The Mysteries of the Court of London Vol. 7 — page 341: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

328 _ _- Vv THE MYSTERINS OF THD COURT. fuul deed of murder was imputed. He thereiore admitted to her that he was that untortunate in- dividual: but he said enough to convince her that he was innocent of the crime charged against him. She then told him how the ledy whom he had left at her bouse, had encilused certain articles of jewellery in a little velvet bag, and how she had fled, no doubt in a state of mental aberration. Lord Clandon took his departure from that house, and prosecuted his igquiries eleewhere—but all to no effect. Finding that his efferts were useless thus far~and being bent upon adopting the ear- liest possible measures to make his innocence manifest before the world—he employe) a trust- worthy individual (who however knew not his ebjects and motives) to pursue those inquiries which he was resolved never to abandon until he succeeded in oBtaining some trace of the long-lost Dushese, or some clue to her fate. It will be remembered that when a short time afterwards he was staying with his friend Sir Willlam Ashton in the neighbourhood of Liverpool, on fhe ee sion of Lettice Rodney's trial, he fell in with Orasy Jane, whom he discovered to be Jane Barclay, the principal ledy’s-maid of the Duchess Elisa in years gone by: he provided a pomfortable home for that unfortunate creature: but in the unsettled atate of her intellect, she abanconed it. At about the same time that the intelligence of her disap- reached Lord Clandon in London, he received a communication from the trusty agent whom he had left pursuing inquiries in the northern counties. This communication was to the effect that the agent had succeeded in dis- covering that after the flight of the Duchess Elisa from Mrs. Hutton’s abode on the border of Oum- berland, the unhappy lady had been for some while an inmate of a lunatic asylam in Northum- berland. Thither Lord Olandon at once proceeded from London: and he heard,all that the proprietor of that asylum could tell him upon the painful eubject. Having some leisure upon his hands, he renewed his’ own personal inquiries throuzhout those northern counties; and at the same time if forgot not poor Orasy Jane, OF this latter he received some intelligence; aud the result thereof was the visit which he paid to Woodbridge. There—according to hie wont, in pra ting his inquiries in any new place relative to thelong-lost * Duchess Elisa—his first caro was to examine ti tombstones in the churchyard, in order te.ascer- tain whether amidst those memorials of the dead he should chance to find one that would eet at rest the mystery which enveloped the fate of the Duchess—though he then knew not whether she were still an inbebitant of this world or had gone to the next. While inspecting those grave-stones at Woodbridge, he beheld the one with the singu- larly laconic inscription: he fell in with Crasy Jane; and circumstances led him into communica- tion with Jonathan Oarnabie. From the old sexton’s lips he Jearnt sufficient to clear up all the mystery which had hitherto enveloped the fate of the un- fortunate Duchess. Tu his unspeakable wonderment he at the same time learnt that the twins Christian and Christina Ashtun, whum chance had previvusly thyywn in his way in Lundon, were the offspring uf the deceased Duchess—and they ignurant of the secret of their birth! On. his return to London, he sent for Christian from Ramagate, and gave him a home: he examinad the maternal relics which the twins had preserved: he recognised the Duchess Eliza's watch: anti the ring with the initial B upon it, was the same which he had given to her in the days of their love at Oxford. That Christian and Christina were the lawful offepring of the Duke and Duchess of Marchmont, there could be no doubt: but still Lord Clandon felt that the evidence which he had as yet obtained would be scarcely sufficient to prove their claims; and moreover he himeelf could not appear publicly in any judicial investigation ountil his own innocence was made manifest. In these circumstances he thought it more prudent to retdin the,secret of their birth from the knowledge of the twins: so that they might not be buoyed up with hopes which perhaps never would be fulfilled. But in a short time pro- vidence threw additional testimony into his hands. On the occasion of one of the visits which he made into the neighbourhood of Oaklands for purposes connected with the plans which were in progress for the development of his innocence, he fell in with a woman whom he knew not at the time, but whom @ hasdbill subsequently proved to be the murderess Barbara Smedley. On her person a sealed packet was found ; and this packet contained certain papers intimately connected with the in- terests of the twins. . The next witness who appeared for examination before the Oommittee of Privileges, was John Smedley. It will be remembered that he had sur- rendered himeelf up to justice in consequence of a handbill proclaiming that the mercy of the Crown would be to a certain degree extended to any one of the gang of miscreants connected with the house in Lambeth (the Burker himself excepted) who would give such information as should place the others in the hands of the police: or that the same benefit would be extended to that one of the same gang who would surrender up the Burker alone to the authorities. John Smedley bad been the means of betraying the Burker, when disguised as a Jow, into the hands of the police; and it assuredly was not his fault that the miecreant Baruey had subsequently escaped. Smedley there-,, fore—on pleading guilty at the Old Bailey to the charge of murder, and confessing that he had helped tg assassinate one Joseph Preston—had re- ceived the benefit of the royal mercy, according to the, prdmise of the handbill; and his life being spared, he was sentenced to transportation for the remainder of hiadays. But inasmuch as bis evi- dence was needed before the Committee of Privi- leges in respect to the Marchmont Peerage, he was retained a prisoner in Newgate instead of being immediately sent out of the country. He now thereforé appeared, in the custody of turnkeys, in the presence of that Committee. The testimony of John Smedley was to the fol. lowing effect. Some time back he had at his house in Lambeth a lodger who passed by the name of Smith. This lodger desired that a letter might be taken to the address which appeared upon the en- vel p:». It was directed to Mr. Ashton, at Mrs. Macaulay’s, Mortimer Street, Oavendish Square. Smedley, his wife, and mother opened the letter instead of taking it to iteaddress. They found by its contente that their lodger’s real name was Joseph Preston—that he had lived om Cambridge Terrace —that he had sorely wronged Chtistien and Cbris- — Sa eet — ECOMRniclacae SS (CO)