The Sun.
London, England, 1859-02-25 00:00:00

also expressed a hope that Stornoway would be
selected by the Board of Trade as a suitable place
for erecting an aneroid barometer for the use of
fishermen and sailors.

CRIME IN FRANCE.

The Court of Assizes of the Moselle has just
been occupied three clays in trying a woman named
Barbier for murder, and a zouave named Closset
for complicity before the crime. On the 25th July
last the dead body of the woman's husband was
found in a field near Einschwiller, and as his head
was beaten about in the most frightful manner, and
as he had wounds in different parts of his person,
it was evident he had been murdered. It being
known that his wife had not only long maintained
a criminal connection with Closset, but had borne
animosity to her husband, she was suspected of the
crime. There being no marks of any struggle hav-
ing taken place in the corn field, it was thought pro-
bable that the man had been murdered somewhere else
and that his body had then been conveyed there. On
going to his house a quantity of blood was found in his
barn, and numerous agricultural implements in it
were stained with blood. One of the woman's
neighbours also stated that two afternoons before
she had seen the man return home in a state of
intoxication, and go to his barn to sleep; also, that
a few minutes after she had heard the woman cry-
ing out to her husband, apparently in anger.
Another neighbour stated that on the same after-
noon a little boy had told him that in passing
Barbier's barn he had heard a noise of people figh t-
ing and killing each other, but that he (the neigh-
bour) had not troubled himself to go and see what
was the matter. As no one else, except the woman,
had been in the barn at the time, it was considered

certain that she was the murderess. With regard
to the zouave, it appeared that, not content with
carrying on a criminal connection with the woman,
he had repeatedly insulted and menaced the man;
also, that one day in June last, after abusing him
in gross terms, he had knocked him down, and
beaten him in a savage manner about the head with

---
a stone, For this assault he was condemned to
eight mouths' imprisonment by the Tribunal of
Correctional Police of Sarreguemines, and he was
undergoing that punishment when the murder was
committed. But both before and after his con-
demnation, he made use of language which left no
doubt on the minds of his hearers that he and
the woman had planned the murder of the man.
He often said, " It is certain that Barbier will die
either by my hands or those of his wife !" " Bar-
bier will Noon have to be carried to the cemetery,
and it is I who will send him there !" and so on.
Moreover, it was ascertained that he had mom
than once strongly recommended the woman to
murder her husband, and in order to accomplish
the crime with ease, to make him drunk with
spirits ; likewise that he had repeatedly exhorted
her not to be wanting in courage at the critical
moment. In addition, it appeared that when the
man was carried of to prison the woman was heard
to promise him solemnly that before his release her
husband should be dead. The jury declared the
woman guilty with extenuatin,, circumstances, and
the court condemned her to hard labour for life.
As to the zouave, he was acquitted; but in order
that he might not escape the punishment which he
appeared to deserve, the public prosecutor had him
tried for having some time ago brutally assaulted
his own father, whereby he had been guilty of
"cutting and wounding. On that charge the jury
convicted him, and he was condemned to six years'
hard labour. Just before the judgment was pro-
nounced, the woman confessed that it was she who

had murdered her husband, and that she lend

perpetrated the crime with a log of wood which
she had afterwards burned. She also confessed

that. she and her eldest daughter conveyed the body
to the field in which it was found.

As some workmen were at an early hour in the
morning of the 19th Oct. hest going to work at
_ _

Craen (Mayenne), they found the dead body of a
man still warm, lying in the middle of the road,
with a gunshot wound in the breast. He was
recognised as oue Podenier, a stableman, employed
in the town ; and on investigation these facts were
ascertained :—He and one Robert had on the

previous night at a late hour been drinking at a
public-house, kept by a man named Charlery. A
quarrel, arose between him and Robert, and they
exchanged blows ; Charlery having- interfered,
Podcnier had a struggle with him also. Whilst
the conflict between the last two was going on,.
Robert went out, and presently after Podenier,.;
having been expelled from the house by the land-
lord, came up and attacked Robert. The latter,