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32Q THE LEADER. [No. 315, Saturday .
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OUR CIVILISATION. TOETURED TO DEATH : OU...
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A LOVING PAIR. A bbeagh of promise of ma...
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Woman-Beating.—This offence has declined...
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
Continental Notes. Fuanom. The French Em...
linari , and his house was searched ; but nothing of a criminatory character was found . The theft of the official papers still engrosses public attention in Prussia . The Kveuz Zeitung assures its readers that " the Minister President , Baron Manteuffel , in no way caused , or promoted , or knew of , the theft . " "The public prosecutor has already commenced proceedings against Heir Seiffart for slander , in stating that Baron Manteuffel was privy to the theft , and that he had the man Techen in his pay . " The storm of indignation that has risen up against Seiffart , " says the Times correspondent , " has also induced his constituents to call upon him to resign his of
seat in the House Deputies . ITALY . The Genoa G azette quotes a letter from Sarzana stating that on the night of the 17 th ult . two men , who had disguised themselves with masks , assaulted a broker of Carrara , and stoned him to death . It is believed that they mistook him . for a notorious informer . Another person of the same place on the following day narrowly escaped falling into the hands of a similar set , but got off after receiving a severe stah in hia neck . iiSiiiil SPAIN . p £ ? S | fe 9 ' -V- ™ .-In the sitting of the Cortes on Saturday , March 29 , the bill on the receipts of the state , presented by the Finance Minister , was taken into consideration by a majority of 184 against 27 . Thus the difficult question which threatened to produce a collision between the government and the Cortes is happily Bolved .
32q The Leader. [No. 315, Saturday .
32 Q THE LEADER . [ No . 315 , Saturday .
Our Civilisation. Toetured To Death : Ou...
OUR CIVILISATION . TOETURED TO DEATH : OUR PENAL " CIVILISATION . " One of the most horrible sights ever witnessed in the streets of London , took place on Monday morning ¦ under the sanction of the law , and with all the formalities > municipal and religious , of a so-called moral lesson . On that day , Bousfield , the murderer of his wife and family , -was executed outside Newgate , under circumstances of the most fearful description , as will be seen in the subjoined . account . During the whole of his imprisonment , Bbusfield has exhibited great sullenness . Mr . Davis , the Ordinary of the gaol , frequently endeavoured to make Mm . explain the reaso n for the com mittal of his crime , hut , though he often commenced a relation of the facts , he always broke off , sometimes observing , " Pray don't talk about it ; it is a horrid dream . " However , from a letter which he wrote to the father of his wife , it appears that jealousy was the cause . For some time , BousfteM clung to the hope that his life would be spared , and , to facilitate this result , he simulated madnes s , but so clumsily , that he was a t once detected , and warned not to continue such
conduct . He then desisted . On Saturday , he made a desperate attempt at self-destruction . He was visited in the course of the afternoon by , two of his sisters . After they had left , he suddenl y rushed to the grate ' and threw himself on the fire , with his head over the top bar . The officer who was with Mm at the time dragged him off ; but his clofche . 3 , and a good deal of hair which he wore under his chin , were in flames , and he was severely burnt about the throat , though the fire was soon put out . He then refused to take any sustenance , and , from that time to his death , only swallowed a little milk and wine , which was forcibly administered . The Rev . Mr . Davia , to the last , did his utmost to bring the wretched criminal to a sense of bis ondition
c ; but he remained sullen and unrepentant , and even on Monday morning gave no heed to the religious exhortations whioh were addressed to him . The sheriffs arrived at six o ' clock , at which time the condition of the criminal was terrible . His head which was hideously swollen and livid from the effects of the burns , waa buried in his breast ; ho was apparently exhausted and helpless , supported by two assistants , while a third constantly wiped from hia mouth a frothy fluid ; and it was even found necesnary to direct the surgeon to ascertain if he waa still alive . On Oalomfb binding him , ho vomited for a considerable time . The concluding sceno may be given au the words of the daily papers : —¦ " Eight o ' clock having arrived , the prisoner was raised
by tour men , and in that manner convoyed to the scaffold . Aa hq appeared totally unable to stand , lfc was considered the beat course to place him in a chair under tho beam ; and he was sustained in that position by ono of the assistants while Oalcraffc fixed the ropo in its proper position . The Rov . Mr . Davis accompanied the wrotohed man , bub it appearod use-# 59 ^ LP ? vform tho UBUftl offlce 8 oi religion . Whew ™ ^ te * w » given , tho chair on whioh tho criminal TZTni * " $ ** : ?* / " ? * way with the drop , and fa Sl « ly r m Was not noai ' bo groat « w it theSlliL S rd "T ^ clroumatft » °° s- The Bound of w £ aaSiw h £ f « « ° ly passed away , when there " £ B ^~?? ™^\ z $ t ^ K ^^ s ^ rfe ^ x . ?™ .:
