West Port Murders / Or an Authentic Account of the Atrocious Murders Committed by Burke and His Associates; Containing a Full Account of All the Extraordinary Circumstances Connected With Them. Also, a Report of the Trial of Burke and M'Dougal. With a Description of the Execution of Burke, His Confessions, and Memoirs of His Accomplices, Including the Proceedings Against Hare, &c.

by Anonymous

DECLARATION OF BURKE.

At Edinburgh the 3d November 1828.

In presence of George Tait, Esq. Sheriff-Substitute of Edinburghshire,

Compeared William Burke, at present in custody, who being examined, declares that he is 36 years of age, and he was born in Ireland, and he came to Scotland about 10 years ago: That he is a shoemaker, and he has lived for rather more than a year in the West Port, and about two months ago he went to the house in the West Port in which he at present lives; but he does not know the name of the entry; and the prisoner, Helen M‘Dougal, has lived with him for about ten years; but she is not married to him. Declares, that he at first lodged in his present house with a man named John Brogan, but Brogan went away about ten days ago, and the declarant now lodges in the house by himself. Declares, that James Gray and his wife and child came to lodge with the declarant about a week ago. Declares, that on the night of Thursday last, the 30th of October, no person was in the declarant’s house, except Helen M‘Dougal, Gray, and his wife. Declares, that on the morning of Friday last he rose about 7 o’clock and immediately began to his work, by mending a pair of shoes: That M‘Dougal rose about 9 o’clock. Declares, that Gray rose about 6 o’clock and went out: That Gray’s wife rose soon afterwards and lighted the fire, and the declarant then rose as before mentioned. Declares, that he went out about 9 o’clock to get some tobacco, and he returned in a few minutes, and they all four breakfasted together about 10 o’clock, and the women were occupied through the day in washing and dressing, and sorting about the house; and Gray was going out and in, and the declarant was working; and declares that on Friday evening he told Gray that he and his wife must go to the other lodging, because he could not afford to support them any longer, as they did not pay for the provisions which they used, and they went away; and the declarant accompanied them to Hare’s house, to which he recommended them. Declares, that he thinks Gray and his wife went away about 5 o’clock. Declares, that about an hour afterwards, when he was standing at the mouth of the entry, a man came forward to him dressed in a great coat, the cape of which was much up about his face: That he never saw that man before, and does not know his name: That the man asked if the declarant knew where he could get a pair of shoes mended, and the declarant, being a shoemaker, took him home with him, and got off the man’s shoes and gave him an old pair in the meantime: That while the declarant was mending the shoes the man walked about the room, and made some remarks about the house being a quiet place, and said that he had a box which he wished to leave there for a short time, and the declarant consented: That the man went out, and in a few minutes returned with a box, which he laid down upon the floor near the bed, which was behind the declarant, who was sitting near the window, with his face to it: That the declarant heard the man unroping the box, and then making a sound as if he were covering something with straw, and the declarant looked round, and saw him pushing the box towards the bottom of the bed, where there was some straw on the floor, but he did not observe any thing else than the box: That the man then got on his shoes, paid the declarant a sixpence, and went away: That the declarant immediately rose to see what was in the box, and he looked under the bed and saw a dead body among the straw, but he could not observe whether it was a man or a woman: That soon afterwards the man came back, and declarant said it was wrong for him to have brought that there, and told him to put it back into the box, and take it away: That the man said that he would come back in a little and do it, and then went away, but he did not return till Saturday evening about 6 o’clock, and when he did not return on Friday night, the declarant took the box into the entry, but allowed the body to remain under the bed. Declares, that on Saturday morning, about ten o’clock, he went out to the shop of a Mr. Rymer, in the West Port, and when he was there, a woman came to the door begging, whom he had never seen before: That the people in the shop refused to give her any thing, and the declarant, discovering from her dialect that she came from Ireland, asked her from what part of it she came, she said it was from Inesomen, which is a small town in the north of Ireland, and he then asked her name, and she said that it was Mary Dougherty, and the declarant remarked, that his mother’s name was Dougherty, and that she came from the same part of Ireland, and that, therefore, they might perhaps be distant relations; and as she said that she had not broken her fast for twenty-four hours, if she would come home with him, he would give her breakfast, at which time the only persons in the house were Helen M‘Dougal, Gray and his wife: That she sat by the fire till about three o’clock in the afternoon smoking a pipe, the declarant going out and getting a dram, because it was Halloween, and they all five partook of the dram sitting by the fireside. Declares, that at three o’clock Mary Dougherty said, that she would go to the New Town to beg some provisions for herself, and she went away accordingly. Declares, that he thinks Helen M‘Dougal was in the house when Mary Dougherty went away, but he does not remember whether Gray or his wife were in the house, and does not remember of any other person being in the house. Declares, that a few minutes before Mary Dougherty went away, William Hare’s wife came into the house, but went away into the house of a neighbour, John Connoway, immediately before Dougherty, went away, and he thinks that Hare’s wife, or Connoway’s wife, may have seen Dougherty go away, and Mary Dougherty never returned. Declares, that Helen M‘Dougal and Gray’s wife then washed the floor, and cleaned out the house: That there was no particular reason for doing so farther than to have it clean upon the Saturday night, according to their practice; and the declarant continued at his work: That soon afterwards Gray and his wife went away, and Helen M‘Dougal went to Connoway’s house, leaving the Declarant by himself, and the Declarant had not mentioned to any person about the dead body, and no suspicion that it had been discovered. Declares, that about 6 o’clock in the evening, while he was still alone, the man who had brought the body came, accompanied by a Porter whom the declarant knows by sight, and whose stance is at some where about the head of the Cowgate, or the foot of the Candlemaker-Row, and whose Christian name he thinks is John: That the man said he had come to take away the body, and the declarant told him the box was in the entry, and the Porter took it in, and the man and the Porter took the body, and put it into the box and roped it, and the porter carried it away. Declares, that when the man came with the porter he said he would give the declarant two guineas for the trouble he had in keeping the body, and proposed to take the body to Surgeons’ Square to dispose of it to any person who would take it; and the declarant mentioned David Paterson as a person who had some connexion with the surgeons, and went to Paterson and took him to Surgeons’ Square, where he found the man and the porter waiting with the box containing the body: That the body was delivered, and Paterson paid a certain number of pounds to the man, and £2, 10s. to the declarant: That he then went straight home, and was informed by some of the neighbours that a report had been raised of a dead body having been found in the house, and in particular by Connoway’s wife, who told him that a policeman had been searching his house, and he then went out in search of a policeman, and he met Finlay and other policemen in the passage, and he told them who he was, and they went with him to the house and found nothing there, and they took him to the police office. Declares, that he yesterday saw in the police office the dead body of a woman, and he thinks it is the dead body which was below the bed, but it has no likeness to Mary Dougherty, who is not nearly so tall: And being interrogated whether the man who brought the body and afterwards came with the porter is William Hare, declares that he is. And being interrogated, declares that he does not know of any person who saw that Hare had any concern in bringing the body or in taking it away; and being interrogated, declares that the porter’s name is John M‘Culloch, and declares that the box in which the body was contained was a tea-chest; and being specially interrogated, declares that the woman above referred to, of the name of Mary Dougherty, was not in his house on Friday, and he never to his knowledge saw her till Saturday morning at 10 o’clock: That she promised him to return on the same evening, but she did not, and he does not know what may have become of her. And being interrogated, declares that he sprinkled some whisky about the house on Saturday, to prevent any smell from the dead body. Declares, that Hare did not tell him, nor did he ask where he got the body. Declares, that he did not observe whether there was any blood upon the body. And being specially interrogated, declares, that he had no concern in doing harm to the woman before referred to, of the name of Mary Dougherty, or to the woman whose body was brought to the house, and he does not know of any other person being concerned in doing so. Declares, that Dougherty was dressed in a dark gown; and being shown a coarse linen sheet, a pillow case, a dark printed cotton gown, and a red striped bed-gown, to which a label is affixed, and signed by the declarant and Sheriff, as relative hereto, declares, that the sheet and pillow-slip are his, and he knows nothing about the dark gown and bed-gown: That the blood upon the pillow-slip was occasioned by his having struck Helen M‘Dougal upon the nose, as is known to Gray and his wife; and the blood upon the sheet is occasioned by the state in which Helen M‘Dougal was at the time, and is known to Gray’s wife. All which is truth.

