Rutland herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1823-1847, 1844-10-10
TIE LIFE AND ATROCITIES
OF SAWNEY BREANE

lfNiIe Va " AiNW NttA Nt NNIltDlNif were l
hey no, arcs'cd hy public and other rec.
oris Of unqutsiionable authority. The mar.
rator saws II
The following narrative presents such n
picture Of human barbariiy, tina, were i, not
aiesicd by the most nnqucs,ion1blc histon-
cal evidence. i woul1 be rejected as alto.
gcthef fabulous and incredible.
Swancy Brcano was born IN the country
of Eae Lothian, about eight miles ems, Of.
Edinburgh. 10 the reign OF James VI
His father was a hcdger and diteher, and
brought mp his son TO the same laboriols
employment Naturally idle and vicious.
he abandoned that place, along with a wo-
man equally prnfiga,e, and retired TO the
deserts Of Galloway, and took up their
habii1'i1n by the seaside. The place which
Sawncy and his wife selected for their
dwelling was cave Of abou, n mile in
length. and Of considerable bread,h-so
near the sea that the tide often penetrated
into the cave above two hundred Yards
The entry bad many intricate ,urnings md
w]mdings which led to the extremity Of the
slbtrrraneous dwelling, which was literal
~ the habi,a,ion Of horrid cruelty.
Sawnev and his wlfc took shelter in this
cave and commenced their dcpreda,ions.-
To prevent the possibility of detection, they
murdered every person that they robbed
DESTITUTE also Of obtaining any other food,
they resolved to live upon human flesh
Accordingly, when they had murdered any
man, womco, or child, they carried them
10 their den. quartered them, sailed and
picked the members, ard dried them for
food. In this manner they lived, carrying
on their dcpreda,ions and murder, until
they had eight sons and six daughters,
eighteen crandsons. and fourteen grand
daughters, all the offspring o~fincest.
Bat although they soon became numcr-
Gus, vet, such was the multitude who fell
into their hands, that they often had SUI
pcrbundance Of provisions, and would at a
distance from their own hnbi,a,ion, throw
legs and arms ofdricd human bodies into
the sea bv the night. These was often
thrown OH, bv the tide and taken up by the
country people, 10 the great CONSERVATION
md dismay Of all the surrounding inhabit-
ants. Nor could any discover w hat had
bciillcn the many friends, relations, aud
ncighbors who had unfortunately fallen INTO
the hands OF thcse mcrcilcss cannibals.
In proportion rs Sawncys idmily in
creased, every one that was able acted his
part in their horrid assasslnations. They
would sometimes attack four or six mrn on
foot bu, never more than two upon horse
back. AT last, however, the vast number
who were slain. roised the inhabitants Of
or the country, and all the woods and lar
king places were carefully searched and
although they often passed by the mouth Of
the horrid den. it was never suspected
that any human being resided there. In
this state of uncertainty and supense, con.
cerninc the authors Of such frequent mHssa
cres. several innocent travellers and inkeep
ars were taken unon suspicion the rer
cons who were missing had been seen las
in their company, or had last resided a
their houses. The eff cts ofthis wo'i-men
and severe Justice, constrained the create
part orthe ilkeepcrs in these parts. to ab'n
don such employmcnts. to the great lncon
viencnce of those whotravelled through tina
district.
Meanwhile, The country become depor
ula,ed. and the whole nation was surprise
how such numerous and unheard Of vi
Iainies and c~ruel,ies could be perpe,rated
withoutthe least discovery of the abomin
able actors. Al length Providence inter
pose in the following manner to terminal
This horrid scene. One evening, a man an
his wife were riding home upon the sam
horse. from a fair which had been in ID
nciphhorhood and being attacked, h
made the most vigorous resistance nnioI
t~una,elv. however. his wit. was dragge
from behind him. carried to a lille distance
and her %entrails taken out. Struck wit
grief and horror, the husband continued I
redonblr his effort 10 escape, and even tro
some ofthcm down under his horse's fee
Fortunately for him and for the inhabitan
OF that part of the country, in the mcantim'
twenty or thirty in a company came ridin
home from the same fair. Upon their nj
proach Sawney and his bloody crew fc
into thick wood, and hasiencd to their il
lernai dfn.
This man. who was tho first that had p
or escaped ont Of their hands, related TO h
ncighbors what had happened. and shove
them the mancled body of his wifi
which lay at n distance, the blond thirst
wretchcs not having time To carry il alon
with them They were all struck with =
t%onishmen, and horror, took him with ther
20 Glasgow, and reported the whole adveI
iurc TO the Chief magistrate Of the CITY,
Upon this intelligence he wrote TO theKin.
informing him Of the mater.
In q few DAYS, his Majesty in person. a
~companied By four hundred men, went
ques; Of the perpetrators NJ such c%fueliic
The man who had his wife murdered beo
his eyes wen, asiheir guide, with a pur
Der ofblool houns, tina, no possible meal
michi be- leh unanenp.ed 10 discover n
I...a. 81 - nr.nrnlln III