Tuesday 28th October 1884 Miss Keyse had been attempting to sell The Glen for months, and on the 28th of October, she finally signed a £13,000 contract for the sale of the estate. On the same day, Miss Keyse had conversations with both Lee and Elizabeth Harris regarding their future prospects. Elizabeth mentioned that Miss Keyse had “settled up” with her, leaving uncertainty whether she had been dismissed or simply received her quarterly wage. It was also on this day that Lee was informed of a reduction in his wage, from two shillings and sixpence per week to a mere two shillings. It’s worth noting that five years earlier, as a young lad of fifteen, Lee had been earning three shillings per week. Comparatively, a farm labourer could expect to earn thirteen shillings per week during those times, leading to his disappointment. Lee was further informed that his future with Miss Keyse was uncertain, but she promised to seek alternative employment for him and suggested that the new owner of the estate might offer him work.
“I remember the 28th of October when John entered the kitchen in tears, and I asked him why. At first, he did not respond, but later he mentioned that Miss Keyse was going to pay him two shillings a week. I told him I thought the agreement was for two shillings and sixpence, to which he replied that he did not know as he hadn’t made the agreement himself. Then he grew furious and declared that he would not spend another night there and that before leaving Torquay, he would seek his revenge.” – Elizabeth Harris
“John was greatly disappointed because Miss Keyse did not offer him as much as he had expected. In October last, she began giving him occasional presents. He felt let down because he believed his mother had arranged for Miss Keyse to provide him with more. He desired to have more freedom to spend time with young people.” – Jane Neck
“On the 29th of October at midday, he informed me that he had a disagreement with his mistress and had threatened to leave her service.” – William Richards, Postman
Tuesday 11th November 1884 four days prior to the murder, Lee wrote a letter to his sweetheart, suggesting that they end their relationship. It can be assumed that he was planning to move away, possibly even abroad.
“Dearest Katey, I am writing to inform you that I am feeling uncertain about my future. I am tired of being in service and I am considering finding another occupation, which might not align with your preferences.”
However, Katey Farmer was determined not to let their engagement come to an end.
“My Dearest Love, I received your letter, which has caused me great pain and sorrow. What could you possibly mean by telling me at one moment that you won’t leave me and then writing to inquire if I wish to break off our engagement? I cannot comprehend it, as you seem undecided about your own future, does that mean you are undecided about our relationship as well? Let me tell you once again, just as I have told you before, I will not consent to breaking off our engagement. As for your future plans, even if it meant you had to work as a street laborer, and you were to ask me to be your wife, I would not refuse or complain about my fate, for you know how deeply I love you.”
Friday 14th November 1884 Elizabeth mentioned that she last saw Miss Keyse at 10:30 a.m. during prayers, after breakfast. Miss Keyse was feeling unwell and retired to her room at 5 p.m. It is highly likely that she had recently come to terms with the fact that she was pregnant. She would have just missed her third menstrual period and was experiencing the initial symptoms, including nausea and fatigue. Lee recorded an encounter with Elizabeth in his autobiography:
“The earliest distinct memory I have is seeing my stepsister, Elizabeth Harris, heading towards her bedroom. It was tea time. As she appeared odd, I asked her what was wrong. She replied that she didn’t feel well. ‘Shall I fetch Dr. Chilcote?’ I asked. She responded, rather sharply, ‘Oh no, no!’
“I went to bed around 5 o’clock, not feeling very well. I fell asleep and slept until nearly 11 p.m. when Eliza came to see me. I stayed awake for a short while and then went back to sleep.” – Elizabeth Harris
“Elizabeth Harris stated that she didn’t feel well and went to bed around 5 p.m. based on our suggestion. Miss Keyse was not informed about this. We had family prayers around 11 p.m. on Friday, with myself, my sister, and the prisoner (Lee) in attendance. The prisoner slept in the pantry. I am certain that the prisoner went to bed after prayers. I saw him in bed, but we did not have any conversation. When I went to bed, Miss Keyse was in the dining room, working on her journal. I mentioned to her that I didn’t think there was enough oil in the lamp, but she assured me that there was, as she didn’t plan on staying up late. There was no fire in any room except the kitchen. If Miss Keyse had any instructions to give, she would either go to the prisoner’s room herself or provide Jane with a written note. Our three bedrooms, mine, Jane’s, and Elizabeth’s, were all together. Miss Keyse’s room was closest to the top of the stairs. I brought up a hot water bottle for Miss Keyse, placing it about a foot from her pillow. I prepared her nightdress. I bolted the door leading to the water cask area. Jane came up to bed immediately after me. I did not hear Miss Keyse come up before I fell asleep. I heard nothing during the night, although I woke up once.” – Eliza Neck
“On examination of the deceased’s diary, Mr. Collins QC remarked that it was mainly composed of quotations from scripture.”