Archd. Scott.	(Signed)	Wm. Burke.
A. M‘Lucas.		G. Tait.
A. Maclean.

At Edinburgh, the 10th day of November 1828.

In presence of George Tait, Esquire, Sheriff-Substitute of Edinburghshire.

Compeared William Burke, present prisoner in the Tolbooth of Edinburgh, who being examined, and the declaration emitted by him before the said Sheriff-Substitute of Edinburghshire, on the 3d day of November current, being read over to him, he declares that it is incorrect in several particulars—declares that it was upon the Friday morning, and not upon the Saturday morning, that the woman, named Mary Dougherty, came to the house, and that all that is said with reference to that woman, up to her going out at 3 o’clock, happened upon the Friday, and not upon the Saturday; and declares that the floor being wet in consequence of Helen M‘Dougal and Gray’s wife washing in the house, those two women washed the floor then, rather than defer it till next day, and the floor was usually washed twice a week, and it was usually washed on the Saturday, as one of the days: That those two women continued doing things about the house, and the declarant continued working till it was duskish: That the declarant then stopped work, and went out and brought in a dram, because it was Halloween, and he and the two women sat by the fire and drank the dram, and while they were doing so, William Hare came in, and the declarant went for more drink, and they all four sat drinking till they got pretty hearty. Declares, that when he was out for drink the second time, he found when he came back, that Mary Dougherty had returned, and was sitting by the fire, and she drunk along with them: That when it was pretty late in the night, but he cannot mention the hour, he and William Hare differed, and rose to fight, and the three women were still in the house drinking, and Mary Dougherty had become much intoxicated. Declares, that while he and Hare were struggling together, Helen M‘Dougal and Hare’s wife did what they could to separate them; but declares that there was no noise, and, in particular, there were no cries of murder. Declares, that after they were separated, they sat down at the fire together to have another dram, and they then missed Mary Dougherty, and asked the other two women, what had become of her, and they answered that they did not know, and the declarant and Hare searched for her through the house, and they both went straight to the straw of the shake-down bed upon the floor at the bottom of the standing bed, to see whether she had crept in there, and they found her amongst the straw, lying against the wall, partly on her back and partly on her side: That her face was turned up, and there was something of the nature of vomiting coming from her mouth, but it was not bloody: That her body was warm, but she appeared to be insensible, and was not breathing: That, after waiting for a few minutes, they were all satisfied that she was dead, and the declarant and Hare proposed to strip the body, and lay it among the straw, but they did not, at that time, say what further they proposed to do, and Helen M‘Dougal and Hare’s wife immediately left the house, without saying any thing, and the declarant supposed it was because they did not wish to see the dead body: That the declarant and Hare waited till the neighbours should be quiet, there being a considerable stir among the neighbours on account of its being Halloween, and in particular, in the house of Connoway, who lives in the same passage, in case any of the neighbours should come in upon them, and they stripped the body, and laid it among the straw, and it was then proposed by both of them, but he cannot say by which of them first, to sell the body to the Surgeons, and they both arranged that they would sell the body to David Paterson, whom they knew to be a porter to Dr Knox, in Surgeons’ Square, and who, they knew, received subjects, and that they would put the body into a chest, and get it conveyed to Surgeons’ Square, the following morning, and they then sat down by the fire again, and Helen M‘Dougal and Hare’s wife then returned, but nothing was said by any person about the dead body: That Hare and his wife then went home, at which time it would be near 12 o’clock on the Friday night, and the declarant and M‘Dougal went to bed and fell asleep, and rose next morning soon after 6 o’clock: Declares, that Gray and his wife came in about 8 o’clock in the morning and lighted the fire, and prepared breakfast, and they all got breakfast together, and the declarant then went out, and brought in a dram, and sprinkled it under the bed, and upon the walls, to prevent any smell: Declares, that he went out about 12 o’clock noon, and was out for about two hours walking about, and when he returned, he found Gray, and his wife, and Helen M‘Dougal still in the house, and after that he was occasionally out. Declares, that when it became dark he went to call for Paterson, but found that he was out, at which time it was past five o’clock: That he then got John M‘Culloch, a porter, and took him to the passage of the declarant’s house, and then left him there, and went into the house, and found William Hare there, but no other person, and he also saw an empty chest upon the floor, and they both immediately put the body of the woman into the tea-chest, and they roped it up with a line which hung across the house for drying clothes; and they called on M‘Culloch and put the tea-chest upon his back and told him to follow Hare, but they did not tell him what was in the tea-chest, nor did he ask them; and the declarant then went straight to Paterson’s house and found him at home, and told him that he had sent forward a subject to Surgeons’ Square, and he has no recollection of having seen Paterson on the Friday or the Saturday before that time. Declares, that Paterson and the declarant then went to Surgeons’ Square together, and they found Hare and M‘Culloch waiting there with the tea-chest, and Paterson opened the door of a cellar and the tea-chest was put into it: That Paterson then went and got £5, and gave it to the declarant and Hare, and they paid the porter and then went to their respective homes, and the declarant on his way home met Helen M‘Dougal, and when they got home they heard from Connoway’s wife the report of policemen having searched the house for a dead body, and he then met with Finlay the criminal officer, and he was apprehended and taken to the police office as formerly mentioned; and being interrogated, declares, that he cannot say whether the dead body he saw in the police office on Sunday the 2d current be the body referred to; and being interrogated, declares, that he had no concern in killing the woman, or in doing any harm to her, and he has no knowledge or suspicion of Hare or any other person having done so; and it is his opinion, that the woman was suffocated, by laying herself down among the straw in a state of intoxication; and being interrogated, declares, that no violence was done to the woman when she was in life, but a good deal of force was necessary to get the body into the chest, as it was stiff; and, in particular, they had to bend the head forward, and to one side, which may have hurt the neck a little, but he thinks that no force was used, such as could have hurt any part of the neck at all; and being specially interrogated, declares, that no other person had any concern in the matter; and, in particular, declares, that a young man, named John Brogan, had no concern in it, and that Brogan came into the house on Saturday forenoon, as he thinks, while the body was in the house, but he did not know of its being there. And all this is truth.

