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Leader (1850-1860), 27th January 1855, Edition 1 of 2, Page 81, Untitled Article

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      Untitled Article

      EXECUTION OF EMMANUEL BABTHELEMY . Emmanuel Bartheuemy , the murderer of Mr . George Moore and Mr . Charles Collard , died on the scaffold on Monday morning in front of Newgate , in which prison he Had been confined since the sentence of death , was passed upon him . . ¦ + On the day after the sentence was passed , the Rev . J . E . Davis , the ordinary of Newgate , visited Barthelemy in his cell , for the purpose of offering his services . In the course of this visit , Mr . Davis prepared the prisoner for his fate by informing him , that although the jury had recommended him to mercy , he should not allow his hopes to be excited .

      Barthelemy denied again and again the existence of a First Cause . Being pressed upon this point by Mr . Sheriff Crosley , he exclaimed , " Well , well , if there is a God , I hope be speaks French . " He added that he would soon know the great secret if there were any , but he did not believe in anything of the sort . Being urged to penitence and prayer , he said , " If I pray , it will not open the prison door , nor break the rope . " Oil Sunday morning , Mr . Sheriff Crosley again saw him , and again deemed it his duty to speak to him on religious matters . The sheriff said : " Now , take my advice ; you have but a short time to live , and while you have that time to live , try and make your peace with God . " Bartheleiny replied , "I am ho believer ; I

      understand geometry and the sciences , but I don t understand faith . " He asserted that there were a vast number of men as bad as he , and their crimes went unpunished . He particularly mentioned the Emperor Napoleon , -who , he said , had committed more daring and more violent acts than he ; and that while the Emperor was now receiving the acclamations of Europe , he was sentenced to death on the gallows . The only time Barthelemy was seen to exhibit any strong emotion was during this interview . The sheriff said , " You have a father , a good man , I understand ; is he a disbeliever ?" He said , "No ; " and Mr . Sheriff Crosley then asked , "Why do you not follow his good example ? " Barthelemy went towards the fire , gazed upon it intently

      for a moment , and burst into a flood of tears . He was spoken to on the sin he had committed . Barthelemy passionately exclaimed , " I have committed no sin . I have done a wrong , perhaps * but no sin . " Undaunted by the failure of his good-intentionsj Mr . Sheriff Crosley again entreated him to ask forgiveness of God , but the answer he received was , " I don't want the forgiveness jjf God ^ I want the forgiveness of man , that I might be able to walk out of these doors . " Mr . Sheriff Crosley thear asked him if there was anything he conld do for him , and Barthelemy expressed a wish to have " Paradise Lost " in French . After an immense deal of trouble , the Sheriff succeeded in obtaining a copy of this work , and

      it was read with great attention by the prisoner every day . On the Monday morning he was asked if he had jnade any confession or statement to Mr . Herring , his solicitor . He replied that he had made none , but the only person who knew could tell if he pleased . He asked that his clothes might not be given , as requested , to Mr . Herring , as he fancied they were wanted for Madame Tiissaud . This was promised . He refused all religious counsel , but said ~ he wished that- he -had faith , as it -would ., be a consolation to him . He also asked permission to hold a paper in his hand at his execution , which paper was found to be a letter from a French girl exhorting him to repentance . He died without a struggle .

      The motives which prompted Barthelemy to the commission of the murder are still involved in mystery . There has been no confession beyond a statement which ho volunteered to Mr . Davis , that the young woman who accompanied him to Mr . Moore ' s house was the illegitimate daughter of a Catholic priest , who was to receive money from Mr . Moore . ( Some political subjects connected with the French Government were mentioned in connexion with this money . ) He denied that ho took the formidable weapon found in Mr . Moore ' s back parlour with him to the house , and assorted that it was used by Mr . Moore for business purposes . Mr . Davis reports of him that ho was the hardest criminal with whom he ever had to deal . Various cases of picking pockets occurred in the crowd .

      In a letter to the Times , the Abbe * Roux contradicts the statement ascribed to Barthelemy , that the Abbe " " had too much good taste to trouble him on the subject of religion . " The Abbe * says , that for his first three visits ho had not touched upon religion for fear of a ropulse , but since the fourth it had boon the subject of continual discussion . On Sunday evening ho had conversed with the prisoner on eternal punishment . At six o ' clock on the morning of tho execution , at the time ho wns said by the nowspupors to bo fast asleep , ho had written tho following letter to tho Abbd : —

