Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1872-03-14
An India Assassin.

An English officer gives q very inter
esting account of the man who assassi-
mated Lord Mayo, in India, detailing the
cause OF the assassination "Shere
Alice, the assassin, was a servant of the
officer. AS is common in India, he had
bloody feud with another branch Of
his family, and asked occasionally to go
and prosecute this petty warfare in his
own hills. Numerous victims had fallen
on both sides in this feud, and the bal
ance for the time was against Shere AL
lee, and accordingly he was occasionally
summoned by his family to carry on the
feud when they believed that an oppor-
tunity of successfully attacking mem-
bers of the rival branch was likely to
occur.
Shere Alice, unhappily for all, did not
content himself with prosecuting his
blood feud in his own mountains, where
his proceedings, being in accordance
with the usages of the tribe, was no con-
Germ of ours. The British territory is
free to all, and by implied compact, all
are bound to forego their feuds and ami
mosities when on British ground. This
principal of the sanctity of the neutral
ground afforded by our territory is well
known and recognized by all the tribes
of men on our borders. l have fire.
quently had men and parties of men,
sitting on the same carpet before me
who directly they crossed the border
could only meet as Montague and Capu-
let.
But it so fell out that Shere Alice,
who was induced under what was to him
no doubt strong temptation to violate
the sanctity of British soil, and, either
watching his opportunity, or accident
ally obtaining it, he fell upon his hered-
itary enemy in the peach groves in the
suburbs of Peshawur and took his life,
thereby, according to Puthan modes of
feeling, setting himself right, and throw
ing the onus of the next move in the
game on his rival. This occurred after
| had left Peshawer. Col. Pollock tried
Shere Alice for his life, found him guilty,
1 believe, and sentenced him to death,
but, in consideration of his good char.
acter in our service, and partly, I believe,
from the fact of the evidence against
him being chiefly circumstantial, he rec.
commended him to mercy qu0ad the ex.
IRENE penalty of the law, and he was
eventually transported for life.
He was not mere brutal rufian, as
his last act would make him appear the
murder which he committed on Peshaw.
ur Territory would have been no murder
at all, according to the usages Of his
clansmen a few miles furthur north
wards He had attended me with eager
zeal and devotion in rough work, and il
peace he had been the playfellow of my
children, one little girl having him en-
tirely at her beck and call. In his grea
rough posteen and boots, and armed, al
ways armed like men of his clan will
sword and knife, he would carry her al
over the place and attend on her pom,
rides.
know full well what transportation
to the Andamaus must have been TO
Shere Alice, pining for the blue hills o
Teerah, and brooding over his punish
ment for what he would persist in JUST
flying as no crime If you imagine
Highland clansman in the olden time in
carcerated for life in some Lowland jai
for killing a rival in the course of bloot
feud, but on land under the influence o
the laws, you would probably come some
where near what was this mans state o
mind, when he killed Lord Mayo, VIII,
he believed was the man who had sen
fenced him.
F1sK's CANARIEs. The late Col. Fisl
was man of singularly childlike tastes
"Here, ladies and gentlemen you Sc
around you, are emblems of his low
of birds. Now, ladies and gentlemen
| want you to bid. To those who desir
souvenirs of the Colonel, no better op
portunity has offered" Thus exhorted
an auctioneer of the city of New York t.
an audience of men and women, whicl
densely packed the auction-rooms il
Broadway, responded by bidding singl
. for $50 canaries, in gilt cages, whicl
the Colonel had kept for his amusemen
on the Sound steamers. To each Dir,
was given the name of some distin
guished man, and the auctioneer ha,
consequently an excellent field for til
play Of his wit. Only in one or two in
stances did the bids prove that maudlil
sentiment had overthrown common
sense. A canary familiar to passenger
by the steamer Providence, was sold t.
the advertising agent of a Chicago trim
ket dealer for Sl5.75. 81 paid tina
price, you know, because it will give m
a gratuitous advertisement" remarke,
this enterprising fellow aside The 9th
err birds brought from S. to $40 A gor
geous musical-box and model of TIL
steamer Providence in ivory and gold
was then offered, and sold to Thoma
Canary, the celebrated Ring hackman