Archd. Scott.	(Signed)	Wm. Burke.
A. M‘Lucas.		G. Tait.
A. M‘lean.

At Edinburgh, the 19th day of November 1828.

In presence of George Tait, Esq. Sheriff-Substitute of Edinburghshire,

Compeared William Burke, present prisoner in the tolbooth of Edinburgh, who being examined, declares, that he is thirty-six years of age, and he was born in Ireland, and he came to Scotland about ten years ago, and he is a shoemaker, and he has lived for rather more than a year in the West Port; and the prisoner M‘Dougal resides with him; declares, that he never saw a lad known by the name of Daft Jamie; and he does not know of such a person having lived with Hare’s wife, before her marriage with the prisoner William Hare, and he had no concern in injuring such a person; and he does not know of M‘Dougal, Hare or his wife, having done so. Interrogated, declares, that he has a brass snuff box which he purchased about four years ago from a shearer lad at Mr. Howden’s farm, about two miles from Tranent for sixpence, and he left it in the Lock-up-house last Monday, when he was committed to jail; and declares, that he had a snuff-spoon which was taken from him when apprehended, and he purchased it for twopence in September last from a hawker at the West Port, whose name and residence he does not know, and being shown a brass snuff-box, and a snuff-spoon, to which a label is attached, signed by the declarant and Sheriff, as relative hereto, declares, that they are the snuff-box and snuff-spoon he refers to; declares, that he gave the box to a tinsmith in the West Port, named James, whose surname he does not know, but whose shop is next door to Brown’s circulating library, to put a new lid upon it, and he thinks he gave it to the tinsmith in September last, and the tinsmith kept it in his possession some weeks; and all this is truth, &c.

At Edinburgh, the 3d day of November 1828.

