Public Leger, Volume 1, Number 43, Richmond, Wayne County, 1 January 1825 — Page 2

A Murderer. John Zimmerman, was condemned, in Pennsylvania, some time afro, to suiTt death for murdering his daughter: during his imprisonment he m-tde a confession of the manner in which bis life had heen spent, from w hich the following extracts are made '1 was always a zealous 'democrat, and tften had disputes with the opposition, nay sometimes fought I was particularly warm at the last Governor's election, and Shulze.'s justice would then have appeared conspicuously to me if he had sentenced all that were for Gregg to the halter. At that time 1 little thought that my Governor would condemn one favorable, to him, much less him who was so very zealous. Hut the table are turned, and the friend must now feel the keen edge of the friend's sword Justice is stronger than friendship but what reflections my sentenee i just, it is reasonable that my blood should (low. I .- my 22d year I was mnrried to Eve, her maiden name, Witterstine; commenced and followed the aforesaid pursuits al' ornately, and would at all times have w 1! -npportrd my family if whiskey had r ' always robbed me of the greater part e' earning. When intoxicated I was li 'r irtable and furious, ai d more like a t r than a man. Mv wife 1 loved notv t; -ifandini:. ai d r ever left her to sutfer f. r cessaries: she too, kr ew how to acc rj ni .date herself to my temper, and w M not even incur her displeasure to a great oxfent, when in a state of irtoxicatio I turned her and children out of doors, a- d threw a parcel of furniture after them became reror ciled and we again lived in peace. Mv wife gave birth to 9 children, of whom 5 have departed from this Tale of sorrow, viz: 2 oi s and 3 daughter; 4, two sons, and two daughters, are livhg, who are now to witncsi m ignomh iMjs death. My two youngest children tv bo are female twins, are now 11 vears of age. O: e of mv dnugbters, who is no in- .re. burnt her- I1 accidentily or designedly , that she died in a few hours after. M tbrdied dutir ginyimpriot merit, and mv eldest daughter, who had attained the ft ge of 20. I sent in a barbarous never-heard of. and humanity revolting manner, on V d .-da the 2Gth of Nov mber, 1823, I ( ' ik. d and kieked her to death. Ti e f Ilovsii g ein umstai co. led to the f'lijM-: mv daughp r H. rii n wa I ired at t'i- r,.al mi-es af M mi h Chui k, North-arnr-n-a county : thre in one year she 1' mo intimate with Irishmen, which was h ' I ral b t me. S! e became alllicted pit. s the ague, and was brought home. I i.ovyever treatr-d her during the first fewday after her return a a father; J nursed a d waited on her, hut occasionally reproached h r bitterly on account of the i

Iri-'.moi!; who has intercourse with the Irih, lias dealings with the Devil, thought I. N v some If il .men came to mv house t"i-ither on or bed of sickness, and gib! eri-hed mi her, which highly enrag i me; I ti.rrt'Te told my Rosina to sp ik her father's language that I might u. derstand her, upon which slie told me in German what the Irishmen wanted, and what was the object of their visit. After they left tl le hMise, I in the most raging manner upbraided her, and told her if the Irish did not stay away I would shoot thorn. R.isjna reprimanded my behaviour with sensibility, saving that nothing of the ki d that I suspec ted took place- between her- aiid the Irishmen, and that if I went on in this manner I could not be in a good way. As she h id frequently done before, sl'o adm ished me to change my conditio',, re( ornrner aied praying, arid represented sV, .nit g, dri. king and dancing as things h ading to damnation. This a'lTected m I hrrame uneasv and mv mind became fearful. Disquietude had not left lie; the next day ; and the suspicion haur ted me continually ; tin? cause f mv Rnsina's disease might be pregnancy, consequently I M paired to an adjoining woods, knelt on a stone, praved fervently, hut found no relief. As I found no repose, I, went further into a small valley, prayed again most fervently, imploring God, that he might direc t me what to do, upon which I saw a sign at the Heavens. I saw a light, and at the same moment my prayers were heard, it appeared to me as if God said, "Put your Kosina to death!' T'is confirmed my suspic ions about my Rsj,,a and the Irishmen, nay, certain was I. mv daughter had done amiss, and resolved it was to sae to destroy her. returned hom turned mv wife and children out of doors, (except the twins) and sc. iled myself at tne bedside el Rosjj a and dosired her to knee! aside of me on the floor, helped her out of bed, ar d thus she and 1 prayed a short time. Suddei h I embraced the favorable niomet t to execute the Divine will, drew my daughter backwards on the lluor, seized her throat,

