The Sun.
London, England, 1859-12-12 00:00:00

INFANTICIDE BY A LADY AND BEB

DAUGHTER.

A very remarkable trial began at Orleans on
Friday. Mdme. Lemoine, a lady of forturno, re-
siding at Chinon, near Tours, was indicted, with
her daughter, on the charge of burning the illegiti-
mate offspring of the latter, under circumstances
which denote a frightful amount of depravity.
Mdme. Lemoine moved in the best circles, kept her
carriage, and occupied a prominent position in
society. The father of the child seems to have
been a servant in Mdme. Lemoine's employment.
Mdme. Lemoine is 43 years of age, and is described
as still very handsome; Her daughter, Mdlle.
Ange-
line, is described as surpassingly beautiful.
The evidence led to the following disclosures

Angelina was delivered of a male child on the
night of the 29th of July. On the previous even-
ing she had been seized with vomitings. It had
been arranged that the family were to go into the
country, but Madame Lemoine countermanded the
orders, and also the visits of the music master.
About eleven o'clock at night the violent pains
came on. Madame Lemoine put her daughter into
a small closet, where a bed was usually kept; and
where she was delivered of a fine male child, which
was born alive. After a space of time, which can-
not be exactly defined, but which could not have
exceeded five miuutes, this fine child had ceased to
exist, and at the end of a few hours it had disap-
peared. Madame Lemoine had burnt it.
It did not appear that she could be charged with
throwing it into the fire alive, since Angelina de-
clared that she saw the child deprived of move-
ment long before her mother threw it into the fire.
An agreement had been long before come to between
the mother and daughter, and which has been re-
lated by the latter, as follows : "It was frequently
talked over between us that if I had &miscarriage
the embryo should be burnt, or if a child that it
should be served in the same manner. I only made
one condition, that it should not be burnt alive."
Angelina declared that she knew nothing as to how
her mother deprived the child of life, but thinks it
probable that she put her hand on the child's
throat and stifled both its breathing and
its cries. Mme. Lemoine protested her innocence,
and maintained that her daughter only became
pregnant from a violation, and that as such vio la-
laden might tarnish the reputation of Angelina,
she thought it her duty to conceal it. She also
declared that she did not think her pregnancy so
far advanced ; and that as the premature confine-
ment had produced a dead child she had suddenly
resolved to burn it, since she could thus save the
honour of her daughter without committing any
crime.

The following telegram has been received at Mr,
Reuter's office :

" Touns, Sunday Evening.

" The trial of the Lemoines for infanticide termi-
nated to-day. The jury acquitted Angelina Le-
moine, but found her mother guilty, with extenu-
ating circumstances. The sentence was twenty
years' hard labour."

THE REFORM SOIREE AT BIRMINGHAM.—It is
expected that the great soiree at Bireningham in furtherance
of the reform movement will take place on either the 6th or
12th of January. Mr. Bright and Mr. Scholetield, the two
borough members, will bo present.