The story of the Italian Boy ‘Carlo Ferrari’

Carlo Ferrari.[1]

Charles Ferrari, more commonly known as Carlo Ferrari, was a boy of 14 years travelled about with a cage containing a few white mice and a tortoise.

Carlo’s master appeared to have left London on the 29^th September, and since then he was wandering about without a home. On the evening of 3^rd November Bishop and Williams took Carlo from Smithfield to NSG with the promise of work.

On arrival at NSG Carlo was placed in the privy of the house, as Bishop’s wife and children and Mrs Williams had not yet gone to bed. Around ten minutes passed by, and as soon as all was quiet inside Carlo was taken from the privy and into the house. Here Carlo was provided with some bread and cheese and a cup full of rum that had been laced with around half a vial of laudanum in it. Carlo ate and drank all that he was provided and had a little more beer afterwards before he drifted off to sleep.

Artistic depiction of the death of the Italian boy. [6] Bishop provides a detailed account of what happened next:

‘We took him directly - asleep and insensible - into the garden and tied a cord to his feet to enable us to pull him up by, and then I took him in my arms, and let him slide from them headlong into the well in the garden, whilst Williams held the cord to prevent the body going altogether too low into the well - his feet just above the surface. Williams fastened the other end of the cord round the paling, to prevent the body getting beyond our reach. The boy struggled a little with his arms and legs in the water, and the water bubbled for a minute. We waited till these symptoms were past, and then went in doors and afterwards I think we went out and walked down to Shoreditch to occupy the time. The body was left suspended from 5am until 9am the next day when Bishop and Williams returned to take the boy’s body out of the well. Subsequently, they undressed him and carried him into the washroom, where they laid him out on the floor, and covered him with a bag.’[7]

Artistic depiction of the death of the Italian boy. [5]

[1] English Crime and Execution Broadsides, https://curiosity.lib.harvard.edu/crime-broadsides/catalog/46-990029381630203941_HLSLibr:912603 [Accessed July 2022].

[2] English Crime and Execution Broadsides, https://curiosity.lib.harvard.edu/crime-broadsides/catalog/46-990029381630203941_HLSLibr:912603 [Accessed July 2022].

[3] Execution of John Bishop and Joseph Williams, https://curiosity.lib.harvard.edu/crime-broadsides/catalog/46-990029379360203941 [Accessed July 2022].

[4] Execution of John Bishop and Joseph Williams, https://curiosity.lib.harvard.edu/crime-broadsides/catalog/46-990029379360203941 [Accessed July 2022].

[5] Execution of John Bishop and Joseph Williams, https://curiosity.lib.harvard.edu/crime-broadsides/catalog/46-990029379360203941 [Accessed July 2022].

[6] Execution of John Bishop and Joseph Williams, https://curiosity.lib.harvard.edu/crime-broadsides/catalog/46-990080913030203941 [Accessed July 2022].

[7] Dublin Evening Packet and Correspondent, 8 December 1831.

The story of the Italian Boy ‘Carlo Ferrari’

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