concerned with one French, in stealing peas. || inquired if her husband came home the even. French was taken up on suspicion, and he absconded; but having received information that French had been tried and acquitted, he returned to Sudbury. From that time till the latter end of the last year, he remained in that neighbourhood, eluding the vigilance of the police, and boasting that he had escaped from several parties of soldiers, who had been sent to take him. At Sudbury he built himself a house, well calculated for secretion or escape, in case of an attempt being made to take him. This house is situated on the ing before; she replied no, and that she was under the utmost anxiety and terror on that account. Your terror, said he, cannot equal mine, for last night, as I lay in bed, quite awake, the apparition of your husband appeared to me, shewed me several ghastly stabs in his body, told me he had been murdered by such a person, and his carcase thrown into such a marle-pit. The alarm was given, the pit searched, the body found, and the wounds answered the description of them. The man whom the ghost had accused was apprehended, and committed on a violent suspicion of murder. His trial came on at Warwick, before the Lord Chief Justice Raymond (probably about the year 1730), when the Jury would have con. victed, as rashly as the Justice of Peace had com. mitted him, had not the Judge checked them. He addressed himself to them in words to this purpose :" I think, Gentlemen, you seem inclined to lay more stress on the evidence of an apparition than it will bear. I cannot say that I give much credit to these kind of stories; but be that as it will, we have no right to follow our own private opinions here; we are now in a Court of Law, and must determine according to it; and I know not of any law now in being which will admit of the testimony of an apparition; nor yet if it did, doth the ghost appear to give evidence.-Crier," said he, "call the ghost," which was thrice done, to no manner of purpose. It appeared not.-" Gentlemen of the Jury," continued the Judge, "the prisoner at the bar, as you have heard by undeni banks of the Stour, into which, being a remarkable good swimmer, he has thrown himself, when pursued, and has got into the adjoining county of Essex. He, however, was apprehended on suspicion of stealing wheat in sacks, out of a barn in an adjoining parish. A search-warrant was grant ed, but the sacks and corn were not found on Harris's premises. He, however, during search, jumped out of a window and ran off. The next morning he was taken into custody as he was coming out of his own apartment.--Many circumstances appeared, amounting to a moral certainty of his guilt, and he was committed to Halsted house of correction for further examination, but the evidence not being sufficient to be laid before a Grand Jury, he was detained as a deserter. A party was sent from Colchester to take him to Chelmsford, on his way to Pendennis Castle. A second party took him forward from Chelmsford. This party, by his insinuating manners, and his generosity in treating them at different public houses on their way, he lulled into a security of his not attempting to escape, pre-able witnesses, is a man of a most unblemished vailed upon them to take off his handcuffs, and in the dusk of the evening, whilst he was treating them at a public-bouse in Billericay, ran off and left them in the lurch. The next day he was seen at Sudbury, but was so subtile in his movements, as to avoid all attempts to take him, though several houses were searched for that purpose. He was at length taken through the sedulous exersions of Dr. Maclean, the Mayor of Sudbury, and the personal activity, perseverance, and public spirit of Mr. Branwhite Oliver, assisted by some young men in the town. He is now lodged in Bury gaol. WARWICKSHIRE. REMARKABLEL DETECTION OF A MURDERER-A farmer, on his return from the market, at Southam, in this county, was murdered. A man went the next morning to his wife, and character; nor hath it appeared, in the course of the examination, that there was any manner of quarrel or grudge between him and the party deceased. I do verily believe him to be perfectly innocent; and, as there is no evidence against him, either positive or circumstantial, he must be acquitted. But, from many circumstances which have arose during the trial, I do strongly suspect that the gentleman who saw the apparition was himself the murderer; in which case he might easily ascertain the pit, the stabs, &c. without any supernatural assistance; and on such suspicion 1 shall think myself justified in committing him to close custody till the matter can be further inquired into."-This was immediatledy done, and a warrant granted for searching his house, when such strong proofs of guilt appeared against him, that he confessed the murder, and was executed at the next assizes. WESTMORELAND. SWINDLING.