The mountain Democrat., 1864-08-06
1nfsrnal Machtnes.

memorable in France by an attempt at
regicide, most diabolical in its character,
and yet the project Of q man who appears
to have been by no means devoid Of vir-
tue and even benevolence. It was, how
ever, the third time that What the French
call an internal machine was used in the
streets of Paris for regicidal purposes
within the present century.
The first was Bourbonist contrivance,'
directed against the life. of the First Coun-
sci Bonapart "This machine" says Sir
Walter Scott, in his life of Napoleon,
consisted Of a barrel of gunpowder plac-
ed on a cart, to which it was strongly Sc
cured, and charged with grape shot, so
disposed around the barrel as to be dis
persed in every direction by the explosion.
The fire was to be communicated by a
slow match. 1t was the purpose Of the
couspirators, undetered by the indscrim-
mate slaughter which such a discharge
must occasion, to place the machine in the
street through which the First Counsel
must 20 to the opera, having contrived
that it should explode exactly as his car
yage should pass the spot" Never, dur.
ing oil his eventful life, had Napoleon
narrower escape than on this occasion, on
the 14th of December, 1900. st. Regent
applied the match, and an awful explo-
sion took place, several houses were dam.
aged, twenty persons were killed on the
spot, and fifty three wounded, including
St. Regent himself. Napoleon's carriage,
however, had just got beyond the reach
of harm. This atrocity led to the execu-
ton of st. Regent, Carbon and other con-
spirators.
Fieschi's attempt at regicide in 1885
was more elaborate and scientific; there
was something of the artillery officer in
his mode Of proceeding, although he was
in truth nothing but scamp. Fieschi
hired front room in q house in Paris in
a street through which royal corteges
were sometimes in the habit Of passing.
He proceeded to construct weapon to be
fired off through the open window on
some occason when the king was expect
ed to pass that way. lie made strong
frame, supported by four legs. He obtain
ed twenty-five musket barrels, which he
ranged with their but ends raised little
higher than the muzzles, in order that he
might fire downwards, from the first floor
window into the street The barrels were
not ranged quite parallel, but we're spread
out slightly like fan the muzzles were
also not all the same height; so that by
this combined plan he obtained a sweep
of fire, both in height and breadth, more
extensive than he would otherwise have
obtained. Every year during Louis Phil
ippe's reign there were certain days of re-
joicing in July, in commemoration of the
circumstances which placed him on the
throne. On the 2Sth, the second day of
, the festival in 1885, royal cortegc was
) proceeding along this particular street, the
Boulevard du Temple. Fieschi adjusted
his machine. heavily loaded with ball (our
to each barrel and connected the touch
holes of all his twenty five barrels with a
train of gunpowder. He had blind at
bis windOw, to screen his operations from
view. Just as the cortege arrived, he rails
ed his blind and fired, when terrific
scene was presented. Marshal Mortier,
General de Virigny, the aid-de-camp of
Marshal Maison, colonel, several grena-
diers of the Guard, and several bystand-
ers were killed, while the wounded raised
) the number Of sufferers to nearly forty
) In this, as in many similar instances, the
person aimed at escaped. One all graz
ed the kings arm, and another lodged in
; his horses. neck; but he and his sons
} were in other respects unhurt. Fieschi
: was executed, and his name obtained for
some years that kind of notor!cty which
: Madame Tussand could give it.
We now come to the attempt of Orsini
and his companions. A Birmingham
manufacturer was commissioned to make
six missiles according to particular mod
, el. The missile was Of an oval shape, and
had twenty-five nipples near one end, with
5 percussion caps to fit them. The great
est thickness and weight of metal were at
the nipple end, to insure that it should
come foremost to the ground. The inside
/ was to be Rlled with detonating compost
ton, such as illuminate of mercury; a
! concussion would explode the caps on the
nipples, and communicate the explosion to
the illuminate, which would burst the iron
= Shell into innumerahie fragments.@
Frenchman, residing in London, bought
alcohol, mercury, and nitric acid made a
. detonating compound from these mate.
: rials, and filled the shells with it. Then
ensued very complicated series of ma.
neuvers to get the conspirators and the
J shells to Paris, without exciting the sus-
picion Of the authorities. On the even
. ing Of the l4th Of January, 1868, the En-
peror and Empress were to 60 to the op-
era and 0rsini and his confederates pre-
pared for the occasion. At night, while
the imperial carriage was passing, three
: explosions were heard. Several soldiers
> were wounded; the Emperor's hat was
perforated General Roquet was slightly
wounded in the neck; two footmen were
wounded while standing behind the En-
peror's' carriage; one horse was killed ;
the carriage was severely shattered; and
the explosion extinguisheH most Of the
gas lights near at hand. The Emperor,
cool in the midst of danger, proceeded to
the opera as if nothing had happened
When the police had sought out the cause
Of this atrocity, it was ascertained that
Orsini, Pierri, Ruddio and Gomez were
all On the spot three Of the shell grena'
4 des had teen thrown by hand, and two
more were found on Orsini and Pierri.-
, The fragments Of the three shells had in
hicted the frightful number of more than
five hundred wounds. Orsini himself had
been struck by one of the pieces. Rud-
dio and Gomez were condemned to the
galleys; Orsini and Pierri were executed
Most readers will remember the exciting
political events that followed this affair in
England and France nearly plunging the
! two countrics4nto war.
-S$S$-
"TN England they have appointed 4
, negro bishop, and sent him to Africa, tC
aid in the attempt to Christianize his race