William George Smith

William George Smith was convicted of the murder of 29-year-old Elizabeth Bousfield and sentenced to death. He cut her throat at 86 Arundel Street, Hull, on 14 August 1924. William Smith had been a ship's painter, and was described as a man of excellent character, being steady, temperate and industrious, and of a quiet disposition. Elizabeth Bousfield had been married, but had been living apart from her husband, and for about the previous four years had acted as housekeeper to an old man, and she and her four children, the fourth being by a deceased son of the old man, lived at the old man's house at 86 Arundel Street, Hull. A nephew of the old man also lived at the house. There were two bedrooms upstairs, one of which was occupied by the old man and his nephew, and the other which was occupied by Elizabeth Bousfield and her four children. Around 1922 William Smith became acquainted with Elizabeth Bousfield, and for some considerable time had been intimate with her. William Smith himself had at that time been living with his mother, but his mother objected to his relations with Elizabeth Bousfield, and about a month before the murder she turned him out of her house, or at any rate he left and went to live at Victoria Mansions. xxx3xxx During that month he seemed to have been a great deal at 86 Arundel Street, having meals there and on one or more occasions having a shakedown for the night on a sofa in the sitting room. On the evening of 13 August 1924, William Smith, Elizabeth Bousfield, and perhaps one of the children went to the pictures, after which they returned together to 86 Arundel Street and had supper. Elizabeth Bousfield then retired upstairs to bed about 9pm, whilst William Smith later told the old man that he didn't feel inclined to go to Victoria Mansions, which was two miles off, that night and asked to be allowed to sleep on the sofa, to which the old man agreed, and William Smith lay down. Shortly after the old man went up to bed and later still, about 11.30pm, the nephew came in and saw William Smith asleep on the sofa. The nephew said that he spoke to William Smith, and that William Smith said to him: xxxqxxx I must have been asleep some time. xxxqxxx The nephew then went to bed, and found his uncle in bed. The next morning Elizabeth Bousfield came down and gave William Smith and the nephew their breakfast, and then went out to get some eggs to fry for William Smith's dinner. The nephew then went out to work, leaving William Smith and Elizabeth Bousfield there together on what he thought were quite friendly terms. However, at 7.35am, neighbours saw William Smith run out of the house in his shirt sleeves, and then soon after, Elizabeth Bousfield stagger out all covered in blood. She then fell to the grounds and died almost immediately, her throat having been cut deeply on the right hand side of her neck, and the jugular vein and carotid artery being cut. It was noted that the bones of her neck were also exposed. A bloodstained razor was found a few yards from where Elizabeth Bousfield fell, but whether it was thrown there by William Smith, or fell from her hand, didn't appear to be certain. William Smith went straight to the police station after the murder, and made a statement to the effect that whilst he was lying on the sofa sometime after the old man had gone to bed, that he heard the old man say: xxxqxxx Come on, Liz, my old love. I am going to fuck you. xxxqxxx He then told the police that he taxed Elizabeth Bousfield about that the following morning, and that she didn't deny it, and began to cry, and that before he knew what he was doing he saw red on her throat and the razor seemed to come into his hand, adding that it was done before he knew what he was doing. However, in the police report, it was noted that that story, which he gave immediately after the crime, had to be compared to the one he told in the witness box at his trial, in which he said that before the old man went upstairs, he said to him: xxxqxxx You have no chance of doing her. I am going up to do her. xxxqxxx Then, as regards to Elizabeth Bousfield in the morning, he said: xxxqxxx I asked her if she had had relations with the old man. She neither admitted nor denied it. She never actually said anything. I went out for swill in the yard. When I came back she was crying. I asked her why. She said she could not help what had happened between her and the old man. xxxqxxx William Smith then described how he prepared to have a shave, saying: xxxqxxx I stropped the razor and put it by her and then turned round to get hot water. I said, 'I wonder how it is women cannot keep straight'. She picked up the razor and ran at me and said, 'I will cut your ---- throat'. xxxqxxx He then suggested that in getting the razor from her that her throat became cut, and then repeated the suggestion that there were gaps, or hacks in the razor done by cutting boots, but it was thought that there didn't appear to be anything to support that suggestion. William Smith was convicted at the Assizes with no recommendation to mercy and sentenced to death. In the judges letter, he concluded that they had appeared to have been on friendly terms immediately before the murder, and that the crime appeared to have been entirely unpremeditated. The police report noted that as regards to the old man's relations with Elizabeth Bousfield, it was impossible to say, it being noted that the old man denied having made any of the remarks attributed to him. It was further noted that it was impossible to say what actually happened between William Smith and Elizabeth Bousfield before he cut her throat, but that in view of what he initially said to the police, it was thought impossible to believe his story that Elizabeth Bousfield had begun the attack on him. The police report noted that as regards to the absence of premeditation raised by the judge, that it had long before been laid down that there was no Home Office rule that only cases of premeditated murder were followed by execution and the police report added that the essence of premeditation was not necessarily a sufficient ground for interference with the capital sentence, if the deadly injury was inflicted with a reckless disregard to consequences. xxx4xxx Further, it was stated that as regards to the confession of infidelity, that being it was it was indeed made by Elizabeth Bousfield, which was doubted, being sufficient to reduce the charge from murder to manslaughter, it was noted that other such pleases of suspected and confessed infidelity had been repeatedly rejected by the Home Office, cases cited being that of Harry Thompson in 1915 and Hindle Benson in 1918, who having seduced his victim away from her husband, had no claim on her fidelity, it being noted that if he had been reprieved that a 'fortiori' similar action, would have to be taken in the case of any husband who murdered an unfaithful wife. It was noted that in the case of Ernest Dorsett in 1917, on the other hand, that there were several other mitigating circumstances besides the suspected infidelity of his mistress. As such, the police report concluded that although William Smith bore a good character, there was no recommendation to mercy, that it was considered might have felt that women needed to be protected from the terrible risk of having their throats cut with a razor upon what might be nothing more than an utterly unfounded suspicion, and stated that they did not think that the case afforded sufficient grounds for interference with the sentence. William Smith was executed at Hull on 9 December 1924. Arundel Street has since been demolished and replaced with the Craven Primary Academy although a small part of it remains as the entrance to the Academy. Part of Ellis Street also follows what would have been the other end of Arundel Street.