! kicked her iri trie sides till she made no resistance Tlien I dragged her by the hail jon the middle of the lloor, and thus the ! will of God was accomplished. To the 'execution of this act I was endowed with ' peculiar strength, against the struggles of my daughter, therefore, I had an easy victory. My son and Jacob Herring, who were not far from the house splitting wood for burning tar, were informed of my" conduct by my wife, who hastened to the house; but I did not admit them. Rosina was then already dead; however they knew how to get assistance, and eventually when the door was forced open, I was, in the room where the corpse lay, taken and hound. This act I committed in Rush township, Schuylkill county, where I previously resided a considerable time. 1 was much addicted to drink,& this,in addition to my natural disposition,caused such ferocity in my undertakings, as seldom finds a parallel. At the time I murdered my daughter I felt the spirit of cider royal in my head, which I had in my house. 1 Mir noorlihrtiir. who arrested me. and

the inquest, on my persevering entreaties, jl lsi oflic es and post roads. tinman. i r II I ..I 1 tJinrn n( iVv Iv 1 1 1 if t il 1 1 V:i T IIP :i I id 1 aV-

permitteu me lo roiiow rny uaugoiei - io ine ; j - j grave. On the same day, the 28th of No- j !". vember, 1823, I was brought to the jail ; Pensions. -Noble, Talbot. Lanman. of Orwigsburg. Here in jail 1 only began jl Branch and Cobb. to reflect on my awful situation. The V District of Columbia. Lloyd of Md.

name of murder became insupportable, ' Barbour, Noble, Eaton and Parrott.

SEMITE. Dec. 13. the President of the senate appointed the following standing committecs; Foreign relations. Barbour, Jackson, Macon, Elliott and Mills. Finance. Smith, King of N. Y. Macon, Holmes of Me. and Lowry. Commerce and manufactures. Dickerson, Ruggles,DWolf, Fir dlay & Clay ton. Militia. Chandler, Find lay, Knight, Branch and Bell. Military affairs. lackson, Chandler, Benton. Tavlor of Ind. and Johnson of Ky.

! Naval affairs. Lloyd of Mass. Williams, Parrott. Llovd of Md. and Hayne.

I Public Lands. Barton, Thomas, Eaton, J

King of Ala. and Vandyke. Indian affairs. Benton, Johnson of La ' Elliott. Edwards of Con. and Kelly. ' Claims. Ruggles, Holmes of Miss. Palmer, Bell and M'llvaine. j Judiciary, Van Buren, Holmes of Me.

) Talbot, Brown and Seymour,

and to be treated in this way 1 thought

wag unjust. I then could not properly consider myself as the murderer, because God commanded me to do it. I thought it was him, and therefore did not suppose that any body would condemn me to death. Love of life induced me to act in jail as if 1 was insane, hoping to escape by such cor duct. 1 prayed, baw led, leaped, stamped, eursed, talked nonsense, alitor the purpose that they might think that I was a fool. But 1 could not entirely hide my sanity, nay, I was often argry that I was not more on my guard. W hen 1 was sentenced by the court to be hung, I did not give up the hope of a pardon and pretended anew to be crazy as I said before, "If , they condemn mc the shall soon have a complete fool and fools they dont hang.'" I raved and raged, sang and leaped and prayed for hours. Ti e clergymen, who visited me, were received rudely: gave to their questions little or no answer, but had rather a malignant pleasure in driving them otl soon by ! roaring and swearing. But on the 13th Scptembcr.as I was laving on my bed in deep contemplation, suddenly a preacher with a seric u, sympathising mein stepped before me, representing my awtul situation to nre, the necessity of yet saving my oul, the willingness of Jesus to receive evers me, if I approached him with penitence 'and contrition, in a manner that pi duced very sensible emotions.- But notwithstanding after having attentively listened to him 10er 12 minutes, I became actuated

by such a degree of ferocity that I fell into mv former habits, and would have been much pleaded if 1 could have laid violent , hards upon bin). I am hardened, distrust

ful against God, and seduced by the devil

Mr. Darton oiiereu a reomuon inqui

ring into the expediency of oflering for sale I , the lead mines and salines of the U. States. ! i The bill to "abolish imprisonment for j debt," received its second reading, and!

j was referred to a select committee, j Mr. Van Buren presented a resolution ;on the subject of tonnage on canal boats, i which was read the first time, j Dec. M. On. motion of Mr. Barbour, so much of the President's message as re!lates to foreign affairs, was referred to the committee on foreign "relations. I Mr. Barton presented the petition of sundry inhabitants of the state of Missouri, on ; the subject of a trade aral intercourse be- ! tween that state and the internal provinces j of Mexico. The fame gentleman called ! up the memorial from the Cherokee In-

' dians,concerning the taxation of merchants !

