Ryan Reynolds (0:00)

Hey there Ryan Reynolds here. It's a new year and you know what that means. No, not the diet resolutions. A way for us all to try and do a little bit better than we did last year. And my resolution, unlike big wireless, is to not be a raging and raise the price of wireless on you every chance I get. Give it a try@mintmobile.com switch $45 upfront.

Genevieve Mannion (0:21)

Payment required equivalent to $15 per month new customers on first 3 month plan only taxes and fees, extra Speed slower above 40 GB on unlimited. See mintmobile.com for details. Hello and welcome to My Victorian Nightmare. I'm your host, Genevieve Mannion, and I'm here to talk about mysterious deaths, morbid fascinations, disturbing stories, and otherwise spooky events from the Victorian era. Because to me there's just something especially intriguing, creepy and oddly comforting about horror and mayhem from the 19th century. So listener discretion is advised. Hello friends and welcome to this, my 18th episode. Wow. I am almost at 20 episodes. I feel so accomplished. I've got some pretty disturbing things that I cannot wait to tell you on today's episode. But first, some haunted housekeeping. Thank you everyone who left me a kind note on Instagram last week. I was unable to produce a show because things kind of got turned upside down for me. Apart from dealing with the horrors of like the election and not getting anywhere near enough sleep because my little dog Toby has yet to adjust to daylight savings time. I got laid off from my job. So despite running on empty, I had to do some serious scrambling. Don't worry, I am self caring, meditating, dancing to drab majesty's cold souls about it, feeling the feelings. So never fear, I will be okay. If anything, I'm taking it as an opportunity to put more of my heart into this project right here. So again, thank you so much for your sweet understanding comments. I am so lucky to have such lovely listeners. I really do appreciate it. Also thank you everyone who left me a kind note on the previous week's minisode. Some of you definitely made me cry and I only had to delete like two or three sour comments. What a pleasant surprise. It was also really nice to hear you share how you're helping your communities, how you intend to, and how you're taking care of yourselves. We can all use a little comfort right now and reading your comments was really comforting to me. So again thank you keep please leaving me comments. I love them so much. Also, I finally got the courage to go on camera and do a little fashion show of my merch for you Guys, as promised, I put that on the Instagram. Really cute stuff. You can see it there at the top of my feed and grab it by going to myvictorianightmare.com and clicking store. It'll bring you to bonfire.com and that's where you'll find it. And I want to say thank you so much to Christina W. Who not only bought one of my shirts, but also left me a donation. I didn't even know you could do that. What a lovely surprise. Thank you, Christina. Incidentally, I hate being on camera so much. I am so afraid of cameras that if. If I get like hiccups. And this is a great trick, by the way. If you two hate being on camera, you get hiccups. Here's what you do. Pick up your phone, look at it, open the camera app and just flip the camera. That's all you have to do to stop your hiccups, especially from like a low double chin angle. It'll scare the hiccups right out of you. It works a hundred percent of the time for me, so please know that I packed a lot of courage into that 30 second video. And grab yourself a thing. My victorianightmare.com you will look so precious. And you may have noticed advertisements now appearing on episodes and you're hearing them just in time because. Because, like I said, I got laid off from my job last week, so the extra income is rather appreciated. And it is my intention to hopefully get to the point where I can just do this. That would be my dream. I know, however, that some of you folks use the podcast to fall asleep to and it might be a bit jarring to hear like an ad for the New York City Ballet. Out of nowhere, those ballerinas really jumped out at me. When I was doing qc, I spilled my coffee on my pants. Luckily, I do not have any pants that aren't black, so my pants, although covered in coffee stains, look as good as new. You can be rest assured. But as I was saying, if you would like to experience my Victorian nightmare ad free and support the show and my dreams, just go to patreon.com myvictoriannightmare. You'll also find a link to the Patreon on my website, myvictorianightmare.com I know that you'll receive a fancy ad free Spotify link to the show and it also works with a buttload of other podcast platforms too. I was going to list them all, but there's too many and they all sound almost exactly the same to me. Pocket Cast Downcast, Overcast Castro. There's one called Swoot which I've never