The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1874-11-27
A STRUGGLE FOR A GROWN.

The immense pile stands on the eastern
extremity of the city, and is wonder
fullv imposing-not for its architectural
beauty, for it has none, but for its
gloomy, solemn sohdty-every stone
seeming to frown defiance to chance and
time. It appears to have been built to
last forever. Commenced more than
eight centuries ago, by William the
Conqueror, it gradually increased in
strength and Importance, until it's name
became familiar throughout the civil
lied world.
For centuries it was the abode of
royalty, and the Kings and Queens of
England not only found shelter within
its walls in time of war, but homes of
luxury and magnifcence in time of
peace.
as we'll as palace and, if the dumb
stones could be made to speak, we
should shudder at the blood-curdling
secrets they would reveal. Among the
unhappy victims who have perished
here, mostly at the hands of the heads
man, we recall the names of Lady Jane
Grey, Catherine Howard, Anne Boleyn,
Sir Walter Raleigh, King John of
France, William Wallace, Lord William
Russell, the Countess of Salisbury, Sir
Thomas More, and a whole army of
other unfortunates, conspicuous for
their crimes or their virtues, their mis-
fortunes or their intrigues.
The immense structure covers an
area of II acres, and within this space
numerous separate buildings have been
erected, including the Barracks, White
Tower, st. Peters Tower, Bloody Tower,
IN which the young Princes were muir
dered the Bowyer Tower, in which the
Duke of Clarence was drowned in q
cask of VINE; the Brock Tower, in which
Lady Jane Grey was confined the
Beauchamp Tower, which was once the
prison of Anne Boleyn; the Museum,
Armories, Picture Galleries, and the
famous Jewel-Heuse.
Within the latter building are kept
the crown jewels of the British empire.
Prominent among them is the crown
worn by yictoria at the time of her
coronation, which originally cost nearly
81, 900, 600, and which contains, in the
aggregate, 2,8OS diamonds of various
sizes, and all of unrivaled brilliancy.
Besides, the Jewel-House contains num-
erous other crowns, of monarchs long
since dead the Orb-a globe of gold,
6 inches In diameter, studded with dia-
monds; st. Edwards Staff, of solid
gold, 4 feet and inches long, and
weighing 10 pounds the Golden Scep-
ter j; the world-renowned Kohinoor,
valued at S16, 600, 900; and numerous
other jewels of enormous value, the
property of the nation, and essential to
the maintenance of royal magnifcence
and pomp.
These baubles have curious history.
In the early days of the nation, when
her monarchs were both poor and proud,
these glittering appendages of the
Kingly estate were not infrequently
esp )uted" to raise money to meet their
personal expenses. Henry Ill, Ed
ward III, Henry v, Henry VI, and
Richard II, each borrowed large sums
of money from the me chants of Lon
don, leaving with he lenders these
crown treasures as a pledge that the
loans would be repaid.
On the abolition of monarchy in En-
gland, after the death of Charles L,
the jewels were stolen, destroyed or
sold.
On the restoration, Charles II. caused
q new regalia to be constructed, at
cost of 81 500, 900 j; and large chamber
in the Tower was set apart for their
afe-keeping, which is now known as
the Jewel-House. It struck the writer
as a little singular that the English
government should enact an insignifi-
can't fee from each visitor and could
not repress the thought, and hardly the
expression, that it was unseemly for
the British nation TO turn Snowman,
and exhibit the baubles of its sovereign
at SO much per head.
Though the Jewel Hause is situated
near the center of large collection of
buildings known by the general name
of the Tower of London, the yards,
walks and corridors, of which are ever
swarming with people, and though
carefully watched and strongly guarded,
numerous and ingenious attempts have
HRooT rnada f0 steal the Jewels
Among the most noted, as well as
the most daring, of these attempts, was
that of Col. Blood, made in 1871, which,
for ingenuity of plot and boldness of
execution, has not been excelled by any
thing in these modern dayss.
Blood was the son of a wealthy Irish
merchant, whose means enabled him to
give his son liberal education, and
whose social position secured him the
advantages of good society. Young
Blood was Liberal in sentiment, and
served in the Cromwell army, where he
ttained the rank of Colonel. On the
restoration, his estates were confscated
for the part he had borne in the revo-
luton, and he became a penniless
wanderer.
The Duke of Ormond, Lord-Lieu-
tenant of Ireland, had been very active
in procuring the confiseation of Blood's
property, and the latter resolved upon
revenge. Calling to his aid four dar-
ing and desperate men, whom he had
known in the army, he mounted them
on feet horses, and waited the oppor-
Eunity. One dark, stormy night, as the
Dukes carriage was passing along the
streets of London, the vehicle was
stopped, his Grace dragged from it,
bound, mounted behind one of his cap
tors, and hurried away toward Tyburn
THAR ovouod intention being to hang
him on the gallows there. Fortunately,
ON the way, he succeeded in loosening
the cords. jumped from the horse, and
escaped in the pitchy darkness.
A reward of $4,000 was offered Tor
the arrest of the daring kidnappers, but
none were ever apprehended, and it was
many years before Blood's agency In
the business was known, or even sus-
pected.
His next exploit was an attempt to
steal the crown. he needed money,
oV16 fh0c0