! passing through their territory, as granted i to them by treaty of the U. States, and it was referred to the committee on the ju-idiciarv.

Da: 15. The resolution offered y esterdav by Mr. Brown, to appoint a committee on roads and canal?, was then taken up.

31r. Chandler observed, that lie was one !of those who believed that this was a subj ject on which congress had no right to lej gislate; that he believed it to be unconstitutional, and that, for his part, he was ; determined to raise his vuicc and vote j against the resolution. T 1 1 . ill

.vir. lAuggies said, it would nc imposst hie 'to proceed regularly without a committee on this subject; that it was the practice of the seriate, and a very necessary one, to have such a committee. Mr. Noble said he was sorry to find the gentleman from Maine opposed to the ap

pointment of a committee on this subject. )

to the aforesaid nameless act, ai d never ! He thought the gentleman's scruples would J

can never will I sutler myself to learn

or be brought to any sorto! repentance. I am now in my 4Gth year, and die when I might yet have been useful to my

family, however they can help themselves prettv well. Therefore farewell, my dear friends, forget me, and live so that I may never see you! To me God is a consu- : mingfire may he be all love to you. j To the sheriff, deputy sheriff, and to all 1 who treated me well during my imprisonment, I hereby tender my acknowledgement. I forgive all my enemies, because i to take vengeance is not allowed rac. The clangour of my chains w ill soon cease and jand the hustle of the multitude will com ; mence, which will accompany me to the place of execution. Oh! I deserve such a fate. May many take warning by me I'and guard against the vices ofdrunkenness, of swearing, of scoffing at religion! They

sooner or later, b ad into misfortunes. JOHN ZIMMERMAN.

I have time enough to operate upon his mi rid

hereatter. He alluded to the circumstance of the president's calling the attention of congress to the subject of internal improve

ments; and observed, in relation to the

message, that though he had not the greatest confidence in every part of it, vet he was very well satisfied with the opinion of the executive on this important subject. He would vote for the resolution, with an ey e directed to the promotion of the general prospt rity of the country. The motion was carried.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. Dec. 10. General La Fayette entered at 1 o'clock, accompanied by the committee appointed to wait on him. After his entrance, the speaker and members arose.

and he was introduced by the chairman of! i '.it i il. . I TI

ioe loiimiuiee, io me iiousc. lie was then conducted to a sofa placed for his reception, when the speaker addressed him in a very eloquent and feeling manner.

There is nothing which requires so Ji w hich, with the General's reply will be

much mental courage, and so much turn puhlMJcd in the next Leger.

pru (iple,as to tell strict truth, in spite oil

temptation to tell the lh s, of interest of

i pride, and of complaisance; because no lame, no honor awaits the person who so does; as there is scarce an individual in ! society who values spontaneous truth or

indeed any truth: to tell a little tib, a white lie, is thought e ven meritorious on some occasions; while a strut adherence to truth on small, as well as on great points, exposes the person who so adheres, to be ridieuled, if not despised by people in gen

eral: therefore, he who can act up to his

own sense oi rignt, in ueuance ot ridicule and example, and also, unstimulated bv aught but the whisper of conscience, is capable of vvl at I must call the most diflicult moral heroism.

Dr.. 13. After the presentation of a

numb r of petitions, the speaker laid before the house the resolutions of the legislatureef New Vr.rk, remonstrating against the collection of tonnage from canal boats, which, on motion of Mr. Storis was laid on the taMe. Or motion of Mr. Little, the subject of rewlutionary pensions war. re fir red to a c( ramittee on public lands, with instruction to enquire into the expedie? cy of pn -lonjntr the time of locating lands within

the. Virgii ia Military District, and for obtail rig patents. A biil to permit the state j of Olio to sell certain lands, granted the statinder restrictions, was taken up and passdj. The house resolved itself into a cuniiitteo of the whole, on ths bill more

ved from the President to-day. f j,

accompanying a report irorn the

effectually to provide for the pu

ot certain crimes; aud in nnl.