In presence of George Tait, Esq. Sheriff-Substitute of Edinburghshire,

Compeared Helen M‘Dougal, at present in custody, who being examined, declares, that she is 33 years of age, and she was born in Stirlingshire: That she never was married, although she has lived with the prisoner, William Burke, for 10 years: That about a year ago they came to reside in Tanner’s Close, West Port; and about three months ago they went to another house in the West Port, but she does not know the name of the close: That a person, named John Brogie, occupied the house in which they at present reside; but Brogie left the house on Friday 8 days, and the declarant and Burke, who were living with Brogie previously to his leaving the house, took possession of it by themselves. Declares, that James Gray and his wife came to live with Burke on Sunday the 26th of October. Declares, that the only persons who were in the house on the night of Thursday last, the 30th of October, were Gray and his wife, and Burke and the declarant: That Burke and the declarant arose from bed on Friday morning about 10 o’clock, and Ann Gray made breakfast for them; and when she was making breakfast for them Burke went out, and said that he was going to the shop, by which she understood him to mean that he was going to get a dram, and he came in when breakfast was ready; and in about five minutes afterwards, when they were taking breakfast, a woman came in whom the declarant had never seen before, and who afterwards said that her Christian name was Mary: That Mary appeared to be the worse of liquor: That she asked leave to light her pipe at the fire; and she then asked a little bit of soap to wash her cap, and a short-gown, and her apron, and the declarant gave her a bit of soap, and she washed her clothes, and Gray’s wife dried them and ironed them; and while that was doing, she talked about having come from Ireland in quest of her son, and soon after she came into the house she said she had got no meat for three days, and the declarant gave her a share of their breakfast: That Burke and Mary entered into conversation; and Burke, upon hearing that she came from Ireland, said that he came from Ireland too, and he did not know but she might be a relation of his mother’s. Declares, that about 1 o’clock in the afternoon Burke brought in some whisky and gave them a glass once round, it being the custom of Irish people to observe Halloween in that manner: That Mary became very impatient to go away in order to go to St. Mary’s Wynd to inquire for her son, and she went away about 2 o’clock. Declares, that Burke had gone out about half an hour before that and returned about 3 o’clock; and when he came in, he mentioned that Nancy Connoway, a neighbour, had said to him that she wondered how he could keep Gray and his wife in the house because the noise of their quarrelling was so unpleasant to the neighbours; and therefore he told them to go away, and never to come back again, because he had not up-putting for them, and Gray and his wife accordingly went away immediately. Declares, that Hare’s wife happened to be in the house at the time, and said that she would give them a night’s lodging, as she had a spare bed, and the declarant supposed that they went to Hare’s, and it would be about six o’clock when they went away: That Burke went to Hare’s house about seven o’clock, and the declarant went about half an hour afterwards: That when she went to Hare’s, Burke was not there, but she went to an adjoining shop and brought him there, and they had some supper and drink there: That the declarant then went home, and Burke followed soon afterwards bringing some whisky with him which he had got in a shop, and soon afterwards Hare and his wife came in, and they four had some spirits together; and Nancy Connoway, before mentioned, came in and had a share of the spirits: That the declarant then went to Connoway’s house and had a dram, and then returned to her own house, and found Hare and his wife still there: That they almost immediately went away, but very soon returned, and Hare was very much intoxicated, and Hare lay down in the bed and slept along with Burke all night, and the declarant and Hare’s wife slept on the floor: That about six o’clock in the morning Hare and his wife went away: That about seven o’clock, Gray and his wife came in to get some clothes which they left, and the declarant and Burke lay down in bed, and about eight o’clock Burke rose and told Gray’s wife, who still remained in the house along with her husband, to sort the house and get the kettle boiled, and he himself went to a neighbouring shop for tea and sugar and bread and butter: That when Burke came, Gray’s wife made the tea, and Gray and his wife and Burke took breakfast together, and a young man named John Broghan came in and got a share of it: That the declarant did not take any of it: That after breakfast, Gray’s wife washed the floor and cleaned the house, the declarant being in bed unwell, in consequence of drink which she had had, and Broghan was in the house most of the day: That Gray remained in the house all day: That Burke was sometimes out and sometimes in, and he lay down for a short time. Declares, that about five o’clock that afternoon the declarant sent Mrs. Gray to Mrs. Law’s with some clothes to get mangled; and Gray and his wife left the declarant’s house about seven o’clock to go to their lodgings, and shortly after they so left the house, Mrs. Law came and asked the declarant if she gave Mrs. Gray orders to get her gown: That the declarant said she had not, and Mrs. Law then said, she was off with it, and in a little after a girl came in and told the declarant that a man was on the street with the declarant’s gown, and she went out and found Gray standing at the head of Tanner’s Close with the gown under his arm: That she got her gown from Gray, and the declarant and Gray and his wife and Mrs. Hare had a dram together, and the declarant left the gown in Mrs. Law’s to get mangled: That the declarant then went home and kindled the fire, and she went out for her husband as it was late, and after she found him they went into Connoway’s house, where they remained for a few minutes, and Connoway told them that Mrs. Gray had been raising a disturbance, and the declarant and her husband were going out of Connoway’s house, when they were apprehended by two policemen, who said that they had taken a corpse out of the house; and, being interrogated, declares, that she did not see Mary after two o’clock on the Friday, and, in particular, she did not see her in the house on the Friday night. Declares, that she yesterday saw the dead body of a woman in the Police Office, but declares that it is not the body of the woman named Mary, because Mary had dark hair, and the body of the woman in the Police Office had grey hair; and being interrogated, declares, that she had no knowledge or suspicion of there being any dead body in the house; and, in particular, of its being under the bed, till after she was apprehended. Declares, that there is only one bed in the house; and declares, that so far as she knows, nothing was under the bed except a few potatoes and a little straw, which had fallen from the bed. Being interrogated, declares, that she had no conversation with Gray regarding a dead body; and in particular, never promised him any money not to say any thing about a dead body; and being shown a coarse linen sheet, a coarse pillow-case, a dark printed cotton gown, and a red striped cotton bed-gown, to which a label is attached, signed by the sheriff as relative hereto, declares, that the sheet belongs to a William M‘Kinn, from whom the declarant got a loan of it. That the pillow-case was used for containing dirty clothes, and lay at the head of the bed as a pillow, but she never saw the dark gown before to her knowledge. Declares, that the bed-gown is like the one which Mary wore on the Friday, but she cannot say that it is the same, as it is torn. Declares, that Burke had no money on the Friday, and he had to borrow money for their breakfast on the Saturday morning. That the declarant got 3s. from him on Saturday night, but she does not know where he got that money; and, being specially interrogated, declares, that she had no concern in killing the woman Mary, or in hurting her, and does not know of Burke, or Hare, or any other person being concerned in doing so, or in concealing the dead body about the house, or in afterwards disposing of it. And, being interrogated in regard to some marks of blood on the sheet and pillow-slip, declares, that the marks upon the pillow-slip were from her nose bleeding, in consequence of Burke having struck her; and the blood upon the sheet proceeded from the declarant, in consequence of her state at the time, as was known to Mrs. Gray. And all this she declares to be truth, and that she cannot write.

Archd. Scott.	(Signed)	G. Tait.
A. M‘Lucas.
A. Maclean.

At Edinburgh, the 10th day of November 1828.

In presence of George Tait, Esq. Sheriff-Substitute of Edinburghshire,

Compeared Helen M‘Dougal, present prisoner in the tolbooth of Edinburgh, and being examined, and the declaration emitted by her before the said Sheriff-Substitute, at Edinburgh, upon the 3d day of November current, being read over to her, she adheres thereto. And being interrogated, declares, that between three and four o’clock of Friday afternoon, the woman named Mary insisted on having salt to wash herself with, and became otherwise very troublesome, and called for tea different times, and the declarant told her she could not be troubled with her any longer, and thrust her out of the door by the shoulders, and never saw her afterwards. And being interrogated, declares, That Brogan did not bring any woman into the house. And being interrogated, declares, That William Burke and William Hare had a slight difference and struggle together on Friday night, as she thinks; but there was no great noise made, and no cries of murder, so far as she heard. All which she declares to be truth; and that she cannot write.

Archd. Scott.	(Signed)	George Tait.
A. M‘Lucas.
A. M‘lean.

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The Lord Advocate addressed the Jury in the following terms:—

Gentlemen of the Jury.—It is now my duty to make a few remarks on the tenor of the evidence which has been laid before you in support of the indictment against the pannels at the bar; and, at this late hour, when you must be exhausted with the long trial in which you have been engaged, I shall not detain you long. Indeed, had this been an ordinary case, I should have had great pleasure in leaving the evidence to your own judgment, without one word of comment from me, satisfied that, in the charge which you will receive from the Court, before you retire, a much more luminous and impartial detail of its substance and bearings will be given, than can be expected from one holding the situation which I do, as Public Prosecutor. But this is a case of no ordinary complexion; and I am, therefore, called on for some observations, more especially, as you will be addressed on behalf of the prisoners by my honourable and learned friends on the other side of the bar; and it might be thought remissness on my part, if I were to allow the evidence to go to you for a verdict, without some remarks on its tendency, while its true effect would perhaps be impaired by the able comments of the pannels’ counsel.

