The Workman's Advocate. — 1866-01-13 (London, England)

EXTRAORDINARY CAREER OF A FRENCH CRIMINAL.  The trial of Poncet, the presumed murderer of M. Lavergne, who held a high situation under the English Government in the Mauritius, and whose acquaintance he formed in a railway carriage on his journey from If)n don to Paris, is to take place in a few days at Versailles. The previous character of the individual accused of the murder, as well as the circumstances attending it, are calculated to excite great interest. Puncet is of rather a prepossessing appearance, and under thirty years of age. He passed the early part of his life among horses, and from eight to fifteen years of age was groom to Baron de Spaur. He then entered the service of the Marquis de Carayan-Latour in the same capacity, but some property belonging to his master's coachman having been stolen, Poncet fled. He was shortly afterwards arrested as a vagabond, and was sentenced by the policecourt to be confined in a reformatory during a period' of five years. In March, 1858, he was again arrested in the act of atering a counterfeit piece of two francs. He insulted tho commissary of police, and on the 14th of April following he was sentenced to imprisonment for three years for insulting a magistrate when in the discharge of his duty. When the period of his imprisonment expired, in 1861, he obtained a situation in M. Leblanc's riding-school in Paris, and a month later he was admitted as groom in Prince Napoleon's stables, but he remained there for only a short time. He next renewed an acquaintance with a person named Marjotte, who had been convicted three times of robbery. Poncet retained the livery of his late master, and by that means obtained admission into several respectable houses, where, with the aid of Marlette, he committed various robberies. The tiro thieves were tried before the assize court in March, 1862, and sentenced to hard labour for eight years. Poncet formed the acquaintance of Giraud, the celebrated forger of bank-notes, at the prison of La Roquette, and arranged with him a plan to escape from Cayenne when they should arrive there. Poncet arrived there first, and a hen he was joined by Giraud they both fled on a small raft. They met with difficulties which they were not provided for, and Giraud, unused to such privations as they were forced to endure, shortly died. Poncet then resolved to return to Cayenne, but he again escaped in six months afterwards. He succeeded in reaching an American vessel, and arrived at New York, where he enlisted. He could not, however, resist the desire of re-visiting his native country, and obtained a passage to London. M. Lavergne was then about to return to the Maur-tins through Paris. Poncet entered the same railway carriage, insinuated himself into the good graces of the old gentleman by several acts of civility, and on arriving in France he affected to be travelling with M. Lavergne, as his companion. By that means he evaded the Examination of the police, and arrived in Paris. Two days afterwards the dead body of M. Lavergne was discovered shockingly mutilated in a wood near Argenteuil. Poncet was arrested, and he immediately wrote to M. Leon Barthelemy, the barrister, to request the aid of his distinguished talent. Poncet recollected that M. Barthelemy had defended him with great effect in 1862. The reports current in Versailles of Poncet's extraordinary coolness and the ingenious system of defence he has arranged for himself have given the affair additional interest.  The House of Lords having decided that the Liverpool Docks were liable to be rated for the support of the poor, the board have paid over to the select vestry the sum of .R 20,580 as well as ..2188 for law expenses incurred by the vestry, in connection with the question of the board's liability since 1858. Mr. Pell, the Leamington magistrate, about whom there was such a disturbance a week or two ago, has requested the Lord Chancellor to take his name off the commission of the peace for the county of Warwick. The toll-bars on the York and Malton and Malkin and Scarborough coach roads were removed at midnight on Sunday, and the cost of the maintenance of the roads will in future be borne by the respective parishes. Since the introduction of railways in these districts, horse and carriage traffic has much de• creased on the hi.ihwaTs.  MR.