Trial of Lucretia Chapman, Otherwise Called Lucretia Espos y Mina..

1832. Philadelphia: G.W. Mentz & Son, 1832.. Philadelphia: G.W. Mentz & Son, 1832. "The True Character of the Spanish Adventurer": McDade 169 [Trial]. Chapman, Lucretia [1788-1841], Defendant. Du Bois, William E. [1810-1881], Compiler. Trial of Lucretia Chapman, Otherwise Called Lucretia Espos y Mina, Who was Jointly Indicted with Lino Amalia Espos y Mina, For the Murder of William Chapman, Esq. In the Court of Oyer and Terminer, Held at Doylestown, for Bucks, December Term, 1831, Continued to February Term, 1832. Philadelphia: G.W. Mentz & Son, 1832. 213; 11 pp. Final section (11 pp.) has the drop-head title Supplement to the Trial of Mrs. Chapman, Published by George W. Mentz & Son, Philadelphia. Octavo (9" x 6"). Contemporary sheep, blind rules to boards, blind fillets to spine, lettering piece lacking. Light rubbing and a few scuffs to boards, front board detached, rear board partially detached but secure, moderate rubbing to extremities, spine abraded, spine ends and corners worn, early owner bookplate (Owen Stover) to front pastedown. Moderate toning and light foxing to interior, offsetting to margins of endleaves, annotations in early hand to rear free endpaper. $450. * First and only edition with the Supplement that, as noted by Cohen, was not included in all copies. Lucretia Chapman began an affair with Lino Amalia Espos y Mina, a Spanish boarder who claimed to be the son of the governor of California. They poisoned Chapman's husband with arsenic, moved to New York and married. McDade notes: "Almost immediately the true character of the Spanish adventurer came out, with the disappearance of the family silver and other obvious signs of his chicanery. Other swindles drew the attention of the Philadelphia constable to him, and once suspicion was directed to the curious couple, the evidence mounted rapidly. (...) In separate trials she was acquitted while he was convicted and executed. It is difficult to tell whether they had acted in concert in the murder; at least the jury gave her the benefit of the doubt." The former owner of our copy was likely Owen Stover [1801-1878], an attorney from Chester County, Pennsylvania. Cohen, Bibliography of Early American Law 12416. McDade, The Annals of Murder 169.