both his feet were resting upon the edge of it , and that he was vainly endeavouring to raise his pinioned hands to the rope . One of the officers immediately rushed upon the scaffold , and pushed the wretched man ' s feet from their hold ; but in an instant , by a violent effort , he threw himself to the other side , and again succeeded in getting both his feet on the edge of the drop . Calcraft , who had left the scaffold , imagining that all was over , was called back ; he seized the criminal , but it was with considerable difficulty that he forced him from the scaffold . The short relief which the wretched man had obtained from the pressure of the rope by these desperate efforts , had
probably enabled him to respire , and , to the astonishment and horror of all the spectators , he succeeded a third time in placing his feet upon the platform , and again his hands vainly attempted to reach the cord . Calcraft and two or three other men then again forced his feet from their hold , and his legs were dragged down until the final struggle was over . It was observed that Calcraft was more than usually nervous ( though he generally exhibits trepidation ) ;
and this is accounted for by the fact of his having received an anonymous letter , stating that some of " the Kent-street roughs" were determined on shooting him , and advising him to get a Horse-guardsman's helmet ; but he was received with nothing more than the yells of th « mob . An extra body of police was present . The facts , as will be seen by our Parliamentary columns , were brought before the notice of Government on Tuesday , and , on the same day , Sheriffs Kennedy and Rose narrated the circumstances to the Court of
Alderman ; after which , a motion directing the gaol committee to inquire into the affair , and to report upon it , -was unanimously carried .
A Loving Pair. A Bbeagh Of Promise Of Ma...
A LOVING PAIR . A bbeagh of promise of marriage case , tried at tho Oxford Assizes ou Thursday , exhibits a most extraordinary history of depravity . Mr . Vivian Arthur Webber , a young man of six-and-twenty , was an officer in the army . In the month of November last , he became acquainted with a Miss Prichard , the daughter of an upholsterer at Swansea ; and to this girl , who was only seventeen years of age , Mr . "Webber wrote endearing letters , swearing that , " as God is in heaven , " she should be his wife "before three weeks wex * e over her little head . " Under this promise , he induced her to come up to London , and to live with him in furnished lodgings , which he took for her . It is needless to add that she fell ; but the promise of marriage was not redeemed . The seducer drank to excess , sometimes calling for sherry as early as seven in the morning , and was soon prostrated by delirium tremeus . The girl also , it would seem , partook largely of wine and spirits . One day , Mrs . Steer , the landlady , was ; called up into tho bedroom , and found Mr . Webber in bed , and Miss Prichard seated in a chair . The latter said Mr . Webber was unkind to her ; and Mr . Webber exclaimed , " Put her out , Mrs . Steer . ' ' The landlady asked who he meant . " That thing in the chair , " replied Mr . Webber . Mrs . Steer said that she would not put " the poor thing" out , but that she would ha"ve Mr , Webber put out by force if he did not go . On another occasion , she saw Mr . Webber give the girl some " slaps , " and once he injured her in the breast ( though it was not quite clear whether this was not accidental ) by the latch of the door . The pair had originally passed for man and wife ; but Mrs . Steers soon found out the fact . She also , one day , found Maria Prichavd in bed with her ( Mrs . Steer's ) husband . The husband had since fled ; and Mrs . Steer , at the trial , paid that , if she could come at him , and at Maria Prichard , she would murder thein . ( In giving her evidence , she frequently burst into tears . ) Finally , the girl was takep away from the lodgings by a man who seoms to have been a prixe-nghtor . Mr . Wobbez 1 , in his defence , pleaded that the girl had had improper intercourse with other men . After the evidence , a consultation took plaoe . This at lost ended in an arrangement , which was said to bo an agreement to pay £ 50 to tho plaintiff ; all future proceedings to be barred .
Woman-Beating.—This Offence Has Declined...
Woman-Beating . —This offence has declined lately , but an aggravated case came before the Lord Mayor on Monday . Mary Anu Brooks is a woman cohabiting with a man bearing tho inappropriate name of Felix . This person came homo on Saturday night , intoxicated , and , finding his supper not ready , knocked tho woman down , and kicked and struck her with such violonco that the blood poured from her mouth , and she was nearly insensible . She was at that time an out-patient of tho London Hospital , on account of her r iba having been fractured by previous violence from her partner . Ho was committed for trial by tho Lord Mavor .