even heard of before. It reminds me of Sploot. That's what Toby does with his little legs splayed out on the floor. I'll make sure to put a picture in today's episode, post on the Instagram, but maybe just check to be sure that your favorite platform is supported before joining. Thank you in advance for your support. It really does mean a lot to me. And finally guys, I have hit 2005 stars on Spotify. Remember when I was scared to ask if you could bring me to 20 like 10 episodes ago? You guys are such beaches. If you haven't already, please please rate the show in Spotify or Apple Podcast. It really does help me out. It's literally helping to keep the show going. Thank you so much, all of you in advance for that. Okay, for today's episode, I'm going to do something that I mentioned I wanted to do on the very first minisode minisode 1 I read a short little article for you from the Weekly Dose of Blood that sounded horrifying. And like always, if I read a little Insanity in the Illustrated Police News, Law, Courts and Record, I just need to dig deeper into it. I start pulling out other newspapers, public records, whatever I can find to build a fuller picture out of the madness. Sometimes I find absolutely nothing but this tiny article about the murder of Mary Ann Mailman at the hands of her husband Peter. Mailman sent me on a microfiche journey where I unearthed an entire 75 page book on the trial of this man in 1873. The trial was full of salacious accusations of affairs, jealous husbands, heartbreaking testimony from Peter's children, flagrant slut shaming from the defense, and pretty graphic details of the murder. I put the link to that book in the show notes if you want to read the entire thing yourself. It's called the Trial of Peter Mailman for the Murder of His Wife at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. It has a subheading that says together with the circumstances of the murder, incidents of the trial, the prisoner's confession, his execution, full reports of evidence, and the speeches of counsel in extenso arranged and prepared by J.W. longley, Esquire, a special reporter at the trial. I'm going to read the short article again to jog your memory, then we're going to dive in together. And as I've mentioned before, I'm a very dyslexic woman. Reading words and stuff is not my forte, but I Somehow read through this report, 75 pages in a single day. That is literally the most I have ever been able to read in a single day without going completely cross eyed or passing out. And that's because I was glued to the pages. It's a summary from the point of view of this reporter who chronicled every aspect of the trial. He interviewed the suspect before the trial. He was there every day to take notes on everything, every detail of the reactions of the court, which are really fascinating. He was there for the verdict, the confession, the execution. It's in all honesty the closest look into what a Victorian murder trial was actually like that I have ever found. It even ends with a beautiful poem about the whole thing written by one of the barristers. It's just lovely. I'll read that too. So, first, here's the small article as written in a 1973 volume of the Illustrated Police News, Law Courts and Record. Sadly, there was no illustration to go with this particular article. It reads, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Aug. 19. There was a tragedy in Bridgewater, Lunenburg county on Sunday last. Peter Mailman is supposed to have lured his wife into the woods and murdered her, then set fire to the woods with the purpose of destroying all traces of his crime. The ashes of the remains of the human being supposed to have been those of his wife were found in the burnt district in the woods, and Mailman is now under arrest. After he came out of the woods, he was heard to threaten to hang his children and persons seeing him going into the bush with them follow him and prevented the commission of a second crime. End quote. Now, it turns out this little blurb actually got a number of things wrong about the situation that didn't really come out until after the trial. That article was written before the trial had begun. So if you would follow me through this high grass here, I'll show you what really happened. It's A hot day, one o'clock, August 11, 1873, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Now watch your step. There's like cow pies left and right. There are also raspberry bushes to look out for as we enter the woods. Here, I want you to pop a crouch over here behind this berry bush and wait with me a while. Actually. What do I think I'm doing? I'm just gonna sit down. My knees are like made of fruit by the foot. It's cooler in the woods than it is out in the grass. It's quiet, serene with a gentle breeze. The smell of sun, warm raspberries and wild pears hang in the air. There are two people entering the woods now. A woman with a lovely red