The Canton advocate. [volume] (Canton, D.T. [S.D.]) 1877-1897, 1881-07-14

Ill WIG COulnC VI " lCW WCChS Niuik
ret obtained the situation of housemait
in the service Of Mr.. and Mrs. Cobbold
The dwelling Of this couple was know
rs the Cliff, and stood on the bank 0
the Orwell. Here Margaret's tim'
passed smoothly on until May, 1897
when she received letter signed Will
lam Laud, dated from the Dog ant
Bone public house, in the borough o
Southwark, and earnestly imploring hel
to repair to London without delay tina
their hands might be united. She wa'
overjoyed with this news. But how
was she to get to London? She hac
no money, and she knew that her mas
ter and mistress would not grant hel
leave to undertake a journey which was
to lead her to William Laud. She
however, soon made up her mind how
to act. She attired herself in the CARL
of a groom, and, mounting one of Mr.
Cobbold's horses, began her journey
We have said that when child she de
lighted in Ading on horseback, and this
freak of her childhood stood her il
good stead by giving her, experience fol
the present occasion. She actually
rode Mr.. Cobbold's horse from Up
switch to London in eight hours and
half-a distance of seventy miles!
She alighted at the Bull in Aldgate
and, determined not to 60 empty
handed to rejoin her lover, intimated tc
the landlord her desire to sell the horse
A customer was soon found, so guineas
were offered for the animal, and the
bargain was about to be brought to 6
close when constables entered the inn
yard and took the pretended groom into
custody. The horse had been missed
Immediately after Margaret's depart.
ure; pursuit was commenced, and
she had been traced, stage by stage
from Ipswich to London.
Margaret was taken before Mr.. n
Bond, the sitting Magistrate at the then
Wbite-chapel Police Court, and com.
mitted for trial. But as the offense
was committed in the country, she was
removed to the County Jail at Fps.
wich. The attempt to depict the un-
fortunate young woman's feelings
WOulu W InpOSslDlc.
The trial took place on the 9th of Au-
gust, 1897, before Lord Chief Baron
Macdonald. Margaret pleaded guilty
and was sentenced to death. The judge,
in condemding her, declared he had
never known, throughout his judicial
experience person who was so well
acquainted with the principles of right
and wrong, good and evil and who had
perverted that discriminative power in
so strange a manner. The sentence
was afterward committed to seven
years, imprisonment in Ipswich Jail,
and she became the servant of Mrs Rip
shaw, wife of the governor of the pris-
on.
Two years passed away, and her ex-
conduct led to hopes that at
the expiration of another twelvemonth
she would be restored to liberty. But
it happened that William Laud, who
had lately returned to his evil practices,
was arrested, upon a charge of SNUG
Cling, tried and sentenced to one years
in Ipswich Jail. AS Mar
garet washed the linen Of the prisoners
she was frequently Compiled to visit
the mems wards in the daytime. There
she one day encountered William Laud
him whom she had never for mo-
ment forgotten never deserted in her
heart
Dread was the effect of this meeting
upon Margaret. The hope of obtain
ing remission of her sentence hap
pened to be defeated. William Laud
prevailed upon her to attempt an es-
cape from jail when his term of incar-
ceration should have arrived. Atlength
he was set free; and the plan for es-
cape was duly settled and arranged.
When the appointed time arrived Mar
garet managed to avoid being locked
in her cell; and at II o'clock she found
herself at liberty in one of the court
yards. But how was she to mount the
wall? She was provided with rope
and that was all. Casting around her
eyes, she espied, by the moonlight, a
large frame that was used to cover the
governors hower-beds. BY dint of inn
mense exertions she raised it in a slop-
ing position against the wall. Here
was a ladder for her. She then took a
clothes-prop, and mounting her ladder,
fixed, by means of the prongs of the
prop, the moose Of the rope over the
upright piece of iron on the wall which
sustained the horizontal bar of the che.
vaux-de-frize. She then drew herself
up by the line to the top of the wall
and actually bent her body over the
bristling spikes. The chevaux-de-frize
revolved and she was thrown to the
other side Of the wall. The rope ena
bled her to lower herself in safety; and
as the clock Of st. Clements Church
Ipswich, struck IL, she was freel
William Laud received her in hi.
arms, and they fled together. In a by.
place Margaret shifted her clothes and
donned sailors garb. They then pro
ceeded toward Orwell ferry, on theil
way to Sutton Walks and Sudbourn
And now they have reached the ferry
they are about to enter q boat which
John Luf had provided for them, wher
body Of the preventive guards rushed
mp 70 the spot. Margaret faintet
through excessive alarm. William
Laud, with . pistol in each hand, strobe
over her, and swore lie would defene
her and himself or die. A terribl,
combat took place between the SNUG
glers and the revenue officers, and VIII
liam Laud was shot with 4 pistol bullet
Thus was fnlfilled s.,.an's prophecy
Margaret never married William Laud
The young lady was taken to Ipswich
recognized and conveyed back TO jail
In due time she was brought to tria
before the same judge who had befor
condemned her. The law was impera
tive. Any person who, suffering
c0mmuted sentence, broke prison, va
doomed % undergo the original punish
ment This was death; and Margare,
who again pleaded guilty, was agail
condemned % die! But powerful il
terest was made in her behalf, and he
sentence Was commuted TO transports
ton for life. She accordingly saile
| for Australia in May, 1901.
I On her arrival IN New South Walf