Gentlemen, it affords me peculiar satisfaction to see, in a case of this kind, so full and formidable an array of counsel for the defence. In all cases, the Bar of Scotland does itself honour by undertaking the defence of the unhappy persons who are brought before this Court accused of offences; but, in this case, I am proud and happy to see the most distinguished among my brethren engaged in the defence of the prisoners—coming forward and lending the strength of their great talents and great learning spontaneously and gratuitously to these unfortunate persons. It is for the ends of public justice that they have done so: and it is a great consolation to me, in the discharge of my painful duty, that the pannels, and in them the law and the country at large, will derive all the benefit which may be looked for from the knowledge and the eloquence of such distinguished advocates. If an acquittal should follow the proceedings in which we have this day been engaged, I hope it will be acknowledged that I have only done my duty to the public, in putting these prisoners on their trial; and should they be convicted, they will be ably defended, if they have any defence; and the country must be satisfied that the conviction will be just, when the defence is in the hands of counsel so eminent, and so universally and deservedly respected.

And, Gentlemen, this aid of able counsel is of the more importance, that this is one of the most extraordinary and novel subjects of trial that has ever been brought before this or any other Court, and has created in the public mind the greatest anxiety and alarm. I am not surprised at this excitement, because the offences charged are of so atrocious a description, that human nature shudders and revolts at it; and the belief that such crimes as are here charged have been committed among us, even in a single instance, is calculated to produce terror and dismay. This excitement arises from detestation of the assassins’ deeds, and from veneration for the ashes of the dead. But I am bound to say, that whatever may have occasioned this general excitement, or raised it to that degree which exists, it has not originated in any improper disclosures on the part of those official persons who have been entrusted with the investigations connected with this business; for there never was a case in which the public officers to whom such inquiries are confided, displayed greater secrecy, circumspection, and ability. It is my duty, Gentlemen, to remove that alarm which prevails out of doors, and to afford all the protection which the law can give to the community against the perpetration of such crimes, by bringing the parties implicated to trial; and I trust it will tend to tranquillize the public mind, when I declare I am determined to do so. I cannot allow any collateral notions about the promotion of science to influence me in this course; and I am fully determined that every thing in my power shall be done to bring to light and punishment those deeds of darkness which have so deeply affected the public mind.

Gentlemen, before I proceed to detail, which I shall do very briefly, the evidence now laid before you in support of the indictment against the prisoners, I must impress upon you what will be more eloquently and emphatically told you by their counsel and the Court, that in judging upon the only charge now under trial, you are to banish from your minds all impressions which you may have received from any other source than from the evidence itself. To that evidence alone you must confine your attention—and you are not to allow yourselves to be moved by the fact that there were other charges in the indictment of a similar description, because these charges have now been entirely withdrawn, for the present, from your consideration. Those charges have been separated from that now to be tried, at the special desire of the prisoners themselves, and to remove any ground of objection that an impression was necessarily created to the prejudice of the prisoners. God forbid, that I should ever in any case, pursue a criminal in a form to the prejudice of the party accused. The pannels are accused of murder—and the three instances that were libelled were only three separate facts in support of that general charge. But since the prisoners and their Counsel have made their option to be tried for each separately, and the Court have sanctioned this course, I willingly acquiesce in it. I must say, however, that in framing the indictment, including all the three charges, I did so to give the pannels the fairest chances on their trial, and for the purpose of probing to the bottom the whole system of atrocity, a part of which I have this day brought before you, with evidence, which, I conceive, amounts to the most complete and convincing proof.

In going over that proof, Gentlemen, it is not necessary that I should read over to you fully the notes of the evidence—because that will be more ably and authoritatively done by the Court, than it can be by any one in the situation of Public Prosecutor. I shall, therefore, content myself with a condensed and connected reference to its import—from which I have no doubt, you will find a verdict of guilty against the pannels.

Gentlemen—the chain of evidence in this case is very complete, and you can, from the testimony of the witnesses you have heard examined, trace the poor creature who was murdered, from Mrs. Stewart’s house, in the Pleasance, to Burke’s house, where she was bereaved of life, and whence her body was afterwards carried, by the direction of Burke, to Dr. Knox’s dissecting-room, in Surgeons’ Square, where Burke sold it to the Doctor, and delivered it to his assistant. This is the essence of the crime charged, and it is clearly established in evidence. You have heard the evidence of Mrs. Stewart, that in the forenoon of Friday, the 31st October last, the deceased left Mrs. Stewart’s house to go in quest of her son. In this case there is no doubt as to the time, for it was in the Sacrament week, and on Hallowe’en—two circumstances which enable all the witnesses to speak positively on that point. You have next the testimony of Charles M‘Lachlan, who lodged with Mrs. Stewart, and who accompanied the deceased as far as his own shop in St. Mary’s Wynd, where he parted with her, betwixt nine and ten o’clock on the forenoon of that day. You have then the testimony of William Noble, Mr. Rymer’s shop-boy, that she met with Burke in his master’s shop, at an early hour in the forenoon of the same day, when he asked her name, and struck up an acquaintance with her on hearing it, upon a pretence that it was likely she was a kinswoman; and as she was destitute, and seeking charity, he beguiled her to his house in the West Port, by pretending kindness, offering her breakfast, &c. Mrs. Connaway, who lived in the same house with Burke, saw him pass into his apartment with the deceased in his company, about the middle of the same day—saw her again in the evening in Burke’s company, when jollity prevailed—dancing, and singing, and drinking; in all of which hospitalities the deceased joined, and was in perfect health and good spirits; and, finally, saw her go from her (Connaway’s) house into Burke’s, about eleven o’clock the same night, in company with the pannels and Hare and his wife. Mrs. Law corroborates a great deal of this, and the deceased is identified by all these witnesses, so as to leave that matter quite clear. Then, the disturbance in Burke’s house, after the pannels, and Hares, and the deceased went into it, is instructed by all the neighbours; and the testimony of Alston is most important; for, in addition to the other circumstances previously established, he proves that, betwixt eleven and twelve o’clock the same night, he heard a riot in Burke’s house, and cries of murder and distress, which induced him to go in search of the Police; but not finding an officer, and the cries having ceased, he concluded the riot to be over, and the mischief which he apprehended, to be at an end. It is also proved, by Connaway and others, that Burke went out in the evening, and was absent about ten o’clock, at which hour, it is proved by Elizabeth Paterson, that Burke called, inquiring for her brother, an assistant to Dr. Knox, Lecturer on Anatomy; and he being from home, that Burke proceeded with the deceased, and the other persons referred to, including the defunct, into his own apartment, at eleven o’clock that night. There is the testimony of Gray and his wife, that they, being temporary lodgers in Burke’s house, were requested to go elsewhere for that night, and that their lodgings for that night were provided and paid for by Burke; and they confirm many particulars stated by the other witnesses. Then there is the testimony of Paterson, Dr. Knox’s assistant, that Burke came to him at twelve o’clock the same night—took him to his house, and told him he had got a subject for the Doctor. You have the evidence of Gray and his wife, that on Saturday the 1st November, they found lying under the bed, the dead body of the deceased, whom they had seen the previous night in Burke’s room, alive and in good health. There is no evidence that she was drunk. You have the evidence of the porter who packed and carried the dead body to Surgeons’ Square—of Paterson who received it in a box, and paid £5 of the price to Burke and Hare—of the shop-boy who sold the box to Burke; and thus proof of every circumstance, except the actual fact of murdering the woman by the pannels; and then that is supplied by the testimony of the Hares, who, no doubt, were socii criminis, and who explain all the horrible details of the perpetration of this deliberate and midnight murder. That they are liable to suspicions as socii criminis, I admit; but they only corroborate evidence which, in all its parts, would alone be sufficient to bring home the crime to the pannels: and, however worthless these persons may be, it is with you, gentlemen of the jury, to decide to what measure of credibility they are entitled, when they, in this and other particulars, give an explanation of what could only be seen by them at the time—being an occult crime, committed in the dead of night. When it is proved by other unexceptionable evidence that Burke seduced this poor destitute woman into his house, on a pretext of hospitality, she being at that time in perfect health, that he went to a person with whom he was in the habit of dealing in dead bodies, as anatomical subjects, at ten o’clock—went again to him at twelve the same night, and offered him a subject—and next day carried it, and sold for money the body of the deceased, which has been fully and satisfactorily identified,—what conclusion can be drawn from all this good evidence, corroborated by that of the socii, but that these pannels had perpetrated the foul murder libelled, with the intent and purpose of selling the body to be dissected, for a paltry sum of money? I will not waste your time by going into every minute circumstance in the proof; but it is all consistent,—reconcilable, except in the most trivial and unimportant points, and perfectly conclusive against the prisoner Burke. The credibility of the socii will be strongly questioned, I have no doubt, by the counsel for the defence; but giving all proper weight to the ordinary objections in such cases, I submit to you that the main points of the case are borne out by all the other circumstances that are well established. In particular, I most call your attention to the testimony of Hare, that Campbell went out into the passage and called “Police and murder” during the scuffle betwixt him and Burke; and that when Burke began his work of death she gave “a screech.” This is confirmed by Mr. Alston, who providentially arrived in the immediate vicinity at that critical time; and he depones, that when he heard in Burke’s house the sound of a scuffle and fighting, he also heard, first, a female voice calling “Murder” and “Police,” “For God’s sake go for the police, for there is murder here;” and in a few minutes he heard some person or animal give fainter cries, as if it were choking.

