The Sun.
London, England, 1856-08-01 00:00:00

MURDERS IN FRANCE.

The following trial for murder was beard by the
Court of Assizes of the Cher (Bourses) in its sittings of !
the 221, 23d, and 24th instant. On the Bth January,
Etienne Due, a small farmer living at Cowl-, :as killed
on the threshold of his own house. He *had taken a
slight stroll before going to bed, when a ball discharged
from behind a hedge laid him dead on the spot. A man
named Berthommier, an acive poacher, and known to
be of a very violent disposition, was at once suspected
by the neighbours in consequence of the following cir-
cumstances :—Berthommier and his victim had been
enamoured of the same woman, one Mary Personnat,
who had given the preference to Due, and had married
him. This appears to have heightened the passion of
Berthommier, and it would seem that the wife of Duc
had forgotten her duties since her marriage, and had
been surprised with the former under compromising cir-
cumstances. Berthommier did not disguise his passion
for the woman, and he was heard to express his intention
of marrying her in the event of the dcw,li of Due. This
latter contingency he represented as by no means im-
probable. He, moreover, proposed to the keeper of a
cafe frequented by Dec to poison the latter, and after-
wards he offered a working man named Pateux 300 f. to
kill him. Both these proposals were indignantly de-
clined, and Due was made acquainted with them. On
the strength of the above circumstances Berthommier
was arrested, and at his trial it came out that traces of
a pair of sabots had been perceived as leading from the
hedge behind which the murder had been committed to
the village inhabited by Berthommier. On searching
his house a pair of sabots, covered with red earth,
and corresponding with the footmarks, were found,
as well as a gun and a shot•bag. The shot was of
the same size as those which bad entered the face
of Due, in addition to the ball which had killed him.
Several witnesses testified to having seen the prisoner in
the neighbourhood of Duc's house with hi's gun on the
night in question. In reply to every question addressed
to him by the president, Berthommier, who is a fine, in-
telligent-looking man, answered negatively. He was con-
fronted with the widow of Duc, and denied ever having
had any criminal relations with that person. The widow,
a plain-faced woman, who is moreover lame, likewise
denied the truth of the reports circulated with respect to
her conduct. The two men to whom Berthommier had
proposed poisoning Due gave their evidence against him,
and everything clearly proved his guilt. Berthommier
endeavoured to prove an alibi, but failed. After a con-
sultation of three-quarters of an hour, the jury brought
in a verdict of guilty, and the prisoner was condemned
to death. Berthommier evinced very little feeling on
hearing his fate pronounced.
The inquiry into the murder committed on the per-
son of a cook named Berard, who bad lately returned
from California with a certain competency, has resulted
in the discovery of the murderer. Suspicion had at
first atached itself to a nephew of the murdered man,
but the investigation instituted by the police has proved
that, from the nature of the house occupied by the vic-
tim, it was impossible for a stranger to have entered
the apartment of Berard without being seen by the
neighbours. The police, having ascertained that the
murdered roan had been in the habit of receiving oc-
casional visits from a tall, surly-looking man, named
Francois, found out the residence of the latter, and
cross-examined him. From the fact of this Francois hav-
ing always been seen with a basket on his arm, he was
known in the house occupied by B4rard as l' Homme au

. .
gamier, and it appeared that he bad formerly been servant
in the house in which Boirard served in the capacity of
cook. At the very first question put by the commissary
of police, Francois admitted his guilt, and confessed the
murder. He stated that he felt an intense hatred towards
Berard, and had often intended killing him. This idea
became stronger and stronger, until he at length deter-
mined on putting it into execution. On last Saturday,
he concealed a carving-knife in the basket which he usu-
ally carried with him, and proceeded to the house of Be-
rard, and found him undressed in bed. After a short
friendly conversation, Francis suddenly threw himself
on his victim, and killed him with one blow. After
having committed the crime, he searched all the furni-
ture of the dead mar' and placed all the money and
valuables he could find in the basket, along with the
knife reeking with blood. After pas-ing more than two
hours in the rooms of Berard, he left the house by the
back staircase without being perceived. The residence
of Francois, whose family name is not mentioned, was
searched, and the knife, with the stolen property, was
discovered. The murderer was at once taken to the
Prefecture of Police.

DESTRUCTIVE EARTHQUAKE IN THE

MOLDCCAS.

The Indian mail brings advices of another of those
dreadful earthquakes for which Ternati and the adjoining
localities in the Moluccas are proverbial. An eruption
of the active volcano on the island of tfie Great Sangir,
in long. 125 50 E., and lat. 3 50 N., has occurred.
The north-western part of the island of Great Sangir is
formed by the mountain Awn, which has several peaks,
the highest being about 4,000 feet above the sea. On
the west side the mountain runs very steep into the sea,
at the height of the large village of Kandhar, however,
falling away to a low promontory.
Between seven and eight o'clock on the evening of the
2d of March a sudden and altogether indescribable crash-
ing noise was heard, which, indicating to the San-
girese an eruption of the volcano, filled them with con-
sternation. Simultaneously with this the glowing lava
streamed downwards with irresistible force in different
directions, bearing with it whatever it encount-red on
its destructive course, and causing the sea to boil wher-
ever they came in contact. The hot springs opened up
and cast out a flood of boiling water whick destroyed
and carried away what the fire had. spared. The sea,
obedient to an unusual impulse, lashed the rocks with
frightful violence, dashed upon the shore and heaved
itself with a wild haste against the land as if it
strove to overmaster the fire-stream.