striped basket. A man with a large menacing axe. He isn't luring this woman, though. Like the article said, they're walking quite calmly together. Not talking, just walking side by side. She's picking berries all along the way. He's looking for pears. They will do this silently for a little while. So in the meantime, I want to read for you what our reporter, J.W. longley, Esq. Wrote in his preface about Mr. Mailman's future case. He writes, as special reporter for the Acadian Recorder and St. John Daily Telegraph, I attended the trial of Peter Mailman, charged with the murder of his wife at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. The trial referred to begin on Friday, the 17th day of October, 1873, and created intense interest not only in Lunenburg, but throughout all Nova Scotia. Happily, murders are rare in this dominion. We are blessed with a state of society which renders crime of this revolting character almost impossible. The circumstances connected with the Bridgewater tragedy were so horrible in their nature and the crime fixed itself so irresistibly on the prisoner that everybody was eager for the results of the legal investigation of his guilt. It was the first time I was ever brought face to face with a murderer, and I confess to having acquired an exceedingly deep interest in the man in the whole case. And while at Lunenburg, many persons expressed a wish that full reports of the whole case should be gathered together in pamphlet form and preserved as a painfully interesting local record. Acting on this suggestion, I have devoted what few spare hours I had to this task, and this work appears simultaneously with the unfortunate man's execution. End quote. I really love the personal touch and gentleness of this reporter's writing on this very tragic event that we will soon witness. There's a reverence for both the victim and the killer in his writing that on first sight almost appears like soft gloves for the murderer of a woman. Because we've seen this over and over again. Murderers and terrorizers of women displayed in empathetic light for the purpose that they get away with what they did. But he strikes a really even tone that we can still be sad for this guy's wretchedness while hoping he doesn't get away with it. Were he not Caucasian, would this gentle storytelling be similar? That's a valid question, but at least in this case, overall it's a different kind of storytelling that I'm used to. Alright. Anyway, our couple is finished picking berries and chopping pear bushes. It seems they're now sitting on a log, talking quietly. They seem kind with one another. He places his hand on her lap and moves closer to her. I can't hear what they're saying, but the mood is changing. She just took his hand and threw it off her lap. She standing to walk away. Close your eyes. Almost as fast as she stood to walk away, he stood and swung and cracked the axe into her temple. Then, quick in the back of her skull, the back of the blade. She fell to the ground on the second swing, hitting her head on the log where they sat. Peter drops the axe. I don't think he understands that she's dead. He's on the ground telling her to wake up, leaning her up against a tree in a sitting position, almost like he's just waiting for her to come to. She is bleeding profusely down her back, running down her shoulders. She will not come to. He'll wait another 20 to 30 minutes, staring at her, not knowing exactly what to do. He'll then decide to drag her body over to a hole in the roots beside a tree. He'll remove her boots and her hat. He'll cover her loosely in moss and dirt. He'll place her hat and boots in her basket and carry the home. In about two hours he will return and light the forest on fire in hopes of covering up his crime. The fire, though, will burn out before getting to the area where his wife was left. This was another incorrect detail in that article. It's important to note this was Mr. Mailman's confession of the events. Whether or not everything is entirely true, we can't know for certain. All we can know is that he was truthful about how she was left. This is what the reporter of the trial says in his preface. It is almost impossible to conceive the depth of wickedness to which a human being has sunk, the horrible lack of all natural feeling when he can deliberately and in cold blood strike dead a fellow being. The mind sickens in contemplating such a revolting act, and we instinctively thank God that although our world is full of vice and sin, happily the propensity to murder is comparatively rare. The details of the murder of Mrs. Mailman by her husband are unusually horrible. A more atrocious murder is not on record in this country. If his confession is to be believed, the case is slightly modified, but the facts and evidence stamp the deed as a most cowardly, heinous murder. End quote. The part of the small article that I read stated that he attempted to drag his