The unhappy girl was immediately awakened to all the misery of her situation; and she ran, in a state of distraction, to her parents, to whom she related all that had occurred. The necessary proceedings were immediately taken, and the counsellor and Jennings were committed to prison. At the summer assizes for Downpatrick, August the 17th, 1813, they were brought up for trial. M‘Ilvena was first indicted; and Mary Hair having deposed to the foregoing facts, she was cross-examined, with a view to affect her testimony, by endeavouring to make her acknowledge a former connexion with Jennings; a fact, however, which she indignantly denied.
M‘Ilvena, in his defence, produced Jennings, who swore, first, that he had an intimate knowledge of the prosecutrix long before the time mentioned in the indictment; next, that she never represented herself as his wife; and that M‘Ilvena never pretended to join their hands together, or otherwise unite them in marriage.
Jennings, having given his evidence, was ordered back into the dock from whence he had come, and M‘Ilvena was found guilty; after which he was called on, in the usual form, to say why sentence of death should not be passed on him. He appeared quite unmoved, and said he was not guilty of the crime imputed to him. The judge then proceeded to pass sentence on him; which he did in a very impressive manner, though frequently interrupted by exclamations of innocence from the prisoner. The offence being made by a particular act of parliament a capital felony, he was sentenced to be hanged. He asked for a long day, which was humanely granted, and his execution was deferred to the 18th of September, on which day it took place, in the midst of a vast concourse of spectators.
The day after M‘Ilvena’s trial, Jennings was placed at the bar, on an indictment for conspiring to debauch Mary Hair. He was almost instantly found guilty; when the judge told him his crime was much enhanced by the attempt he had made to screen his accomplice from punishment, in which he had committed wilful and corrupt perjury. The sentence of the court was, that he should stand for an hour on the pillory, be imprisoned for one year, and pay a fine of fifty pounds.
JAMES MITCHELL.
EXECUTED FOR MURDER.
THE subject of this narrative was a native of Salisbury, and his first occupation was that of a ploughboy in the service of a farmer near his birthplace. Having afterwards removed to London, he obtained a situation as groom in a gentleman’s family; and while so employed he became acquainted with Miss Welchman, whose life he subsequently took away.
Miss Welchman was a ladies’ dressmaker, and lived as forewoman with Miss Macey, who carried on that business in Mount Street. She was an elegant young woman, about four-and-twenty years of age, and of a most amiable disposition. To her, in an evil hour, Mitchell paid his addresses, under the name of Smith, and represented himself as purser on board some ship. The credulous girl believed him worthy and honourable, and permitted him to visit her, at the house of her employer, where he was, for some time, treated with politeness and friendship. At length his own conduct betrayed the deception he had practised. He obtruded himself at improper hours, and more than once offended the young ladies in the work-room by the coarseness and indelicacy of his conversation. This coming to the knowledge of Miss Welchman’s brother, he prevailed, with some difficulty, on his sister to forego the acquaintance of her lover.
In accordance with this advice, Miss Welchman had several interviews on the subject with Mitchell; but notwithstanding her desire that he would not again visit her, he persisted in annoying her. On Friday the 5th of August, 1814, he called at Mount Street, and was ushered into the work-room, where Miss Welchman was sitting. He continued there during the whole evening, notwithstanding the repeated requests made to him that he would leave; and, as it grew late, he desired Miss Welchman to provide supper for him, and subsequently to lend him money. Both requests were refused, and eventually at eleven o’clock Miss Macey and her work-people went away to supper, Mitchell being now left alone. Miss Welchman, however, returned to him, saying that she desired to be alone with him for about five minutes; but she had scarcely entered the room when a loud scream was heard, immediately followed by the report of pistols. Her companions immediately rushed into the apartment, and found Miss Welchman a lifeless corpse on the floor, a pair of pistols lying by her side, which on inspection bore evident marks of being the instruments with which the murder had been perpetrated. The hat of Mitchell was also discovered; but the window was open, and it was found that the assassin had escaped by descending into the street, by that means.
On examination, it was found that Miss Welchman had been shot in the head; one bullet had entered her temple, and the other had been resisted by the substance of the forehead.