Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1827-05-19
PRINTED A-p PUBLISHED,
DAILY,
y sr1owDEw & THORNTON
SINGULAR NARRATIVE.


an ar,;clr. entitled lie Reuenanf, writ
,.o no I, man who has been hanged and IS now
IL. ,Ehe writer confesses, that he was GULL
IF the ac, for which he sufefed-forgery ana
.,a,os TIE narIicuiars Of his arrest, commluai
80 Newga,e for trial, and his conviction OF the
crime al The Old Bailey Sessions Tor 1870
Us then proceeds TO describe what were MS
sensa,;ons after receiving the awful sentence oil
death After painting, in touching colours
,be, interview which he bad with Ehzanelh
C,,rs,. TO whom he was strongly attached, he
Tins proceeds with his narrative
~, was four O'Clock in the afternoon when
F,;,,b.,h lief, me; and when she departed, II
s.am.d As if nv business in this world was al an
and could have wished, then and there, 10
b,y. died upon the spot, had done my last ac',
and drank nv las, drought in life. But, as the
twilight drew in, my cell was cold and damp,
aud ,he evening was dark and gloomy; and
had mo fire. nor any candle, although 1t was III
,he month of January, nor much covering 70
warm me; and by degrees my spirits Weakened
.rd NV heart sunk al the desolate wTetchedhess
Of e,ery thing about me; and granddaughter
,vb,, write now shall be ,he truth-the thoughts
of Elizabeth, and what "ould be her tate, began
a. Give way before sense OF my own situation.
This was the Grst tme-l Cannot tell the reason
,vbv-,hatimy mine had ever fixed itseli tuily
noon the tfiaitha, / had, within few hours 10
90 thron OBJ; and, as | reflected on 1t, a terror
sprcad over me almost in an ins'an', as 'hougn
!, were thatmy sentence vas just pronounced
and that had not known, really and seriously,
that I was 10 die, before. had eaten nothihs
for twenty four hours. There was food. when
a religious gentleman who visited me had sent
from his own table, but Il could not taste IT. and
when looked a, il, strange fancies caneaover
me. Ii was dainty food--hot such as was served
70 the prisnners in The goal.ss IL was senl 70 me
air, that wee pxas5erea 10 Slsa3 'feit
that my sensations were not as they ought
to be at this time, and believe that for While,
was insane. A sort OF dull humming noise,
that could not get rid OF, like the buzzing OF
bees, sounded in my ears. And though II was
dark, sparks Of light seemed 10 dance before my
eyes; and / could reCollect nothing. tried to
say nv prayers, but could only remember a
word here and then there; * itseemed To me as it
these were blasphemies that was uttering;-
/ don't know what they were-I cannot tell what
ii was | SAID; and then, Oh sudden, felt as
though all this terror was useless, and that
would no, stay there to die; and jumped up,
and wrenchsd at the bars Of my cell window
with a force tha, bent them-for felt as ii |
had the strength Of lion: And felt all over
the lock Of my door; anG tried the door with
nv shoulder--though knew il was plated with
iron, and heavier than that OF a church; and
CROPPED about the very walls, and into the corr
ners of my dungeon-thoughl knew very well,
If had my senses, that II was all OF solid stone
three fee; thick; and that, i'll could have passed
through crevice smaller than the eye Of a nee
die, had no chance o. escaping. And in the
midst of all this exertion, falntness Came over
me as though i had swallowed poison; and |
had Just power to reel 10 the oed-place, where l
sank down, as think, in swoon: but this did
not las,,-for my head swan round, and the
cell seemed to turn with me; and dreamed-
between sleeping and waking, that II was md
night, and tina, Elizabeth had come back as she
had promised, and that they refused 10 admit
her And Thought that il showed heavily. * that
the streets were all covered with it as if with a
white sheet, and that saw her dead, lying in
the fallen snow, and in the darkness, at the pris-
on gate. When l came TO myself. l as s,rug
Cling and brrathess. In minute or two l,
heard ST. Sepulohre's clock go ten; and knew
IL was dream tina, had mad. The chaplain
OF the, prison came without my sending. He
exbor,ed me solemnly "to think no more OF
cares or troubles in this world. but to bend my
thoughts UPON tUdt W SutitC thu W NV W TtSOD-
cile my soul 10 Heaven; trusting thai my sins,
though they were heavy, under repentance,
might have hope Of mercy" When he was
gone. Il did find myself. for little while, more
collected; and sat down again on the bed, aud
tried seriously to commune with myself, and
prepare myself for my fate. recalled to my
mind, that had but few hours more at ALI
vents to live-that there was no hope on earth
of escaping, and that II was at least better
tina, should die decently and like man. Then
I tried TO recollect all The tales that had ever
heard about death by hanging; that it was said
to be the sensation Of a moment; to give no pain;
TO cause the extinction Of life ins,antaneously;
and so on, 10 twenty other strange ideas. By
degrees, nv head began to wander and grow
manageable again. Iput my hands tightly
TO my throat, as though TO try the sensation Of
strangling Then fel, my arms at the places
where the cords would be tied. | went through
the fastening of the rope; the tying of the hands
together: the thing that / Eel, most averss TO,
was the having the white cap mufaed over my
eyes and face. III could avoid that, the rest