Page:Particular and impartial account, of what happened on the scaffold, at the execution of Colonel Marcus Despard, Thomas Broughton, John Francis, Arthur Graham, John MacNamara, John Wood, and J. Sedgwick Wratten, for high treason.pdf/6

 cord was placed round his neck, he exclaimed with the greatest devotion 'Lord Jesus have mercy upon me. Oh! Lord, look down with pity upon me"—Graham came second. He looked pale. and ghastly but spoke not. Wratten was the third: he ascended the scaffold with much firmness. Broughton the fourth smiled as he ran up the scaffold stairs, but as soon as the rope was fastened round his neck, he turned pale and smiled no more. He joined in prayer with much earnestness. Wood was the fifth. Francis the sixth.—Francis ascended the scaffold with a composure which he preserved to the last. Wood and Broughton were equally composed—Of them all Francis was the best looking. He and Wood were dressed in soldiers uniform. The rest were in coloured clothes. Colonel Despard being the last on coming forward he turned to the right and left and repeatedly bowed to the multitude some few of whom, that had placed themselves in phalanx directly opposite the door of the prison returned the failure with a kind of shout, which was, however, overpowered by a solemn murmur of disapprobation.

The ceremony of fastening the prisoners being finished the Colonel advanced as near as he could to the edge of the scaffold, and uttered the following speech to the multitude:

"Fellow Citizens, I come here as you see, after having served my country, faithfully, honourably. and usefully served it for thirty years and upwards, to suffer death upon a