“I made up the prisoner’s bed that night as usual. It is my duty to close up at night. I closed the front door, conservatory door, middle door, scullery door, and the yard door. I closed all the shutters, but I didn’t fasten the shutters outside. When I went to bed, there was no window anyone could have gotten through. I saw the prisoner in his bed in the pantry after prayers. I had some things to wash, and I washed them in his room. The bracket table in the pantry was up as usual. After finishing my work, I went into the dining room to inform Miss Keyse of the time. She was in the dining room, dressed in her evening gown, writing in her diary. She had a lamp to write by, which is lit with Alexandra oil kept in the pantry. There was about a quart left when I trimmed it on Friday. I heard the prisoner cough when I was with Miss Keyse last. There had been no fire in the dining room on Friday, and there hadn’t been one all year. I left a candlestick and a box of matches in the dining room. Miss Keyse would take the candlestick and snuffer to bed every night but not the lamp. I left Miss Keyse’s cocoa in the kitchen. The clock in the hall is half an hour fast. According to the hall clock, it was 12:40 am when I went upstairs to bed, so it was actually 12:10 am. I took the keys of the sideboard and placed them in the deceased’s bedroom as usual. I closed the door between the deceased’s bedroom and ours. We soon fell asleep. Lee could not have gone out without making a noise or being heard.” – Jane Neck
“On Friday, Miss Keyse had told the prisoner that she wanted him to go to Compton in the morning, but it was clear that she had changed her mind and left a note for him just before getting her cocoa and going to bed – ‘John, it would be better to do some raking of the paths before breakfast and go to Compton after.'”
Saturday 15th November 1884 The night was dark and stormy.
“When I woke up on Saturday morning, I heard Elizabeth say, ‘Eliza, Jane, there’s a lot of smoke. Where is it coming from?’ Elizabeth Harris was undressed. My sister and I got up immediately. In my nightdress, I passed Miss Keyse’s bedroom without noticing it was on fire. My sister stopped and went into her room. I continued and reached the landing at the top of the stairs. The hallway was filled with smoke, and the stairwell was also smoky. Before going downstairs, I unlocked the three bolts on the nursery door to let the smoke out. I was the first one downstairs, and it was full of smoke. I couldn’t see that John Lee was at the bottom of the stairs. He asked, ‘What’s the matter?’ He saw that the smoke was choking me. I think when I first saw the prisoner, he had his trousers on and his suspenders hanging down. The passage door leading to the pantry was open, and there was smoke in the passage. I had no light. I entered the dining room, and I could see the blaze, which provided some light. The dining room door was open when I entered. The prisoner was near me. I asked him to fetch some water, but he said he couldn’t because of the smoke. There was no air in the room, and I didn’t see anyone else in there. I went to the pantry, got some water, and threw it on the fire. Then, for the first time, I saw Miss Keyse’s body lying on the floor. I called out to my fellow servants. I shouted, ‘Miss Keyse is on the dining room floor.’ The body was lying with the head toward the fireplace and the legs toward the door. Ten minutes passed between my coming downstairs and finding the body. I didn’t see the prisoner enter the dining room when I said I had found the body. Elizabeth Harris and Jane Neck came downstairs. I saw Miss Keyse’s candlestick on the dining room floor that morning, the one she usually took to bed with her. I didn’t see a candle. I opened the door leading to the water tank. I sent the prisoner to fetch Gasking. I opened the kitchen door for him to go. I didn’t see which way the prisoner went to fetch him. After Gasking arrived, I saw the prisoner holding up his arm and saying that he had cut it while breaking the glass in the dining room. The dining room window is a French window and not difficult to open. When Mr. Gasking arrived, I went to the Honeysuckle Room, which was on fire, and there was still a great deal of fire in the dining room. I fetched water from the water butt and threw it on the fire in the Honeysuckle Room. I didn’t go downstairs again until Miss Keyse’s body was carried out.”