This witness is above all suspicion, and corroborates Hare’s edition of the transaction in these most material particulars; and then Burke admits in his declaration many of the facts sworn to by the several witnesses. He admits that he picked the deceased up in Rymer’s shop—that she was in his apartment during the 31st October, and at a late hour that night. He acknowledges that he administered liquor to her, that she lost her life that night in his house, and that next day he had her body packed up in a box and carried to Dr. Knox’s dissecting room, after which he got money from Paterson for it. In these circumstances, is it possible to doubt that he murdered her for the purpose of selling her body? And even from the facts admitted by himself, independently of all other proof, I feel myself warranted to call on you for a verdict of guilty.—That the woman M‘Dougal, who was not bound to him by any legal tie, was guilty art and part, and witnessed and sanctioned the whole proceedings, is equally clear. I, therefore, submit to you, Gentlemen of the Jury, that you ought to give a verdict of guilty against the pannels. And if you do not give a verdict against them, I do not think it possible that in any case I shall ever obtain a verdict against the greatest criminals. The crime now charged is one of unexampled atrocity—unexampled in the history of civilized countries—and the occurrence of which, in this country, in my time, is a circumstance which I deeply deplore.

The Dean of Faculty began his address to the jury at three o’clock on Thursday morning, and at first spoke in a low tone of voice, indicating exhaustion. He addressed the jury nearly as follows, and soon began to speak with his wonted energy:—

Gentlemen,—It is some relief to my mind at this moment, that I shall not have occasion to go over all the mass of evidence which has been laid before you in support of the charge against the prisoners. We have now been seventeen hours engaged in this trial, and, with the exception of a short space consumed in the discussion of the point of form, the whole of that time has been devoted to the hearing of evidence in support of the prosecution. Such a mass of testimony must of itself distract and press heavily upon your minds; but it shall be my endeavour to show you, that, extensive and varied as it is, it does not amount to that legal proof which you require, as a jury, to find a verdict against my client; and that it is wholly destitute of force, on the main, and indeed, the sole fact in the case—that the pannel Burke did commit the crime of murder charged against him in this indictment.

Gentlemen, I do not stand here as the advocate of William Burke’s character. To do so would be to insult you, and to degrade my own profession. But I appear before you as an advocate for the great principle of our law, under which you and I, and all of us, live and repose in safety—the broad and general principle, that no man is to be held guilty of any crime unless his guilt be proved by good and unexceptionable legal evidence,—and to the benefit of this sacred principle my client, however odious, or however abandoned he may be in any other respect, is fully entitled in judging of the case now before you.

The pannel, Burke, labours under great disadvantages—He is avowedly a person who has been engaged in the loathsome and detested occupation of procuring dead bodies for dissection; and this circumstance is calculated to excite prejudice, and ought to guard your minds strongly against being influenced by any feelings, except the convictions of your understandings, and the dictates of your consciences, on a strict and rigorous examination of the evidence which has been laid before you. And I must warn you also against any prepossessions created by what has appeared in newspapers, or otherwise, out of doors. Gentlemen, laying all prejudices and extrajudicial statements aside, and guarded only by the lights of law and of justice, you must look steadily at your duty as jurymen—not to the many irrelevant circumstances which have been this day sworn to, but to the evidence which has been laid before you of a murder having, as is alleged, been committed on the body of Campbell, and committed by my client Burke. Now, I maintain, that of these averments there is no proof at all—for none of the witnesses, except Hare and his wife, swear to that point—and they are so utterly contaminated—and have such strong and obvious motives to criminate my clients in order to screen themselves, that their evidence is of no value whatever. They are incredible as witnesses—and they are in this case the only witnesses. It has been said they corroborate the other witnesses; but this cannot be the case, for there is nothing to corroborate. There is no other evidence of the fact of the murder charged in the indictment but their testimony; and that testimony cannot be believed.

