The Sun.
London, England, 1868-08-31 00:00:00

A CONVICT'S CONFESSION.

At the last Gloucestershire Assizes two men were sen-
tenced to fifteen years' penal servitude each for a daring
burglary. Numerous burglaries had been committed in
the county, and the depredators managed to get clear off
with their booty ; and the two men, Wilson and Geary,
who were convicted and sentenced as above, have confessed
that they were implicated in burglaries not only in Glouces•
tershire, but in Worcestershire, Monmouthshire, Kent, and
other counties. The confession was made to the deputy chief
constable of Gloucester (Mr. Griffin). Wilson narrates
circumstantially the particulars of several burglaries, the
blows he gave to policemen with a life-preserver, his inten-
tion to shoot anyone who interfered with him, and the
manner in which the proceeds of the burglaries were taken
to London. The following is tho account of one of the
burglaries in which Wilson was implicated: —" On Monday
night, November 5, 1866, I and a friend (not Geary) went
to a jeweller's shop in the Eastgate-street, Gloucester (Mr.
Neninger's). We got over two or three high walls at the
back, and tried to break into the house, but were disturbed.
A policeman had found us, and he followed us down a lane
into the market. We turned to our left, and he ran up to
us and tried to stop us. I heard afterwards that the police.
man's name was Tuck. We both had our life-preservers in
our hands, and both struck at him at the same time. My
friend struck him and knocked him silly, but I missed him.
We then turned, and made back for the railway station.
Before we got there we heard a horse coming very fast. I
took out my pistol, and intended to shoot the horse, but
we had just time to jump over a spiked gate before you
(Mr. Griffin) rode up. Had you been sooner, and attempted
to take us, I should have shot you. We ran across the line,
got over into some fields, remained quiet for some time,
and then made off for Ledbury. We robbed a jeweller's
shop there the same week, and then left the neigh-
bourhood. Geary was at this time doing penal
servitude." Geary confirmed the confession, and
added : " I suppose the gentry are frightened,
and will sell their silver and buy electro-plate ;
we should not have a chance of getting much more. I shall
say no more, for if it was known to the six or seven hun-
dred convicts whom I shall be sent with that I, a profes-
sional thief, directly after being convicted commenced to
squeak and tell all I know about other robberies we have
committed, I shall have no peace. I know we shall have
to do twelve years before we can get a ticket-of-leave. I'd
as soon have had it for twenty years or for life, for then
we could have obtained a ticket-of-leave after serving
twelve years. I hope we shall be sent out to one of the
colonies, and then we shall be able to get a ticket-of.
leave sooner."

THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, AUGUST 21, 1868.

snmption, also some relic. The Cacciatori
attended it with their band. On the Sunday
in the octave there was a fair and a sort of
pilgrimage to a little chapel on a height,
reached by a beautiful shady walk, called the
Madonna del Tufo,being the legend that a
shepherd boy one day found the full length
figure of our Lady and the Infant Saviour,
which- is still venerated there, and over which
the chapel is built, painted by angel hands
upon the living rock. The irrepressible mor-
taletti were let off at eleven, and then High
Mass, at which the Zouave band played. In
the evening the band played again, and then
there was a display of fireworks. I was at
the early Mass in the camp, for which the
hour is seven. It was at the altar at which
the Holy Father assisted, now looking sadly
denuded. Colonel Allet was in tcompany wih
the young Princess Aldobrandini, who, with
her husband, had driven over from Frascati ;
they stood in front of the soldiers who formed
the line 'of guard, but a chair was brought for
her.

It was intensely hot in the middle of the day,
the hottest day we have had out here ; in the
night came a severe thunderstorm, and the
thermometer has since gone down four de-
grees.
Madame Kanzler, who has been unwell for
some days past, and ordered to go to France
for her health, left here on Friday evening,
many officers accompanying her to the sta-
tion. Mgr. Stonor, who is staying at Albano,
leaves for England in a day or two.
A Zouave died yesterday in the hospital,
and was carriedto the Church this morning,
the band accompanying. I was too unwell to
go out, but an hour afterwards saw the bier,
followed by a small detachment of Zouaves
and the band, taken to the cemetery, which I
can just see at the foot of the hill from my
window. The people seemed to take great in-
terest in the ceremony, and followed the pro-
cession en masse.

There is to be a field day to-morrow—a sham
fight and practice siege, first of - Castel Gon-
dolfo, and then of Albano. The weather looks
threatening, bat has not yet occasioned a coun-
termand. The orders at present are to start at
3.30 a.m.

The Tiber, they say, is rising again, but at
this distance it does not yet appear higher than
usual.

Tuesday, S. Helena's day, was kept at the
Basilica of Sta. Croce, built to receive the re-
lics of the Crucifixion she brought from Jeru-
salem ; also at the Ara Cceli, where her body
is preserved. To-morrow the Cistercians keep
the feast of S. Bernard, who came to Rome
in 1137, and established a house of his order
at the Tre Fontane, now restored to another
branch of it, the Trappists ; and in one of the
three churches there, Sta. Maria (Scala Cceli,),
the spot where he used to kneel for his medi-
tations is pointed out. The head house of the
Cistercian order is S. Bernardo alle Terme, a
beautiful little circular church, built by Coun-
tess Calerina Sforza in 1598, in a sphertsteriant
of the baths of Diocletian.