“Whilst upstairs, I entered Miss Keyse’s room and assisted in extinguishing the fire there. I observed that the bed had not been slept in. The hot water bottle was in the same place where I had placed it on the bed. I found the cocoa partially consumed. The dress Miss Keyse had worn the previous night was folded and placed on the seat, while the rest of her garments were on the bed. When she passed away, Miss Keyse had on parts of her flannel nightdress. She was also wearing a woollen shawl, which she typically put on just before getting into bed. Her stockings had not been removed. I did not see her slippers. The produced petticoat belongs to the deceased. In the deceased’s bedroom, there is a red cord bell rope on the settee. It was not hanging down on Friday night, as I would have noticed it when I looked at the settee. It must have been unhooked”.
“The fire in the dining room and the fire in Miss Keyse’s bedroom were two separate fires”.
“I have never seen the hatchet presented in the house. Miss Keyse kept a knife on the hallway table”.
“I have no involvement with the oil and have not handled it. I have my own lamp in my room, and my oil supply has not been tampered with”.
“The blood-stained cover on the chair produced belongs to a hall chair. The matches are of the type used in the house”.
“One of the towels presented belongs to the scullery, while the other belongs to the pantry. Although my mistress may have found fault with the prisoner at times, they never had any serious disagreements. I have never known the prisoner to go out at night without Miss Keyse’s knowledge.” – Eliza Neck
“I was awakened on Saturday morning by the cook, Elizabeth, who informed me that the house was filled with smoke. I immediately went to Miss Keyse’s room and discovered that the furniture was ablaze. I went to her bed and found that she was not there. Due to the thick smoke, I couldn’t see clearly, and I was extremely frightened by Miss Keyse’s absence. Shortly after, I heard my sister shout that Miss Keyse was downstairs, deceased. I was wearing a nightdress. The smoke was so dense that it felt suffocating. Before descending the stairs, I encountered the prisoner and informed him that the smoke was too thick for me to find my way. John Lee took hold of my right arm and guided me to the banisters, exclaiming, ‘Good God, the fire!’ There was no blood on my nightdress when I went to bed, and I cannot explain how the blood came to be there. (There was a trace of blood from the right sleeve to the left sleeve of Jane’s nightdress.) The passageway was very narrow, and he was in close proximity to me while holding my arm. This occurred after my sister’s call. The prisoner left me at the top of the stairs. As I descended, I noticed the glow of fire coming from the dining room, as the door was ajar. I then approached Miss Keyse’s lifeless body and touched her feet, which were cold. Upon entering the dining room, there was a complete lack of air. I opened the window and went out onto the veranda, shouting ‘Fire’ two or three times, but returned as my voice failed to reach anyone’s ears. I left the window open when I first stepped out onto the lawn. On my way to the pantry to fetch some lights, I left the window open for the second time, only to find it shattered upon my return. Lee informed me that he had broken the glass to allow the smoke to escape. However, I did not hear the sound of breaking glass. When I went out for the second time, I stepped on broken glass. The wind was blowing fiercely. I closed the shutters and the window once again. It is not possible to open the dining room window from the outside. The shutters remained closed until Gasking arrived. The prisoner was wearing trousers when he entered the dining room, but I did not take notice of whether he was wearing boots or not”.
“My sister and I dispatched the prisoner to fetch Gasking. Approximately twenty minutes elapsed between discovering the fire and sending John to get Gasking. After his arrival, I intended to go and summon Stiggins for assistance. Therefore, I ventured to the front door beneath the colonnade. The morning was so dark that I couldn’t discern my path, and John came to support me, preventing me from stumbling over the flower pots. I was still clad in my nightdress. I believe the blood must have transferred onto my dress when the prisoner touched me on this occasion, following the breaking of the glass. Additionally, the prisoner had just assisted Gasking in moving the body. I did not witness any bleeding from the prisoner’s arm”.
The Honeysuckle Room was ablaze, having caught fire from the dining room. However, this could not have been the case for Miss Keyse’s bedroom.
