The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — 1842-01-28 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

BERNARD CAVANAGH (THE FASTING MAN.—This defendant was brought up under the writ of habeas corpus, directed to the keeper of the gaol of Reading ; and the return of that officer, setting forth the commitment by the mayor, was read. The commitment stated a conviction under the vagrant act, and a sentence of three months' imprisonment. Lord Denman.—Has not the case been argued, and the commitment declared to he bad ? Mr. James (who appeared for Cavanagh) answered in the affirmative. Lord Denman.—Then let him be discharged. The Solicitor-general rose and was beginning to argue the question ; but Lord Denman interposing, said, that this court was not a court of appeal from the decisions of the learned judge by whom this case had been decided ; and the case, therefore, could not be reheard. His lordship added. that the judges now in this court bad, in fact, been consulted before the decision on the commitment was pronounced. The defendant was then discharged ; and bowing very low to the judges, and thanking them very audibly, he withdrew from the court. There had been a great crowd oollected in court to see him, the curious much preferring this economical exhibition of the man to that at which money was to be paid for the sight. As soon as the order for Cavanagh's discharge had been pronounced, the crowd hastily and noisily began to disperse ; and while the next case was going on, the ordinary occupants of the court were alone to be seen in it.  DELAHUNT'S CONFESSION OF GulLT.—This unfortunate culprit on Saturday morning made a confession of his guilt to Mr. Allison the governor of Kilmainham prison. Mr. Allison had a conversation with Delahunt on Saturday morning, and having been cautioned not to make a disclosure he wished to do so voluntarily, he said he was desirous to tell the truth, and he did not wish to deny anything. With regard to the crime of:which he had been convicted, he ackowledged he had committed it. The only way in which he could account for it was, that he had been for a month or more previous to the commission of it, instigated to murder some person or other, but he had no particular individual in view, nor was it to satisfy the least personal hostility that he was instigated to do so. 'He stated that the temptation came over his mind every night in bed for at least a month before be murdered the boy Niaguire, but up to that time be endeavoured to overcome it. On the morning of Monday, the day upon which the fatal deed was perpetrated, he felt an invincible determination to Yield to the evil spirit which had governed him : but although he did not then contemplate the destruction of any particular person, be said be thought a child would be his best victim, because it would give him the least resistence ; accordingly he took the knife from his brother's house on the IVlonday morning, for the purpose of of effectuating his object. He wandered about the streets during the entire of that day, until he met with the boy Maguire, playing with other little children, in the neighbourhood of Plunket-street ; he had never seen nor known anything of him before, and his attention was attracted to him by observing him endeavouring to jump up on the end of a coal cart the boy was not able to get up on the cart, and he then called him away, under pretence that he wanted him to go of a message for him, promising to give him something for it ; the boy ininediately went with him, and they roamed from thence together from street to street, as had been stated on the trial. He then took deceased to the stable-lane, and having held him by the forehead with his left hand, the boy's back being next to his (Delahunt's) person, he held him tight, without letting him see the knife, or know what lie was about to do, and while in that position he perpetrated the dreadful deed. As soon as he made the gash in the boys throat he flung him at once away, so that the blood flowed entirely upon himself. In, that way Delahunt contrived to escape being marked with blood; but he positively denies having used the stone found in the boy's cap. The deceased did not see the knife, and could not have known what was about to be done to him, the deed was done so quickly. He did not seteam' or make the slightest resistance, and immediately after Delahunt went  away.