The Sun.
London, England, 1808-07-29 00:00:00

HORRIBLE 4ITIRD.U.

FROM AN AMERICAN PAPER.]
You will herewith receivo.a report of the evidence
in a criminal prosecutiOn, which was lately conduet-
ed in the Distria. Court of .Prince Edward. The
case is characterised by an attpcitywhich probably
has not been equalled, and certainly eteer surpassed,
by the wickedtiess'ot mane, „Many resp,eetable
Geim-
tleuten in this quarter have expressed a w isle that the
particulars of Blanks' horrid crime should be Lid be-
forethe public. I attended the trial, committed the
substance of it to paper, and have since submitted
it to the inspection ofeseveral ,Gentleirtem who heard
it, who' hate eXpressed to me an opinion that my
report does not:hyany means exhibit an exaggerated
pici are, but that it .might hate been. much more
strongly Colnured, without doing injustice to .the
Gazette.)
Farrnville, April2o, 1308.
At the last Distrid•Court of Prince Edward, John
Blanks, of Halifax county, was convi6ted of murder,
in the first degree, for cruelly killing his wife in the
month of February last. This atrocious murder is
distifignislred by a brutality unparalleled in' the his
tory of eithercivilized or sAyage-tren. Barbarians
have often exhibited unrelenting cruelty of feeling
towards their enemies, and have derived a malignant
pleasure from their sufferings, protracted somentites,
perhaps, for a whole day.; but; I believe, another
instance has not occurred,Wherein a husbanci,wlito had
not been married longer than eight or nine months,
and whose wife was. in •an'advanced state of preg-
nancy, delii?erately formed and executed the horrid
purp6se .of putting her to "death by (.ruelties repeat-
ed and; tortures protraCted for `SiXdays,
, .
' On Sonday evening, the day. of February lasts
two young men of Blanks' family were approaching
his hone; when they .heard the_eeieE qt_ his wile,
shrieking and imploring mercy. They concealed
themselves under a fence, and saw Blanks bring her
out twice and whip her unmercifully. She escaped
from 'Him that night, but returned net ennrning.—
He keiit her upstairs in 'the day-time, and drought
her down at night. On the succeeding Thiatsday
two 'Women of• the neighbourhood went to Blanks'
house, and were by,him invited upstairs to see his
wife, Whom, they found in bed, unable to sit- up-,
shockingly bruised and beaten, and one hand severe-
ly bitten. On, 'riclsr evening Blanks 'was heard in
hi house swearing and cursing bitterly, and. threat-
ening to send some one to hell. After.which he
'required one of his sons to take his,gun and do it.
He was seen at that time. without a shirt, washing
his face, breast, and hands, whiCh were, bloody, and
one of his sons said he had been whipping a negro.
The voice of Mrs:Blanks was heard in the hoUse fay
a young man, whom She called, and requested Jo
cbme to her; bid Blanks would not,p9rmit him to go
. in: "Early On. SatUrCi4 morning twoofßtanks' 6Q/15),
and a young man who had lived with him, fOnnd
him in hiS tic tise sitting on a bed; upon which was
the dead bOdy of his wife, whose death he affected
to lament, declaring he would put an. end to his
dwn life. A:large switch, both the ends of -which
were beaten to a fringe, and, an open knife, stained
with blood, lay by hint. Nobody, wasein the house
bin Blanks and the corpse ofhis wife,. •Se wanted
his will 'mitten, and his, saddle-bags were in the
room, packed up with his
,clothes. At this tinge he
was intoxicated, but had not, been seen in, that con-
dition untiletlie`n, since he began , this treatment to
his wife, whiChended in her death. Severalpersnns
'of' the .neighbb,irhood, which by ~ this time. had
been 'alarmed, carne with a Magistrate to lilanks!
hduse. l--Ie fired ague at two of those who first
appeared; and Strongly evinced a determination to.
shoot at others ; but at length, by a piece of dex-
tetous'inallagernerify Isis person was secured; the
house was diligently searched, and no person found
in it except Blanks, the dead body, and those who'
had come its since the death of Mrs. Blanks. Ele
did not impute the murdes; of his wilt to any other
person.
. •
'The-skull Of fhe deceased was broken in several
places, her head was almost destitute of its natural
coveritrg, end locks of hair were scattered, over _the,
floor stained with blnod. An eildrt seeiped to have
been made to, cover the dead body with,,clean linen ,
A morning gown and two shifts of Mrs.. Blanks',
with a shirt orßlanits', were found 'iii.. a
.clow.t ad,
joining the room in: which tiieedead body.layi mutt
the shirt was 'thee Same he wore. on the. preceding:,
Thursday, when the
these were in a :State whie,h, §t}eliyed they had been
saturated with tilOod, and ad attempt had beep made,
by *wetting ringing to het it out. A wound vvasi
found near the 'ear of the tieee:i:Jed, witkh was nude,
With a knife. 'Elie body exhibited ,a ,spectacle
horror, which, in the langylg9;o(the witnesses,,was
beyObd description. Xe.wa,, bruised and, wounded.•
from- the crown lit to:. `kctil:ll to the ; feet, and mangled
by the teeth as'l,vetitathe blosi, of the fflurtierer:
' ''his unfortnitate;wOman, wkn, was not flir frorme
the. period of child-birth when she was murdered;
had ever maintained ti good ,repBtatian, and was.
distinguished by the in::dness of her temper and
her industrious attention ee
dowegduttes, nor
was a single circtinisuince iII jier cwidt4t.
ed by a witness, Or ever. suggested, by
which afforded .any ground ot,acpmpl,altit on his
part,- or the .sligheest palhation,f4,l/i'y
ing•thewhole trial 'he preserved an ie4yeeihlextun+e
posure of facp.
• Ab attempt was made tn_shew a dedtigetnient of
his mind. Bdt there was nothing tiie
to induce even a suspicion of his insanity"; •filtEMee!:
he was,defended onethatground. The 'itaity
heSitate to 'render a. verdiel
eonvieiat g- fii roc •t lar-
der in the first, degree, and sentetice of liOYEttl‘krs'
pronounced against him .by the FesidingJitiliel'Viir
the Court on the 7th dapol the term.
In this Statement df 'tne case, 'nothing 'ha's 'le-1
•
given but w.hat was•estßblished in open Coert, "
its •
unequivocal testimony. -But the female wiewsees
out of Court have averred, that if they not -
been restrained •by'rfeelings which always p.-,
with the, reputation-of their W,;t11:,
develop,!d lads. which would. I,KR e
features of this.horrible'ecise Lee,- ee;
thing which appeared on the
have been communicated, but they are too hut
to be told.

•

nrt
ptiP:ishe 1 by WILLIAM ARMICER
or •It),1
the Paper, I ellers tgr the Edilur,'.&e, (Dust-paid) a