This is the story - in September a woman from Garfield was charged with the murder of her husband. Mary Jane Phillips was a widow, with a son about thirteen years old and she was a housekeeper for Francis Phillips and they lived at Ultima near Swan Hill (1). They married in May 1920 and Mrs Phillips was living with her new husband until the November when she decided to visit her brother who lived in Garfield. Francis sent her £2 per week to live on and when she returned to her husband in January 1921, who was by then living at Girgarre, she allegedly told him that she was tired of married life (2) and made a mistake in marrying the second time (3). She then returned to Garfield and a report said that she afterwards took a position with a man named Scanlon to whom she presented herself as a widow and she refused to return to her husband (4). However, Mary and Francis wrote to each other and on occasions she said she would return to him and he sent her money for her fare, but she never returned.
At one time he sent her a cheque for £3, which he forgot to sign, so she signed his name and altered the amount to £13 and cashed it at a local shop. When the cheque got back to his bank they recognised the signature as a fake and refused to honour it. Mary later repaid the storekeeper the money and Francis did not report the matter to the police (5).
On September 30, 1921 it was reported that apparently intended as a peace offering, she sent her husband through the post a sponge cake and an apple pie. In the parcel she put a note, in which she told him to put jam on the sponge cake, and not to take any notice of the dark color of the apples, as that was due to the custard that was on them (6). The parcel was posted at Garfield and was received on September 15 and in due time Phillips started to eat the apple pie, and on taking the first mouthful he noticed an exceedingly bitter taste and spat it out. He then became suspicious and reported the matter to Senior Constable Evans of Kyabram who informed Supt. Ivey, and the latter instructed Detective Bruce to make inquiries (7). Detective Bruce had the food tested by the Government Analyst who discovered that the apple pie contained strychnine, even though the amount in the pie would not have been fatal.
Detective Bruce travelled to Garfield and arrested Mrs Phillips and she made a statement in which she confessed that she had put the poison in the pie with the intent to poison her husband (8).
Mary had a committal hearing at the Kyabram Police Court where she was sent for trial at the Bendigo Supreme Court. The Age reported that at the close of the case there was an affectionate meeting between accused and her husband (9).
The trial at Bendigo was held on October 15, 1921. Mary was charged with having attempted to administer poison to her husband, Francis William Phillips, with intent to murder (10). Mary was described as being 47 years old and Francis as being 34. After hearing all the evidence, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty on the ground of insanity. The judge ordered that she be detained in gaol until the pleasure of the Governor be known (11).
I bought their marriage certificate and some of the information on it is inconsistent with the information reported in the newspapers. Mary and Francis were married on May 1, 1920 at St Pauls Church of England in Bendigo. Her age was listed as 40 and his as 30 and her birthplace was Rheola. Mary was listed as widow, her husband having died on April 25, 1911, she had two living children and her married name was Reeves. Mary’s parents were listed as John Thomas Smith and Jane Alice Millstead. I cannot find a marriage between her and a Mr Reeves which doesn’t mean that Mary was not telling the truth, but I believe she was a bit ‘creative’ in her information.
The Index of the Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages (BDMs) list the birth, in Rheola, of a Thomas William Smith in 1890 to Mary Jane Smith, father unknown. There is also a listing for the birth of George Reeves Smith in 1909 in Bendigo. The mother is Mary Jane Smith and the father is unknown. I am fairly certain that these are 'our' Mary’s children and she said she was a widow to hide the fact that her children were born out of wedlock, which was a shameful thing in those days. She may well have lived with Mr Reeves, the mother of her second child as ‘man and wife’ especially as she used his surname, but because they weren’t married she could not put his name on the birth certificate as the father.
According to the BDMs, Mary was actually born in 1876 so she was 44 when she married Francis. Mary had eight siblings - John Thomas (born 1871), Josiah (1873), Susannah (1874), Alice Agnes (1880), William Edward (1883) and Robert Frederick (1885) Margaret Emma (1887) and Elizabeth Ellen Frances (1892). I haven’t worked out which of her brothers was living in Garfield in 1921, but it wasn’t Robert as he was wounded in action whilst fighting in Belgium and died of wounds on October 2, 1916 (12).