      " Dear Monsieur TAbbe * , — Before it ceases to beat , my heart is anxious to testify to you all its gratitude for tho affectionate caro which you have ho evangelically lavished on me during my last duys . If my conversion had been possible , you would have converted mo ; but , M J . have told you before , 1 boliovo in nothing . Bclicvo ma , my unbelief is not tho result of pride and obstinacy : I hrive sincerely dono my best , with the help of your counsels : unhappily , faith Hns not come , nml the moment in nea * . . . . In two hours I shall know the- socrct of death . If I have been mistaken , and if tho future that

      awaits me proves you to be in the right , in spite of the judgment of men , I do not dread to appear before our God , who , in his infinite pity , will be ready to pardon my sins in this world . Yes , I would desire to share your belief , for I can understand how those who take refuge in religious faith , find in the hour of death strength in the hope of another life , whilst I : —who believe in nothing but chemical annihilation—I am obliged in this supreme moment to draw my strength from the reasonings , perhaps false , of philosophy , and in the courage of a man . " Once more thanks ! and adieu . " E . Barthelemy . " Newgate , 22 nd January , 1855 . Six o'clock in the morning . " P . S . I beg you to express my gratitude to Mr . Clifford . "

      The Abbe * adds , that poor Barthelemy was mistaken ; that he did not die an unbeliever : he had charged the Abbd to declare that he pardoned all his enemies , and begged the Abbd to remain by his side until he had ceased to live . " He said , as he left me , with an accent I shall never forget , ' Pray , pray , pray ! ' I did pray with a full heart , and I trust that the man who declared that he was born a Catholic , and that he desired to die a Catholic , may have received at his last moment one of those ineffable gifts of repentance which purify a soul , and open to it the gates of eternal life . "

      Untitled Article

      CONINGHAM v . UBQUHART . A quarrel between Mr . W . Coningham and Mr . D . Urquhart came out before the Brighton magistrates on Saturday . It appeared that Mr . Coningham had lent Mr . Urquhart 20 Z ., which was considered by Mr . Urquhart as a kind of political contribution , but by Mr . Coningham as a personal loan . The difference led to some angry letters , and a warrant for the arrest of Mr . Urquhart and his friend Mr . Rolland has been issued . The following is Mr . Coningham's deposition : — " BOBOUGH OF BRIGHTON , IN THE COUNTY OF SUSSEX ,

      TO WIT . " The information and complaint of William Coningham , of the borough of Brighton , in the said county , Esq ., taken this 20 th day of January , Ju the year of our Lord , 1855 , before the undersigned , one of her Majesty ' s Justices of the Peace in and for the borough of Brighton , in the said county of Sussex , who saith that late in the month of February or early in March , 1854 , David Urquhart , of No . 9 , Bennett-street , St . James ' s , in the city of Westminster , Esq ., who was then , occupied in organising a movement in favour of Turkey , called upon me and expressed himself solicitous of my co-operation ; and after various meetings at the Clarendon Hotel , in Bond-street , London , the hotel where the said David Urquhart was staying , and elsewhere , an association was formed , under the title of the ' Association for the Protection of Turkey and other Countries from Partition : '

      " That Stewart Erskine Rolland , of Worthing , in the said county of Sussex , Esq ., became the chairman of the . association , and [ JL accepted the office of treasurer to it ; and a working " secretary ^ who received ""* weekly stipend of two guineas , was the only paid member of the association . The association was governed by a committee of some eighteen or twenty members . As treasurer , I received the subscriptions , which ( including my own for 25 / . ) amounted to about 117 / ., and were expended in defraying the cost of public meetings , and tho ordinary attendant expenses of printing , stationery , &c .

      " The said Stewart Erskine Rolland was at this time introduced . to me by the said David Urquhart , and acted as his confidential friend and adviser . That early in the progress of the movement , the said Stewart Erskine Rolland spoke to me , privately , of tho possibility of raising a fund for the relief of the said David Urquhart ' s pecuniary necessities , to which proposal I gave a decided refusal , saying that I should withdraw if such a plan were adopted ; and I then stated to the said Stewart Erskino Rolland that I objected , on

      principle , to tho employment of pnid agitators , and that each member of the association must defray his own expenses . That tho said David Urquhart afterwards spoko to mo of hia pecuniary difficulties , but I declined to enter into tho question with him ; but tho subject was never brought beforo the committee or association , and he afterwards gavo mo to understand that tho necessity for his immediato retirement from London no longer existed , as his difficulties had boon temporarily arranged , but ho did not inform mo by whom , or in what way .

