The Express.
London, England, 1847-09-04 00:00:00

by that horrible woman who had bee* governess to the
clams. I believed her to have been yet even lama,
ablate, and that she was abeut to appear.
Tire Fumy eIUCIIILSTA2MAL DICLAIIATION Or tan
Hots DZ PRALLIX, AS TO TUB Mnausa OP Till DUCHItarl.
_Madame de Prulin and myself arrived at Paris at •
esarter nest is We evening, by the Corbeille Railway.
%same de Perlin entered a haekuey cab with in Mee sad
their tutor, and I entertd another with my dsag sad
sage son, and we arrived at my hotel at •mmeleelfeet
rO, after having both of us made unite in Paris. Madame
de rrselin must have made several. I went with my
daughters to tee their former governess, Mdlle. de Luau
reading cue du Rutty, No. 9, an Marais. I did not see th;
declaim on arriving at my hotel ; she had already entered
her apartments. I, op my part, immediately entered my
bedroom, after having coedneted my daughters to thefr
apartment, situated on the locoed story of the hotel. I went
to bed, and immediately after fell asleep, without
having required the assistaace of a valet de chambre,
which 1 am nut accustomed to employ. This morning,
at an hour I cannot indicate, but when the day
was beginning to break, I was awakened by confused
cries; but as Cries are often heard in the Champs
Eludes, I was not frightened, and I even did not get up
immediately. A moment after I heard steps of going and
aiming in the garden. I then left my bed, put on my
dusting-gown, and went towards the chamber of Madame
de ?radio. On arriving at the third door of my chamber,
which is at the bottom of the steps of the little corridor
which precedes it, I heard coafttsed cries • I believe there
was scry of murder; and without going further I re-seceaded
te ay chamber, I entered my study, and took from my table
a loaded pistol. I then descended to the chamber of
Madame do Prodiu, which I entered after traversing her
dressing-room. Obscurity and profound silence prevailed.
I called her by her name of Fanny. but she did not answer
me. I then lett the dressing-room, and lighted a wax-
=Me with hied. r marches, which, as usual, were under
the clock in that room. I then entered the chamber
deb' duchess alote,and I found her seated on the ground,
her head supported on a sofa placed between the fire-place,
and the window. I went to her; her face was covered with
blood, which flowed abundantly from wound' on the head
and on the neck. The idea of calling my domestic* did
as occur to 1110, besides I had not time to do it, for I had
hardly tried to raise the need of the duchess, and to render
her name ardetance, before I heard knoekingat the door other
chamber whichcornmunicates with the saloon. I went to open
the lock which fastened the door of it in the interior, and
I there found the persons whom I just designated to you. It
was whilst endeavouring to render assistance to the duchess
that! become stained with blood. Alter the entrsncs of
these pert no. I ta.leul with them fir about twenty minutes
ne half an hour. I several times touched the body of
Madame de Prulin. and at last, as I was distracted, I re-
entered my chamber, where I first wished my hands,
lad it was not until later that I endeavoured to re-
move with water the blood which I had on the breast,
on the left side my dressing-gown, in order not to frighten
my children, to wh.'m I was about to go to communicate to
them the misfortune which had just deprived them of their
mother. The courage to tell them failed me. Very shortly
after, General Sebasiani. uncle of the dnobese, arrived, and
hewn with me when M. Brusehn, commissary of police,
came. My first care had been to recommend that the cum-
misery of police and a doctor should be sent for.
44 We (toss the procie-verbol) asked the Duke de Praslin
what use he had made of the pistol with which he was armed.
Be enswered us, that At the time at which he endeavoured
to seeder Assi.tanee to the duchess, he had thrown it on the
door; th it he did not exactly know where, but it was close
to him and the duchess ; that he had taken it again, and, by
*nervous movement, lad struck the floor with the barrel,
sad also with the butt-end, and that he had definitively
ate Boned it at a place which he could not determine.
"We asked the Duke de Praslin if the window of the
dachas'. chamber was pen ? He replied in the negative.
"We asked him if he had remarked that other doors open-
ing into that chamber, besides that of the duchess's dressing-
mom, were opened ? He answered that the door of the large
Moon was closed, that he was certain of it, since ho had been
obliged to gat and open it, but that be could not say if the
door of the boudoir was locked ; that those were the only
dome, with those of the dressing-room, and two little rooms
which have n' other Male. which open in that chamber.
