Page:Life, trial and execution, of Mary Thompson.pdf/3

3 she missed him. Hearing a noise, she ran up stairs to her master’s room where, to her great terror, she found the drawers plundered, and her master and mistress lying with their throats cut, and the blood gushing in torrents from the wounds. She immediately threw up a front window and gave the alarm, and the neighbours entering, suspicion fell upon her, no one being in the house but her, and from constancy to her lover, she permitted herself to be fully committed for trial At the late assizes she was arraigned, convicted, and sentenced to be hung.

At the place of execution she addressed the numerous by-standers as follows:—

Good People,—You are now come to see the latter end of a poor unfortunate young woman nineteen years of age, who is brought to an ignominous death for murder; but I say there is a just God that sitteth in the judgement seat of heaven, before whom I must shortly appear to answer for all my sins. I most solemnly declare before God and the world, that I am as innocent of the murder as the child unborn, and then she burst into tears.

After this she prayed with the minister, sung a penitential psalm, and kneeling down she prayed that the Almighty would convince the assembled multitude of her innocency or guilt by showing them the following miracles,— That if she was guilty it might be one of the finest days that could come from heaven; but if she was innocent, that darkness might overspread the town during the time she was suspended. Her supplication reached the throne of Grace ; for immediately on her being turned off a dark thick cloud covered the country for many miles, attended with thunder, lightning, and rain. Jones, who was a spectator, stung with guilt and horror, rushed through the crowd exclaiming,

“I AM THE MURDERER!’

and delivered himself into the hands of justice. He fully confessed his guilt, and declared the murder was not premeditated, but he was struck with a desire to gain their riches, and he intended to have murdered his sweetheart also. He was fully committed for trial at the next assizes.