This frightful picture of destruction, the horror of
which was increased by the shrieks of men and beasts,
the wild roaring of the tempest and the crashing of thou-
sands of trees torn up and carried away, was followed
about an hour later by peals of thunder which shook the
ground and deafened the ear. A black column of stones
and ashes then shot up from the mountain to ar. immense
height, and fell, illumined by t'.®e glare of the lava, like
a shower of fire upon the surrounding country below,
producing a darkness that, only now and then momen-
tarily broken by the flashes of lightning, was so intense
that people could not discern objects close at hand, and
which completed their confusion and despair. Large
stones were hurled through the air, crushing ,whatever
they fell upon. Houses and crops which had not been
destroyed by fire, sunk and disappeared beneath the
ashes and stones, and the hill streams, stopped by these
harriers, formed lakes, which, breaking over their banks,
soon proved a new source of destruction.
This lasted some hours. About midnight the raging
elements sank to rest ; but on the following day abou t
noon they again resumed their work of destruction with
renewed violence. In the meantime the fall of ashes
continued without intermission, and was so thick on this
day that the rays of the sun could not penetrate through
it, and an appalling darkness prevailed.
Scarcely recovered in some degree from their fright,
the inhabitants of this -desolated part of Sangir were
again disturbed by an ernption on the 17th March, which
destroyed many fields anda great number of trees on the
Tabukan side.
Since then the volcano has remained quiet, and the
only symptom of its working has been the smoke rising
up in all directions from cracks and fissuresin the ground.
The streams of lava on the slopes are still so slightly
cooled that people dare not venture to any great dis-
tance from the shore. According to the accounts of the
natives the top of the mountain does not appear to have
undergone any noticeable alteration.
On the other side of Kandhar, on the extreme north
point of the island, the appearance of the devastation
which has been caused, is, It possible, even more frightful
than what has taken place at Tartuna. Fur here, where
formerly there were to be seen extensive fields bearing
all kinds of crops, and thickly planted and endless
groves of cocoa-nuts, we now find nothing but lava,
stone, and ashes. The liquid fire seems at this point to
have flowed from the mountain with irresistible force
and in prodigious quantity. Not only has this fearful
flood as it were buried the whole district and all that
was upon it, but after having caused this destruction
over an extent of several miles, it was still powerful
enough on reaching the shore, to form two long tan-
j„gs (capes) at places where the depth of water for-
merly consisted of many fathoms.
A number of other districts and places have been
some wholly destroyed, ethers greatly injured by the fire.
The loss of life has been great. It is estimated as fol-
lows in the undermentioned districts :
Tartuna, men, women, and children 772
Kandhar, ditto
Tabukan, ditto

Total

. 2,856

The greater number met their death in the gardens.
They fled in all directions, but were overtaken and swal-
lowed up by the fatal fire.stieam. Some tried to save
themselves in the trees, but were either carried away with
them or killed by the scorching heat. At Kalougan
and Tariang the houses were fillei with people, who
were stopped in their flight by the lava streaming down
on all sides and the streams of boiling water, and who
met their death under the burning ashes and the tum-
bling houses. Many who bad reached the shore and
thought themselves safe became a prey to the furious
waves, and many died through sheer despair and
agony.

ABATEUENT OF INCOME TAX.—The Act 16 and 17
Vict., c. 19, for abatement of the income tex on insur-
ance of lives, is now extended to the sth July next year.
A VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD —The Moniteur de la
Flotte announces that the Russian Government is about
to have a scientific voyage executed round the world,
the direction of which has been c irfided to one of the
most distinguished officers in the Russian navy. This
will be the 39th voyage round the world which the
Russians have made since 1803. The first took placg
under the command of Capt, Krusenstern in the corvette
Nadrjda, and which lasted from 1803 to 1806. The
most celeiirated voyages, after that of Krusenstern, were
those of Golovine in the Diane, from 1807 to 1809 ; La-
zareff, in the Souvarow, from 1813 to 1816 ; Kotzebue,
in the Rurik, from 1815 to 1818 ; Vassilieff, in the De-
couverte, from 1819 to 1822 ; Wrangel, in the Helene,
from 1825 to 1827 ; Lntke, in the Senid vine, from 1826
to 1829 ; and Schantz, in the Amerique, from 1834 to
1836. The last was that performed by Neveskoi, in
the Baikhall, from 1848 to 1851. All the officerg who
commanded those vessels have bec •me admirals in
the Imperial navy. The present expedition, which will
be composed of two corvettes, is to leave Cronstadt in
September next.

Coup'

:ets.

DERBY SMITHFIELD.-JuLy 29.

Our market was well supplied with fat beasts today,
but sales wore heavy, and several lots were left unsold. A
better supply of sheep and lambs, but the demand was
not quite so good. A large supply of excellent pigs, and
calves plentiful.
The following were the quotations :—Beef, 61d to ;
mutton, 7d to 7kd ; lamb, ltd to 8d ; veal, 6d to —d per
lb. ; pigs, lOs6d to —s Od per score ; rough fat, 5s 0 t to Os
per 141 b. ; hides, 4d to 4.0 d per lb ; calf-skins, 5d to 61
per lb.