The Chronicles of Crime or The New Newgate Calendar. v. 2/2: being a series of memoirs and anecdotes of notorious characters who have outraged the laws of Great Britain from the earliest period to 1841Pelham, Camden
History
The Chronicles of Crime or The New Newgate Calendar. v. 2/2: being a series of memoirs and anecdotes of notorious characters who have outraged the laws of Great Britain from the earliest period to 1841
Pelham, Camden
Crime -- Great Britain; Criminals -- Great Britain; Newgate (Prison : London, England)
We are unable to present the reader with any distinct or positive
history of the Messrs. Wakefield. At the time of the commission of the
offence for the participation in which they suffered so severe a
punishment, Mr. E. G. Wakefield was a barrister, and although he was not
known as possessing any practice in the profession of the law, he was
understood to be in the receipt of an income of about 1000_l._ a year.
He was at this time a widower with two children, having eloped with his
first wife from a school. His children were in Paris; but upon his
committal to Lancaster Castle, they followed him to that place with
their governess. Mr. Wakefield was at that time about thirty years of
age, and in a letter which was addressed by a person named Collier on
his behalf to the newspapers, he denied the allegation that he was
unacquainted with Miss Turner before the elopement, declaring that he
had previously met her at a public ball. In the course of the time
occupied by the public in the discussion of the case, he put forth a
statement of facts, denying that any force or fraud had been used
towards Miss Turner; and subsequently, while in Newgate, he published a
pamphlet, the object of which was to show that Miss Turner was really
his wife, that she was a consenting party to the marriage, and that no
ground therefore existed for the divorce. Mr. Wakefield has since become
well known in the mercantile world from his connexion with several
public companies.
Mr. W. Wakefield at the time of this offence was much younger than his
brother, and appears to have acted almost entirely under the directions
of the latter. He was married only a few days before his apprehension to
a lady entitled to move in the most respectable ranks of society. He has
since, we believe, served with honour and credit to himself in the army
of one of our European allies, in which he obtained the rank of colonel,
and at this time he holds an important trust in a colony newly formed at
New Zealand.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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