children into the burning forest, but Was stopped by neighbors. This did not happen. This detail was likely inspired by the fact that after a few days of very suspicious behavior at home, he took two of his children, 11 year old Teresa and 8 year old Peter Jr. Out of town. But before leaving, he told his eldest daughter, 17 year old Angelina, that police would come looking for him, and if she told them where he was going, he would kill her brother and sister before they could kill him. Let me back up a little and explain what led up to Peter being caught before we talk about the details that came out at the trial and after he was found guilty. Once he crudely covered his wife's body with moss, he carried her things back home. His children had been out of the house while the murder was taking place, but they arrived home about a half hour before their father did. They expected their parents to be back by then and found the house locked. A man named Albert Mailman arrived at the house as well. At this time, no relation to Peter Mailman, which was very confusing as I was going through all the testimonies. Confusing because it's never really mentioned that he isn't related directly. You just kind of have to like ascertain it. And Mailman is such a different last name. No disrespect to you if your last name is Mailman. It's just not a common one. This Albert helped Angelina break into her house by helping her crawl through a window. She let the children and Albert in, and shortly Peter arrived with his wife's things and without his wife. Now it will come to light in the trial that Angelina may have been impregnated twice by Albert two years prior, when she was only 15 and 16 years old. It's assumed that she must have miscarried, Although this is just what Peter Mailman said, so it may not actually be true. And it would also appear that whatever kind of relationship she had with Albert was consensual in as much as, though clearly statutory rape. She continued to have sexual relations with this man until age 17. Allegedly, Peter arrived home and his children asked where Marianne was. He told them that she was hired by a neighbor to come help with farm work for the next few days. But three days passed and Angelina became suspicious, Especially because her father was acting very suspicious. He left to go to a nearby town called Bridgewater and brought home a First nations woman named Mary Glode. She and Peter got drunk together and stayed the night. While Peter was out with this woman, the man who he told his daughter, hired her mother to work for him. Mr. Baker came to the house to ask if Marianne was there. This is when Angelina realized something was indeed very wrong and she believed her father had killed her. Mr. Baker tried to convince her that she must be working on another farm, and maybe her father confused him for someone else. She still couldn't shake the feeling that her father had killed her mother. And she told her uncle David the next day that she really believed that he had killed her. On the stand, while she discussed speaking with her uncle, it was at this moment that she. She broke into tears. She continued telling how her father had beaten his wife many times before, sometimes with an ox whip. She said on the stand, Quote, my father and my mother lived disagreeably together. He often beat her, sometimes with an ox whip. He had threatened to kill her. A short time before my mother's disappearance, About a fortnight, I heard a disturbance between them. One night, he attempted to choke my mother, and if it wasn't for me, he would have done it. There were no. No partitions in the house. Two beds in the same apartment. Father and mother slept in one, and the children and myself in the other. I heard my mother cry out. And I got up and lit the lamp, Saw he had his hand on her throat and his knee on her breast. I was out gathering wild pears. The same afternoon that my father and mother went into the woods, One of the little siblings heard Angelina telling her uncle and Mr. Baker that she thought her father had killed her mother. And they told their father, Peter, that their sister told these men. It was then that he became furious and told Angelina that he would have her arrested for lying. But he then threw himself into a panic and frantically started packing. He said he was taking the little children to Waterloo for eight days. And according to Angelina on the stand, she said her father told her, quote, Sunday morning there would be some constables after him. And when the constables came, I should speak all in his favor and should say nothing about my mother. He said if the constables got him, they would hang him, but they would hang his two children first, implying that he would kill his own children first if they tried to catch him. This is where that mistaken detail in the Illustrated Police News article about him dragging his children into the burning forest