The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-04-27

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! COL. DoNELLAN INSISTS UPON RINs1Nt
THE VIAL.
nestle servant, and arraigned at tn.
Old Bailey Court House on the chargt
of administering poison to the family
No one had died from the attempt a
poisoning, but at that time Cs15) it wa:
a capital felony to administer poison
with intent to kill. The family un
dou btedly had been poisoned by eating
of dumplings made by this hapless girl
! but she had herself eaten of the same
dish and suffered in the same
degree as the other members of the
household. She had not made the
slightest attempt to remove the evidence
of her guilt, if guilty she was. She had
left the poison bearing dish unwashed
1t is hardly conceivable that, such be-
ing the evidence, she should have been
convicted. But the recorder of Lon
don who presided at the trial seemed to
be very preiudiced against her, and
charged the jury strongly for convic-
ton. The only motive ascribed to her
was that she had had slight quarrel
with her mistress and had determined to
poison the entire family by way of
revenge. After conviction petitions
signed by thousands prayed the mercy
of the King, but the recorder fercely
fought the movement for pardon. The
girls master relented. and would have
signed the petition for pardon, but
the recorder persuaded him not to do
New evidence was discovered after
the trial, and before the execution,
which made it all but certain that she
was innocent Sir Samuel Romilly re-
cords the fact that an offer was made
soon after the girl was convicted, to
prove that there was in The house Of
her master when the poisoning took
place person who had shortly before
la bored under mental arrangement,
and who in that state had privately de-
clared to a reputable witness, who was
forthcoming, that he feared much that
he should destroy himself and his
family. Mr.. Gibson, reputa BILE mer-
chant of London, was ready to testify
that some months previously this men
tally unbalanced person had called
him and had said to him with great
agitation: my dear Gibson, for
heavens sake get me secured or con
fined, for if am left at liberty l shall
do some mischief; shall destroy myself
and my wife. l must and shall do it
unless all means of destruction are re-
moved out of my way; therefore do,
my good friend, have me put under
some restraint; something bove tells
me, l must do it, and unless |
am prevented l shall certainly do it"
Mr.. Gibson communicated this confess
sion to the poor madman's family, but
they left him at liberty, and it is almost
certain that it was his act for which
Eliza Fenning was sent TO her death.
The recorder refused to entertain this
proffered evidence. and the unfortunate
girl, the only child of respectable
parents, who were then still living. was
taken out one morning in April, 1915,
and hanged in front of Newgate As
the door was reached that opened upon
the scaffold the clergyman of the jail
made last effort to extort confession,
but she replied: Before the lust and
Almighty God, and by the faith Of the
Holy Sacrament have received. | am
of the offense of which I am
The chronicles of the time say that as
the stood on the drop she looked as
serene as an angel The vast multitude
who witnessed her death all but unani-
nously believed her innocent, and the
lir was filed with sobbings and groans
is the drop fell The people of London
we're furious after her death. and the
house of the crown prosecutor had to
De protected from destruction. A ire
demonstration was made at
her funeral Six young girls clad in
white led the way and 10000 people |
followed her body in mourntul silence
through the streets to the cemetery OF !
81 George the Martyr. the windowsb be- /
ng yelled and draped in mourning. and /
every housetop thronged with weeping
people. You will find in the books OF .
he great lawyers on the philosophy OF /!
violence some expert opinions 20 the ,
fleet that Eliza Fenning was rightfully i
but the balance OF probabil- I
y IS entirely the other way.
1t is 20 the credit of human progress +
hat within recent years no man has |
'een executed on evidence so iucenclu- I
i've as that on which Captain Donellan
nd poor Eliza Fenning were con- I
emuea II X a com Fort f,1a rsf3satiOr, |
hat in every case OF conviction of muir
er by poison on circamstautial evil
ence within the past forty years,
ither the condemned person has cor
essed his guilt or else the death sen
enee has not been carried out Mrs
lay brick has been convicted. bat not
anged. Carlyle w Harris has been
onvicted- but it IS not ret ce-.air hat
e will be executed