Weekly Trinity journal., 1857-09-12
Another Act of the Burdcii Tragedy.

The lovers of the romance of crime were yes
tcrday evening gratiied with new chapter OF
! the Burdcll history, which reflects lurd light
upon all the past of that dismal mystery, without
however clearing up either its origin Its main
sprinr or its progress At Il late hour on the
night of August Sd, Mrs. Cunningham was ar,
rested in the too famous house, No. 81 Bond
street. by Metropolitan Inspector, on charge
of felony in frauducntly producing an infant
which she falsely pretended TO have bceh porn OF
herself as the widow of the late Harvey Burdell,
and to be the lawful issue of his body, with the
intent of intcrccpting the inheritance OF his prop
erty from the persons legtimatey entitled thereto
1t will he remembered by the careful student
of this extraordinary passage OF modern metro
politan life that on the third of July Judge Dean,
acting as counsel for Mrs. Cunningham before the
Surrogate intmuted that she was in Il condition
soon to become Il mother. and invited the Court
to consider this circumstance in coming to a de-
cison on the question of the disposal of the prop
crty of Dr.. Burdel The appearance OF Mrs.
Cunningham soon began to corroboratc THIS init
nation of her counsel. and her expectations were
freely communicated to all who were broughtinlo
conneXon with her.
A few days after the speech of Judge Dean was
delivered, Mrs Cunningham sent for her physl-
clan, DR.. Uhl. who had attended her both before
the murder Of DR.. Burdell, and during the IN
quest, and requested him to be prepared to favor
her with his services about the beginning of Aug.
Dr. Uhl made various inquiries of his patient,
which were answered in such way as to excite
suspicion in him that everything was not quite
right in the matter. These suspicious were very
soon ripcncd into ccrtantics, aud DR.. hi became
I so much concerned about the matter that he lelt
il to be his duty to lay the whole affair before
Mr. District Attorney Hall. Mr.. Hall immediately
set before DR.. Uhl his duty to the community IN
the premises, and urged it upon him to lend ms
efforts to prevent the consummaton OF the lclony
( which he supposed to be projected, and To expose
the iniuuitous designs of the guilty purity Dr.
Uhl after some hesitation, accepted this task. ana
soon proceeded to inglntinte himself into the con
Gdence of Mrs Cunningham. Mrs. Cunningham
very soon, and very unsuspcionsly, fell INTO the
trap thus laid fer her. and admitted that she
meant to impose surreptltlous chlid upon inc
world, and to rcGnact upon her narrower stage,
the same drama which has been so often played
in the palaces of the Old World DR. Uhl con-
scned to aid and abct her in her project, aud set
about doing so with no little ingenuity. The de-
/ tails of .he plan which DR.. uhl adopted and so
successfully carried out, are given IN fun in an
ether part of our paper, and need not be repeated
here. Suffice it to say, that they quite throw into
the shade the celebrated story of Mary Of Wodena,
and that warming pam of the House OF Stuart,
upon which the Wings OF the English Revolution
airy times were wont cloquenly to dcscant,
and which has been 50 often devoted to the infer
nal gods in company with the Pope and wooden
shoes by loyal Orangcmcn, over their punch or
4 their port
Mrs Cunningham was entirely Unanswered.
She rave herself up unrcscrycdly into the power
of her medical adviser. and after rejoicing lor
| an hour or two over what she fancicd to he the
successful contamination Of the plot was sudden
ly brought to u realizing sense of her position
by the appearance of the officers OF justice. Her
dear baby was carried away from her fond ma
trrnal arms by Il ose ruthless emlssaics OF the in
exorabc law, and She is herself at this moment
ruminatng on the consequences OF her conduct
under the surveillance OF corps ol policemen, NJ
her own house The nurse who assisted in the
completion Of the scheme. and DR.. Catlin, who
figures as the chief agent in it, and over whom it
seems Mrs Cunningham processes to exert an alb
soutc authority, have been also arrested, and are
now confined in the Station-housc Of the Fifteenth
| Ward.
! Here the matter rests for the present.
! 1t is very clear that this exposure does nothing
towards clearing up the elder mystery of the
murder in Bond street. While it provcs-if proof
had been ncedcd-that Mrs. Cunningham is by no
means too scrupulous person to have stickled
at the commission Of that great crime, II proves,
| also we think that she lacks the prudence and
forethought essential to the planning and perpe-
tralion Of IN iniquity so skiliuly conceived aud
so successfully executed.
The want of caution exhibited by her in her
dealings with Dr. Uhl, from FIRST to last initiates
strongly against the theory that she could have
! laid the subtle and mysterious train which led to
| the obstruction Ol Ut. DHIutll, anu WIN Hllu MI
| of that tangible evidence upon which suspicion
might have fastened itself in pursuing his assassin
! 1t may be alleged, indeed, that her success IN
securing verdict OF acquita on the hlst charge
may have embodencd her to greater rccklessness
| in the second instance But it should be remem
bered that. if Mrs. Cunningham really projected
and brought about the murder OF DR.. Burdell, this
/ invention of the poshumons heir must have made
part OF the original scheme, and it is not at all
/ likely that she would have deferred the prepara-
tons necessary for achieving the cfoWnng result
OF her Vaccinations till after the doubtful crisis
of the trial or that she would have gone out
of her way to risk so much on the good faith, in
an i'll compact, OF br. Uhl. when she had so APP
parently plant an instrument as DR.. Catlin ready
/ to her hand.
! All theories Of The murder which rest on the
assumption of Mrs. Cunning ghams profound as
tutcness and diabolical cunning vanish before
this revelation Of her incapacty to grasp the de-
tails Of even a secondary plot and the last new
act Of the Bond street tragedy only worse CON
fonnds the previous confusion OF the story ana
leaves more dark its deep Egyptian darkness
! NJ Y. Times .Hug 5M.