The Sun.
London, England, 1838-06-04 00:00:00

it. I was only executing the justice Of Heaven on the sinner,
in pursuance of the power which God has given me over his creatures 1'
Then, Sir I looked in his eyes,.. and grew quite afraid of him, for it
struck me how blood-thirsty they were, so I determined to quit him
from that moment for ever. But I thirst not be seen the first to go,
for if I had I am sure he would Is'ave shot me outright with as little
pause about it as the constable. However, I contrived, when he wart
not looking to steal off' among the trees, and so escaped at last en-
tirely, and so did T----, who saw my purpose, and followed me. I
am sure he sad a hard trial of it, either to go or stay, for Peggy (hit
wife) told me that all the night before he had not been able to sleep for
trembling and disquiet of mind about it. He told her he did not like
to follow Sir William, but he knew, he was quite convinced, that if
he did not a fire would come down from heaven and destroy him and
his whole family. So he went of course, and I was there to
see; but when I saw how horrible his eyes glared when
he spoke of the murder of Mears, I was glad to get away, and
bring T— offtoo." But the revolting insanity of Courtenaydid not stop
• here. Others assured me that he claimed to the full the divine attri-
butes of the Messiah. On Thursday morning, soon after the ceremony
of the sacrament, I am assured that he charged his pistol with ball.
cartridge, fired one at a crowd of his followers, and caused the other to
be fired at himself, to show that both were ball.proof, under the guar_
dianship of his divinity! and finally succeeded in inspiring them
(whether by ju,/glery or otherwise I know not) with the belief that
nothing could harm them in combat for his sake. He also fully
suadcd them that if they attetnpted to forsake his person and cause they
would Crop down dead, and be hurled instantly to hell! I have queg.
tioned several amongst the delude.] peasantry, and the prisoners hole they
could be so very foolish as to credit his assertions, and have been uni-
formly replied to by assurances delivered in the most solemn emphasis
in language like the following :—" Oh, Sir, he could turn any one
that once listened to him whatever way he liked, and make them be-
lieve what he pleased. He had a tongue which a poor man could not
get over, and a learned man could not gainsay, standing before him.
He puzzled all the lawyers in Canterbury, and they eaneess,d,
that he knew more of law than all put together. You could not always
understand what he said, but when you did it seas beautiful, and won_
derful, and powerful, just like his eyes, and then his voice was so sweet I
And he was such a grand gentleman, and sometimes latterly surf- at:
awful man, and looked so terrible if any one ventured to oppose him,
that he carried all before lihn. Then again he was so char:table!
While he had a shilling in his pocket, a poor man never should want,
And then such expectations as he had, and which nobody could recur r
He had papers to prove himself to be either the heir or right possLss
of Powderham Castle, and Evington, and Nash Court, and Cl• I :.nt
Castle, and all the estates of the families of the Courtenap, an I I el-
cies, and Honeywoods, and of Sir Edward Hales, and Sir Thomas
lay, more than I can tell you of. And there was Mr. —, of Botta.
ton, who lent him 2001. on his title deeds, and the waiter of tle
Hotel, in Canterbury, who lent him 731., besides other most rtspe.tab
people throughout the county, who let him have as much moue
on his estates as he pleased, and have kept up a subscrit tlor.
for him ever since he was sent to gaol, in 1833, about the
smugglers he befriended. And at that same time it was well
known that 'he need not have gone to prison unless he liked,
for the very ladies of Canterbury would have rescued him,
only he forbade them, and said the law should be fulfilled. I myself
saw them kissing his hand and his clothes in hundreds that day, and
there was one woman that could net reach him with a glass of cordial
gin ; she threw it into his mouth, and blessed him, and bade him keep a
bold heart, and he should yet be free and great, and King of Canterbury !
And he used to prophecy about the nation and the county of Kent and
his estates, and about himself, and about us, and who could contradict
him ? It was all useless. He had it all to himself "
" Did he preach in the fields or roads," I inquired.
" No, not exactly preaching, but he would converse about religion
and the affilirs of the world with the poorest man so sensibly, and so
learnedly, and so solemnly, that it did one good and made one tremble to
listen to him. He told them as plain as he could speak, and whoever
could might take the meaning out of it, I came into the world in a
cloud, and I shall also leave in a cloud.' Moreover, he told Sarah
Culver, on Thursday morning, that if he should faint on his journey,
and word should be brought to he: that the Lord had recalled him, nut
to believe it, but to hasten to him and pour some water into his mouth
and wash his face, and that he should revive again, for that his father
had allotted him much to do on earths ere he should be recalled to
Heaven."

