The Sun.
London, England, 1853-01-08 00:00:00

THE CONVICT KIRWAN-A NEW CZARGE.

This wretched man remains in the hospital Of ICH-
mainham prison, his removal to the convict depot at
Spike Island having been delayed by the medical reports
placed before the Government. It appears, however,
that a new charge have been preferred against him, under
very mysterious circumstances. The Evening Packet
says

" Yesterday the magistrates of the head-office of po-
lice were engaged in the preliminary investigation of a
charge of a most serious character against the convict
Kirwan. We understand that it amounts to murder.
An artist named Boyer, who had been on intimate terms
with Kirwan, disappeared from Dublin in a most mys-
terious manner some years ago. His wife has tendered
evidence calculated to criminate this wretched culprit in.
his disappearance."
The following additional particulars appeared in the
Freeman's Journal :
" The above charge has been the subject of public
rumour and gossip since the proceedings were taken on.
the part of the Crown to discover and seize the property
of the convict after his sentence. The story in circula-
tion, whatever be its accuracy, run thus :—Mr©. Boyer,
who had been receiving an annuity of 401. per annum
from Kirwan for some years, came forward and claim ed
the house in which he had been living, in Merrioxi-
street, together with other houses, and a large portion
of the furniture, pictures, and ornaments, on the grouind
that Kirwan, who had become a constant companion of
her husband, whose property they were, had obtain:ed
possession of them from him—that her husband sud-
denly and mysteriously disappeared—and that Kirwan
had a deed whereby, as he alleged, her husband
had made over all his property to him, but that :he
agreed to pay to Mrs. Boyer the sum of 401. per annum
during her life. She, not 'being in a condition to test
the point, was obliged to accept the arrangement ; but
when his conviction at once stopped her annuity, and
seized all that was his at the time to the use of th ie
Crown, she threw herself upon the justice and men(
of the law officers to regain possession of what was hers
by right. The examination into the truth or falsehoo d
of her strange story has led them step by step to the
vestigation which is now pending ; and, if rumour speaks
truly, there will be even further investigations into other
mysterious matters connected with the career of the
culprit."

The following is from the Dublin correspondent of the
Limerick and Clare Examiner:—

"Now that there no longer exists a doubt of the com-
mutation of the sentence of this man, there can be no in-
justice done him by the mention of a passage or two in
his previous life, which would not be so appropriate if
his position were unchanged. Some four or five years
ago Mr. Kirwan induced a young and interesting girl,
of respectable connections here, to abandon her home.
and accompany him to England, where they lived for-
some time together. After the eagerness of appetite,
passed, the unfortunate creature was abandoned in Liver—
pool. I have not learned what her fate was since he re—
turned to Dublin. After his return he was met by the-
brother of his victim, who attacked him and gave him a
tremendous beating, by which he was prevented for a con-
siderable time from appearing in public. So soon as he was
recovered,. however, he summoned his assailant be-
fore the magistrates, for the assault. The pro-
vocation, however, transpired before the magistrates,
who, after a not very complimentary comment on his
conduct, dismissed the charge. Much stress has been
laid, in the consideration of the circumstances of this.
man's case, upon the fact that it had not been proved.
on the trial that the deceased lady was aware of the,
existence of the other party who shared or owned Kir-
wan's affections. There was evidence given to show that
Mrs. Kirwan called at the house kept by her husband at
Sandymount. But there could have been, I understand,
further evidence given of the same fact, for I understand
that Mrs. Kirwan traced her husband to a house at the
north side of the city, where either this woman (now Mrs.
Kirwan) or some other woman resided—that she found
them together, and that this was previous to his tenancy
of the house at Sandymount."

Informations were sworn yesterday at the Head Po-
lice-office against Kirwan, for the murder of a man named
Boyer some years ago.
Kirwan is to be transferred to Spike Island to-day.

THE CASE OF KIRWAN.