came from. He didn't threaten to kill them right after their mother's murder, but he did a few days later when he was trying to escape. He was found in Annapolis at his brother's house with the children by constables. A few days later, after they did indeed come to inquire about him and the daughter Angelina told the truth. Luckily, he didn't hurt the children first. He was arrested and brought back to Lunenburg. The trial reporter writes of the situation after Peter was arrested. Quote, mailman's conduct after his arrest was quite peculiar and bordered on the melodramatic in general, affirming his innocence and affecting great love and regard for his murdered wife. The body of Mrs. Mailman was found a few days afterwards in the woods within a mile of his house and near where they were seen going by the children. The body had been doubled up and pushed under the roots of a tree, which had been partly torn up by the wind and a little extra moss thrown over the exposed portions. The burial process showed great skill and ingenuity and so far reflected credit on the performer. The body exhibited marks of violence about the head. There had been a severe blow on the temple and another on the back of the head, both seemingly done with an axe or some heavy weapon. The reporter meets with Peter in his cell the day before the trial, and this is how he described the meeting, quote, once closed with a man charged with willful murder and with the evidence overwhelming as to his guilt, the situation is a little delicate. His cell is a very comfortable room upstairs with a real nice bed in it. Side note, how Canadian. Okay, he continues, I found the prisoner seated on a bench, smoking, and so to be sociable, I took out my own pipe and commenced smoking, too. We watched each other for a short time without speaking. I could easily observe the twitching, nervous movements of the man. He would get absorbed in thought every now and again and rub his knuckles together, play with his fingernails, while a look of intense anxiety would come over his face. Presently he asked me to be seated and moved to one end of the bench that I might occupy the other. I thanked him and sat down alongside an alleged murderer. Exclamation point, real quick. It's so interesting to read a reporter so struck by his situation sitting next to a murderer. Heavens, there's just something so innocent to me about this. He continues. We soon began to talk a little about the case, easily at first, but at length I succeeded in drawing him out fully. He seemed nervous about his trial, wanted a good lawyer, and hoped that he would get a fair shake. This was said almost pitifully. End quote. Peter Mailman desperately pleads his innocence over and over, but then turns his ire toward his daughter who turned him in. He accuses her of conspiring against him. The reporter asks what motive she must have against him, and this is when her father says, quote, I will Tell you why I brought my daughter up well until she was 15 years old and then she became her own master and she went astray and she kept company with a married man. Her poor mother tried to stop her and they had fightin and jawing all the time. Then my daughter had a child and if my wife told me true, she had two children and there was where the trouble all was. And this man wanted my wife out of the way and then wanted me out of the way too. But thank God I am alive yet. But they haven't the right, right one yet. Oh, they have the wrong man, I tell you. They have the wrong man. End quote. So as mentioned earlier, there is no other discussion of these children that he's accusing his daughter of giving birth to, that they're still alive, that they are somewhere. I can only imagine that if this happened at all, she must have miscarried or perhaps they died shortly after the birthday. But again, this is just her father's accusation. And this detail that she was sleeping with the married neighbor, Albert Mailman, will be used later to discredit her entire testimony, luckily unsuccessfully. The defense attorney tries to discredit her by essentially asking this 17 year old girl if she was having an affair with Albert Mailman and conspiring with Albert to falsely accuse her father to get him out of the way because he disapproved of their relationship. It was also a way of trying to accuse Albert of the murder of Marianne. I do kind of love how Angelina defends herself when she's on the stand. The lawyer asks her about the night that her father came home alone and Albert did spend the night. He asks, quote, did Albert Mailman sleep with you that night? And her reply is simply none of your business. He also asks her if she's in the habit of, quote, getting drunk for no other reason than to make her seem like a dishonorable young woman. Luckily, like I said, this tactic did not work. This is what the reporter says of his discussion with Peter in the cell. Quote, after being with him 10 