Gentlemen, it is the great and governing principle of our law, that in all cases of alleged murder, the fact of murder must be proved. In the highest species of murder, that of high treason,—that of compassing the death of the King—the overt act must be established by unexceptionable evidence. Constructive treason is not now recognized in our law. In such cases the accused is covered all over with the armour of the law; and to every other case of alleged murder the same principle extends its protecting power. The fact of murder must here be proved; the fact of murder by the hand of Burke—for without that fact being established by good, credible, and unpolluted witnesses, there is here no case, and no evidence whatever, in support of the indictment.

There are many flaws and inconsistencies in the whole of the evidence; and Hare and his wife not only contradict each other in several instances, but the statements of both are contradicted by other witnesses who also contradict one another. Thus Mary Stewart swears that Campbell left her house in the Pleasance, betwixt 7 and 8 o’clock on the morning of Friday, 31st October, while M‘Lachlan swears that it was between nine and ten. William Noble says it was on that Friday morning about breakfast-time that Burke and the woman Campbell met in his master’s shop; but Mrs. Connaway says it was mid-day when they entered Burke’s house to breakfast, and Mrs. Law makes it two in the afternoon. But this is nothing to the contradictory testimonies of Hare and his wife themselves, as to the scenes in Burke’s house. Hare swears that at the time of the scuffle the old woman went out into the passage and cried “police,” and “murder;” but his wife swears that she never went out of the inside door, nor cried out at all. And the wife even contradicts herself; for at another part of the evidence she says that Campbell did call out “murder.” Again, Hare says that when Burke was above Campbell on the floor, and when his wife and M‘Dougal heard the first screech, they leaped out of bed and ran into the passage; but the wife says that she was not in the bed when Burke was lying on the old woman, but standing between the door and the bed. And after all the scenes which they pretend to describe with such accuracy and truth, Hare says that he did not go to bed, but slept on a chair with his head on the bed, the two women and Broggan being in the bed, and Broggan being next to his aunt M‘Dougal; while the wife swears that she, Broggan, and M‘Dougal, lay down upon the floor, and the men, Burke and Hare, slept in the bed, the dead body being underneath it; and Broggan gives an account of the matter differing entirely from both, for he says that he and the men lay on the floor at the fireside, while the two women were in bed. Then as to the proceedings of Saturday, we have a similar tissue of contradictions. Hare swears that Burke took the body from under the bed, and the porter helped him to put it into the box. But M‘Culloch swears that he did not assist in putting the body into the box—that he did not see a body at all, but something in a sheet, and that he only thought it was a body, because he saw some hair sticking out after this something was crammed into the box. Further, as to the settlement of the price by Paterson, we have more contradiction. Paterson swore that he had seen both Hare and Burke dealing with Dr. Knox about dead bodies: that he had been directed by the doctor to divide the L.5 betwixt them to prevent them from quarreling, as they had done formerly: that he took them to a public-house and got change, and gave each L.2, 10s., that they left something for the porter, and that the whole price of the body was L.8. Now Hare swears that Paterson gave the porter 5s., and each of the others L.2, 7s. 6d., and that the price of the subject was L.10. But Hare, on cross-examination, said it was from Burke, not Paterson, that he got the L.2, 7s. 6d. Paterson says that he gave each of Burke and Hare L.2, 10s. and that they paid the porter; but the porter himself swears that it was Paterson who paid him, so that all these witnesses, Paterson, M‘Culloch, and Hare, prevaricate and contradict each other in the clearest and most unequivocal manner.

Paterson, who was questioned as a person having medical and anatomical knowledge, as to the appearance of the body, deponed, that the eyes did not project when the subject was taken from the box, and Dr. Black swore that the eyes were nearly started from the sockets, and he further said that Docherty’s appearance was very much the same with that of persons brought to the police office who had been suffocated with drink; and he declared he was afraid to hazard an opinion whether her death had been occasioned by violence. Dr. Christison merely stated his opinion that it was probable she had suffered a violent death; but there never were medical opinions on the whole so various and inconclusive in support of a libel for murder.

These particulars in the evidence may appear trivial; but in a case of circumstantial evidence, the most trivial circumstance is often of the greatest importance in judging of a witness’s credibility; and when you find among so many of the witnesses in this case such a cluster of inconsistencies and contradictions;—when you remember the nature of the occupations in which these witnesses are avowedly engaged, and consider the motives by which they must be actuated, to whitewash themselves as far as possible by inculpating the pannels, it is utterly impossible you can give credence to their testimonies, or listen to it for one moment as the evidence of witnesses upon which you can with a safe conscience give a verdict against the pannels. The Dean concluded by urging the jury to keep in mind the general principle on which the safety of every man in society rested, and the necessity of the murder being proved upon better evidence than that of such nefarious witnesses.

Mr. Cockburn, for the pannel M‘Dougal, said, that in pleading her defence, it was only necessary for him to assume what was contrary to the fact, that the Public Prosecutor had succeeded in establishing the guilt of the other pannel Burke; a proposition which no one would maintain after listening to the powerful argument of his friend the Dean of Faculty. But he would assume that the guilt of Burke was established, and what followed? Not that the other pannel M‘Dougal had aided and assisted in that murder, but that she fled from the scene described by Hare, and did not even witness the atrocities of which that monster held himself out as a willing and passive spectator. Although it were correct and credible, it proves nothing against M‘Dougal. But to talk of their credibility was a sporting with men’s lives and a mockery of justice. The evidence of these miscreants could not be received in the same manner as the evidence of an honest person. Their character was written in characters of blood, that never could be effaced from the recollection of those who heard their horrid narrative. Could they conceive that an accessory to murder was worthy of credit?—and yet the law made him an admissible witness. The man who was the chief evidence in a trial for the crime of murder,—who had told that he sat on a chair within a yard of the murdered and murderer, and raised not an arm, nor uttered a cry to save the unhappy victim calling for help and struggling with the assassin in the last agonies of life;—which was the most guilty,—the cool, cold-blooded spectator of the foul murder—or the actor, whose physical exertions would, in such an awful moment, impart phrenzy to his mind? There were certain questions which he had felt it his duty to put to Hare; but which he warned him he need not answer unless he chose. “I asked him,” said Mr. Cockburn, “if he had been concerned in other murders; but he declined to answer. I asked him whether a murder was committed in his own house in October last; and again that monster took shelter in his privilege. In what situation was that man placed when he gave his evidence? There were other murders hanging over his head, upon which he might be libelled; he came from the jail and would be returned to it,—knowing full well, that, if the case failed, he might be called upon to descend from the witness-box, to take, along with his wife, his place at the bar—in short, to exchange places with the pannels. And if they were the pannels, and Burke and M‘Dougal the witnesses, then would the true state of the case appear and the present witnesses would be proved the guilty perpetrators. The monster had come that very day out of jail, to which he would be again consigned if he failed to make them (the Jury) believe his story.” He (Mr. C.) had often heard of King’s evidences, or approvers, in crimes to which they had been accessories; but of persons coming to give evidence with other crimes of a similar nature hanging over their heads, the very idea was horrible. If Hare and his wife had stood at the bar, and made a judicial confession of participation in the crimes which they had stated from the witness-box, sentence of conviction, legally disqualifying them, would have been recorded; but being allowed to make their confession from the box, they were not only freed from the crime, but cleared to the effect of being converted into good and credible witnesses. But what could a jury think of the evidence of the man who came forward and said, “I have been guilty of one murder, but want to free myself from blame by impeaching another who was not probably so guilty?” They had seen the squalid wretch—the very picture of his revolting traffic—a visible spectacle of penury and profligacy.

