The Sun.
London, England, 1812-03-16 00:00:00

. INSTANCE OF FEMALE REVENGE,
AS DEVELOPED IN A LATE' EXTIIAOLIDINBRY TRIAL

AT PAhIS.

[From The Antigallicau Monitor.J

A trial-took place at Pads in the month of id,
nuary lastiwhich excited the attention of all classes
in that city, from •1 he respedability of the parties,_
its interest, and singularity.
The widow ,Merin, Angelica Delaporte,. Nicolas
Le Fevre, and Lucie Jacotin, were accused of:hav-
ing conspired together for,the purpoSe of ext“rtiug
by force from Jean Charles Ragouleau his signature
to fifteen bills of exchange- of tto and 20,000 fancs
each ; and in a second count, the same parties were
accused of havindaJeliberately plotted toe. murder of
the said Ragouleau.
In the course of the evidence itappeared that Ra-
gouleau and the-widow Morin were both of them,
so long back 24.1806, competitors for the- purchase
of a house (the Hotel.de St. Phar) situate on the
Boulevard's in Paris. The widow became the pur-
chaser, but not having .sufficient funds to pry for
it, she borrdwed.of Ragouleau 100,000 francs to go
towards the payment for this hotel. This loan was
to be repaid by means of an annuity for the life of
Ragouleau, his wire, and two children. The wi-
dow did not punduAly pay the invalenents, and Ra-
gouleau, -by process of law, deprived her in coase-
vence of the possession of her house. An arrange-
ment was however entered into, by which it was
agreed that the• Hotel St: Phar.should be sold to Ra-
gouleau for 165,000, he payiag the widow the sum
of 9000 francs for good-will, and for the expences
of the ad of transfer and sale. This sum of 165,000
was all absorbed, chiefly by the debts due from the
widow to Ragouleau, and the remainder -by law eX-
pences. Of the 9000 francs too paid for good-will,
only a balance of 3700 francs came -to the, widow,
after those who assisted the parties, during seve-
ral.negociations on the subjea, had been reuiunc-
rated. .

This a& of sale crag-signed the igth of last April,
and the widow appeared to be perfedly satisfied
with the bargain. But in_ these appearances of sa- '
tisfaelion she was not sincere; for she disguised her
real fe,elings on- the occasion. She had 'conceived a
deadly hate against Ragouleau, whom she secretly
regarded as the author of her ruin,. She felt con•
vinced in her own Mind that he had employed every
artifice in his power to deter persons from making
the Hotel St. Phar their residence, and thus obliged
her to sell the house to him at his own price.
The widow Morin, therefof-e, weak and supersti-
tions, resolved fo be revenged, and her daughter,
Angelica Delaporte, only sixteen years of age, was
easily persuaded, on account of her youth; to parti-
cipate in these sentiments of hatred 'and revenge.—
Many schemes of vengeance were proposed; but
the one aatially resolved oh was particularly bold
and horrid. The design Was indeed so drtiadful that
it can even now scarcely be imagined that it owed its
origin to a fetnale.brain.- and more particularly to
that of one of that fortune and rank in life, which
the widow Morin and her daughter appear to have
moved in.

For the more prompt execution of her horrid put-,
pose; the widow
.had kept up an intimacy with lia--
gouleau : she affe6.led to place great confidence in ,
him, and frequently consulted him with,regar,d to
some money which she pretended to have and wish-
ed to dispose of.
Having thus insidiously laid the. ground-work of
her plot,lliedark spirit of revenge was active widt-
hs her : she already in idea enjoyed the execution
of her horrid scheme—" the image, of' it gave her
content, anti she trusted it would grow to a most
prosperous conclusion "i" but her dreadful purpose
was fortunately frustrated.
The following is the brief outline of the plot :
Ragouleau was to have been invittd by the widow to
breakfast with her and her daughte, and the party
were then to proceed to a house in the country,
which the mother pretended to have an idea of pur-
chasing. Iu this .hOuse they. were to extort from
Ragouleau, by menaces and violence, his signatute
to several bills of exchange, to. the amount of three
hundred thousand francs, and after he bad signed
these bills they were to put •him to death. ,
the widow Morin haddong age male her female
servant Jouard her confidant in ,her designs
_against
Ragouleau:; and,w hen t his scheme was resolved on,
the whole was communicated to Jouard.. The girl
endeavoured to. persuade her mistress from the exe-,
cation of so horrid a purpose, but in,vain : she then
resolved to frustme it, by apprising ilagouleau
the widow's intention, and. by this means the execu-
tion of this insidious and inhuman plot was happily
prevented.
From the evidence of Jouard, as taken before the
Police of Paris, it appeared that every possible pre-.
caution had been taken by the.widow to secure the
object
.of her hatred, and_ to prevent dete6tion after
she had committed the murder. She had engaged
two men; fited by their habit and depravity for the
purpose, to assist her in'the scheme : she had hired
a house in the country for the expreSs purpose of
preparing for the execution of her designs on Ra-
gouleau, and other precautionary measures had-been
taken to ensure success. The cellar of this 'coun-
try house was to be the scene of, blood : every Aper 7 •
tore and opening by which air or light was- admit-
ted to the cellar had been effeetually blocked .up,
with bricks, by order of the widow, that neither
the firing of the pistols, . the cries of: the devoted
vi&im, or any other noise which the execution of
this bloody .tragedy rnigl t occasion, should be
heard without. Immediately on the entrance of
Ragouleau into the house, the two men vveto
to have seized him, and to have dragged hint
immediately to this cellar. He was there to
have been bound to a stake (an poleau) by
chains, which chains were again to be s cured by
padlocks, and. " to make assurance doubly sure,"
he was further to have been tied op by cords like-
wise. At the bottom of this stake was a dial,' in
which Ragouleau was to have been seated : a table,
pen and ink were also ready prepared, and in this
situation it was agreed that Angelica Delano-he was
to Tresent him with the bills to sign, and to put a
paper into his hand, ordering him to sign the bills
on rain of death. This order was to have been
enforced viva voce, and by the mother and daughter
standing before Ragouleau, in a menacing attitude,
armed with pistols. They were then to have left