When the new Lord of the Admiralty was addressing
his constituents the other day, he took credit to himself
for having been on the Commission which has already
effected considerable improvement in the administration
of justice in the superior courts of common law, and
gave a pledge that he and the Ministers with whom he
is now associated would not rest content with what
their predecessors had done, but would go on to purge
the ecclesiastical courts, and do whatever else might be
needed in the way of law reform. That there is room.
for further improvement there is no question, and we
beg to suggest to Sir James the propriety of turning his
attention to the necessity for a court of appeal in crimi-
nal cases, to which the convict might carry any doubt,
not only of law, but of evidence, which might arise..
Had such a tribunal existed Mr. Kirwan would not ba
in his present position. He would have been able to-
gain from a superior bench not merely the acquittal he
has received at the hands of public opinion, but the,
liberty which ought to attend it.
Look at his case. Unfortunate in his leading counsel,
unfortunate in the judge and jury who tried him, he was
found guilty of the murder of his wife, and sentenced to
death, in terms which preclude all hope of any mitiga-
tion of his doom. Coming into court with hands which
were certainly not clean, and neither then nor since sur-
rounded by circumstances calculated to excite the least
sympathy in his behalf, no sooner had the evidence as
reported by the English press been weighed, than there
appeared in our own, and cotemporary columns, a sift-
ing of the facts of the case, any one of which, had it
been spoken by the counsel for the defence, must have
procured his acquittal. Not a dissentient voice was
raised. One and all confessed that there was no evi-
dence of his guilt ; which was all they could say of him
or any man ; for to prove a negative—as that he was
not guilty—is, as everybody knows, impossible.
In the remonstrances thus raised, there was.
not the remotest symptom of prejudice. Mr-
Kirwan had for a number of years been living
in violation of the sanctity of the marriage tie. He had.
huddled the dead body of his wife into the poorest,
cheapest, and worst corner of the cemetery. Her fune-
ral rites had hardly been consummated when he brought
home the partner of his guilty love. All this was ad-
mitted ; and it was all considered and net down in full
weight against him. But, in spite of it all, there was
no proof— not even presumptive proof---that he had
been guilty of the crime he was accused a. The cir-
cumstantial evidence relied upon showed, on the con-
trary, how difficult it was to reconcile the l'a,cts with the
supposition that he had murdered his wire ; while the
medical testimony established without a shadow of
doubt the facts, that none of the wounds upon her body
conld have occasioned death, and that the ether appear-
antes were in harmony with the supposition that she
was drowned in the ordinary way. The result was, that
Mr. Kirwan was respited, and there ended all dread of
an actual murder for a supposed one.
But is not Mr. Kirwan entitled to something more
than a mitigation of his punishment ? What was he
tried for ? For murder. Why is he not to be hanged !
Because the evidence is considered not con( elusive of his
guilt. Then why transport him ? Supp ose that the
jury had thought it inconclusive, they in ust have ac-
quitted him, for the question was "Guilty of not guilty,"
not whether there were circumstances whit h raise a sus-
picion of guilt ; but here comes the great j, ary of public
opinion, and says that the question is not conclusive ;
that it is unsatisfactory, and irreconcileabl e with itself.
The Executive acting upon that, reverses the verdict,
and says Mr. Kirwan shall not be hanged_ Then why,
again, is he to be transported ? He was -not tried for
a transportable offence, but for a capital one. What
monstrous injustice is it to say, "We vg ill not hang
you because we cannot prove you .guilty ; but we will
transport you because you cannot prove yourself inno-
cent. —.Morning Advertiser.

SOUTH WILTS ELECTION.—The Sheriff lin s appointed
Tuesday next, the 11th instant, for the i nomination of
candidates. On Wednesday, Mr. Grantley F. Berkeley,
who is to oppose Mr. Sidney Herbert, issue d his address.
THE MURDER IN- DEIN. - FOREST.—The inquest on
the body of William Peake, who, as already reported in
this paper, was found dead in Dean Forest,. with stab
in the face through the eye to the brain, 1/, as, after7rbeen adjournments before Mr. J. Lovegrove, °,
at length concluded. It will be recollectect
J custody on
named James Greenhalf had been taken i'ti_i.,
1 e murder, he
suspicion of having been concerned man . havingog. been
having been seen last in his corn a Y
P dnee'eased part of the
known to have accompanied the
Tievidence ' that the fatal
:cr.-tilt a man
knife. 5 Che following
way home. It was also givenatih
of the d eceased must
wound which caused the death
have been inflicted with further (thou igh only in a
tending
:riminate the : prisoner was
additional evidence,
circumstantial degreo
James Baldwin, a collier, dep nosed that he
sans knife, which he carried about him.
now taken. Ja--,s pit with the prisoner, ,who was in
a spring back. On tli te day after
with
prisoner was at work with h* d had
.1: m, an
Itth worked
ewhabitas
a in
ko
ni.theiusingf 0
the murder the
, n his possession in the morning, The blade
with a sharp point to it, and rather nar'
this knife in was about 34 or 4 inches :in len, a
straight Neither of the knives produced by the police-
row.
found
cer as having been. in Greenhalf 'n possession
°wftla's the knifein question. Witness was with the pri'
until four o'clock that afternoon. They talked
soner
together about Peake's death, but Greenb calf said no'
thing about his having been in deceased's , company on
the night before. In the morning of the day after the
murder the prisoner said he did not want t o work if he
ofthe knife
Inl;c1-e,
could help it, as he had been out drinking the night be-
fore. Witness threw a stone down the "ii Ind pit" that
day to ascertain the depth of water, wheia the prisoner
immediately after leant over and dropped something into •
the pit. Richard Meek, also a collier, recollected hear-
ing
of the body of Peake having been found :in the roan' He was working on that day in the Regula tor Middle
Pit, which was near the pit where the prison er worked.
Witness was going towards the land pit, on ate day after
the supposed murder, when the prisoner approached.
The prisoner stopped at the mouth of the sand pit before -
witness got up to him, and he saw him le an over the
" door" and drop something down the pit's snouth. The
pit had water in it, and the working of it had been
stopped in consequence of the water, which, was still in,
the pit, so that it could not be ascertained what was a'
the bottom. The coroner then summed up the evidence
carefully, stating that it was a ease of suspifnon, but no-
thing more, leaving it for the jury, if they thought proper
to send the prisoner for trial. The jury after a short
consultation, found a verdict of wilful murder against
James Greenhalf, who was accordingly cmtmitted to
Gloucester for trial at the next atilliZelf.