Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1874-10-02
NO 40.
Execution of Charles the First.

( Execution of Cha rges the First
Arrived at last at the stairs leading into
| Whitehall, he was taken through the gal
leries of the palace to the bed-chamber he
had us' tily occupied while residing there
and he had some further time allowed him
for rest and devotion with ,luXon alOne.-
Having sent Herbert for some bread and
wine, he ate q mouthful of the bread and
drank small glass Of claret. Here Her
bert broke down so completely that he felt
he could not accompany the King to the
King to the scaffold and JuXOn had to take
from him the white satin cap he had brought
by the Kings orders to put on at the fatal
moment At last little after Il O'Clock
Haczett's signal was heard outside, and
.Juxon and Herbert went on their knees,
affectionately kissing the Kings hand
Juxon being old and feeble, the King helped
him to rise, and then, commanding the
door to be opened, followed Hecker. With
soldiers for his guard he was conveyed
along some of the galleries to the old
palace, now no longer eXtant, to the next
banqueting hall, which lingo Jones had
built and which still exists. Besides the
soldiers. many men and women had crowd
ed into the hall, from whom, as his males
ty passed on, there was heard a general
murmnr of commiseration and prayer,
the soldiers themselves not Directing, but
appearing grave and respectful. Through
int no ra1l pf Tho ham
quoting hall, or more probably through one
of the windows, disinantled for the pur-
pose, Charles emerged on the scalfold in
the open street, fronting the site OF the
present Horse Guards. The scaffold was
hung with black, and carpeted with black,
the block and axe in the middle; a number
Of persons already stood upon it, among
whom We're several men with black masks
ccncealing their faces in the street i'll
front, all round the scaffold, We're compa-
MES of foot and horse and beyond these
as far as the eye could reach, towards
Charing- cross on the one side, and West
minister Abbey on the other, was a closely
packed multitude Of spectators. The King,
walking on the scaffold, looked earnestly
at Hecl1er, as if be thought it was too low,
after which, taking out q small piece of
paper, on which he had jotted some notes,
he proceeded to address those near him.
What he said may have taken ten minutes
OF a quarter of an hour to deliver, and APP
pears, from the short hand report of it
which has been preserved to have heen
rather incoherent. CHOW, sirs,'' he said
at one point, II must show you both how
you are out Of the way, and I will put you
in the way. First, youare out Of the way,
for certainly all the way you ever had yet,
as I could find by anything, is in the way
Of conquest. Certainly this is an i'll way :;
for conquests, sirs, in my opinion, are never
just, except there be a good cause, either
for M tier of wrong OF just title and then,
if you go beyond it. the first quarrel that
you have to it, that makes it unjust at the
end that was at first"
a little further on, when he had begun
sentence, for the King, indeed, will
not, ~ gentleman happened to touch the
axe. ''Hnrt not the axe he interrupted,
''that may hurG me, and then resumed,
las for the King, the laws Of the land
will clearly instruct you for that; there
fore, because it concerns my own particu
Ian, | only give you a touch Of it. For the
people-and truly desire their liberty an0
freedom as much as anybody Whomsoeyer;
but | must tell you that their liberty and
freedom consist in having Of governments
those laws by which their life and theil
goods may be most their own. 1t is not
having share in government; sirs that is
nothing pertaining to them. a subject
and a sovereign are clean different things
and therefore until they do that-I mean
that you put the people in that liberty, as
Isay-certainly they will never enjoy them
selves" In conclusion he said he would
liked to have had a little more time, SO as
to have pat what he meant to say Gin a
little more order and . little more diges-
ted, and gave the paper containing the
heads of his speech to ,JuXon. AS he had
said nothing specially about religion, JuXon
reminded him Of the omission. II thank
you very heartily, my Lord, y said Charles,
for that [ had almost forgotten it. In
troth, sirs, my conscience in religion think
very well known to the world; and there
fore | declare before you all that | die Il
Christian according to the profession OF
the Church Of England as | found it left
me by my father; and this honest man
(the Bishop)I think, will witness it,
There were some more words, addressed
particularly to Hacker and the others Off
GERS aud once more, seeing Il gentleman
too near the axe, he called out, "Take heed
Of the axe; pray take heed Of the axe. y
Then, taking the white satin cap from
Juxon, he put it on. and with the assistance
of Juxon and the chief executioner pushed
his hair all within it. Some final sentences
of pious import then passed between the
King and JuXon, and the King having
taken off his cloak and George, giving the
latter to JuXon, with the word "Remem-
bel" knelt down and put his neck on the
block. After a second OF two he stretched
out his hands, and the axe descended, sew
ering the head from the body at one blow.
There WAS q vast shudder through the
iuop: dllN tileii d ulllFclHstl SlOdll.- heo-
sons Life of John Milton.
----sE~ s-a-sss o. Co.
d. D.-A rather ludicrous application
of this title was made at q trial in church,
which Miss Lottie Moon, of Albemarle
county, one of the Baptist Missionaries,
relates as follows:
s'During the trial above mentioned there
occurred q new and rather ludiCrOuS aDDli-
cation of the title ID. D., usually read