Semi-weekly Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, South-Carolina) 1851-1852, 1851-02-28


Aiponv, who SHOT me-,
Cod forgive you, Mr. c. said the man llrn,
~ "This Is not tine first time you have tried .
~ ;,;ura me. 1t was not who shot YOU.
"Jn the word and faith OF dying man, 1t
was" e,nphatically repeated Mr.. I. , I
His dispositions were therefore take"' m anu
NloIony was committed for trial. ! he clear
ness of the Identification seemed to require
no confederation, bat there were ciFcu,h'
stances that further confirmed it. M"lohy ne
liey,d himself hardly treated by Mr.. {. III some
matter O: land, and had been heard to threaten
yenr, ance lie was known to be reSoiute
fellow, OF little TRUTH and Mr.. {. was not re-
markabe for much indulgence. The case then
seemed clear, aud when it was tried at the as
sizes, the evidence for tie prosecution and the
declaration of the dying man appeared TO make
a conviction inevitable; when the prisoner
counsel called witnesses to prove IN uiioi. vi
all the most haclinied !nodes OF cvading Just'ce
cmplnyel bv the irish criminal t!Ie attot Is the
most frequently resorted to, the parties calleu
to prove it being usually their own friends III
this instance, however, the court was startled
by hearing tic names OF two oI tae nioS' re-
surctuble magistrates of the county called.
Mr.. NJ asccnded the table and took MS
seat on the chair, which, in the lish courts, Is
usually placed for the witnesses III this consplc-
uous place.
"Mr. NJ" asked the prisoners counsel,
"do YOU know the prisoner at the bar
"les-well."
"Do YOU recoIlact seeing him OIL the first day
of the sessions of This was the day on
which Mr.. Z. was shot.
"Yes; he came to me at T, lT-was
eiyht miles from the place where the ;.ssassll;.-
tiou occurred, and spoke to me"
at what time WAS that
"At half.past one" This was as nearly as
possible the hour when the fatal shots were
! fired. -,
"ilow do YOU know it was that hour =
ale asked me what O'Clock it was. told
him. lie appeared to forget, returned III about
a minute, touched his hat, and asked me again,
and again took out my watch aud toiu linn.
"Do you know the prisoner brother
"Ies."
You could not have mistaken his brother
for him .
"No. | am quite clear on that point. |
could not be mistaken, for spoke to the prl'
soner about the fair"
The counsel for the crown asked some ques-
tions, but the Witnesses certainty on the point
could not he shaken. Mr.. M-wasa i cear-
headed, clever man; a magistrate OF high re-
spectabilitv, and could not have any object III
siirltering the prisoner.
Mr. H., a,;uti,cr magistrate, was next called.
His account was nearly The same as that OF his
brother magistrate. 4 few minutes, II must
have been, after the prIsuncr arcoscd hr W.,
he spoke to hiln, CIR. 3D. aad asked him what
o'clock it WAS, repeating the question, and ma.
king some observations Oh the fair.
Tie result was, tie alibi was COM plrtcly
proved, and in the face of the schema dying de-.
claration of Mr.. c., til" prisoner was ar.
quilted. he left the dock for free ion, when
every one believed he would OIL y have left 1t
for the gallows.
Soon after Molony's brother left the coun.
try, but Alolony himsel',emainrd The nystr-
nv. however, so far as mems minds were con-
cerned, was soon umravclird, though the cir
curnstances upon which the solution WAS found
ed were not sufficiently strong to constitute cvi
dcnce. The prisoner did not fire the shot and
was at the fair Of T. when the assassna
lion took place.
There is little or no reason to doubt that he
got his brother to commit the deed, rs he knew
from circumstances that he himself would be
suspected. His brother rcsenblrd him. aud to
make the resemblance the greater, they changed
clothes, the assassin wearing tie ordinary gar
ments of the other, those with the appearance
of which Mr.. &. must have been somewhat ia.
milar. In the meantime, while he took these
pains to deceive Mr.. c., or whomsnrver
might b" win Mr. c., rs to the identity of
the assassin, Aiolony secured his own safety by
a very marked "!ibi taking care that lis witness
es should be of that class and character who
could not be suspected of collision. In fact,
anactat once more subtle and sanguimary could
not he committed 1t was devised with the
most deadly hate and circumstantIal GOODNESS.
The authorities were morally convinced of this
being the case, yet they could not, with the dy.
ing declaration of the murdered man rs to the
identity o.. she prisoner, who was acquitted,
take any effectual steps to vindicate justice.
But Heavens justice vindcatcd itself in IN
awful way The actual assassin Quilted the
country, but his instigator and brother remain.
ed, blood-marked, however, in the belief Of most
people. lie, however, appeared TO be in no
way oppressed with secret consciousness Of his
guilt. He went about his business as usual
and so matters went OH until the fair of =