THE SUICIDE OF PIGOTT.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XVII, Issue 2, 3 May 1889, Page 27

THE SUICIDE OF PIGOTT.

At half-pait five on Frid iy afternooa, March lsr, the Civil Governor of Madiid, acting upon a request of tbe British Embassy, sent one of his most active police-inspectors with two detectives to the Hotel de los Kmbaj adores to arrest figott, who was staying there under tbe name of Konald Ponsonby.

Tbe British Embassy at Madrid had received from Scotland Yard and from the Foreign Office, nnd had communicate! to the Spanish civil authorities, a lull description of the fugitive, requesting them to look out for him. Then oa Friday morning, actiog under instructions from the Foreign Office, the embassy again informed the Civil Goveruor that the ttrituh authorities hai reason to believe that Pigolt bad arrived in Midrid, and was the person who bad on Thursday afternoon sant a telegiam stating that Konald Po.isonby had arrived safely in Madrid, ».ud bad put up at the Hotel de los Kmbaj adores. I'nis telegram had bee i tnnded in ai the Oential Office. and was directed to •' Ponsouby(?), 53 Lincjlu't-lnc-FieldH, London." The inspector accordingly went to the hoiel and mule inquiries of the landlod and servants, whicii sjon convinced him that the so-called Ponsonby was the man wanted by the British Embassy. The description of his personal appearance given by them tallied with the information sent Irom Scotland Yard m every detail of personal appearance and costume, down to tha wel. -known eyeglass. The inspector sent for tbe inteipreter of the hotel, a German. Hi was tbe only person who hid conversed with Pigott, and had bteu constantly with him since bis arrival in the through express from Paris on Thursday morniug. lie had, as be hirmtlt told the interpreter, siayed a day in thai city. Pigott was in his room when the police arrived to arrest him. Till then he had ep3nt most of his time going about Madrid with the interpreter. Ihe inspector, in order 10 avoia alarming Pigott, went up to nis room with ttie German, ftbkiop tbe latter to te 1 the Eughehmau that hi mist follow him to the office of tbe Civil Governor, who wanted to commuuicatu to him sosae news which concerned him.

Pigott, without any sign of emotion, put on his overcoat, took his hat and umbrella, and let t his room and went as lar as the stairs with the inspector and the ln'erpreter. Tueu he quickly letraceil hia steps to the bedrjoru, calling out to tne interpreter that he was going fur his cards. The otheiß did not follow him into the bedroom, and actually waited for him in the coiridor ou.sue. Pigo.t *cut into tht alcove of his r< em, took a revolver from tbe only small le ither bag he bad brought with him, ; nd shot himself dead. He must have fired the sht.4 intoiris mouth, as it shattered the skull and the upper part of tue rooutb. Tbe inspector and m'erpreter, together with some other

persons, entered the bedroom, only to find all assistance useless. At is usual in such cases in Spain, nobidy was permitted to toaeh or move the body until the magistrates cim?. Tin police mounted guard at the door of the room. *ud information was instantly sent to the Civil Governor and the British Embissy. Sir Clirs For! sent the consul to make some inquiries. The magistrate styled " Juez de Gnardia " was sjon on the soot with his alguazils and ohar officials. The judge's firsc step was to send for a doctor, who declared the death of Pigott had been immediate, the bullet having traversed the brain.

Th<? officers of the police proceeded to examine the clothes of the dead man. They found a cbeqie book on the Ulster B\nk, of which nuny of the cheques had bsen usad, also a licjnsa to oirrv firearms, dated the 7th June, 1887, whic i Pisjott haJ obtained at Xingrtowa, and a curious note-book, ia which ho ha I written many singular memoranda of his recent doings. There were many entries about letters received while he was at Anlerton's Hotel, followed by what seemed to be comments in cypher. In these notes the judge observed that frequent mention wa* made of Messrs. Paroell, Labouchere, and O'Kelly, aad also what appeared to be impressions of visits to Paris, London, and other towns. The last document examined by the judge wisa leiter which Pigott evidently intended to send to Mr. Labouchere. In this letter he asserts that the first bundle of letters sold to the Times contains authentic documents. He goes oa :— " In the second bundle I put several falsa letters, among them two of ParneU'a, one of Davitt's, one of O'Kelly's, and one of Patrick Bgan's. I deeply lament and regret what 1 have done, and heartily wish to repair it ; and to do so I will do all I can and follow your instructions. The greater part of my declarations before the tribunal were false ; bat what I declared under oath and in writing was exact." This letter was signed in full, -'Richard Pigott," and very much rosembles hi* previous declaration. It was directed to Mr. Labouchere. This letter is, singularly enough, dated last Monday. In his note-book there are said to be political memoranda of importance. The deceased had only a few shillings in his waistcoat pocket, and no other money of any kind ; but he repeatedly told tin interpreter taat he hoped to get letters from friends in Paris and London. His intention was to leave Madrid for France directly these letters arrived. During the night of Friday the authorities had the body placed ia a simple coffin of black wood, nnd conveyed to the judicial mortuary in tbe Southern cemetery. The remains are in the clothes he wore when he committed suicide— a brown overcoat, jacket, and waistcoat, black cheviot stuff trousers with dark stripes, and old boots. The shirt is open, allowing a scapular to be seen with the letter* " 1.H.8." and a cross. The mouth and moustache, both hands and the face, are stained with bloud ; the eyes, which are light blue, ar« wide open. The head is much mutilated. The iudge allowed the officials of the Embassy to examine and copy most of the document* found on the body. This tragic affair has excited great interest in Madrid. The Press publishes long accounts of his career. Most papers, and especially the Liberal and Republican journals, snow considerable sympathy for Mr. Parnell ana the Irish Members in their commeats on the Commission. Indeed, t-paniurds seldom conceal their sympathies for Ireland.