The Sumter watchman. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1855-1881, 1870-04-06

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sobs bursting from them which they
could not check. "No criez vous," she
said, "jay promis pour vous." Strug-
Cling bravcly, they crossed their breasts
again and again, she crossing them in
turn, and bidding them pray for her
Then she knclt On the cushion. Bar
Lara Mowbray bound her eyes with a
handkerchief. "Adieu," she said, smi
ling for the last time and waving her
hand to them, "Adieu. au rcvoir."
They stepped back from off the scafuld,
aud left her alone. On her knees she
repeated the psalm, In to, Domino,
couiido, "In thee, oh Lord, have put
my trust" Her SHOULDERS being cx-
posed, two scars became visible, one on
either side, aud the earls being now
little behind her, Kent pointed to
them with his white wand, aud looked
inquringly ut his companion. Shrews-
bury whispered that they were the re.
mains Of two abcesscs from which she
had suffered while living with him ut
Sheffield. When the psalm was finish
ed she felt for the block, and, laying
down her head, mu,tcrcd. SIN manus,
NOtiluG tUuS, iuttIluUl Ulcun.
The hard wood seemed to hurt her, for
she placed her hands under her neck.
The exccutioners gently removed them,
lest they should dcad:n the blow, and
then one of them holding her slightly,
the other raised the axe and struck
The scene had been too trying even tor
the practisrd hca,lsnan of the Tower.
His arm wandered. The blow fell on
the knot Of tho handkerchief, aud scarce
y broke the skin She neither spoke
nor moved He struck again, this time
effectively The head hung by shred
Of skin, which he divided without with
drawing the axe and at once meta
morphoSis was witnessed. strange as was
ever wrought by wand of tabled enchan>
ter. The Golf fell off and the false
plaits. The laborcd illusion vanished.
The lady who had knclt before the
block was in the maturity Of grace and
l"veIincss. The cxccutioncr, when he
raised the head, us usual to show it to
tho crowd, exposed the withcrcd fca-
turcs Of grizzlcd, wrin&led old woman.
$50 perish all enemies of the Queen"
said the Dean of Peterborough. \
loud Amen rose over the hall. "Such
end" said the Earl Of Kent rising and
standing over the body, "to the Queens
and the Gospels enemies" Orders had
been given that everything which she
had worn should he Immediately de-
strnyed, that no relics should be carried
off to work imaginary miracles Scnti-
nclS stood at The dnors who allowed NJ.
one to pas, out without permission and
a!'tc, thr first pau e. the curls still keep,
ing their places. the body was stripped
1t the" appeared that Ii tav"ri'c lapdng
ha: olowcd its mistress unpcrccivrd.
an. was concealed under her clothes;
W II discovered it gave short cry. aud
seated itself between the head and neck.
from which the blood was still flowing
Ii was carried away and carefully wash
ed. aud Ihen beads, Patcrnnstcr, hand
kcrchicf-each particle Of dress which
the blood had touched. with The cloth ON
the block aud on the Scaifold. was burnt
in the hall fire in the presence of the
crowd. The Sc"iluld itself was next re
moved. \ brief account ofthc exccu-
tion was drawn up, with which llcury
Talbot. Lord Shrcwsbury's sou was sent
TO London, and then every one was di*
missed Silence settled down on Forth
rringuy. aud the last scene Of the life Of
Mary Stuart, in which tragedy ana
melodrama were so strangely inter
mingled, was over n spectator, who
was one of her warmcs, admirers, de
scrihcs her bearing as infinitely tran
sending the power OF the most accom-
plishcd actor to present. The associa-
tion of the stage was, perhaps, uncon-
scionsly suggested by what was in fact
notwit hstauding the tremendous reality
with which il cluSrd. the NEST brilliant
acting throughout. The plain gray
dress would have >utliccd, had she cared
only 10 go through with simplicity the
part which was assigned to her. She
intended to produce dramatic sensation,
and ,hc succeeded. The sell .posScssion
was iaulilcss, the courage splendid
Never did amy human creature meet
death SO bravcly; yet. in the midst
of the admiration and pity which Can
nor be refuse her, it is not to bc for
gotten that she was leaving the world
with lie upon her lips. She was bad
Woman, disguised in the livery of Il
martyr, and. If in amy sense at all she
was suffering for her religion, it was be
cause she had shown herself capable Of
those dctcstablc crimes which in the
sixteenth century appeared to be the
proper fruits OF it. To assume and to
carry through the character of u victim
of religious intolerance, to exhibit her
self as an example of sain,lincss, SUI
fering for devotion to the truth, would
be to win the victory over Elizabeth,
even in defeat and death, to fastcn upon
her the reputation of prosecutor, which
she had most cndcavorcd to avoid, to
stamp her name with iniamy and pos
sibly drag her down to destruction.
Nor can it be said that she failed. She
could not, indeed, stay the progress of
the Reformation, make England a pro,
vince of Spain. or arrest the dissolution
4 nf l,l 81,