The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1879-05-01

upon Plgerres CONVICTION with the rest |
the advocates for the accused said their /
Intellectual say, and then came an inter-
ruption. A man named Jarraud, whom |
everybody agreed was implicated IN the |
murder of the hostages and who was |
supposed to have been killed by the
soldiers, was brought into court. Pigerre
was ordered to stand for ward.
"7hafs not the man who commanded"
said Jarraud. "Oh, no! the leader of
the band was Sicard."
The proceedings were suspended. and
that same evening Sicard was found in
one of the prisons. 1t was evident he
had not long to live, but they carried
him to Versailles to testify to Pigerre's
innocence and convince all the witnesses,
save the three Communists, that they
had been misled by the extraordinary
resemblance between the two men. The
prosecutor at once demanded that the
accusation he formulated against Pigerre
should be withdrawn; and so terminated
what might have proved fatal case of
mistaken identity.
Yet more singular was the escape of a
young Shropshire lady from an ignomin-
ious death. Staying in Paris during
the Reign of Terror, she was dragged
with other "aristocrats before one of
the tribunals. She pleaded that she was
an English woman but was on the point
of being hurried out to the waiting
tumbril, when one OF the Judges asked
her what province in England she was
native Of. In her fright she exclaimed
"Salop," a reply greeted by general
shout and clapping of hands, followed
by an order to let her go; and amid
cries of "Salopel Salopew the dazed
girl was hustled into the street to run
home, wondering that her head was still
on her shoulders, little thinking that by
utteriDg the word "Salop" che had
edectually re5utted the notion of her
being one of the hated aristocrats-
thanks to "Salope" being word then
used to designate one of the most de-
praved of her sex.
Another remarkable escape of that
terrible time was that of NJ. de Chateau
brun, for he was not only condemned,
but actually waited his turn at the
guillotine, standing sixteen in line of
twenty. The fifteenth head had fallen,
when the machine got out of order, and
the five had to wait until it was repaired.
The crowd pressed forward to see what
was going on, and as it began to grow
dark, NJ. de Chateaubrun found himself
gradually thrust into the rear of the
spectators; so he wisely slipped away,
and meeting a man simple enough or
charitable enough to take his word that
wag had tied his hands and run of
with his hat, had his hands set free, and
managed to reach safe hiding place.
A few days later he put himself beyond
the reach of the executioner
Maj. Duncan vouches for the truth of
the following tale: in 1887 the Christian
general, Escalera, was murdered at
Miranda by the mutineering regiment
of Segovia. About two months later,
Espartero and his army arrived at
Miranda; and on the Both of October
the whole force was paraded outside the
town, the regiment of Sagovia being
fanked by artillery and other regiments
Accompanied by his staff, Espartero rode
up to it, and told the men he had come
to ask for his old friend and commander,
their chief, Escalera.
'Wbere is he?" he cried. Then,
pointing to the dead commanders rest.
ing-place, went on: "He is there
foully murdered! l call upon all OF
you who are true soldiers to give up the
name of his assassinp
Twice he made the appeal, and silence
was the only answer. Espartero then
ordered the regiment to be numbered
off from the right, and every twentieth
man to be brought to the front aud be
prepared for immediate execution. AT
this a sergeant stepped forward and
named ten men as the actual murderers
of Escalera. These were marched of
and placed in a line with their backs to
broken wall, one only protesting his
innocence as he was dragged to the end
of the line. Before the fatal volley was
fred he darted nimbly round the corner
of the wall and ran along the front OF
the troops, but was recaptured and
taken back to his allotted place. A voice
from the ranks cried cut that they had
the wrong man, the real criminal being
a soldier of the same name in hospital
at Burgos. Espartero ordered the man
to be removed, while the rest received
their deserts. Upon inquiry being made
at Burgos the guilty one was found
there, taken from the hospital and shot,
his namesake of course being set free.
A snake once prevented thief com
mitting something. worse than theft.
A woman of Dude, and her daughter
once alighted at the station at Hurdee,
and hired conveyance to take them to
their village. When they had gone hall
dozen miles on their way the driver
pulling up in a lonely spot, demanded
their jewelry; and, upon their demur
ring, tied the pair to the vehicle and
seized the trinkets. Then. bethinkine
himself that the dead women could tell
no tales, the ruffian drew out his knife
, but, slipping from his grasp, it fell into
ditch. He plunged his hand in the
water to recover his knife, and, as he
clutched it, black snake fixed its fangs
in the would-be murderer's hand. He
! succumbed to the poison, and in ten
, minutes was past hurting anybody
The women we're discovered by some
villagers, and released, but the corpse OF
the driver was left alone until the police
, coming on the scene, removed the body
to the police station.
Ofal the wonderful canyons or gorges
of Colorado, the Grand Canyon of the
) Arkansas, with almost perpendicular
5 walls, in some places several thousand
Z feet high, is the most wonderful. The
J gorge of this canyon used to be impassi
/ BILE except in winter, until railway
) operations were commenced and path
, of sort cut in the sides of the pre-
J cipices. Wishing to see how the sale
s operations were progressing, Prof. Male
! and party of friends set out one after
f noon from Canyon City. AS long a
they kept to the horse trail all wen
t well; but upon reaching q point jus
{ beyond it, Mrs. Mallet's horse stumbled
, and fell.
: The lady tried to disentangle hersel
3 from the animal, and dropping some tel
9 feet, caught with her fingers the end o
! narrow shelf of rock, and there hell
3 on, dangling in air above the rapid roll
ing Arkansas; and, to make matter
worse, the horse following its mistress
had fallen or ahmed nn the game ledpe