“I identify the presented knife as one that I kept in the middle section of the pantry drawer, using it for polishing the candlesticks. I last used it on Friday, and I never cleaned it with soil. I never wrapped it in paper, nor did I clean it extensively, aside from wiping off the grease. There was another knife of a similar kind that Miss Keyse kept in the front hall, which was sharper than mine. The knife shown to me appears to be Miss Keyse’s, but I cannot definitively distinguish between the two. In the front hall, where Miss Keyse kept her gardening knife, there was also a sharpening tool”.
“The passage door leading to the pantry is never closed. There is a table at the foot of the bed that has not been folded down for six years, counting from March. I saw it in the raised position on Friday night, with trays and other items left upon it. The following morning, it remained as I had left it. There is very little space between the bed and the table. The partition of the pantry does not reach the ceiling, leaving a two-foot gap without any sound insulation. I attend to the lamps, and the Alexander oil can is kept in a cupboard on the opposite side of the prisoner’s bed, to the right of the fireplace. I refill my bottle from the oil can every two days. I keep a bottle with the can. On Thursday morning, I trimmed the lamps, and there was still a quart of oil remaining. On Friday morning, the cork was in the bottle, and the funnel was placed upside down on the can. On Saturday morning, I discovered the can’s cork, wrapped in a flannel, near the table’s foot in the pantry, on the floor. I replaced the cork into the bottle. On Sunday morning, when I went to refill the bottle, I found the can to be empty. No one else accessed that particular can of oil or had a need to do so”.
“I can confirm that the candlestick and snuffer are the ones used by Miss Keyse. On Friday night, I inserted a complete candle, and by the following morning, it had burned down to the paper”.
“We use these types of matches—large-sized—and the same kind was placed in Miss Keyse’s candlestick. To my knowledge, I do not recall ever seeing the hatchet before”.
“I sent Lee to Compton and instructed him to deliver the news of Miss Keyse’s death as gently as possible”.
“In the morning, I checked the front door and conservatory door, but I am unsure about the middle door”.
Miss Keyse sometimes descended the stairs after visiting her bedroom. On this particular night, Miss Keyse intended to prepare a package to be taken to Compton and may have come downstairs to attend to it. On occasion, I have seen Miss Keyse come downstairs to leave a message.
“I never extract oil from the can in the pantry. I recognise the pair of socks as belonging to the prisoner. I have never seen that hatchet before. Based on my familiarity with the house, I don’t believe there could have been any struggle in the hall or dining room during the night without Lee hearing it. I have never observed that John Lee has hearing difficulties”. Elizabeth Harris
During the Inquest, Lee admitted that he had not removed his collar or necktie from the previous evening. “My poor dear mistress was lying on the carpet—a horrifying sight. I can still visualize her eyes staring out from the hair that had fallen across her face. Her hands are etched in my memory. They were blue and contorted, clenched in the throes of death.” John Lee – Autobiography
Gasking: “I am the proprietor of the Cary Arms, Babbacombe. I was awakened by my niece, Mary Eleanor Wilson, at around 4am. I responded to the call by opening my window. Within ten minutes of being summoned, I arrived at the house. At the house, I first saw Lee standing in the doorway about two feet opposite the water cask, the entrance to the nursery bedroom. I asked, ‘What is the matter?’ and he replied, ‘Miss Keyse is burnt to death.’ He instructed me to go to the dining room, where I witnessed Elizabeth Harris fetching water from the cask. I requested Lee to come and knock the head off the cask. He claimed he didn’t have anything to do it with. I suggested he climb up the wall and bring down the stove, which he did, breaking the top of the cask. I instructed Elizabeth to close the tap and step aside. Lee was wearing a shirt, trousers, and suspenders hanging down. I didn’t pay attention to his feet. I went to the dining room door and saw Lee. He had entered from another direction inside the house, but I cannot recall who entered first. It was 4:15 pm by the time I reached the dining room. The door was partially open, and I noticed Miss Keyse’s body on the floor. Her feet were facing me, and her head was towards the fire. Her left side was near the couch, her feet pointed towards the door, and her head towards the other end of the room. Her clothes were smouldering. I said to Lee, ‘Let’s get her out of here.’ Initially, he hesitated, and I had to call him a second time. I took hold of one side of the body, and Lee took the other, each supporting a shoulder and leg, without any support for the head. Lee let the body slip, but I held on. The clothing reeked of paraffin. We carried the body outside the dining room door and into the kitchen. We used a small piece of carpet, and I asked Lee to fetch a larger piece. Then Richard Harris arrived, and I requested his assistance. Together, we carried the body to the outhouse. I was at the feet, and Harris was at the head. Lee did not help; I asked him to fetch water. I had noticed the neck wound in the dining room, and my first concern was to move the body to a safe place, beyond the reach of the fire. Lee would have had to notice the throat had been cut when he carried the body. I detected the smell of paraffin when I re-entered the dining room a second time after the body had been removed, and it was quite strong.”
