Robbery At Earl Cowper's.
The Times, 1824-08-12T00:00:00

Ycerd$ay vs4 t ,lay txefdrcarrytrig into execution the'awfuil Benteie otehe law uporr Jnes Harris and Janzes Twnze=as, alias Davrs, convicted of the late robbery, and attempt to murder Alr. Hnlnes,sterfardto Earl Cowper, at Hertfordbury, on the 9th of June last; but it did not take plite, ir. consequence of a retpite for a f-w darys having arrived for the unfoftunate convicts. The dircum- stances of atrocity attendirg the attack upon Ball Cowper's steward are fresh in the recollectio aofourreaders. It laving appealet in the ceurseof the evidence on the trial, that Green had resisted the proposal of his companion% to murder Mfr. a-ad 1rs. Ilaines, and that to his op. position th preservation of theirlives may ini all ptobabilitvbcattribut- ed, Earl Cowperis said to have cxerted all his influenee toobtain. fromi the mercy of the Crown the remission of the punishnent of deathi in hisfavour; and notwithout success. an order having been despatched ini the course of the week following,notifying his reprieve during Ilis iMlajesty's pleasure. The case of his two companionts, lowever, wvas viewedl in a sery CliflTrent lIght, and the law was therefore, as regard. ed them, left to take its course. Davis, althoagh extren.elv penitent, and freely acdmitting that he had, by his former crimes, justly merited thc ignominious death w7hi1 he was about to suflfer, ye' strenuously persisted in asserting his innocence ef the particula,r offencefor which he had been sen- enced; and also Iepeaedly affirmed even in the course of Tuesdav last, that Harris was not present at tlhe robbery. Harris's amaye. rations of his innocenee have been Incessant, and made with the ut. most vi lence, declaring that the exrcution of his setitence would be a judicial murder, and imprecating all sorts of vengeance upon the ueads of those who had in any way contributed to his being placed in thiat awful situation. In the course of Tuesday in parti. ulaar. his conduct was most un overnable, the paroxysms of his rage frequently bursting forth into tne most frantic expression. The per- severance of these unfortunate men in the declarations of theii inno- cence, indttced MJ r. Nicholson, the Under Sheriff, to institute a par. ticular inquiry nimongthe servan ts of Mr. llainet, as to their certainty in iderntifying the prisoners as the Individuals with whom thev were engagtd on tie morning of the robbery, the result of whlich seemed to have left no doubtvwhatever of their identity. Representations, however, were made to the Secretary of State, in consequenecof which an order froni that Right Ilon. Gentleman reached the gaol at ten o'clock on Truesdty night, respiting their execution until Fridav next, accompanied by a letter to Mr. WVilson, the gaoler, directing a full and accurate report to be made of every statement and clecia. ration that had been received from Davis since his triaL On recei t of these, Dlr. Under-Sheriff Nicholson repaired himediately to the cell in which Davis was confined, and earnestly and solemnly ex. horted him, in order to further thc ends of justice, to make a full and true confession of eve-y particular with which he was acquainted relating to the transaction ire which he had been implicated; intir,at. ing that he had it in his power to postpone his execution for two days; at the end of which period, if it were discovered that he had made a false statement, he would certainly be hanged; but that if his story v,ere true, it was possible that his lite might be spared -but that he maist not flatter himself with any hope of escapinig ultiniate punishment. Davis thereupon proceeded to make a most ample and c;cumstantial confession. implicating. as it was stated several persons, but exculpating entirely himself and Harris front any share in the outrage upon Mr. IIaines. This confession was taken down, and signed by the yrisoncr, and forwarded in the inorn. Ing to the Secretary of State'6 dflice. The unhappv nman was after- wards placed in a solitary cell, and no communication was permitted through the night between him and Harris. Two other convicts, nanied lPill/dzmm Afarshall and C/rarler (artrri,l't, convicted at the late assizes of a burglary in the house of iMr. Gordon,- nt Berkhamstead, underwent the last sentence af the law yestctday morning, in the usual place of execrition, in the front of Hertford Gaol. After the execution, the Under-Sherift and Gaoler, attended by their assistatits, proceeded to the cell In which Hlarris wva as awitilgl. the awvful approach of his expected fate. On the door being opened. the unhappy mail stepped fbrward; his appearance being that of a man much flurried atid agitated, thoughi considerably cooler and more collected ttian he hacl been on the previous evetinig. lie was then asked if he still persisted in the declarations of innocence which he had so repeatedly ma,le, and he answered, " Yes, I ant ; I am innocent-I repcatirlI am innocent." Ile was theniinformned, that the execution of lige,ientence was postponed until Ftidav, that the interval would be employed in making further inquiries into tie case, but thathe had better bestow his attention in prcpatring himself to meet his doom, as tiothitig should prolong it beyond that period, un- less his innocence could be clearly established in the meantime. i .- RORBSRF ArAIIL (')SVPBRI'.