North Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1850-1852, 1851-11-12
| jCorrespondence of the New York Daily Times.]
- THE CHRlSTIANA TRIALS.

1fsif to the Clristiana Pris0ners-Descrtpt'on g the
Pr;suners and their ceLs-CTimes with Which they
are cha1ged-IHe Indictments Counsel, Se, &C.
PHILADELPHIA, Saturday, Nov. ], 1851.
This morning took the omnibus.for the Phlladel-
pha County Prison; having previously provided
myself with the requisite :" note of introduction.
| The Prison is a very extensive granite building
situated in the Moyamensing strict, In the southern
part of the City.
Thirty-nine Indictments have been found against
persons charged with participating in the Chrisana
ARRAY. OF these, twenty-eight have been arrested
and now in confinement. The remainder have
escaped.
or the twenty-eight in prison. three only white.
The remaining twenty-five are colOred, mostly black
but few of them are mulattoes.
The white men Elijah Lewis, store-keeper,
aged So; he has wife and six children; Cashier
Hanway, miller, 80 years. married man, but
without children and Joseph p. Scarlett, aged 30
who has a wife and three children. I'll
found them sitting together in cell thirteen feet
by nine, with an arched roof. The doorway is
about four feet high and little less than two feet
wide, which is secured by wrou2htiron CRATE door,
and outside of that wooden door. There is but one
window to tho cell, strip Of glass about four feet
long and four inches wide but the cell, when was
there, quite light, the shining BRIGHTLY
With the prisoners brother of MIR. Hanway
and two of his sisters, who had just arrived to nav
him little visit, and his devoted wife, who spends
the whole of every day with him.
though looking little pale, in pretty good health
Lewis and Hanway both sleep in the cell which /
have described Scarett sleeps in another but spends
his days with the other two.
They eat only the bread of the prison diet the re-
mainder Of their food being supplied by their friends
who have been, they say, thus far, very kind and at
entlve They conversed freely. and appeared cheer
ful for in such situation. But the sisters of
Mr.. Hanway, who had just arrived, manifested
good deal OF emotion at the strange aspect presented
by the interior of prison. They were very respec.
table looking women; and the appearance and bear
ing of the prisoners were also highly respectable
COlOred ara in
similar to the one which have already described. No
two of these are together and none of them are in
cells with any other prisoners. They spoke well of
the officers, and seemed satisfied with their fair but
complained much of loneliness and said thew should
rather be at work. They were mostly middle-aged
men, with few quite young, and some in advanced
The Prison appeared to be well ventilated and
kept clean and sweet.
The Oath of November current, has been fixed up
on as the day for the commencement of these trials
ESefy one Of the prisoners is to be tried separately
Inc probability is that the prosecuting officer will
commence with the whites though this is certain
Inc order of proceedings will be az follows:
FIrst' they will all be tried for TREASON.
Secondly, should they be acquitted of the crime of
Treason they will be taken Lancaster and tried in
the State Court for the MURDER of Edward Gorsuch
at the suggestion Of the District Attorney of the
United States the States Attorney for Lancaster Dis
tret has already lodged, the Prison. warrants char
ging ali the PRISONERS with the crime of murder.
Thirdly, if they are acquitted both of treason and
murder, they will be tried in the District Court of
the United Staes for obstructing the Marshall in En-
ecuting the process issued by Mr.. Commissioner ms
graham, and for aiding in the escape of the slaves.
The District Attorney has labored most assidous-
ly since the 18th day of last September in the prepa
ration of the indictments. Learned, able and emf
nent counsel have been secured for the defense and
the trial for treason being criminal proceeding of
such rare occurrence. in this country, and the framing
OF an indictment under the recently enacted Fugitive
Slave Law being an entirely novel task, the prose-
uiing officer has found occasion to expend great
deal Of time and labor in drawing these bills. He
applied to the Department of the Interior at WASH
ington for permission TO employ two junior counsel
to assist him in the preparation of the detail of the
and to incur some extraordinary expenses in the
collectc- of certain information and evidence which
he deemed desirable and important These priyile-
ges have not yet been granted by the authorities at
Washington.
AS to the exact number of counsel who will ap-
pear against the prisoners, who they will all be,
these points are not yet fully determined. John W.
Ashmead, Esq, the United States District Attorneys
WILL at all events have the principal management of
the prosecutions, and will make the closing address
to the jury the part of the Government It is I'M
derstood that correspondence has recently taken
place between this gentlemen and the distinguished
counsel employed by the slate of Maryland to assist
IN these cases. as &c the position and duties to be
sumed by them respectively in the management of
the trials and that the correspondence closed on the
part of the Maryland counsel in decidedly acrmon-
NOUS manner.
A special venire has been issued for one hundred
and eight jurors for the exclusive purpose of trying
these cases.
1t is not unlikely that considerable legal skrmish-
ing will take place in forming jury. There will
probably be some challenges on both Sides
The counsel retained to defend Scarlet are David
Paul Brown and William L. Pierce, Esquires, both
Of this city, The counsel for Lewis and Hanaway are
Messrs John M. Read, Theodore Cuyler and w.
Arthur Jackson, of Phadephla, ]. ]. Lewis, ESQ,
OF Westchester, and Hon. Thaddeus Stevens, OF
Lancaster. a. w
W w.