Year: 1875

I


|


I 1t is little more than nineteen years


since q laborer, wandering over


Hampstead Heath favoTite place


OF popular recreation near London
found man lying dead on his back


on tile rise of small mound in spot


which seemed to have been carefully


selected. By his side was a bottle


labeled Essential oil of ofalmonds" and


poison" containing a small quanti-


ty OF that preparation, silver cream
I jug redolent of prussic acid, and case


OF razOrs. Among other articles in


his pockets was q piece of paper on


which was plainly written, "John


Sadleir, Gloucester square, Park" The


event at first produced surprise and


COMMUNICATION, but these emotions


quickly gave way to others of q


widely different order. In a very


brief time it became too evident that


Mr. Sadleir had ample cause to make
life a burden to him, if the pangs of
conscience and the dread of shameful
exposure could do so. His career was


most remarkable. a native of Tip
perary, in the middle class OF life,
Sadieir was admitted an attorney at
- 144G okC VI Ddl OC~
fore long, having obtained the agency
Of the great estates of Lord POrtar-
lington and other nOblemen, he rose
from the position of a Quarter Sessions


attorney TO that of an important land
agent. In lS47 he contrived TO get a
seat in Parliament, as member fCl
Carlow, and in 1852 was appointed by
Lord Aberdeen a Lord of the Treas
ury. Sadleir was a man of great
ability, but ofyet greater ambition.


So long as he was content to stick
to what he understood, he succeeded
but there came time when he began
dabbl1ng in speculatiOns which were
beyond the range OF his experience,
and these brought him to grief
One of his chief objects was to buy
enormously in the Incumbered Es-
tates Court, in anticipation of the rise
which he correctly anticipated would
in few years take place in Irish
property; and it was mainly the de-
vices 70 which he resorted to raise
money for this end which caused him
to pIuEge into a dozen schemes, and
ultimately resulted in the ruin of him
self and all connected with him.


1t was a remarkable circumstance,
in connection with this case. that
almost from the people of Ireland
never believed in the identity of Sad
leir with the body found on the heath,
Nor were the disbelievers confined to
Ireland, or to the unlettered. There
were undoubtedly circumstances in
the case which tended to invite the
suspicion that it might have been the
body of another man. The accounts
of the proceedings at the inquest are
strangely silent as to the satisfactory
Identification of the body, and the
piece of paper with "JOhn Sadleir" on
1t In the pocket of the deceas ed pre-
vented inquiries. The body WAS found
early on Sunday morning, a circum-
stance which suggested to some minds
that q day would thus be likely to
elapse before much stir took place in
the matter. And sum of el 800, in
notes and cash, paid to Ssdleir on the
day before, could never in any way
be traced or accounted for. There
was a disposition on the part of the
Coroner to bring the inquest to a
somewhat abrupt close before the dark
doings Of the deceased hsd been hint
ed at, and there were those who, when
doubts began to be freely raised, re-
called the fact that the Coroner was
himself man against whom grave
charges had been brought, and who
was reputed to have been intimate
with Sadleir,


Another strange circumstance sub
sequently ascertained was, that while
the ground all around was muddy, the
boots on the feet of the corpse. were
quite clean. On the other hand,
q post-mortem examination re-
vealed the presence in the stom-
ach of essential oil of almonds.
The theory of those who believe that
the body was not that of this great
defrauder is that body sufficiently
similar was procured by him and his
friends in eome mysterious manner,
and that he trusted to the assistance
of those whom he knew would attend
the inquest, and the notorious fact
that death does change a mans
appearance sometimes in such man.
mer as to render him almost un-
recognizable, to complete one more
fraud. Wild as these conjectures
may appear, there are cases on record
almost sufficient to justify them, and
only last month there arose an in
stance in point. A few weeks ago
there was found in the river Avon, in
Somersetshire, woman whose re-
mains bore marks of injury. An in
quest was held and adjourned. In
reopening the inquiry, the Coroner
commented upon the strange case of
mistaken identity which had occurred
in connection with the case. In the
course of their inquiries, the Bath |
police met with q woman who stated |
that the description of the deceased |
corresponded with the appearance of
q woman who had cohabited with a |
bargeman, and between whom there |
had been a violent disagreement at |
Bath previous to their departure |
in the barge for Bristol. |
The woman was taken by the police |
to see the body, and, after a minute |
examination, which extended to a |
scrutiny of the teeth, the condition of |
which confirmed the woman in her |
opinion, she positively stated that the
deceased was the woman she re- |
ferred to. This Identification was |
positive, and was singularly correct |
both in general and in detail and |
the Woman's testimony would have |
been unhesitatingly placed before the
jury for their acceptance but for one


circumstance-the simple fact that
the woman so carefully examined and |
so minutely described had been |
found alive. The lesson of such oc-
currence was, that extreme caution |
should be taken by juries in the ac-
eeptance of evidence OF Identification. |


It is indeed q lesson which can not |
be too carefully remembered.