minutes, I had no doubt of his guilt and my conviction increased every moment that I spent with him. Him, he has the look of a desperate man. And his miserable attempts to quibble and redeem himself were the most pitiable I have ever seen. Poor wretch. How I pitied him I can never express. A terrible death hanging over, a horrible remorse ever haunting him. As I was leaving the cell, he followed me to the door in a most wild and pathetic manner, beseeching me to look after his counsel. And send his word by the jailer killer. I felt sorry to leave him alone. It must be good for him to tell his story to the people. Sitting alone in his room and brooding over the thing. Must be terrible beyond conception. Truly, a dreadful thing is murder and a horrible thing is a murderer. End quote. Again, I'm just so warmed by this reporter's way of expressing that he has no doubt whatsoever of Peter's guilt without resorting to dehumanizing or judging him and including his own feelings as well. It's just so personal for something written in this time in ways that I wouldn't expect. The trial attracted widespread attention, and people came from far towns to watch the trial themselves. The reporter describes the chaotic beginning of the trial as such. He writes, quote, there seemed to be a mad surging of human beings. And as one after the other was wedged in, they rushed and scampered and scrambled for a place. His lordship, Judge Debar, affirmed that he had never seen such unruly actions in all his long experience on the bench. Great crowds had to remain outside, end quote. So people came in the hundreds to witness the trial. The reporter continues, quote, a few moments after the opening of the court, Peter Mailman, the prisoner, was brought in and placed in the box. Every eye was upon him through the kindness of the jailer. He had got quite a decent suit of clothes. He looked very anxious, but remained somewhat cool. There was no direct evidence that the prisoner knocked his wife's brains out. Side note. Interesting choice of words, but in few cases of murder is there any direct evidence. Men who take life generally take care that no eyes behold the nefarious deed. But in most cases of conviction, circumstantial evidence is deemed sufficient. The learned counsel read some high legal opinions in support of the force and efficacy of circumstantial evidence. The prisoner, since the time of the murder, had attempted many stories and excuses, every one of which were false. He had never seemed in the least affected by the loss of his wife. End quote. Mrs. Mailman was discovered by men in a search party. And this is an excerpt from one of the testimonies. This is from Mr. Baker, the man who Peter Mailman said his wife was working for. When it came to light that Peter had fled the town, this man joined the search party and found her along with a Mr. Ullman. He says on the stand, quote, ullman and I discovered this. We remarked the place and went on, came to a swamp, discovered the same large and small tracks, followed them about 20 rods, saw some meadow grass and moss trampled down, stood there for an instant when Ullman said, joseph, if the deed has been done, this looks like the place. We cast our eyes about searchingly. When Allman said, what's that, Joseph? I looked, then replied, that is what we are looking for. Allman then exclaimed, my God, the woman. The reporter adds that here there was breathless silence in the court. Everybody was visibly affected, save the prisoner, who looked as stol and indifferent as ever. Mr. Baker continued, we discovered the body of the woman, Mrs. Mailman. It was lying partially doubled up under the root of a tree that had been partly blown over, the roots of which had raised up the moss about it, leaving a hollow cover placed just beneath it, just large enough to hold a body which had apparently been put in head first and the feet crowded in last, and knew the body to be that of Mary Ann Mailman, wife of Peter Mailman. When the doctor was examining her, I saw the wound on her head. The place where the body was found was very secure for concealment. One of the coroners on the stand testified to what he saw. Mr. Cox said, I discovered a fracture of skull on back part or base of head. There were marks of several blows apparently made by a blunt instrument. A piece of skull was entirely loose, had been driven in. The pole of an axe would probably make such a fracture. I have no doubt the wounds were sufficient to cause death. Another coroner testified, and it's really sad because the reporter notes that this testimony was being given while the children came into the courtroom. The other coroner, Dr. J.S. calder, said, quote, deceased had on a woolen dress and woolen stockings. Body not stripped in my presence. I examined the head before the body was removed to the house. I found blood oozing from back and side of her head. There were a few more witnesses called for