Francis was born in Palmerston, also known as Port Darwin, in what is now the Northern Territory in December 1888 to Francis William and Kate Winifred (nee Farrell) Phillips. He died at Warrandyte in 1969 at the age of 80 (13).
What happened to Mary after the trial? I don't know how long she was detained in gaol at the pleasure of the Governor. However, a Mary Jane Phillips died on April 17, 1965 at Fitzroy. I bought the death certificate and it says she was 86, thus born around 1879. She had a son named George Harold Reeves, aged 57, so born circa 1908. They lived at the same address, 1 Alexander Parade, Collingwood. Her first husband was listed as George Reeves and her second husband as Frank Phillips. I am sure this is 'our' Mary. As for her two sons - the BDMs have a George Harold Reeves who died in 1981, aged 71 at Heidelberg - the father is listed as George Reeves, a mother as Mary Jane Phillips and birth place as Bendigo. Having found this I discovered that George served in the Army from 1936 until 1942. His 1936 enlistment paper has his address as Church Street, Werribee at the Metropolitan Farm, which was the sewerage treatment plant. His next of kin was his mother, Mrs M. J. Reeves, of the same address, so she was obviously no longer detained in either gaol or any other facility (14). I don’t know anything else about her eldest son, Thomas William Smith.
According to the BDMs, Mary was actually born in 1876 so she was 44 when she married Francis. Mary had eight siblings - John Thomas (born 1871), Josiah (1873), Susannah (1874), Alice Agnes (1880), William Edward (1883) and Robert Frederick (1885) Margaret Emma (1887) and Elizabeth Ellen Frances (1892). I haven’t worked out which of her brothers was living in Garfield in 1921, but it wasn’t Robert as he was wounded in action whilst fighting in Belgium and died of wounds on October 2, 1916 (12).
Francis was born in Palmerston, also known as Port Darwin, in what is now the Northern Territory in December 1888 to Francis William and Kate Winifred (nee Farrell) Phillips. He died at Warrandyte in 1969 at the age of 80 (13).
What happened to Mary after the trial? I don't know how long she was detained in gaol at the pleasure of the Governor. However, a Mary Jane Phillips died on April 17, 1965 at Fitzroy. I bought the death certificate and it says she was 86, thus born around 1879. She had a son named George Harold Reeves, aged 57, so born circa 1908. They lived at the same address, 1 Alexander Parade, Collingwood. Her first husband was listed as George Reeves and her second husband as Frank Phillips. I am sure this is 'our' Mary. As for her two sons - the BDMs have a George Harold Reeves who died in 1981, aged 71 at Heidelberg - the father is listed as George Reeves, a mother as Mary Jane Phillips and birth place as Bendigo. Having found this I discovered that George served in the Army from 1936 until 1942. His 1936 enlistment paper has his address as Church Street, Werribee at the Metropolitan Farm, which was the sewerage treatment plant. His next of kin was his mother, Mrs M. J. Reeves, of the same address, so she was obviously no longer detained in either gaol or any other facility (14). I don’t know anything else about her eldest son, Thomas William Smith.
I know she tried to poison her husband, Francis, but I do hope that in the end she had some happiness in her life.
Trove list I have created a list on Trove on articles relating to Mary Jane and the trial, access it here.
Footnotes
(1) Benalla Standard, September 30, 1921, see here.
(2) The Age, October 7, 1921, see here.
(3) The Age, October 7, 1921, see here.
(4) Benalla Standard, September 30, 1921, see here.
(5) Benalla Standard, September 30, 1921, see here.
(6) Benalla Standard, September 30, 1921, see here.
(7) Benalla Standard, September 30, 1921, see here.
(8) Benalla Standard, September 30, 1921, see here.
(9) The Age, October 7, 1921, see here.
(10) Ballarat Star, October 19, 1921, see here.
(11) Weekly Times, October 22, 1921, see here.
(12) Robert Frederick Smith - Service number 747 - see file here at the National Archives https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=1788351
(13) South Australian birth certificate and Index to Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages.
(14) George is listed on the World War Two Nominal Roll, https://nominal-rolls.dva.gov.au/home and his record at the National Archives is here https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=9310307