Thus have I thrown together a few of the multifarious and ridiculous
excuses, justificr.tions, apologies, misgivings, and reminiscences, by
which the poor deluded people evinced the interest they still took in liins
and his fortunes. 'Many of his followers at the moment of his death
expected him to rise when Sarah Culver ran to perform his last injunc-
tions ; that hope extinguished, they looked to his revival on the third
slay (this day); but when they raw their party shot down, hunted, in.
prisoned, and dispersed, they lost all faith, with the exception of one of
the prisoners, who had been employed by him, and who, it is said, still
retains his insane belief in his divine mission.
But to resume the narrative of the eventful Thursday. While the
sacramental mockery was proceeding in Bossenden Wood, a county ma-
gistrate was waited on, for an order to furnish a body of troops to arrest
the murderer. In consequence Richard Halford, Esq., applied to the
mili!ary, and an escort of about a hundred men, under the command of
M,.jor Armstrong, left Canterbury soon after one o'clock, and repaired to
the place where the murderer and his party were encamped. In the
meantime Courtenay (who st,ll wore his long flowing beard, clothed in a
loose smock frock, girded with a belt, in which were his pistols and dag-
ger) left the wood and presented himself with his cortege at the house of
Mr. Francis, of Fairbrook, near Boughton, and after they had been re-
galed, they took their departure, proceeding to the spot where the fatal
encounter with the soldiery subsequently took place.
The ball entered Courtenay's body in front of the joint of the left
shoulder, passed along under the collar bone, fracturing the first rib.
then through the upper part of the lett lung, through the spine, crush-
ing the second dorsal vertebrae, tin ough the right lung, fracturing the
.second rib on the right side of the chest. Here the ball took a backward
and downward direction, making its escape from the back just below
the right shoulder blade. This was the only ball that struck him, but
a deep bayonet wound was inflicted on the left cheek. Courtenay
Was remarkably fat, and had a heart unusually large. His plans, as far
as I can see, had nothing political in them—nothing whatever to dei
with the reform of the Poor-law. They were, as far as I can see, the
dreams of pUlc fanaticism.

INQUEST ON LIEUTENANT BENNETT.
On Friday night several additional prisoners were captured at
Boughton and Herne Hill by the constables, assisted by the military.
They were immediately conveyed to the gaols of Canterbury and Faver_
sham, to await examination. On Saturday morning J. T. Delassaux,
Esq., the Coroner for that part of Kent, assembled a jury at the White
Horse Inn, in the village of Boughton, near Canterbury, for the pur-
pose of inquiring into the circumstances of the death of Lieut. Henry
Boswell Bennett, of the 44th regiment of infantry, who was shot by the
soi.disant Sir W. Courtenay.
Major Elliot Arm,trong examined—l am Major of the 4.5 th regiment
of foot. In pursuance of an order from the commanding officer to place
myself under the directions of Dr. Poore, a magistrate of the county of
Kent, I attended with a body of troops, consisting of a hundred men,
with a proper proportion of officers and non-commissioned officers;
I proceeded from the barracks at Canterbury, on the road leading
towards London; it was on Thirsday last, the 31st ult., about one
o'clock, P.M. Near the Red Lion Inn, about four miles from Canter-
bury, I met Dr. Poore, Mr. Knatchbull, and other magistrates, and in
consequence of certain directions received from them, I left the public
road, having divided my party into two divisions, the deceased accom-
panying Captain Read with one division ; while I accompanir4 the
other, and Dr. Poore about a mile and a half into the centre of a thick
wood or jungle, when a man rose out of the jungle and said " They
arc here." I had just before ordered my men to form in line, and to
load with ball cartridge, but before that could be perfectly accomplished
I saw a person, whom I have since understood to be called Courtenay,
at the head of a party of men, coming out of the jungle, in rather an
oblique direction; and almost at the same moment I saw the deceased,
with his section of men, coming out of the thick of the wood, advancing
towards the assemblage, who had flying a white flag, which I consi-
dered was intended as a flag of truce, and I advanced in front of my
men to parley with them. Major Handley called with a loud voice :
" You misguided and deluded men—are you coming to reason or to
speak to us ?" No reply was made, but Courtenay turned round to his
men, a:id, waving his hat, said, " Come on—follow me !" During that
time deceased and his men were advancing rapidly towards Courtenay,
who also quickened his pace towards him. I called out, " Fall back,
Bennet—fall back." He did not do so. He was then not four
yards distant from Courtenay, and they immediately closed and almost
rushed a3a'n,t i ach other. The deceased then raised his right arm and
struck at Courtenay with his sword, and at the same moment Courtenay
who had advanced with a cocked pistol in his right hand, fired at the
deceased.
By the Coroner—l cannot say whether the deceased struck Courte.
nay before he fired. I should say the blow and the firing both took
effect at the same instant, The ball went right through the deceased.
from right to left, Deceased made another blow or two at Courtenay
and then fell on the broad of his Lack. I then ordered my men to bre,
which they did, at Courtenay and his party, who rushed forward upon
the body of soldiers, both sections having joined, and commenced beat-
ing them with clubs and bludgeons, attacking them most resolutely. I
never witneesed more determination ; so much so, that I ordered my own
men to charge with the bayonet, for the purpose of taking the party
prisoners, which was soon accomplished, and I ordered the bugle to
sound the " Cease firing." I afterwards handed over the prisoners to
the civil power.