the defense. Most were just character witnesses talking about how good a man Peter was, how they never saw him abuse his wife, etc. But one in particular was so sad. Dina Mailman. This is the wife of Albert Mailman, the man who was allegedly having an affair with 17 year old Angelina. Again, not related. The lawyer for the defense grilled her to admit that her husband was having an affair with Angelina. She asked if she ever found them in bed together and she said, quote, I have known her for 12 years. My husband goes away sometime, stays away overnight, but I have no reason to believe my husband is not living properly with me. End quote. This is so sad to me because later the defense lawyer says of her testimony in the final arguments of the jury, he says, quote, Remember the looks of that poor neglected woman, evidently fast sinking into the grave with grief brought here by the accused to prove the wickedness and depravity of her husband, his illicit intercourse with Angelina. To remember the fear and dread depicted in her countenance and manifested by her conduct if she did not swear the truth, such as she came to prove. Forgive her. And may God forgive her. She has had hell enough already. You could evidently see she was not a free agent. And she wished to speak the truth, but was restrained through fear of that man. I cannot call him a husband who can add little more to her cup of misery. Possibly the thought of the deceased and what might happen to her shook her nerves. And her honesty of purpose when she left home to give evidence. Although the defense is trying to create a smokescreen of an affair between this woman's husband and young Angelina to create a motive for false accusations against Peter, the lawyer might actually be correct. This poor woman was forced to lie on the stand to defend her philandering husband out of fear that she may be hurt by him, like Marianne, if she told the truth. Now, it may also be true that it is one big lie and Albert and Angelina were not involved. But it does certainly appear that way, considering at the very least, we know it's true that Albert would regularly spend the night with Angelina in her home. That poor woman. All of these poor women. The description that that reporter makes of the reading of the verdict is amazing. This is what he writes. Quote. Quick as thought, the house was filled. The word had spread. And the crowd rushed frantically into the place in mad eagerness to hear the words which were to fix prisoner's doom. Pell mell in. They jammed. And the intense excitement could be felt in the air. The prisoner, who had been notified that the jury were ready to announce their verdict, walked deliberately down from the jail. Bringing his two little children with him. He walked calmly into the box and lifted the two little ones up upon the railing, supporting them carefully with his arm. The scene was a thrilling one. Only one feeble lamp there threw its light over the dense crowd. There was a sort of ominous, startling gloom which penetrated to every human heart. The 12 men who held his life in their hands slowly filled into the box. Looking pale and solemn. The foreman rose to his feet. There was an awful stillness as of death. Every heart beat fast. Everyone trembled in anticipation of the awful word. At last the foreman's voice was heard, clear and distinct. We find the prisoner at the bar guilty. The silence and hush in an instant gave way to a sort of murmur which ran through the crowd. I understood it to be of approbation and satisfaction at the verdict. Quick as thought, every eye was fixed upon the unfortunate criminal. To the astonishment of every one who saw him. He never moved a muscle nor betrayed the faintest sign of emotion. He looked steadily forward and remained as cool as if he had received a paltry fine. Marvelous to relate. From the moment verdict was given till he left the court, about 10 minutes, he never trembled a single particle. It is customary to handcuff even a thief when convicted. This murderer was allowed to walk a quarter of a mile in the evening with his children. When flight could not have made his case more hopeless, all he had to do was break away from his children and run. But he walked quietly along quietly to the jail, quietly to his cell, and quietly went to rest. Peter at this point still had not confessed. And the next day the judge handed down the sentence. That you shall be taken from hence to the place from whence you came from thence on Tuesday 30 December, next to the place of execution. And you shall be hanged by the neck until you are dead. And may God have mercy on your soul. End quote. Quick aside. Now, not to diminish the very solemn nature of our situation here, but I always thought the 1800s judge's sentencing degree is one of the most metal things you can say and hang you from your neck until you are dead, second only to the end of the Lord's Prayer. I was so sad when Catholics removed that bit that echoes. