perhaps, it may be sufficient to remark that the affliction of Murphy's family, and the ruin of his miserable child, proceeded directly from the total absence of prudence in the old man. He introduces a stranger; encourages his addresses to his daughter, only fifteen years of age; and then permits them to go out alone; for under pretence of going to prayers they had eloped! Surely he who took such little precaution to guard his child from error deserved to suffer for that child's impropriety. This case, however, we hope will not be unproductive of public benefit. Parents may learn from it to guard their children from the arts of strangers; and young women may be taught that to trust their ears to the tongue of men, whose character they know not, is to invite the seducer to spread his snares for their ruin. ROBERT KENNETT, A LONG course of iniquity brought this malefactor to the gallows. The first mention we hear of him was in the debates in the House of Commons on the conduct of the Duke of York; where it appeared Kennett, though not worth a shilling, proposed lending his royal highness seventy thousand pounds upon an nuity, with the additional consideration of a place to be obtained for him under government, through the interest of the royal duke. The address with which Kennett imposed on his royal highness may be inferred from the several letters* which were made public, and strongly evinced the zeal and per • Lieutenant-Colonel Taylor presents his compliments to Mr. Kennett, and is directed by the Duke of York to transmit to him a copy of a letter from Mr. Pitt's private secretary, in reply to the application which his Royal Highness made in Mr. Kennett's favour for the Collectorship of the Customs of Surinam; which answer, his Royal Highness regrets, is not conformable to his wishes. Colonel Taylor would have sent it earlier, had he not been absent from London when it was sent to the Horse Guards. 'August 7th, 1804,' 'Downing Street, Friday, 3d August, 1804. 'MY DEAR SIR,-I have not failed to state to Mr. Pitt the wishes of his Royal Highness the Duke of York, communicated through you, that he would nominate Mr. Kennett to the office of Collector of his Majesty's Customs at Surinam; and I am directed to request that you will submit to his Royal Highness, that, desirous as Mr. Pitt must at all times be to attend to his Royal Highness's commands, he is fearfu that, from prior engagements, he is so circumstanced, as not to have it in his power to do so on the present occasion.. 'I am, &c. (Signed) 'W. D. ADAMS.' ADDRESSED 'Lieut.-Colonel Taylor.' 'Colonel Taylor presents his compliments to Mr. Kennett, and is extremely sorry that he could not wait, as the Duke's carriage was waiting for him. He is directed by his Royal Highness to say, that he will apply for the situation of Assistant Commissary-General, &c. &c. at Surinam; but that he will be able to do it with more effect, if Sir H. Mann will write to his Royal Highness, recommending Mr. Kennett. Robert Kennett, Esq. &c. &c. &c Horse Guards, Aug. 15.' Bromley Hill, Kent, Aug 30th. SIR,-I am sure Mr. Pitt would have been very happy to have attended to your request, respecting Mr. Kennett; but I know, upon the application of the Duke of York, he was informed that the office of collector had been appointed to. As to the other office, having received a letter, written by the desire of his Royal Highness the Duke, I made the inquiries respecting it, and I do not find that there is any such tinacity with which situations were solicited for him, in return for the supposed accommodation he was to afford the royal duke. Before Kennett, however, succeeded in effectually imposing upon his royal highness, his character was discovered, and consequently all correspondence ceased. From that time he subsisted on ways and means; which, as they were practised in private, it is impossible for us to be acquainted with. In 1812 he became acquainted with Richardson and Cooke, the two accomplices, who discovered the villainy of Badcock and others, whose case will be next given. With these men he planned and forged a bill of exchange on an unwary tradesman, for the sum of one hundred and sixty pounds, which they too securely obtained without detection or prosecution, and lodged in the funds. Having obtained this sum, they found access to Messrs. Trowers and Co. stock-brokers, who sold for them the stock they had so recently lodged, and paid them with a draft on Messrs. Glyn and Co. Possessing this draft, they forged one like it for two thousand pounds, and Kennett obtained cash for it in the following manner :-He took a lodging in Frances Street; and a young man, having advertised for a clerkship, was engaged by Kennett. This lad he sent with the check, which was paid in two large notes; after which he went, as directed, to the Bank, and obtained small notes for them in exchange. He then went to Moorgate Coffee House, where Kennett, who had assumed the name of Blunt, promised to meet him. He was not there, but a note was left appointing another place of meeting, where he did not attend; but the young man at length met him in Warwick Court, Holborn, where he delivered him the money. At