CHRONICLE. 



71 



placing a pistol to his mouth ter- 

 minated his own existence. The 

 oldest was about seven years of 

 age, and the other only six 

 months. 



11. Assassination of Mr. Per- 

 ceval. — About a quarter past five 

 Mr. Perceval was entering the 

 lobby of the House of Commons, 

 where a number of persons were 

 standing, when a man, who had a 

 short time previously placed him- 

 self in the recess of the door-wa}' 

 within the lobby, drew out a small 

 pistol, and shot Mr. Perceval in 

 the lower part of the left breast. 

 The ball is supposed to have enter- 

 ed the heart. Mr. Perceval moved 

 forwards a few faltering steps, 

 nearly half way up the lobby, and 

 was in the act of falling, when 

 some persons stept forward and 

 caught him. He was immediately 

 carried to the room of the Speaker's 

 secretary, to the left of the lobby, 

 by Mr. W Smith, Mr. Bradshaw, 

 and another gentleman. Mr. 

 Lynn, the surgeon, in Parliament- 

 street, was immediately sent for; 

 but on examining the wound, he 

 considered the case utterly hope- 

 less. All that escaped Mr. Per- 

 ceval's lips previously to falling in 

 the lobby, was " murder,'' or 

 ♦' murdered." He said no more 

 afterwards. He expired in about 

 ten or twelve minutes after receiv- 

 ing the fatal wound. Several 

 members of both Houses of Par- 

 liament went into the room while 

 he was dying : among others, his 

 brother, lord Arden: all of them 

 appeared greatly agitated. There 

 was very little effusion of blood 

 from the wound, externally. His 

 body was subsequently removed 

 into the Speaker's house. Lord 

 Francis Osborne, lord Ossulston, 



and some others, were crossing the 

 lobby at the moment of the assassi- 

 nation, and were very near to Mr. 

 Perceval. The deed was perpe- 

 trated so suddenly, that the man 

 who fired the pistol was not in- 

 stantly recognized by those in the 

 lobby ; but a person passing at the 

 moment behind Mr. Perceval, 

 seized the pistol (which was a 

 very small one) from the hand of 

 the assassin, who retired towards 

 a bench to the left ; he surrendered 

 it without any resistance. Mr. 

 Goodiff, an officer of the house, 

 took hold of him, and asked if he 

 were the villian who shot the mi- 

 nister. He replied, " I am the 

 unhappy man ;" but appeared quite 

 undisturbed. It is said, that he 

 added something about the want 

 of redress of grievances from minis- 

 ters ; but if he did say so, it was 

 heard by very few. On searching 

 him, a few pouuds were found 

 in his pockets, and some printed 

 papers, copies of which he is said 

 to have previously distributed 

 among members. He was taken 

 to the bar of the House of Com- 

 mons, and indentified as the assassin. 

 Another pistol, similar to that 

 which he had fired, was taken from 

 his pocket in the house. All the 

 doors of the house were then 

 locked, and he was conveyed by 

 the private passage upstairs to two 

 of the apartments called the prison 

 rooms, in the upper story, over 

 the committee rooms. Here he 

 underwent an examination for 

 some time, which was attended by 

 aldermen Combe and Curtis, and 

 by Mr. Read, Mr. Colquhoun, Mr. 

 Fielding, and other magistrates; 

 and several members of the House 

 of Commons, Mr. Whitbread, Mr. 

 Wynne, Mr. Stephen, lord Cas- 



tlereagh, 



