The Sun. — 1846-08-28 (London, England)

TRIAL OF • JOSEPH HENRI FOR THE ATTEMPT ON THE LIFE OF LOUIS PHILIPPE. PARIS, AUG. 25.—The trial of Henri having been fixed for Tuesday, 25th inst., the preparations were made in the Chamber of Peers, which had constituted itself into a court of justice. The excitement in Paris was very trifling, and the tribunes in the Chamber were but moderately filled with spectators. At a quarter past twelve o'clock the Peers took their seats, and their names were called over by one of the secretaries. The same arrangements were made as during the trial of Pierre Lecomte on the 4th and sth of June last. .the prisoner Henri is a pale, short man, fifty-one years of age. His forehead recedes considerably, and his nose is large and projecting. He wore spectacles, and was dressed in black. His appearance resembled that of a respectable mechanic in his Sunday attire. His demeanour, on taking his seat, was perfectly composed, and when questioned by the Chancelier Due Pasquier, he replied with calmness and in a loud tone, and whilst the act of accusation was read he paid great attention. The act, after giving the details of the attempt (which have already appeared in our columns) urged that Henri was in full possession of his faculties, and was as sane as he had been during the thirty years he had been in business as a maker of fancy articles in steel. He was interrogated at length by the Chancellor, and replied without reservation to all the questions, stating that he " he fired at the King in consequence of the great misfortunes he had suffered. For six years he had meditated suicide; and unable to kill himself, he had tried some means by which he should be killed. He made up his mind to fire on some distinguished person, but did not mean to kill, only to touch (que je touche), to bit, and, when be fired he said to himself, Fire—touch or not touch, it will be all the same.' " No one knew his intentions but himself. He premeditated the two shots. His pistols were charged with slugs in each, the powder being rammed down with a strong wad of white paper. Had intended to fire on the lit of July, when he mounted guard in the Legion (7th) to which he belonged, and took his pistols with him, but afterwards delayed it, being unwilling to throw a stain on his company, and from respect for the National Guard ; then resolved to fire on the King on July 29, and did so. He stated, with much emphasis, that though he had worked hard and never done the least wrong, yet he was unsuccessful in business, in debt, and miserable ; and he thought of this attempt as the best way to get rid of his life, which was a burthen to him. And as he could not kill himself, he resolved that men should kill him. He had foreseen all, and had not failed in his desire. He did not wish to live longer, but to be destroyed (aneunti). This portion of his statement he made with excitement and gesticulation, and he continued for nearly an hour to explain his motives, and all he had suffered for six years. About two o'clock, when he seemed exhausted, a basin of broth was brought to him, which he drank eagerly, his hands shaking very much. He then took a pinch of snuff with much gusto, and again replied to the questions of the Procureur-General, Hebert, with the same readiness he had displayed towards the Chancellor ; bat when the Procureur used the word " kill," he said, " You always use the word kill, (taw), I meant only to fire at (tirer sur) some great personage." The Procureur-General then read to him some extracts from a manuscript found at his abode, and which was entitled "Premeditation "and which extended to 220 closely-written pages, as well as other papers, all of which formed a thick " blue book" when in type. In these works there were such passages as " When a man is determined to leave this life, the plan is to fire at some great personage, end kill him, or be killed." The Procureur pressed him closely on these words, and his explanation was by no means clear ; but he persisted in saying he meant to hit or wound, but not to kill. Other passages, quoted by M. Hebert, he combatted by saying he had changed his views since he wrote some of those passages. The Marquis de Boissy then remarking that the accused seemed fatigued, proposed a short adjournment, which took place for half an hour. At three o'clock the interrogatory was resumed, and at half-past three the examination of the witnesses commenced, and continued when the express left Paris. It is expected that the trial will conclude to-morrow.