this time he was concealed in a strange dress-baving on a large wig, brown great coat, top boots, &c. Richardson and Cooke having informed against all those with whom they were connected, Kennett was amongst the number; and accordingly he was apprehended, and brought to trial at the Old Bailey; when he was found Guilty on the evidence of his accomplices, which was fully corroborated by the testimony of other witnesses. When brought up to receive sen office as Assistant-Commissary and Agent for Prisoners, (or Commissary-General, as it was called in the Duke's letter,) to be appointed from hence: the CommissaryGeneral in the West Indies, Mr. Glassford, recommends such deputies as he finds necessary for conducting the business of his department; and they are usually appointed by the Treasury in consequence. The office of Agent for prisoners I conceive to be under the direction of the Transport Board. 'Believe me, Sir, most faithfully yours, 'C. LONG.' 'Lieutenant-Colonel Taylor encloses, for Mr. Kennett's perusal, a letter from Mr. Chapman, and is very sorry to find from it that the situation of Vendue Master is disposed of. Mr. Chapman has been out of town, which accounts for the delay in regard to the receipt of the information now given. Should Mr. Kennett wish to see. Colonel Taylor, he will be here to-morrow, between three and five o'clock. 'Horse Guards, 22d Nov. 1804.' (Private.) 'Downing Street, 22d Nov. 1804. DEAR TAYLOR,-Lord Camden desires me to request you will express to the Duke of York his great regret that the office of Vendue Master of Surinam was disposed of before you communicated his Royal Highness's wish in favour of Mr. Kennett. 'Believe me, very sincerely yours, 'JAS. CHAPMAN. 'I should have give you an earlier answer, but have been out of town.' ADDRESSED—' Lieut.-Colonel Taylor,' in an envelope, 'To Mr. Kennett, &c.' tence, and asked the usual question what he had to say why sentence of death should not be passed on him, he addressed the Court, saying that he was convicted on the testimony of those who, he urged, were not entitled to credit. He then adverted to the deplorable state of his family, consisting of a wife and four children; and added, that his eldest son died fighting for his king and country; a circumstance for which he thanked God, as he was thereby saved from the horror of witnessing the ignominious fate of his miserable father. He then remarked that some of his ancestors had obtained the highest honours which the city of London had to bestow; and that his uncle (Alder man Kennett) had filled that chair, as chief magistrate, from whence sentence of death was about to be passed on him. He concluded by imploring mercy. After which the Recorder passed sentence in the usual form. On Wednesday, June the 16th, 1813, this unhappy man was executed in front of Newgate. He was brought upon the scaffold at eight o'clock, dressed in a plain suit of mourning, and attended by the Ordinary of Newgate, with whom he remained some time in prayer During this short and awful period he appeared to be perfectly resigned to his fate, which he met with becoming fortitude. WILLIAM BADCOCK, R. BRADY, ALIAS OXFORD BOB, and S. HILL, EXECUTED FOR FORGERY. THESE offenders were brought to justice through the information of two accomplices, Richardson and Cooke. They all met at the Horns Tavern, Doctors' Commons, where they agreed to commit forgeries on some banking house in the city. It was agreed that Hill was to procure genuine checks, from which Cooke was to execute the forgeries. Badcock was then to procure porters to carry the forged checks, that they might be cashed; and Richardson was to watch the porters, to see that the checks were paid without hesitation, and to return and inform Badcock that all was right.' On the 4th of September, 1812, Hill received three checks from Parsons, a hay-salesman, in White chapel, who did not know for what purpose they were wanted. From one of these Cooke forged, in the the name of Burchell and Co. to the amount of seven hundred and sixty pounds on the house of Ro barts, Curtis, and Co. The first check being paid, they forged the two others; and, in two days they robbed the one banking house of three thousand and eight hundred pounds which these worthies divided among them at the Moorgate Coffee House. The notes were then sold at twenty per cent. discount to one Edmund Birkett, who was subsequently brought to justice. These facts were fully corroborated by other witnesses in addition to the evidence of the accomplices, Richardson and Cooke; and the prisoners were found GuiltyDeath, at the Old Bailey, July 17th, 1813. On Thursday, July 29th, Badcock was executed in the front of Newgate; Birkett, already mentioned, suffered also with him; as well as one Ennis, for forgery, and William Smith, for taking money out of a letter in the Past Office. These unhappy men were brought upon the scaffold a few minutes before eight o'clock; and, after Ennis had remained in prayer some time with a Catholic clergyman, and the three others with the Ordinary of Newgate, they met their fate with becoming fortitude. Smith and Ennis evinced great penitence. Birkett had contrived to secrete a