The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1888-10-01

acted the part OF an imprisoned lover;
persuaded her to give him n redezvous,
and then arrested her. The conviction and
execution OF La Brinvilliers and her inn
mediate accomplices did not, however, at
once put stop to poisoning as trade.
The business was carried ON for while by
two horrible women - La Vosin and
La Vigoreux-and by many other wretches
less known in the chronicles of infamy;
but the initiative set by Desgrais had not
been forgotten. A "chambre ardente"
was instituted, which, disregarding the
usual course of justice, instituted secret
trials and ierreted out crimes by means OF
a whole legion OF spies and delators. Out
OF the "chambre ardente" came, undoubt-
edly, that wonderful organization, the
French secret police; and the prototype OF
the Nidocqs and Claudes of modern times
was undoubtedly the wary exempt OF the
Chatelet Desgrais.
At the present moment the nerves of
the metropolis are stirred and thrilled by
the appalling Whitechapel murder; while
in the immediate neighborhood of the
scene OF the tragedy nervousness has been
aggravated to the proportions OF panic.
Nothingis easier under such circumstances
than TO preach Tsuperfine homilies about
morbid curiosity" "a diseased appetite
for sensation" and the like. In "Barnaby
Rudge' Sir John Chester's chief objection
TO murder was that II led TO such an I'M
comfortable amount of running up and
down stairs; and the superiine censors of
human nature, when il behaves as human
nature has invariably done, seems de-
slrous OF emulating the equanimity OF
Dickens typical coxcomb The simple
philosophy OF the matteris, we apprehend.
that humanity has a rooted aversion TO
having its throat cut bya midnight assas.
sin, and that 1t is apt TO remain in per-
turbed condition OF mind until the assassin
has been brought TO justice and hanged.
AS Tor the curiosity which never fails TO he
engendered by crime OF peculiar barbar-
ity, the critics are, OF course, justified in de-
preciating 1t as morbid" but the curiosity
will not thereby be diminished one iot or
title. People at the east end are talking
today about the more appalling features OF
the Whitechapel murder, just rs their
grandiatheB and grandmothers eighty
years ago eagerly canvassed the details OF
the MAR and Williamson" murder; COM
pairing notes regarding the strange similar
ity existing between the Whitechapel case
and that Of Eliza Grimwood, who about
fifty years ago was found in house in the
Waterloo road under circumstances Of
closely analogous horror, her murderer
never having been discovered. No class
IN the community is free from this "morbid
curiosity" The assassination Of Lord
William Russell by Courvoiser shook the
equanimity Of the west end quite rs vio-
lcntly as the crime OF Wainwright startled
the east and there is little-on the face Of
it-ot exaegeration in the story that Sam
uel foote, the comedian, who was Of tho
family OF the notorious Capt Gooderc,
who murdered his own brother, made his
entry, and with applause, into fashionable
London society US "thc nephew OF the
gentleman who was lately hung in chains
for killing his uncle"
Whether the Whitechapel murder is
destined to pass into the long and CHASTITY
list Of undiscovered crimes il would be per-
fectly useless 10 discuss, seeing that at any
moment the hand OF justice may clutch
the criminal or criminals. As yet, also, IL
is clearly premature 10 speculate whether
the foul deed has been wrought by luna
tic suffering from q recognized and hideous
form Of homicidal monomania-possible in
the case Of Eliza Grimwood, and incontro-
vertibly established in that of the "Mon-
ster," Renwick Williams, whose intended
victims, however, escaped with liie-or
whether the poor waif and stray OF n
woman in Whitcchapel was done TO death
10y gang Of iiendishly ierocious roughs.