The Chronicles of Newgate, vol. 2/2Griffiths, Arthur
History
The Chronicles of Newgate, vol. 2/2
Griffiths, Arthur
Criminals -- Great Britain; Newgate (Prison : London, England); Prisons -- England; Punishment -- Great Britain
The prisoners were in due course transferred to Newgate, to be put upon
their trial at the Central Criminal Court. A great number of
distinguished people assembled as usual at the Old Bailey on the day of
trial. The Mannings were arraigned together; the husband standing at one
of the front corners of the dock, his wife at the other end. Manning,
who was dressed in black, appeared to be a heavy, bull-necked,
repulsive-looking man, with a very fair complexion and light hair. Mrs.
Manning was not without personal charms; her face was comely, she had
dark hair and good eyes, and was above the middle height, yet inclined
to be stout. She was smartly dressed in a plaid shawl, a white lace cap;
her hair was dressed in long _crêpe_ bands. She had lace ruffles at her
wrist, and wore primrose-coloured kid gloves. The case rested upon the
facts which have been already set forth, and was proved to the
satisfaction of the jury, who brought in a verdict of guilty. Manning,
when sentence of death was passed on him, said nothing; but Mrs.
Manning, speaking in a foreign accent, addressed the court with great
fluency and vehemence. She complained that she had no justice; there was
no law for her, she had found no protection either from judges, the
prosecutor, or her husband. She had not been treated like a Christian,
but like a wild beast of the forest. She declared that the money found
in her possession had been sent her from abroad; that O'Connor had been
more to her than her husband, that she ought to have married him. It was
against common sense to charge her with murdering the only friend she
had in the world; the culprit was really her husband, who killed
O'Connor out of jealousy and revengeful feelings. When the judge assumed
the black cap Mrs. Manning became still more violent, shouting, "No, no,
I will not stand it! You ought to be ashamed of yourselves!" and would
have left the dock had not Mr. Cope, the governor of Newgate, restrained
her. After judgment was passed she repeatedly cried out Shame! and
stretching out her hand, she gathered up a quantity of the rue which,
following ancient custom dating from the days of the gaol fever, was
strewn in front of the dock, and sprinkled it towards the bench with a
contemptuous gesture.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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