-Lately a man succeeded in a most dexterous manner in swindling the landlady of the King's Head Inn, Appleby, in this county, out of £20. This man was, from appearance, about thirty-five years of age; and after dining at the King's Head, a poney, belonging to a miller, attracted his attention, which he instantly purchased for £14. and gave the waiter of the inn a £20. bill to cash, purporting to be drawn by John Harrison and Co. of Carlisle, on Messrs. Masterman and Co. Bankers, London. The bill being cashed, he set off on the poney, wards Penrith, but did not travel more than four miles on the north road, until he dismounted, gave a boy two shillings to take the poney to the miller again, and instead of pursuing his journey to Penrith, went to Brough under Stainmore that night, and next day took the mail for London. The bill turned out to be a forgery. We understand the man had with him a greyhound and a pointer dog when he left Appleby. WALES. to DIED.-At Bala, Merionethshire, aged 84, Mrs. Jennet Roberts. She resided forty-five years on a small farm in the neighbourhood of Bala, in great distress, but for nine years preceding June, 1809, she received relief from the parish of Llanddervel; about that time, with the assistance of some friends, she commenced a suit in Chancery against the executors of the late Robert Jones, Esq. (an eminent brandy-merchant) of St. Mary Hill, to whom she was first cousin, and next of kin. After the delay which the law is subject to, she obtained about six months ago, a decree from the Chancellor, which put her in the possession of a moiety of the estate, amounting to upwards of £150,000. IRELAND. SHOCKING MURDER-Two female servants, belonging to a farmer who resides near to Castlefin, asked leave of their mistress to go to a dance in the neighbourhood, which she would not grant; notwithstanding, being determined on going, they accordingly, after all the family had retired to rest, got up, and went off, accompanied by two young men, we believe, fellow-servants. Next morning the girls were missed, on which a very general and minute search was, made for them through the country; one of them was found in a ditch strangled with her own handkerchief; the other, we are sorry to say, could not be found. Suspicion having been attached to the young men who left their master's house with them, they were taken into custody and confined in a house, from which one of them made his escape by leaping out of a window, but the other has been safely lodged in Lifford gaol. It is generally supposed that the villains' intentions were to debauch the girls, and not being able to effect their purpose without force, they preferred committing murder rather than fail in accomplishing their wicked designs. The other girl it is supposed, has been also murdered, and thrown into some hole or river, where she still. remains undiscovered. Lately, two prisoners, who had been confined in the county gaol of Cork, effected their escape from that prison under most hazardous circumstances. They succeeded by some means in getting to the top of the outer wall, which is, thirty feet high, when they made an effort to jump into a tree in Mr. Walker's demesne, at the west end of the prison, in which one of them succeeded, but the other was unable to effect his object, and had his back broken from the violence of the shock. The other prisoner, who escaped without any injury, very humanely took the disabled man on his back, until he lodged him in a cabin, at a village at some distance, where he was discovered the next morning, and brought back to the prison, but in such a dangerous stat. that he is not expected to recover; the other effected his escape, and has not since been apprehended. The unfortunate man who has been injured, was confined on a charge of a rape; the other, who has escaped, was charged with stealing gunpowder from the manufactory, of Bellincollig. London: Printed by JOHN BELL, Southampton street, Strand. April 1, 1811. BEING Bell's COURT AND FASHIONABLE MAGAZINE, FOR APRIL, 1811. A New Series. EMBELLISHMENTS. 1. Three PORTRAITS representing the Two Junior Princes of Spain, now Prisoners in France, and their Sister, MARIA ISABELLA. 2. Mr. WEST'S Picture of CHRIST HEALING THE SICK IN THE TEMPLE, 3. The TRUMPETER, by GERARD DOW. 4. The YOUNG HOUSEWIFE, by Ditto. 5. A WHOLE-LENGTH FIGURE in the FASHIONS of the SEASON, COLOURED. 6. A Complete Suit of PEARL ORNAMENTS. 7. CONVERSATION between the Old Pensioners MALPLAQUET and. HOCKSTET, on our recent Successes in Spain and Portugal; an Original Song for the Harp and Piauo-forte, composed by Mr. DIBDIN, expressly and exclusively for this Work. admitted into the New Authentic accounts of ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS, on all interesting subjects, are now Series of LA BELLE ASSEMBLEE, if written in a chaste and elegant style. Births, Marriages, Deaths, and Provincial Intelligence, possessing any peculiar character,will hereafter meet with the most respectful attention, and a reason will be assigned in the next successive Numbers for whatever articles may be omitted; but it is requested that all Letters be sent free of Postage. London: FRINTED BY AND FOR JOHN BELL, PROPRIETOR OF THE WEEKLY MESSENGER, |