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. It's just. It's just so righteous. When I was a kid, there was this other kid in church who, as soon as they'd start to say the prayer, we'd look at each other and say that bit with like the most metal faces, Fists in the air like two little weirdos. The minister just looked at us like these bastards. I think he actually thought it was fun, you know? Okay, I continue. Before the execution, Peter finally confessed to the murder in full. Not just that he had did it, but also his motive. It wasn't a quick act of passion. It wasn't because she threw his hand off her lap and started to walk away. He had every intention of killing her. That day, before they left the house, he believed his wife to be having an affair with a man named Josiah Fancy, as well as Albert Mailman, both married men. He also said that Josiah sexually assaulted his own daughter in the woods. But rather than kill that guy, he killed his wife, the end of his confession reads, my wife's head struck a piece of wood when she fell. I said, when I threw the axe away, say you shall never cut another blow for me. That thought I gave the axe anyhow. End quote. 2000 people showed up for the execution. The reporter describes the scene as such. Quote, the prisoner, accompanied by several clergymen in the sheriff and his council, walked from the jail to the scaffold. He was calm and unmoved. He surveyed the dreadful instrument of death to see that all was right. He manifested no emotion motion while his hands were being pinioned and died bravely, if we may so put it. After 10 minutes suspension, life was pronounced extinct and his body was taken down and buried in the corner of the jail yard. A solemn scene this, and it is to be hoped that its impressive lesson will not be forgotten by the thousands that witnessed it. End quote. While reading this reporter's experience of this trial, it actually reminded me in many ways of Agent Dale Cooper from the first season of the original Twin Peaks. He comes to Twin Peaks from Seattle, big city, and he's delighted by the small town care and attention to this singular murder of Laura Palmer. How this one murder shook an entire town to its core and how this is how it should always be be people shouldn't be thought of as simply statistics. It's an important reminder for me, someone who listens to so much true crime, to always take a moment when I hear stories like this and pay some reverence so I never get desensitized to it. I'd like to end with the poem, the poem that a barrister wrote about this trial that is found at the end of the book. I'll read. It's a long poem, so I'll read just a few excerpts. Grab a tissue. This is unreal. It is called on an Unfortunate man who was executed at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, 30 December 1873. Unhappy man, where has thy spirit fled After a life of labor, death of dread A crime that madness only can explain. A helpless woman by her husband slain, the tortures of his heart to God were known While reason struggled to regain her throne. The fear of death still held him as a slave. The fear of death and of a felon's grave. Blessed be the judge who gave him ample time to think of God and to repent his crime. How thankful those should be whose happy home invites to rest While some are driven to roam not tempted in unhallow paths to tread but in content to lay the weary head. Ah, who can tell what his own fate might prove if banished from the realms of peace and love when o'er the mind the stormy passions rule the wisest men's no better than a fool oh, what a tough episode. Oh, God, I really hope you made it through. Okay, here's something to make you feel a little bit better. I could not find any nice news around this particular story, but in terms of Nova Scotia, just two months ago, they unanimously passed a major piece of legislation protecting women from partner violence. And I just want to read a few lines from unifor.org and an article about this bill's passing. This is a quote from a woman named Corinne Beaman, the chair of the Atlantic Regional Council Women's Committee. She says, quote, I was in tears watching everyone stand in support of this bill this afternoon. And while this is personal for me, it makes me emotional because this will give people people hope. There are so many people struggling and feeling like there is no escape. Shelters are full and turning people away. There's a housing crisis and there can be a long wait to receive support or help to escape the violence. But today they can know that we recognize the problem and we are committed to work together to address it. End quote. Ah, the helpers. They're everywhere. If you enjoyed this podcast and would like to hear more, please Rate Review Subscribe Leave me comments because I love them so much. Be kind to yourselves and I will see you in your nightmares.