Rev. John Poore, D.D., residing at Matson, near Sittingbourne,
gave evidenea nearly to the same effect.
Edmund Foreman, wheelwright, of Herne Hill, examined—l was
present at the affray between the rioters and the soldiers on Thursday
last, about ten o'clock, A.M. at Water Ham, in the parish of Herne Hill.
There were 39 of them besides Courtenay. They then went to Mr.
Francis's farm, at Fair Brook, who brought them out some beer. Ile
was accompanied by Miss Horne. They came out of the house to
them. They drank it from brown jugs. Heard Mr. Francis say he
would have nothing to do with them either for or against, but that was
when I and others discovered the mob had had beer give❑ them. I saW
two large jugs with beer in, and about five or six half-pint mugs, I
drank some of the beer, and so did some of the persons who were with
Inc. I then saw them go with oak boughs to au osier bed, when they
threw away the boughs and took bludgeons. They subsequently came
up the road, proeeeded to Bossenden Wood, and I never lost sight of
them until the military arrived, when I went and told them where they
were. I saw the affray, and the deceased and several others shot. I
saw with Courtenay the following persons :—William Wills, William
Rye, Edward Wraight, sen. and jun.; Thomas Mears, alias Tyler,
James Goodwin,William Foster, Alexander Ford, James Mills, Pheeneas.
Harvey, Win. Spratt, John Spratt, Wm. Burford, and Wm. Eve.
Bartlett Allen Chambers, high constable of Feversham, examined—
Was present at the affray between the military and the mob on Thurs-
day last. I saw the deceased fall, shot by Courtenay. I took John Silk
into custody, as one of the persons concerned in the affray.
Several other witnesses were examined, principally as to the identifi-
cation of various prisoners. The coroner then briefly summed up, and
having addressed the jury explaining the operation of the law on the
case, a verdict was returned of " Wilful murder against nineteen indi-
diduals, viz.: William Courtenay, Edward Wraight, sen., William
Rye, George Blanchard, Edward Wraight, jun., John Meare, alias
Tyler, James Goodwin, William Wills, William Forster, Henry Had_
low, Alexander Ford, Phceneas Harvey, John Spratt, William Burford,
Thomas Griggs, John Silk, George Griggs, and William Curling." The
first five are dead, but the remainder, with the exception of Hadlow and,
Thorhas Griggs, who are dying, were committed to Maidstone gaol,
The inquiry lasted until seven o'clock, at which hour the neighbour-
hood was perfectly quiet.

During the inquest a large box, containing various articles of dress
supposed to belong to Courtenay, was brought into the jury-room from
the house of Wilts, in which it had been found by the police.
As soon as the depositions had been read, Spratt, Rye, Culver, and
Samuel Eve denied being present at the time the affray occurred. None
of the others said anything, Edward Wraight, jun , cried bitterly ail
the time he staid in tho Jury,room. Sarah Culver appeared quite at
her ease, not exactly Q°mposed but reckless, and as one who expected
not only a ce4tain acquittal but " something more." Her complexion
is lorici ; her features rather bold and high, presenting an appearance
of distinctness, with something of a Ins sculine air and eye. She is un-
married, and about forty. There is nothing of feminine grace or beauty
about her, yc,i, for want of a better ward, I must call her expression
handwane, especially when her countenance is lighted up in conversa-
tion with her friends. I widerstand that for the last two yenrs her
mind has not beou iss a settled state, and that she is altogether a,
person of as,i;ans temperament, whose mind is very likely to be influ-
and dark cotton cress ; all indicative
ey,Acol by such a plausible person as Courtenay was. She wore a dark
~ktas and comfort, such as the daughters of thriving
oiflkhbaobtistnseotf, fl W ero shawl,
farrne:is Intght consistently weir,
As the Coroner wa.,,,,..taeut to address the Jury Foreman (one of the
saiq, spat Sarah Culver was not with Courtenay's party whets
t
commenced, He saw her gaining towards them when the
action tin.oists:'ve 3 witnesses)
s going eit.—(Here Miss Culver threw up her eyes in astonish_
meat as if appealing, to Heaven against his testimony.) He said he
took 4)3(ticul,ar notice Qi her. black !millet, He saw her as plaits as the

~~ 1
~~~-