committee an opportunity to make?11 more comprehensive, they roie a ' leave to sit again. ui M Dec. 14. Three menrrAa

'"t,v.; nrrp .

sionerofthe public buildings, f,vi

appears that $95,740 23 have been nended within the nrespnr . ' e-

rtnlilir -tin imiiurc Th cn.A..,l

i.i intr i clntdmnnt tC O) w. . IM

ii j in cum mini vi iuu iota HOW at, 1 e

merly owned by the government, in ington, &lc. &c. The third, a stat,.

relative to the Virginia military iv.

Oluo. r

On motion of Mr. Jennings, it u p I ..I i ti.4 i :a.

soivcn i nai me cornrnmec on public ,v .

in leoui-uii; un; pi ice Ol SUCll portion of the public lands as shall have bon

posed to sale for sixteen vears, nnl n rr i.i f.i.. . ui

uosfiiu, u inij tenia j.er acre; and th f sucli portions of the public lands a i;iVe been exposed to sale for eight vcar, ;U!J remain unsold, le reduced in price tact. entv-five cents per acre' Mr. Jennings said, that be had presort, ed to the house a memorial of the legUjal tureof Indiana, asking congress to reduce the pice of the public lands generally. offering the resolution, his object vnas, ifa reduction should take place, to direct the attention of the committee on the miUio

land?, to the idea of graduating the price of those lands which had been long in market, and remain unsold, by a reference to the time of their continuing unsold, a fur nishing, in some measure, an evidence cf their relative value. Mr. r ight, of Ohio, off-red the follow, ing resolution: "R( solved. That the committee on Jie judiciary be instructed to ir,o) u ire into the propriety of prcvidii a if law, that any judicial or other civil flircr of the government of the United State?, who shal! hen-after engage in fiuhtii r a duel, or in challenging, as-ii-ting or eiin uraging any other person to engage, shall forfeit the office by him so held, aid he ever afterwards rendered ir.capalle of holding the like, or other office urdcr ths government7 (Agreed to.) Dec. 15. The speaker laid Uef re the bouse several communications fr m the Treasury department, relating to the duties received and ow ing on imported guds, to the collection of tonnage duties on car at boats. &c. which were severally refer red. On motion of Mr. Jennings, it vsa--solved That a committee be appointed ti inquire into the expediency of apprcpriv ting money upon a pledge of the thrt'f pt tent, fund of Indiana, to enable said state to construct a canal around the fall of Ohio, at Jeff -rsonville, with leave to repci by bill or otherwise. Mr. Cook called up the consideration ot the following joint resolution, otTcn-d by him last session: 44 Resolved, That the several states which have been admitted into the Union under any compact prohibiting such states from levying and collecting a tax on land for five vears next nicceedirg the sale of such land by the Tinted States be, and they are hereby, nc rally authorised, whenever tbev nun def-si it expedient, to subject all land herealter sold by the United States, within their respective limit?, to the same tax that they may levy and collect on lands not su'ret to the provisions of such compacts." Referred to thecf mmittec on public lai.tk

GFNERAL LA FAYETTE. The National Journal of the 18th tilt, contains the following remarks respecting the reception of La Fayette in the Houso of Representatives. "Yesterday and the day before havo presented to the w orld one of the most affecting and sublime incidents in the history of nations. Kingly pomp, and the purchased pageantry of Courts styles at d titles of nobility -and the ven.nl and evanescent idolatry of thoughtless crowd?, d. Zzled by a ficticious ni d impure splendour have been thrown intodeep and deserved obscurity, by the simple and unstudied expression ( f a nation's feelings toward? its early and disinterested benefactor. rll'c scene exhibited in the tw o Houses of Congress, on the reception of General LaF cite, is one which gives a moral splendour to the republican character, far surpnsMi g all the most magnificent spectacles vvl ich the policy and stratagem of regal governments have ever produced. It is a red ru inscribed by the pen of gratitude or the tablets of the heart; and it will be conveyed from nie to age, so long as virtue :.ru an honest pride in their country's character and institutions continue to ir.lluci n-A nieiican citizer s. History may err, an speaking marble will decay, hut the grandeur of republicanism, and the infiuei ee of virtuous feelings, must be banished ln.ra our hemisphere, and from mankind .before the events of these days c?m be eblitcra ted."