The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 229: what you’re looking at

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

204 REYNOLDS’ WORKS relics which the twins had preserved; he recognized the Duchess Eliza’s watch, and 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 offspring 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 himself could not appear publicly in any judicial investigation until his own innocence was made manifest. In these circum- stances he thought it more prudent to retain 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 providence 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 a hand-bill 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 interests of the twins. The next witness who appeared for examination before the committee of privileges was John Smedley. It will be re- membered that he had surrendered himself up to justice in consequence of a hand-bill 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 Lam- beth (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 had been the means of betraying the Burker, when disguised as a Jew, into the hands of the police, and it assuredly was not his fault that the miscreant Barney had subsequently escaped. Smedley therefore, on pleading guilty at the Old Bailey to the charge of murder, and confessing that he had helped to assassinate one Joseph Preston, had received the benefit of the royal mercy, according to the promise of the hand-bill, and, his life being spared, he was sentenced to transportation for the remainder CONNIE YNOOLKKS (E()