Sally Goodman
I tell you I did not kill my husband by my own hand. It was the Devil's work. I could only stand aside as John and Thomas dismember'd his body. Once they had dismember'd him, they threw his body parts into the river. I could not stop them for my mind was controll'd by an dark Unseen spirit. Some townspeople found his head by the riverbank soon After. Then I was arrested and accus'd of the crime but I am innocent of it. However, my pleas go unheard as I face Death for petty treason on the morrow.
If any good can come of it, I will tell you that my husband Treat'd me most cruelly. He beat and mortifi'd me on every little Occasion. He call'd me the most horrid names a husband should not utter. I know it does not justify the horrid and brutal way he was murdered, but it is the Truth.
*Events are based on the story of Catherine Hayes, who was burnt at the stake for petty treason in 1726.
Sir John Fielding
The Nature of this crime is most Horrid and disturbing. As you know, our society finds this cruel and most unusual because the accused is a woman. Women in our time are expected to exhibit such Virtues as modesty, compassion, and Piety (Gender in the Proceedings). This woman does not exhibit the Qualities of her sex. The nature of the crime committed is so severe that the woman cannot truly be of her sex. If she did not commit the crime as she so Claims, she stood watch as the men committed the crime. She shewed no emotion as a woman should and did not stop them. This alone is an Aid to the act of murder.
No comments:
Post a Comment