The Sun. — 1842-06-13 (London, England)

ATTEMPT TO MURDER.  The Court of Assizes of the Eure-et-Loire, held at Evreux, was engaged, on Friday and Saturday last, with the trial of two men, Langlois and Godefroi, for an attempt to murder the farther of the former, under the following circumstances :—Langlois, the prisoner, having expectation of a considerable inheritance at the death of his father, was eager to enter into possession. He first attempted to poison his sire, by sending him an omelette drugged with arsenic, when at work in the fields. This however failed, producing only a violent sickness. Upon this he seduced a shepherd, the other prisoner, Godefroi, a man aged only twenty-three, but married and having a family, and being in the greatest distress, to become the murderer of the elder Langlois, by shooting him. To insure his success, Langlois made him practice, by firing at rabbits, fowls, and other objects. When thought to be a sufficient marksman, he was put on the watch for an opportunity of shooting the parent of his suborner. Finding, in October last, the old man, who is 72 years of age, in his orchard gathering apples, Godefroi fired at him, and struck him. He then hastened back to the house of the son, and, not finding him at home, left word for hifn with the servant that he had hit the rabbit, but it was not yet dead. Langlois, on receiving this intelligence, went tohis father, feigning great grief; but finding that his father had only his arm broken he determined to have again recourse to arsenic, and sent Godefroi to a chemist's to purchase some, but fortunately it was refused him. Langlois, the son, lived in concubinage with his female servant, who was with child by him. She was acquainted with his horrible projects, and frequently remonstrated against them, upon which he quarrelled with her and ill-treated her. At length she communicated these facts to her brother and his wife. They, 'on hearing of the attempt against Langlois, sen., :went and related the whole story to the Chief Magistrate of Guilleforitaine, in the Seine Inferieure, where all the parties lived, and the nefarious act was perpetrated. Langlois, the son, and Godefroi, were arrested, and in due time brought before the Court of Assizes for that department. Notwithstanding the evidence of the guilt of the prisoners was incontrovertible, and Godefroi fully confessed his share in it, and declaring that he was to receive I,ooof. as his reward, the jury, in delivering their verdict of guilty; found that there were extenuating circumstances in favour of both the delinquents. The Procureur-General, discovering some flaw in the form of delivering this verdict, which subjected both the convicts to the minor punishment of hard labour at the hulks for life, instead of death, appealed against it to the Court of Cassation, which quashed the judgment, and ordered a new trial before the Court of Assizes for the Eure. At this new hearing, all the facts 'of the case were again given in evidence, and Godefroi 'renewed his confession. The prisoner Langlois was further proved to haVe been so avaricious as to have committed robbery and forgery for the purpose of obtaining money. Holding a farm under his father, at a rent of I,Boof. a year, he had, on the day before the old man's life was attempted, written his name to a receipt for 900 f., tw o quarters rent then actually due, in order thereby to save nine-tenths of the money he was to pay GOdefroi for the bloody deed. The proceedings were not conclu( ed till 12 at night on Saturday, when the jury retired, and remained upwards of an hour in deliberation. On, their return, they found Langlois guilty of parricide, and Godefroi of murder, with extenuating circumstances as to the latter alone. Langlois was condemned to death, and Godefroi, as before, to hard labour at the hulks for life.