We asked the duke how it happened that the remains of
apoekethendkerchief, which had served him as a night-cap,
and which had hems consumed, were found in his fire-place?
He easweied :—Yesterday evening I took this pocket-hand-
kerchief from one of my drawers to cover my head to sleep
in; at the mom, set of entering my bed I found this hand-
kerchief to be in a very bad state, and I threw it in the fire-
place, in which was • large quantity of paper. It was this
morning that these objects took fire at the moment at which
I threw a met& which I had lighted, for 1 know not what
ptupose, into the fire-place.
" We calm d it to be observed to the duke that, at the
element at which he re-entered his chamber, after haring
pawed M teat half so hour in that of the duchess, he could
have no need of a light to find his way to his chamber, and
to wash himself; that, moreover, there was a handkerchief on
the night-tittle prepared, and which did not seem to have
been rued since it had been washed, and we asked him to
give us explanations on those two circumstances. The
duke replied that he could not explain how it happened
that he had desired to have a light, or for what use he had
the light; that he felt that this want of explanation
might give rise to a grave charge in presence of the
bursted paper and handkerchief thrown by him in the fire-
place the previous evening; that the second handkerchief
found on the night-taiile, and which had not served, had been
prepared in advance, either by his valet-demhambre, or by
the wife of the porter, or some other woman of the house ;
that he did not peneise it when he was about to go to bed,
and that it was on that account that he had taken the torn
end burned handkerchief from a drawer ; that he had not
taken another, and had slept according to his custom with-
out afichn de neat ; that as to the movement which led him
to throw the handkerchief which was in a bad state into the
firs-place, and not to take another, it could be explained to
Show who It oew him by his diameter, hut that it was im-
possible ter him to give more precise explanations.
"We asked the Duke de Paulin to what cause he could
attribute the assuaination of the duchess, and if that lady
had, either in the house or elsewhere, enmities of a nature to
cease the commission of so great a crime ?—The Duke de
Pradin replied that he did not know any enemies of the
dasher, and that he could only explain the horrible crime
COlrnitted on her person by the circumstance that it was
desired to commit a robbery in the hotel ; that the male-
futon were perhaps ignorant of the return of Madame de
Prison and himself from the country, where they had been
for a month, that they were consequently surprised to find
the duchem in her chamber, and had then easessinated her.
" We asked the duke whence same the green cord which
was found passed through his braces when be undressed,
and for what cause he had that cord ?—He replied that the
cord was that of a powder flask, or a shot-bag, but that he
maid not say how It happened that the cord was found on
him when lie undressed. We seined this cord, and put seals
alit

" We afterwards asked the duke whence came five pieces
of cord, of which three were untwined, and a piece of white
cord of about 10 centimetres long and stained with blood,
which were found in the pocket of the dressing-gown which
he wore that morning ?—He replied that those pieces of cord
were found in his dressing-gown, but that he knew not bow
they came there ; and that if the piece of white cord were
stained with blood, it was because he had put his bloody
hands in his pocket.
" We also observed to the Duke de Praslin, that in enter-
ing the chamber of Madame de Praslin, we remarked •
pistol primed on a table before the window ; that there were
several spots of blood on the barrel and ramrod ; that at the
butt-end some hair adhered to the blood, and that there was
also • little piece of skin or flesh; that that must have been
the pistol which he took on quitting hie chamber, and we
requested him to give explanations as to these cir-
cumstances, which appeared to as to raise the gravest
charges against him as the author of the assmaination
committed on the person of the Duchess de Praslin?—
the Duke de Praslin bent down his head, and held
it in his hands, whilst the Procureur du Roi addressed
him in strong terms, enjoining him to explain himself with
the sincerity which became his pa ition and his name. He
at length said, If my attention had net been distracted by
the exhortation of the Proem:mu du Roi, I should have re-
plied to you that I deny that the pistol found in the chamber
of Madame de Praslin is that with which I armed myself
this morning to go to her assistance ; but I deny formally to
have struck her with this arm, or with any other arm ; as to
the edhe-ioa of the hair and skin to the butt-end of the
pistol, if that circumstance really exists, it o impossible for
me to explain it. (Signed) " PR/tattle,
" FELIX DOVELY, " A. BROUSSAIS,
BauzzLits, 0 A. COLLENI."