The Sun.
London, England, 1828-05-16 00:00:00

*EXECUTION AT ARGENTAN.

The execution of two murderers which has
recently taken place in the town of Argentan
(department of L'Orne) was attended with the
following revolting and horrible circumstances :
—The culprits were Perrotte, who assassinated
the Cure of Louvieres, and Lepallier, the
murderer of his wife. Though found guilty at
Alengon, the sentence was ordered to be carried
into execution at Argeiitan, the chief town of an
arrondissement, which for some years back has
been deplorably fertile in crimes of the deepest dye.
The conduct of the people upon this occasion
seemed to accord too truly with the bad reputation
the country has gained. For several market-days,
preceding that in which the execution tookplace, a
more than usualcon course of the inhabitants of the
surrounding communes flocked to Argentan ; and,
on quitting it in the evening, expressed no little dis-
content at the prorogation of their horrible cu-
riosity. At length the intelligence of the rejec-
tion of the culprit's appeal reached Alenvjon,
and they were taken from the prison of that town
to be conducted to Argentan. They were, how-
ever, told, that they were going to Caen, to hear
a commutation of their punishment pronounced.
On arriving at Argentan they were, however, in-
formed that they were to die the next morning.
In the course of the night Perrotte endeavoured,
but in vain, to strangle himself with his cravat.
The next day the whole population of the town,
augmented by thousands from the neighbouring
towns and villages, were collected about the place
of execution ; great numbers of the crowd climbed
up the scaffold ; and the. executioner turned
their curiosity into a source of abundant
profit, by exacting some sous from each, to
show them the guillotine in all its de-
tails. Amongst his eager customers was a
great proportion of the softer sex. It was
not without considerable difficulty that the scaf-
fold was cleared on the approach of the culprits,
who came on foot, each accompanied by a Cler-
gyman. Perrotte seemed to be half dead with
fear, and could scarcely drag himself along. Le-
pallier walked with a firm step. Perrotte fell
almost insensible into the hands of the execu-

tioner ; he was qUickly bound to the fatal plank,
and his head severed from his body. The blood
seemed to have been literally frozen in his veins ;
for it was remarked -that from the headless trunk
there followed but a few drops of blood and thick
gore. During his execution it was with some
difficulty that the clergyman attending Lepallier
could persuade him to turn aside. ()n hearing
the fall of the axe, he quickly turned round and
watched with steady eye, the blood-dripping
instrument ascending to its place, from whence it
was next to fall upon his own neck. He then em-
braced his confessor, pressed the crucifix to his lips,
and mounted the scaffold v ith a firm step. Before al-
lowing himself to be bound on the plank, he
threw a look into the basket in which lay the
mutilated body of his fellow sufferer ; then again
raised his eyes to the axe, and placed himself an
the plank. At this instant alone the fear of
death seemed to come upon
.him ; he struggled
violently ; and it was not without considerable
exertion that he was placed in the proper posi-
tion, and that even so imperfectly, that the axe,
instead of going through the neck, severed the
head above the under jaw. The greater part of
the crowd quitted the place in a kind of tumul-
tuous horror, but several remained mounted on
the scaffold, drew the knife of the guillotine up
and clown, looked upon the mutilated bodies, and
even one of these wretches offered her assistance
to the executioner's valets in fixing the bodies
and heads in the basket.