The National Register.
London, England, 1818-08-17 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL ra:GLAI.n.

rrnflined insensible, and answered it by protesting
their innocence.

In the afternoon of Thursitty their families visited
them, and to them likewise they declared thet they
were ineoccnt, Clienners see and wife performed
melancholy ofice. Front his wife he he.l been separated
for some time. "i hey never lived happily together,
and from his merriege, according to report, may be
dined his crimes and 14We-times. They hal onie one
son, now live years of age, who lived with his grand-
father, anti who had only left old I .henneles house on
a visit to his mother, two days before the parricide was
committed. We have not learnt at whose suggestion
he was removed ; if at that of his lather, it would be a
strong circumstance in support of his premeditated de-
' sign to perpetrate the crime of which he was convicted.
Chalcrelt has left a wife and six children, three of them
being by a former marriage. Ills first wife is said to
have died a victim to his licentious andprotligate habits,
and he took his second from the workhouse, where he
himself was sent to be cured. We have heard nothing
more of the last interview between the convicts and
their families, but that they both persisted in declaring
their innocence of' the crime for which they were to
suffer. The Rev. Mr. Mann and Mr. Cole visited them
late at night, and were requested by them to come early
this morning. They accordingly went a little before
7 o'clock, 9 being the hour appointed for the proces-
sion leaving Guildford. They found the prisoners
nearly ie the same state of mind as when they left them
the previous evening. They first went into the cell of
Chenncl, whom they found up and waiting fur them.
There appeared to be little change upon him since his
trial. He was dressed in the same clothes and had
the same heavy, inanimate, sullen, and inexpressive
look. Mr Mann again addressed him on the subject of
his confession, after asking him the state of his present
feelings He told him, that however he might con-
ceal his crime from men, he could not elude the all-
seeing eye of that Goa before whom he was in a few
hours to appear. He informed him, that there were
certain crimes which he was not required to reveal to
the world, and for which he had to account to
his Maker alone; but crimes against society should he
confessed for the satisfitction of society. It was a duty
he owed to his country, friends, and neighbourhood to
make a disclosure of the latter ; it was the best sign
he could give of his reitentanee for having committed
them, and he hazarded his salvation by leaving the
world with a lie in his mouth, by declaring his limo-
cence, while conscious of his guilt. He begged Lim
to understand at the same time, tnat the confession, to Le
satisfactory, must be voluntary, and that ke did not
mean to extort any thing which he was not willing to
Wsnmunicate. Tn this considerable admonition, ut-
tered in the most feeling manner, Chennel returned no
other answer, than that they had nothing to witless ;
that he was perfectly innocent of the crime charged,
and that hie life had been sworn away by fake testimony.
Mr. Mann then proceeded to the cell of Chaleraft, arid,
to an admonition of the same import, received a similar
answer, expressed only with more vehemence. The two
prisoners were then conducted into the same cell, (the
gaol of Guildford being without a chapel,) to join in
devotional exercises, end to receive the sacrament.
When the communion aliments were brought, and the
Bibles and Prayer-books laid on the table, Mr. Mann
again embraced the opportunity, before those sacred em-
blems, of making a feeling address to the prisoners on
their situation anti prospects, if they partook of the
sacrament with a lie in their months, and having again
put the question, whether they had any thing to dis-
close, they replied successively that they were innocent,
and the service proceeded. Chennel received a Prayer-
book. Chaleraft, who could not read, sees requested to
attend. The Psalms which the Rey. Gentlemena read
were the Si st and 90th, the lessons were the 7th chap-
ter of Job, and the description of the last judgment
under the parable seoarating the sheep from the goats
in Matthew. Chennel joined in the service, an' read
the responses with an audible though feeble voice, and
in a languid manner. He was several times observed
to be more attentive to the trifling inconvenience of a
fly buzzing about his ears, than tc the sacred tasty in
which he was engaged, and durieg the reading of the
prayers we saw him yawn three or -four times, a:; from
fatigue or listlessness, which he conld not conceal. In
short the whole of his behaviour and manner
was that of a Iran comyletely besotted in his
intellects or hardened in his erinxo, dead to
any feeling of remorse, incapable of any spi-
ritual reflection, and insensible to any thing but •
visible objects. If we may be forgiven in making
such an allusion on so solemn an occasion, his cha-
mter strongly reminded us of that of Barnardine in
Measure for eMeasure, " a men that apprehends death
no more dreadfully but as a drunken sleep, careless,
reckless, and fearless of what's past, present, or to
come, insensible of mortality, and desperately mortal."
Chaleraft seemed more attentive, and by the expres-
sion of his face appeared to apply to himself those
parts of the service that had a reference to his
wretched situation. When Mr. Mann had commu-
nicated himself sad administered the communion to
the other Rev. Who. arrompanie,i LI,;, hr

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