinner, and Kate Dover's mother Catharine Dover later confirmed that the couple were engaged. Skinner would say sometimes that he had made a will in favour of Jane Jones, but suggested that he would change it in favour of Kate Dover. In early November, Dover was looking for a house of her own, and complaining about Skinner's behaviour regarding money. On 18 November 1881 Dover accidentally dropped a cheque which had been tampered with. The cheque was picked up by a bystander and later handed to the police.
Purchase of poison
On 2 December 1881, Jane Jones received a gift of produce including onions and potatoes, "from her husband's brother in Bedfordshire". On the same day she and her husband ate some of the produce, and forwarded the remainder, including "fifteen potatoes, four large onions and some apples" to Thomas Skinner. Ada Wheatley delivered the vegetables. On receipt, Skinner said, "These are extra to what we get here", but Dover said "Humph", and "pitched the onions down the cellar steps". On the same day, Dover asked the chemist J.J. Redding for prussic acid on sugar to kill a cat, but he refused because cats do not eat sugar.On 5 December, Skinner was in good health, working, "eating heartily" and "calling for his beer". At the same time, Dover was declaring him "very ill indeed; and she intimated a suspicion that he might die". At 7 pm Skinner visited the Mason's Arms at Norton Woodseats, known then and now as the Big Tree Inn, leaving Dover at his house. However at 7:30 pm Dover went to Mr Hewitt the chemist on Abbeydale Road, Sheffield, asking for an ounce of arsenic. She brought with her as a witness the butcher William Wood of London Road, Heeley, telling him two untruths: that their acquaintance Mr Marshall or Maxwell had previously acted at her witness, and that she was purchasing arsenic for colouring wax flowers. John William Arding the assistant sold her one-ounce avoirdupois of arsenic in powder form, in a "peculiar shaped packet, labelled poison in black letters upon a red ground, so that it could not easily be mistaken". As Dover left the chemist's shop, she declared, "Now I have got it I will take the lot". She then joined Skinner at the Big Tree Inn, where she and Skinner were "quite friendly" enough to be regarded as lovers, he offered to buy her a pony, and the couple left together at a quarter to nine. The inn was "a favourite resort of 'courters'...the pair were "freely known as the 'Heeley Queen and her old sweetheart'".
A different story was told by Kate Dover's mother Catharine at the inquest. She said that her daughter had "bought the poison at Mr Skinner's request, and that he told her to say it was for artificial flowers or anything, that her daughter gave it to Mr Skinner that evening...that Mr Skinner put it in his waistcoat pocket, and...she had never clapped eyes on it again". Catharine's supposition was that Skinner had accidentally mixed the arsenic with his etching chemicals, and these chemicals had accidentally mixed with the food in the kitchen. This story did not make it to the Leeds Assizes in 1882. On 6 December, Dover told another witness, Mr Taylor, that "Mr Skinner was very ill and she feared he would die". However, when the servant Emma Bolsover brought back a fowl which Dover had sent her to collect at 10 am, she heard Skinner call out three times for his dinner, showing no sign of illness.
Poisoning
Thomas Skinner was killed on 6 December 1881. On that morning, Dover told Taylor that Skinner "was very ill, and always dozing and sleepy, and said she believed he would die", when in truth he "appeared to have been in his usual state of health". Dover "was the one that made the dinner and attended to it in all respects". Although Dover had prepared a roast chicken, she made goose stuffing with herbs, bread and onions, not chicken stuffing of forcemeat or sausage meat as was usual in the Victorian era. Moreover, she split the stuffing into two portions, cooking one portion inside the chicken, and one in a separate tin. Dinner consisting of stuffed chicken and Yorkshire pudding was served around midday, but the servant Emma Bolsover ate a lamb chop separately in the kitchen and did not join Dover and Skinner for the meal. Skinner called out for his meal, saying that "he did not know when he felt so hungry as he did then", however he had to wait another half-hour for his meal. Skinner's plate was piled with stuffing but Dover's was much less so. Five minutes after beginning the meal, Dover declared herself ill. Skinner immediately said, "I feel bad too...My God, she has done for us both this time," referring to Jane Jones who had sent the onions. He then "vomited, very considerably", and "seemed to be suffering very much". Dover "seemed to have got frightened, at the results of administering the poison, and was trying to remedy what she had done".Emma was sent to purchase tincture of lobelia, which can be used somewhat unsafely as an emetic at high doses. Dover could not wait until Bolsover's return, panicked, and followed her by tram. After they returned, Dover sent Bolsover to fetch Catharine Dover, who arrived surprised to find Skinner so ill. Meanwhile, Dover said she felt sick, and appeared to heave, but did not vomit at all until the doctor administered an emetic later. Dover "seemed to have been alarmed, and did what she could to render assistance". When the surgeon and forensic scientist James Wallin Harrison arrived at 2.30 pm, Skinner was "vomiting very seriously and heavily" and Dover said, "We have both been poisoned; it is that woman who has done us both." Harrison saw that Skinner was dying of arsenic poisoning, gave what care he could, and searched for the source of the poison. The vomit from Skinner which was in the scullery sink, vomit from Dover as a result of the emetic, besides the remains of the chicken, the stuffing, some excreta and some wine, were therefore respectively bottled for tests and analysis. Harrison left at 4:00 pm and returned in the evening, when "he found Skinner's skin cold and clammy, his countenance pinched, his hands and feet benumbed, and symptoms of collapse", while Dover showed no poisoning symptoms. Harrison stayed with Skinner until he died at 8:40 pm.
Dover said that just before Skinner died he requested that some papers be burned, although the doctor and inspector had witnessed that he did not. While the doctor and inspector were in the scullery with the dying Skinner, Dover was seen by Skinner's neighbour Elizabeth "Sissie" Guest fetching papers from upstairs, including a large blue or white paper, and burning them in the kitchen fire. She was also seen handing a paper containing powder to her mother, telling Catharine to hide it under her skirt in case Kate were searched by police. Before burning the papers, " conduct had been very excited, but it then changed completely. It was quite calm." Dover afterwards told Inspector Bradbury of the police that she had not burned any. She also denied that there had been arsenic in her possession or in the house, and thereafter she maintained that story. She even asked to be searched before leaving the house, but Bradbury refused. Inspectors Bradbury and Womack found no Will for Skinner, although Dover told Skinner that there was a Will, that she did not know its whereabouts, and that Skinner had planned to alter it. Womack found no arsenic in the house, and arsenic was not used in Skinner's etching process. Only Dover had prepared dinner that day. According to Jane Jones, she and her husband had eaten the same batch of vegetables with no ill effect, Jane bore no ill will towards Dover, and had not threatened to "do for them both". By tea time, both of Dover's parents were in the house. Everyone left the house together at 11 pm, Dover taking Skinner's cat and bird with her. After the death, household linen and American bonds went missing, although Skinner's cash book remained, and Inspector Womack had found fourteen sovereigns and a diamond ring in Skinner's bedroom on the day of his death. Other items found in the house were love letters between Dover and an unknown elderly man named "Emerson" hidden in a picture frame, and "applications for loans made by Mrs Dover to various persons".