Harris went to my house to fetch some pails. I went to a tap by the wood house, then returned to the dining room. I would estimate that the fire in the dining room had been burning for an hour and a half. The wall was quite hot. I requested a pole to knock away the ceiling and then asked for a hatchet. Someone produced the one that is now presented. It was stored in the greenhouse or wood house, but I have never seen it inside the house. When the fire was nearly extinguished, I went to the front of the house with a man carrying a lantern and examined the window. I believe that only one pane was broken at that time. I didn’t have any blood on my clothes from carrying the body. I did not see any blood on Lee’s arms while he was carrying the body. He didn’t mention anything about blood to me until later in the kitchen when he raised his arm and explained how he had shattered the glass with both arms. The prisoner wanted to go to Compton, but I wanted him to remain at the house. However, he did leave. The pool of blood in the hall had clotted and coagulated.”
William Gasking: “There were fires in three different rooms originating from five different locations. Fire was seen behind the pictures, as if flammable material had been placed there. The wind was blowing a steady gale from the east, and in another ten minutes, the thatched roof would have caught fire. It was later discovered that nearly a gallon of paraffin had been used. The fire brigade was summoned and arrived, but their assistance was not required as the fire had already been extinguished.” Devon County Standard.
“At approximately 3.45 am, I was awakened by John Lee. Lee called Gasking and me, informing us that Miss Keyse’s house was ablaze. I discovered Gasking and Lee with Miss Keyse’s body near the dining room door. In the darkness, I inquired about the identity, and Gasking confirmed it was Miss Keyse. Her left shoulder clothing was smouldering, so we doused the body with water. Gasking instructed Lee to fetch a carpet, and together we wrapped the body in it, carrying it to the outhouse. Lee stayed behind. Before placing the body in the carpet, I noticed a wound in the throat. Believing it to be a burn, I commented on what a peculiar burn it was, with Lee present. The process of moving the body took approximately five or six minutes. I didn’t observe any blood on Lee’s arm. I fetched some buckets from Gasking’s house and brought them to the dining room. We positioned a large tub, known as a kieve, under the tap near the wood house. I assisted in extinguishing the fire. We procured a pole and a pair of steps. I spotted Pearce, Bennet, and Searle in the honeysuckle room attempting to break through the ceiling. After five or six minutes, Gasking mentioned that he needed a hatchet or a similar tool. Lee swiftly fetched the hatchet for Pearce, who used it on the partition of Miss Keyse’s bedroom. Lee took no longer than a minute to retrieve the hatchet. Gasking then used the hatchet in the dining room. Half an hour after our initial arrival, Gasking informed me that his arm was cut, but I hadn’t noticed it. He explained that he had injured it while breaking the window to release the smoke. I observed that his sleeves were rolled up. He was wearing boots or shoes, a shirt, and trousers. Lee was occasionally out of my sight for more than ten minutes. When he showed me his arm in the kitchen, it was significantly cut, and I advised him to have it washed. John Lee departed from the house to go to Compton at around 5 am, and I saw him again between 6.15 and 6.30 am. I inquired about his arm, and he showed me that it was covered in blood. He proceeded to the scullery to wash it and mentioned that he intended to visit the doctor to have it treated.”
Richard Harris, Fisherman: When the police arrived at the scene, John Lee’s appearance must have made a lasting impression: “Lee was attired in trousers, a shirt, and a collar, with both sleeves rolled up and his arms stained with blood.”