pistol, with so much address as to evade detection upon the search which took place the night before the execution; and about eleven o'clock, although a fellow-prisoner and one of the turnkeys were in the cell with him, he discharged a ball into his left side. He failed, however, in his object of destroying himself, and only inflicted a wound which caused much pain. He ascended the scaffold without assistance, and submitted to his fate with the others. Brady and Hill subsequently underwent the sentence of the law in the same place. DAVID SPREADBURY, One of the waiters now mounted a swift horse, and pursued the villain, of whom he got information at Foston toll-bar, where he had received good notes for another forgery for ten pounds. The waiter, hearing this, continued the pursuit. THIS case illustrates the remark a forgery. we have often made, that crime, however ingeniously committed, cannot escape detection-nay, the very solicitude to avoid suspicion is frequently the cause of creating it; and it generally so happens; that, while the depredator thinks he is Alying from danger, he is only plunging into the coils of justice. David Spreadbury arrived in the dress of a gentleman at Deeping, on the 26th of March, 1813, in the Peterborough coach, and ordered a chaise from the New Inn, saying he was going to Lincoln. Before he took his departure, however, he got the proprietor of the inu to change for him a note for ten pounds, which afterwards turned out to be a forgery: it purported to be of the bank of Johnson and Eaton, of Stamford. He was next found on the road from Newark to Grantham, having hired a chaise at the Kingston Arms, where he got another ten-pound note exchanged. He said, at Newark, that his luggage had gone on by the coach, and that he was anxious to overtake it. He accordingly set off in the chaise; but, suspicion arising, the note was shown to some person, who was a good judge, and found to be The post-boy suspected that all was not right, in consequence of Spreadbury saying at each turnpike that he had no change, and presenting a ten-pound note in payment, and actually passed through one without paying, though the post-boy knew he had abundance of change in his pocket. The post-boy at length observed that they were pursued; and, suspecting that it was some one from his master, he slackened his pace. Spreadbury observed this, and urged the boy to proceed, but without effect; for he refused to use the whip, and kept moving slowly. Near Grantham Spreadbury expressed his apprehensions that their pursuer was a highwayman; and, as the post-boy continued obstinate, he thought it better to trust to his heels, and accordingly jumped out of the chaise. He ran forward to Grantham; but the post-boy and waiter did not lose sight of him, and he was apprehended in a little lane, which he thought to make his way through, but was disappointed, as there was no egress at the extremity. On searching him, there were found on his person about forty pounds in good notes, and some silver; and, in the passage where he thought to secrete himself, were discovered seven ten-pound notes, forgeries, and one blank-note, unsigned, rolled up. There was no doubt but he had dropped these when he found there was no hope of eluding his pursuers. At the summer assizes, at Lincolnshire, he was capitally indicted for uttering forged notes, knowing them to be such. Of his guilt there could not be a doubt, and he was accordingly convicted. The judge passed on him the awful sentence of the law, and the unfortunate man suffered, on Friday, Aug. the 13th, 1813. WILLIAM CORNWELL, EXECUTED FOR THE MURDER OF MKS. STEVENS. THIS malefactor was a native of ten o'clock; and her door was heard Cambridgeshire, and was born, in 1789, within about six miles of Cambridge. His employment was that of an hostler, and, having lived two years at the Axe and Gate Inn, Holborn, he removed to the Red Lion Inn, in the same street. While in this last employment, he contracted several small debts in the neighbourhood, to avoid which he ultimately left London, and in April, 1813, he was employed at Woodford by a coach-keeper. He had not continued here more than six weeks, when it is supposed he committed the murder for which he suffered. When we shall make the reader acquainted with the unfeeling levity of his conduct, we think there will be little disposition to give much credit to his dying declaration of innocence. On Monday, the 7th of June, 1813, a decent poor woman, named Stevens, who kept a little chandler's shop at Woodford, was found murdered, her throat having been cut by the shop-knife, and her bead dreadfully bruised by a mallet, which she kept for the purpose of breaking sugar. Mrs. Stevens had been seen on the Saturday night, on which it is supposed the murder took place, at to slam, at eleven o'clock, as if was The sensation produced by this dreadful and mysterious murder was intense. Search was every where made, but no clue was found that might lead to a detection of the perpetrator. But murder cannot be concealed, and the incaution of the guilty generally leads to their own apprehension. It was ascertained that Mrs. Stevens, previous to her murder, had |