      " It was shortly afterwards decided to hold a public mooting at Stafford , and tho said David Urquhart and myself were invited to attend at tho mooting , and I agreed to call at the Clarendon Hotel % > r tho said David Urquhart on my w « y to tho railway station . That I went there according to previous arrangement , early on tho morning of tho 10 th April , 1854 . I found the said David Urquhart in his room , walking up and down in a stato of considerable perturbation , and , after some heaitation , ho told mo that ho ' could not lonvo , unless ho luld * a score of pounds . ' I replied , to him that I wrfs sorry for it , as I feared wq could not go to Stafford , but

      after some further discussion , and my expressing to him my reluctance generally to lend money , I unwillingly consented to lend h * m 201 ., and I then drew in his room the cheque ( now produced ) for that anjount on my bankers , Messrs . Hoare , and of which the following is a copy : — ¦ - " ' London , 10 th April , 1854 . "' Messrs . Hoare—Pay to D , Urquhart , Esq ., or Bearer , Twenty Pounds . " ' WiLLiAM Coningham . " 20 / . 0 s . Od '

      "That the said Stewart Erskine Rolland was not present when the said David Urquhart applied to me for the said loan of 20 / ., nor any other person , and I believe he was then out of London , as on our going to Stafford , which we did on that day , he joined us there , from , I believe , Manchester , or some other place in the county . " That after the cheque was drawn , and given to the said David Urquhart , he rang the bell , and the clerk of the hotel took the cheque , and gave the said David Urquhart the change , after having deducted the amount of his bill .

      " The said clerk I believe is since dead , but I have seen an entry in the hotel books of the Clarendon , of which the following is a copy : — "' David Urquhart , Esq . ( contained in cheque for 20 / . ) , 5 ? . 2 s ; ' and which I have been informed , and believe is , in the handwriting of the said clerk . " That when the said David Urquhart applied to me for the said loan to pay his personal expenses , as I understood , and was in my presence in part so used , not one word was said by him that it was for any public object whatever , nor was there anything which then transpired to lead me to infer that he so considered it .

      " That the conduct of the said David Urquhart at the election for the city of London induced me subsequently to throw up the office of Treasurer to the association , and on my doing so there was a small balance of 21 . or 31 . due to me , which I left to be placed to the credit of the association . That from that time I have had no intercourse whatever with the said David Urquhart on political subjects , and I have seen him but once , when he called , with a common acquaintance , about the month of July or August , at my house in Kemp Town . ' At this stage of the matter various letters passed , including one from Messrs . Westmacott , Mr . Urquhart ' s solicitors , enclosing the-20 / . The deposition continues- — ¦ •"

      " That until I received the said letter from the said Messrs . Westmacott ; Blake , and Blake , I had no reason to believe that-the said IDavid-Urquhart considered my loan to him of 20 / . was for any public object , or was otherwise than a personal loan to him for but personal expenses , which , at the time it was lent , he was unable to pay ; and my said letter to the said Messrs Westmacott , Blake , and Blake , was written to show the absurdity of the attempt to convert that loan into a donation fora public object . " The deposition affirms ( at a meeting ) — " That the said Stewart Erskine Rolland , after some conversation , said , ' Then you have nothing to retract ?' I replied that I had nothing to retract , —I had stated nothing bnt what was true ; and as he was leaving the room , 1 said I had no account to rentier , and I begged him to take note of the " observation . " *; " ~ ~ " ~ "

      Some very violent correspondence then ensued on the part of Mr . Urquhart and his friend , evidently pointing at a hostile meeting . The deposition concludes" That I believe the intention of the said Stewart Erskine Rolland and the said David Urquhart , in writing and sending- the letters aforesaid , is to commit a breach of the peace , and to provoke me to fight a duel with one or both of them . " And I apprehend that the said Stewart Erskino Rolland and David Urquhart intend to do me some bodily injury , . and I pray that the said Stewart Erskine Rolland and David Urquhart may respectively bo required to find sureties to keep the peace towards me . » Sworn boforo me at Brigh- - ) "JOHN FAWCETT . ton , in tho County of Sussex , I Justice of tho Peace of this 20 lh day of January , f tho Borough of Brigh-18 D 5 . ' ton . ( Signed ) " \ Yilta \ m CoNirraiTAM . "

      Untitled Article

      MELBOURNE . Tare people of this colony nro very naturally desirous , to use their own words , that " tho convict element of their population should bo blotted out as speedily ns possible . " They therefore , in n petition to th o Queen from the Legislature , pruy Hor Majesty " that tho conditional pardons uow held by many of t ?» o former prisoners of tho Crown inhabiting these colonicfl bo doomed and taken to bo full and unconditional pardons . ^ 2 . I lint Hor Majesty " will be pleased to grant hor grac ous pardon , withoxU any condition , to all those now holding indulgonco who may bo recommended by the local Government . " . , _ _ , , There are now about 13 , 000 convicts in Van Diemen s Land ; of theso 10 , 00 . 0 will bo entitled to conditional pardons in tho courso of two years . If the prayer bo granted , it would have the effect of liberating the 10 , 000 7 \ t once , nml of abolishing tho conditional pardons . Thoro Rcnfna flomo probability that tho homo Government will advise tho Quoon to adopt tho suggestion of

      Untitled Article

      JXXVAJIX 27 , 1855 . ] THt IiEADM , ' 83 q

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 27, 1855, page 81, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2075/page/9/