The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1856-04-16

to be fogged every fortnight for seven
years made his way into the Tower, snd
presented himself before the fallen op-
pressor. Poor Jeffreys, humbled to the
dust, behaved with abject civility, and
called for wine. 9" am glad, SIR" he
said, " to see you" .' And I am glad, -
answered the resentful whig, "to see
your lordship in this place" "I served
my MASTER" said Jeffreys: st was
bouaa in conscience to do So" "Where
was sour conscience when you sentenced
me at Dorchester" +" It was set down
in my instructions that I was to show
no mercy to men like you. men of parts
and courage. When 1 went back to
court I was reprimanded for my lenity." :"
Even Tutchin, acrimonious as was his
nature, and great as were his wrongs,
seems to have been a little modified by
the pitiablc spectacle which he at first
contemplated with vindictive pleasure.
He always denied the truth of the report
that he was the man who sent the Col
chester barrel to the Tower.
A more benevolent man, John Sharp,
the excellent Dean of Norwich, forced
himself to visit the prisoner. It was q
painful task, but Sharp had been treated
by Jeffreys, in old times, as kindly as it
was the nature of Jefreys to treat any
body, and had once or twice been able,
by patiently waiting until the storm of
curses and invectives had spent itself,
and by dextrously seizing the moment of
good humor, to obtain for unhappy fam
lilies some mitigation of their sufferings
The prisoner was surprised and pleased.
"Whatl" he said, dare you own me
now ?'
It was in vain however that this ami
able divine tried to give salutary pain
to that scared conscience. Jeffroys in.
stead of acknowledging his guilt, e1claim-
ed vehemently against the injustice of
mankind "People call me murderer
for doing what at the time was applaud
ed by some who are now high in public
favor. They call me drunkard because
l take punch to relieve me in my agony"
He would not admit that, as President
of the High Commission, he had done
that deserved reproach. His
colleagues, he said, were the real crimi-
nails; and now they threw all the blame
on him. He spoke with peculiar asperi-
ty of Sprat, who had undoubtedly been
the most humane and moderate member
of the board.
It soon became clear that the wicked |
Judge was fast sinking under tho weight |
Of bodily and mental suffering. Doctor
John Scott, prebendary, of St. Paul's a
clergyman of great sanctity, and author
IF the Christian life, a treatise once wide
y reoowned, was summoned, probably
IN the recommendation of his intimate
friend, Sharp, to the bedside of the dying
nan. It was in vain, however, that
Scott spoke, as Sharp had already spoken,
If the hideous butchcries of Dorchester
md Taunton. To the last, Jeffreys con-
inued to repeat that those who thought
lin cruel did not know what his orders
we're, that he deserved praise instead of
'lame, and that his clemency had drawn
n him the extreme displeasure of his
Master.
Disease, assisted by strong drink and
Misery, did its work fast The patients
tomach rejected all nourishment. He
windled in few weeks from portly
nd even corpulent man to nero skel-
ton. On the 18th of April he died, in
he 4lst year of his age. He had been
'hief Justice of the Kings Bench at 35,
nd Lord Chancellor at 81. In the
hole history of the English bar there
no other instance of so rapid an elera-
on or SO terrible fall. The emaciated
'rpse vas laid, with all privacy, next to
le corpse of Monmouth in the chapel of
lie Tower.
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