The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1826-04-06 00:00:00

-
EXECUTION.

WARWICK, APRIL 3.
To-day Michael (Ford, convicted of the murder of Mr. Perry,
at Birmingham, was executed in front of the county gaol.
Sunday night the prisoner went to bed about ten o'clock. He
awoke about midnight in great agitation, and in a momentary im-
pulse of passion inveighed against the conduct of the Jury. He
again fbil asleep, and continued in that state till four o'clock, when
he awoke, and ansioualy awaited the arrival of Mr. Turville, who
visited hint at an early hour, and administered to him that corm-
' lation which could alone mitigate his sufferings. After this the
wretched man wrote a last farewell to his wife, in which he ac-
knowledged the justice of his sentence, the contort which had
been poured into his heart by his religious adviser, and declared
that he was perfectly resigned to his fate.
Between seven and eight o'clock he ate a very hearty breakfast.
and soon after received a visit from the Sheriff'. About a quarter
before ten he was conducted to the Pressroom to have his arms
pinioned. He here drank two glasses of wine.
The unhappy malefactor was attended to the scaffold by the Rev.
H. Langhorne and the Rev. Mr. Turville; with the latter of whom
I he continued in fervent prayer while the awful and appalling pre-
parations were making to draw a veil over his mortal existence.
After these devotional exercises were concluded, he appeared at
first to be in great haste to be gone, and before the executioner was
ready to lower the drop, he hail given the signal by dropping his
handkerchief. Mr. Tatnall instantly stepped forward and again
slued it in his hand ; and the wretched man for some minutes
prayed loudly and fervently, but principally in his native tongue.
At length the fatal signal was given—the platform fell, and the un-
fortunate culprit was launched into a boundless eternity, white in
the act of' imploring mercy from his God. Among his last words
were—" Lord Jesus, receive my soul! to thee 1 commend my Bpi.
tit." " Open to rue the gates of life, 0 Lord. my God, and my
Redeemer !" lie was slightly convulsed immediately after suspen-
sion, but wm dead in less than forty seconds.
Ford was an Irishman by birth, and came from the county of Gal.
way, where are still living his three aisters, as agel father and
mother, and a Wife and infant child. His parents obtain a decent
livelihood from the occupation of a small lann ; but his pone wife
was entirely dependent upon her husband for support. He had
been mar►icd twice, and was in the twenty-sevcmh year of his age.
lle was five feet eight inches in height, of sallow complexion, pro.
minent forehectl, and overshadowing eyebrows.
It is thought rhat Ford's original design was only to rob the house
of his victim, and it has been said that notes to a considerable
amount, which Mr. Perry was known to possess in the course of the
day on which he was attacked by his assassin, were never seen after
the murder.

,Little doubt is entertained here, that Ford's departure from his
wife and friends in Ireland was connected with sonic horrible tran.
sections the particulars of which he has doubtlessly confided to his
priest, in whose breast the secret will remain inviolate.
The following is an extract of a letter addressed to the Reverend
Ambrose Bowles, Innis, county Clare, Ireland, written by Ford
an hour before his execution, and given to Mr. Turville, with a
request that he would put it into the handset the Sheriff:—
" An acesunt from Michael Ford, of his death, on the 3d day
of April. 1826, who died in the 27th year of his age. I was deal-
ing is (Mr. Perry's) shop in the town of Birmingham, where I did
work Ina the 6th of December, and I had no thought in my heart
to hllrf the man when I went in. I was but little in liquor, and
there was some words between me and him ; and I took a bluer
Iclotverlin sty hand and struck him and killed him ; but he did
not till the night after. Then I went to the town of Liverpool,
sod was taken on board of ship—that was on the 9th December—
and atesbrought to Birmingham again, and sent to iVars irk gaol,
and was tiled on the 30th of March, and found guilty, and suffered
the 841 day of April ; but now there's no help for the -misfortune
which is the cause of my death, and the Lord have mercy on my
soul. Now, Mr. Bowles, when you read this letter in chapel on
Sunday, you will gite It to Thomas Grady and I hope what I
have done amiss that it will never be returned to any one belonging
to me ; for in a short time I expected to go home and make up all
I had done amiss; but I can't go. I have wrote this letter about
an hour before I died. Now, my dear Mary, I wish you good
luck ; and long may yuu live; and now I ant gone, to which I ant
very sing fur it.
" MICHAEL FORD, his binds, the 3d of Apra."
The Rev. Mr. Turville put into the Sheriff". hands two other
letters, which Ford had written on the 3lst of libtreh, from which
it appears that it was really his intention to confess hi. crime. The
following are extracts :
" Iwu brought up decently with my dear father, Edmund
Ford, and with my dear mother, Bridget O'Connor, and never
seen either of them doing any thing out of the way since I was
born, nor I did not myself until I got married myself the second
time: and now I don't blame any one for it but myself. As for my
wife, Mary Grady, shedid not know any thing about it, norany of
her friends, nor any onabelanging to myself. As for 'my dear wife.
Mary genii), I can give her as good a character as ever woman got
from bet husband, for she was one of the best-tempered women that
I ever knew, both in heart mal in mind, and in soy kind of busi-
ness that woman could do.

' I hope, Mary, you will get married as soon as you will get the
opportunity. am' 1 hope you will look before you, and that you
have better luck than what you had by me. And now, Mary, I
hope you will be fond of my child, if stie lives, and it will be ell
the same for tom, with the help of (}nd. Now these arc my last
word,' that ever 1 will speak to you, though I cannot speak to you
now ; but it is ell the same, for these words are from my own
hands, but there is no help for this unfortunate death. Now,
Mary, my blessing to you from my heart, and I had little thought
I should part with you as I have. lam bow going to make a true
and humble confession about what I have dine amiss since I was
born, to the best of my knowledge.
" Now I am to die on the &I of April. A Roman Catholic
priest, cf the name of Torville, attended to me ever since I was sent
to gaol, and employed a counsellor and lawyer Mr me at his own
espense. He has behaved like a brother to ine, and long may he
live in health. wealth, and pronperity. But now all's over—but
here is now. from my heart, farewell to my dear and beloved wife,
and to Thotnas Grady, and to every and all belonging to them ;
and here is a farewell to my dear fuller and mother, my dear three
mimeo, and to all friends and neighbours. And may the Lord have
mercy on the soul of " Fouu."

DIRT RASA /N SkITAI Fl El DS.—[A(l%lffthilelllCtlt.]—We
understand that upwardn of 30,0011/. worth of /kb Mika, satins,
and gauzes, barege de aoie, grog des lodes, shawls, &c. &e , are now
t.elling without the least reserve, by commivdon, for the relief of
the distressed Sititalfields manufacturers, at Shears and Co.'s, 120,
Itegent-street. The goods are warranted to be srif the most fashion_
able description, and will be sold fur less than half they cost making.