And then, as to Hare’s wife; Mr. Cockburn said he did not know whether or not the Lord Advocate had any skill in physiognomy. Perhaps the Lord Advocate liked her face—a good one for a King’s evidence;—but as his Lordship’s back was towards the witness, he did not perhaps see that woman’s face so well as he (Mr. C.) did. To him it appeared, that on that countenance every evil passion was imprinted. She stood in that box, with a miserable child in her arms, the blighted creature of vice and misery; and, instead of casting upon it a look of maternal tenderness in its distress, she evinced a harshness and brutality, and seemed to eye it in such a manner as added to her malign aspect. He would say, without fear of contradiction, that he never had, in the course of his practice, seen such wretches placed in the witness box. The learned gentleman alluded to the declarations, and said, if the jury allowed their minds to be influenced by the statements of those documents, the pannels would be legally murdered.

And in the conclusion of his speech, Mr. Cockburn addressed the jury in a tone of peculiar eloquence and impressiveness: “If, Gentlemen, (said he,) you have any doubts—you must give the pannels the benefit of those doubts;—and after seeing the exhibition, and hearing the testimonies of Hare and his wife this day as witnesses—good God! can you say there are no doubts? It is the duty of the Public Prosecutor to prove his case by good evidence. He has produced a horde of wretches who are a pollution to any evidence. The Hares, the Grays, the Connoways, M‘Cullochs, and Brogans, the whole host of witnesses to every material circumstance in the proof are polluted. Talk not of suspicions of dangers to the public—for in my mind no greater danger can be imagined than that of a criminal verdict on doubtful and polluted evidence. Though the town should ring with clamours and the country resound with them, you are only called on the more strongly to discharge your duty manfully, by the exercise of your own judgment, and the dictates of your consciences—banishing from your minds every prejudice, and looking well to the nature of the evidence on which you are called to condemn a fellow-creature to death—recollecting too, that when the public mind is agitated and disturbed, it is the Courts of Law, and the Juries of our country, who hold in their hands the balance of justice—and that when the storm is up, and popular prejudice and passion rage around, the louder is the call for an enlightened and intrepid discharge of your duty.” He concluded by craving an acquittal of M‘Dougal from the charge made against her.

The Lord Justice Clerk began his charge to the Jury at six o’clock on Thursday morning, and finished about half-past eight. His Lordship expressed great satisfaction at the defence having been committed to such eminent counsel; for he could assure them (the jury) he never had heard the defence of any individuals conducted with more zeal and consummate ability than that of the prisoners. There was another consideration which he was called upon to bring under their notice; namely, to express his thorough confidence that they would divest their minds of every impression or prejudice which might have been raised from what they had read or heard out of doors. It would be a matter of infinite regret, if writings or publications, or any sort of public feeling, should for one instant affect their minds; but he was sure they knew their duty too well, to be influenced by prejudice; they would be guided by nothing but the facts as disclosed during the investigation.

The evidence was partly circumstantial, and partly direct. The first was composed of a number of minute facts and circumstances; and the latter of the testimony of socii. It would be their duty,—First, to consider the general evidence; Secondly, that of the socii; and, Thirdly, the combined effect of both conjoined. From these, the verdict, upon a fair inference drawn from a consideration of the whole, would be made up. His Lordship then directed the attention of the Jury to the way and manner the old woman, Campbell, had been bereaved of life, informing them, that if they were satisfied she had not died in consequence of violence, there would be an end of the inquiry. If they held the contrary opinion, they would proceed to consider, whether she had lost her life by the hands of the prisoners, or one or other of them.

The evidence of the identity of her person was the first branch of the investigation. His Lordship then went over the whole evidence with great minuteness, commenting upon those parts where there were seeming contradictions, or which had been specially alluded to by the Public Prosecutor, or the counsel for the pannels, in the course of the defence, but it is unnecessary to recapitulate his Lordship’s detail, as the reader has the whole evidence itself before him.

With respect to the socii, his Lordship said they were entitled to credit, if they gave a true account of the transaction of which they spoke. He admitted they were not placed in the same situation with persons against whom no suspicion existed; but it was the duty of the jury to sift their evidence, and in as far as it was corroborated by good evidence, it was entitled to such a measure of credibility as they in their consciences thought it merited. They had been told of the Hares being connected with other murders. With what murders they might be chargeable, he did not know; but to a certainty, they could not be libelled on either of the charges contained in the libel now under trial, and which had not been sent to the jury. It was, therefore, unfounded in law to say, that these two persons were liable to be tried for the two murders contained in the indictment. These individuals, who were under the protection of the Court, had been called as accomplices, in the same manner as associates in robbery, wilful fire-raising, and other capital crimes. With respect to M‘Dougal, his Lordship was understood to express his opinion, that if the evidence was to be believed, she had been an accessory before the commission of the crime, during its commission, and after it was committed; and, upon the whole, he considered the libel as made out against both.

The Jury then retired at half-past eight o’clock to consider their verdict, and after an absence of fifty minutes, returned into Court and gave in the following verdict by their chancellor, William Macfie, Esq.