Star.
London, England, 1804-07-30 00:00:00

BGTANT BAT.

The following is an extra& of a letter received from
Sidney, New South Wales :
" Some time after my arrival here, I was prefent
'at the trial of Ikey Bull and William Bladders (both
of whom came from Newgate, in London), on an
indiement charging them with murder. The general
opinion was, that Bladders would be convifted, it
appearing in evidence, that after the commiffion of
the fag, blood was teen upon his legs ; but after a
trial of feven hours, both the prifonms were acquitted.
" At the fame Criminal Court, Jofeph Samuels
and John Ruffel were put upon trial for a burglary;
an accomplice, named Richard Jackfon, being ad-
mitted evidence for the Crown. Samuels pleaded
guilty, and fully exonerated Ruffel from having any
concern in the offence ; and immediately after Judg-
ment of death had been pronounced upon him, on
his own confeltion, he was ordered for execution, he
being firongly furpetled of the murder above men-
tioned, which was perpetrated in confequence of the
robbery, the decealed being a conilable, who loft his
life while endeavouring to apprehend the parties
guilty of the latter offence. On the Saturday pre-'
ceding the Monday appointed for his execution, Sa-
muels declared that Ikey Bull was the man who
killed the cornitable. Hereupon, Bull was fent for
from the Battery, a place of hard work to which he
had been fent, and, together with the woman with
whom he cohabited, was led to the gallows, each
walking between two conflables, in order that they
might hear the dying declaration of &minds, who,
to the lilt, perfevered in Alerting, that lkry Bull
told him that he himfelf was the man who killed the
cOntlati:e, laving, at the fame time, that. he gave
him a topper for hick." A concurrence of events now
took place, unparalleled in that colony, or perhaps in
any part of the world.—Upon Samuels being turned
off, the halter broke, and he fell apparently lifelefs
on the ground. He was then fupported on men's
boulders, tied up, and again turned off, when the
rope flipping, he again came to the ground. The
halter was now taken from about the neck of another
ionvi&, who had received a refpite tinder the gallows,
for the put pee of banging Samuels a third time : he
was accordingly eafed out of men's aunt, and, with.
out receiving any jerk whatever, he was lett fufpended
from the gibbet ; but notwithilanding this precau-
tion, to the amazement of all the fpeßators, the rope
(napped fhort in two, and the unfortunate man fell
to the ground a third time !—Preparations were be-'
Erin for a fourth attempt to carry the lenience of the
law into final effeEt ; but the Provo!' Martial ordered
them to be fufpended, and battened to communicate
to the Governor the particulars of the extraordinary
fcene he had witnetred ; the confequence of which
was, that a refpite was granted to the man who luld
fo repeatedly trembled on the very verge of eternity,
and lor'the prefervation of whore life, fo many lignal
event; may be almoft laid to have miraculoufly oc-
curred.
s. Ikey Bnll was fent to the Battery Gang, there
being no evidence to juftify his being put on trial a
fecond time. He has fince been teverely flogged,
and will be fent to a new fettlement, called Van
Diemen's Land, about 800 miles foutbward of this
place."