A Family of Thieves . —Mr . Thomas , inoroor , of J 3 rierly Hill , near Dudley , recently took , aa oaaiataat , a young man wamod Haigh , who applied in answer to an advortiaomont . For Homo time ho woiufc on very well , but auspicious oirciunatancoB thon oeoumxl , end lxo waa diamwaed . Inquiries wore instituted hs the
police , and it was discovered that the -whole family lived by a system of thieving . The sons have been brought up as . shopmen , and possess amazing tact and address . Their only remaining means were those of forging references to character for one another . Their names are Charles , Joseph , Henry , and Albert Charles has suffered one month ' s imprison ment at Stafford for presenting a forged reference at Newcastle , and Joseph has been in Wakefield gaol three months for a like offence . _ Two years ago , they were advertised in the Lancashire papers as dangerous characters . Charles had but left Stafford gaol a few weeks before his engagement with Mr . Thomas . lfc was found that numbers of parcels had been sent from
the Brierly station , addressed to " Mr . Allen , Wigan station ; to be left till called for . " Upon this discovery Mr . Richards , a police officer , accompanied by Mr . Thomas , set off for Wigan , and at the station there found a carpet bag , which Mr . Thomas identified as his . At the suggestion of Mr . Richards , a porter was sent to the Anderton Arms with the bag , and a searchwarrant having been procured , measures were taken for action . Two policemen were placed in a house opposite the Andexton Arms . The porter asked if Mr . Allen lived about there , and Joseph replied , "T am he . " He then signed the book as " George Allen / and paid lOd . carriage . On the porter leaving the
police entered the house . The mother immediately threw several pledge tickets into the fire for goods to the value of £ 200 . They were both apprehended , and a large quantity of goods were found concealed in different parts of tlie house . They were next day taken to Manchester , where the father and two other sons were residing . One of them , Henry , was apprehended ; but Albert , on hearing of the affair , had gone to Ashton-under-Lyne by rail , to give instructions'to a Miss Andrews , a dressmaker , to conceal the goods which had been sold to her by the family ; and he subsequently fled . The mother and three sons have been committfid fnv trial .
Suspected Murder and Suicide . —A shocking affair has just occurred at a place called Winsharn , near Chard , in Somersetshire . A man of fifty years of age , named Edward Showers , had become much , depressed in spirits on account of selling some timber for less than he afterwards found out he could have received for it . One mominglast week , his son , aged sixteen , got up to go to his work , and a few hours after he had left , some neighbours found the wife of Showers lying nearly dead intbe house , with her skull frightfully beaten in . A piece of iron , with blood upoa it , was found neap the poor woman . On searching for the husband , he was found dead in a well near the house .
Elaborate Detection op Theft . — Great difficulty is experienced in prosecuting the comnaitters of theft upon railways , owing to the number of persons through whose liands the stolen property may have passed , but who are necessary as witnesses . In a recent instance , the obstacles have been overcome , by means of unusual tact and energy . A porter on the Midland Railway at Gloucester was suspected last February of having stolen a very handsome sugarbasin , the property of a lady , who sent it by the train to Worcester as far back as June , 1854 . Investigations were set on foot by Mr . Farmer , the superintendent of the detective police employed by the Midland line ; and 1 , 900 mileB were travelled by him in prosecution
of the inquiry , the affair being rendered still more difficult by the time which had elapsed since the robbery , and by the consequent necessity for searching out persons who had left their situations . Mr . Farmer , however , succeeded in collecting all the facts and all the witnesses . The trial of Godwin took place at the Gloucester sessions on Friday week , when twentythree witnesses from various parts of the country , including persons from Edinburgh , London , NevvcaBtie , Bath , Cheltenham ., Worcester , Stoko-upon-Trent , & c , were produced in court ; and , after an inquiry whioh lasted for several hours , the prisoner was found guilty and sentenced to twelve months ' imprisonment with hard labour . **
Justice beicoiie Meroy . —John M'Brido and Thomas Qarrett , ticket-of-leavo men , and Robert Roberts , wore indicted at tho Liverpool Assims for a burglary . Tho police , seeing them loitoring about Warwick-street Liverpool , during tho night , hid themselves behind sorao timber , and watched their movements , as they were known to bo bad characters . Shortly afterwards , a ory was wised of " police ;" and tho conatablos ascertained that aa entry had been effected into a Ixouho by means of liftiug tho collar * plato . The burglars , however , found a powerful
rosistanco from tho lodgers in tho houso , and Roberts was captured , tlio others escaping for a short tiiuo . Tho jury found thorn all Guilty , but " was about to recommend them to mercy , when Mr . Baron Mavtiu interposed , saying the jury had bettor hour him before thoy aaidl nnything more . Thon , addicting tho prisoners , ho announced that M'Brido hud boon provioualy convicted for various offences no Iowa tlinn seventeen times , Garrutb eleven tiiaoa , nnd Roberts once . Hid Lordship , having ditstinguiahad tho oa » o of the latter from those of tho former , nontonoed M'Bride and Garrett to ton yearo and Roberto to four
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), April 5, 1856, page 8, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_05041856/page/8/
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