Julian Meech PC: “I arrived in Sam on the morning of the murder. I encountered the prisoner, who stated, ‘My mistress is burned to death, and I am going to Compton to inform her sister.’ PC Ware Police Sergeant Abraham Nott arrived between 5 am and 6 am and assumed control of the case. “At approximately 5.30 am, while heading towards Sir Alfred Ryders of Wellswood, I encountered Lee walking in the direction of Wellswood. He carried a lantern, halted, and conveyed the news that he was going to inform Mrs. McClean that her sister, Miss Keyse, had died and been burned to death. I asked, ‘How did it happen?’ to which he replied that he did not know the details but asserted that they would have all perished if not for his sister. He added that we would never know how it happened since Miss Keyse was deceased. I inquired how his sister became aware of the incident, and he mentioned that she detected the smell of smoke and descended to the drawing room, where she witnessed the sofa on fire. When I asked about the presence of a lamp or fire, he responded that there was neither, and I remarked that it was very peculiar.”
George Russell, Chimney Sweep: “Lee knocked at the house around 5.45 am. I inquired who it was, and he said, ‘Miss Blatchford, come down, come down, Miss Keyse’s house is burning!’ When pressed, he disclosed that the dining room was on fire and Miss Keyse had been burned. When asked about Miss Keyse’s whereabouts, he declared that she was dead. He informed me that Jane had instructed him to inform Miss Blatchford, who, in turn, was to inform Mrs. McClean. He appeared reluctant to deliver the news to me. I was greatly shocked.” Mary Blatchford, Maid “Lee entered the house at 5.50 am. He reported that Miss Keyse’s house was on fire and that she had been burned to death. He raised his arm and mentioned cutting it while breaking a window.”
Anne Bolder, Cook: “I encountered Lee at 7.25 am (inaccurate time) and inquired about the fire. Lee stated that it was his house and his mistress had been burned to death. He asserted that they all would have perished had it not been discovered in time. When I inquired about the cause of the fire, he grew agitated and mentioned something about a lamp. He claimed that since Miss Keyse had been the last one awake, only she would know what transpired, but now no one would ever find out.” Charles H. Sutton – Hairdresser
“At approximately 6.15 am, I encountered Lee and inquired about his whereabouts. He stated that he had been to Compton and remarked, ‘Isn’t this a terrible situation?’ He gripped his left arm and asked, ‘Isn’t my arm in a bad state?’ He explained that he had injured himself while breaking the glass in the dining room to allow the smoke to escape. I remarked that it was a foolish act as it only worsened an already dire situation. He responded, ‘I had no choice; the smoke was so thick that I couldn’t find my way back to the door.’ He then departed and went inside.”
PC Frederick Broughton: “I arrived between five and six in the morning and examined the body of Miss Keyse, which was located in a small boathouse or storage area near the house. Later, I also examined the prisoner’s left arm. There were two circular skin wounds, which could have bled significantly. There was also a minor puncture wound on his right arm. Lee’s arm wounds were about the size of florins. The blood on the back of Lee’s shirt could not have originated from his own injuries.”
Dr Chilcote: “At nine o’clock, I encountered Lee again, and he appeared very shaken. I commented, ‘Hello, old man, feeling cold?’ He replied, ‘Yes, and so would you if you had been running about all morning in just your shirt and trousers, with blood up to your knees.’ He added, ‘Good God, that this should have happened. I have lost my best friend.’ I acknowledged the sentiment and asked if he had heard anything during the night. He stated that he had been fast asleep and the servants had difficulty waking him in the morning. He was wearing his coat when we conversed.” PC Frederick Broughton “At around ten in the morning, Superintendent Barbour spoke to Lee, and he provided the same account. He mentioned attending prayers in the dining room with Eliza and Jane Neck before going to bed at around ten past or quarter past eleven. He claimed to have heard no noise until the servant shouted about the house being on fire. He got up, put on his trousers, and went into the dining room with either Eliza or Jane. He asserted, ‘The blood on my arm, sir, is my own. I cut it while attempting to open the dining room window to let the smoke out. Then I went out to find Mr Gasking.’ Lee was then charged on suspicion of committing the murder of Miss Keyse. He responded, ‘Oh, suspicion, eh? Alright.’ I informed him that he would have to go to Torquay and took his overcoat. He simply replied, ‘Alright.'” “When apprehended by the police, he did not confess but remained remarkably composed. He walked calmly behind two officers the entire way to Torquay Police Station. On Sunday, his father and mother, who reside on a small farm in Abbotskerswell, visited him in the cells and were more distressed by his situation than he was. Another individual who paid him a visit was a young woman named Kate Farmer, a dressmaker from Ellacombe, with whom he was reportedly engaged.” Torquay Directory and South Devon Journal