The Sun. — 1858-01-11 (London, England)

THE MURDERER CHRISTIAN SATTLER.  The sheriffs have appointed the execution of this culprit for Monday, the 18th of January, this being rather earlier than usual in such cases. The execution will take place at Nevrgate, as, although the death of the officer and the committal of the prisoner took place in the county of Surrey, the execution, under the terms of the sentence, will take place at the gaol where the culprit was confined at the time of his conviction. _ _ .  The culprit, for a considerable period after his confinement in Newgate, expressed his entire disbelief in all revealed ; and although, at the request of the sheriffe and ordinary, he read portions of the Old and New Testament, he stated that so far from what he found there altering his opinions, it only confirmed him in them. On Christmas-day, however, he expressed a desire to be present at the service in the chapel, and since then he has been present on every occasion, and likewise appears desirous to converse with the Rev. Mr. Davis, the ordinary, and there appears reason to believe that his deistical notions are passing away. The prisoner appears to have received a very good education, but, according to his own statement, he was a spoiled child, and allowed to do almost as ho pleased, without any control being exercised over him, during his youth, and this had its natural effect in leading him into idle and dissolute habits. Upon the formation of the British German Legion, during the Crimean war, he resolved to come to this country, and he enlisted iu that legion, and on account of his superior acquirements he was employed as clerk in the regiment, but was subsequently discharged. Since that time he has not had any regular employment, but has been wandering about the country, subsisting by begging, and it is trn be feared that in more than one instance he resorted to dishonest practices, and for one of the acts of that description he was, as stated at the trial, sentenced to four months' itnprisonment in the gaol of Wisbeach. During the past week the .prisoner has received a letter from his father, in which he exhorts him to endeavour to reconcile himself to his Maker for his awful crime, and also, among other matters, informs him that several of his comrades who had left the ! same place to join the Legion, had returned home with a considerable sum of money, and exhorts him to consider how different his position would have been if he had followed honest and moral courses. The prisoner continues to persist in asserting that the officer was shot by accident, although he at the samo time admits that he harboured an intention to take his life from the moment that he was taken on board the Caledonia, to be brought to England, and Thain had placed the handcuffs upon him. He says, however, that after Thai's had left him in the afternoon of the 20th November he contr to get possession of his pistol and load it, but his intention at that time was to destroy himhimself. The officer, however, came in at the moment he was about to discharge it, and while he was sitting upon a folding stool in the cabin a struggle took place and he was nearly overpowered, and in making a violent effort to release himself, the pistol went off, and shot the deceased, but ho declares this  was accidentally done. The nature of the wound and the condition of the clothes of the deceased would to some extent confirm the statement of the prisoner, but the dying declaration of the unfortunate deceased and the exclamations of the prisoner after the fatal occurrence, would tend to show conclusively that it is not the truth, and there can  be no doubt that it was a deliberate and determined act of murder on the part of the prisoner. Although the prisoner has been constantly in formed by authorities of the gaol that there is not the slightest probability of his receiving any commutation of the sentence, he still appears to entertain an idea that the capital-punishment will not be carried out, and it is said that he has drawn up a long and remarkably well-written memorial to the Secretary of State, asking for mercy on the grounds above referred to. He appears to have no friends or connections whatever in this country, and ho has not been -visited by any one sitice;he has been in Newgate.