The Press. — London, England, 1857-04-11 00:00:00

358 fringement of the regulations with the guilty co.tni• sauce of the managers, or else a practice which has grown up in the absence of defined rules : This (observes the report') is an important fact, because the public hare a right to require that the traffic on rail• ways shall be conducted with the greatest attainable degree of safe!. It is thought, on the other hand, that freedom from railroad accident is not t 3 be secured by external interference, but by efficient and responsible internal management and the maintenance of strict disci pline. It is suggested that all important railway accidents should be inquired into publicly by a com petent officer or tribunal, the coroner's inquest being a tribunal ill-suited to such inquiries. artlalo. A VERY IMPORTANT DECISION was given on Monday by the Court of Exchequer Chamber on the trial of " Errington v. Rorke," an Encumbered Estates Court case. The plaintiff had purchased from the En cumbered Estates Commissioners the conveyance of a certain property. A portion of this was held under a prior lease by Mr. ltorke. The question, consequently, was whether the parliamentary con veyance gave an indefeasible title, when the com missioners professed to convey the land of one person, which, in reality, was the property of another. The case came before the Exchequer Chamber judges on Monday, by writ of error from the Court of Queen's Bench, where two judges held the title not indefeasible, and one, Mr. Justice Crampton, decided that the conveyance was irre• vocable, eve►t where a mistake as to ownership had been made. The question was reargued at great length. The judges pronounced their opinions separately. By a large majority the court concluded that the judgment of the Queen's Bench should be overruled, and that a title granted by the Commis. sioners of the Encumbered Estates Cour', was in every circumstance indefeasible. Baron Greene said that it was the object of the Legislature to e.tablish a tribunal whose acts should be inde feasible,even at the risk of working possible injustice in one case; and that it would defeat the policy of the act to impeach the title of a purchaser to whom the commissioners had by mistake co iveved another man's property. Judge Jackson concurred with Baron Greene. Judge Ball was of opinion thief, the policy of the act should be held pre-eminent, and that it the interests—( which means the property)—of a lessee should, as in the present instatioe, be found irrecon• citable with the right of a purchaser, the latter should have the preference, and the property be conveyed to him in its integrity. Baron Richarls, who had himself been Chief Com missioner, said that the commissioners, with all their caution, might err, and whenever there was au error one innocent party should suffer. THE TRIAL Or ALUM, the llong Kong baker, for poisoning his bread with arsenic, is one of some little interest. It will be remembered that Alum was reported to have poisoned his bread on the morning of the 15th of January, and to have fled with all his property to Macao, where he was overtaken and captured, before he bad time to land, by the Hong Kong police, who bad followed in a swift steamer. The two points to be satisfactorily proved were-Ist, was any arsenic mixed in the bread ; and, 2nd, if so, was Alum guilty either as principal or accessory? Assuming the fact that the bread was really poisoned —for the evidence on this point was by no means satisfactory—the main question remained, was Alum the poisoner? From the voluminous evidence ad duced on the occasion, it appears that upon the very day before the poisoning he bad accepted large con tracts from the British and American commissariats, that he bad made extensive purchases in flour, that large sums of money were owing to him, and, finally, that, so far from flying to M aca o, i t was clearly proved that he had determined upon not even landing at Macao, that the vessel in which he had taken his passage lay there fur some hours, that he made no attempt to go on shore, and for this conclusive reason, that, having taken some of his own latest baked bread on board with him, he and his wife and children suffered such severe sickness that he determined at once to return to Hong Kong to investigate the cause. He even offered 100 dollars to the captain of the Shamrock to return that afternoon. So clear was the evidence in Alum's favour, that the jury, by a majority of five to one, after a brief absence, returned a verdict of "Not Guilty." On leaving court, Alum and his men were immediately arrested, by order of Sir John Bowring, and Impri soned, for what reason has not appeared. The justices and residents had petitioned against this re• imprisonment after acquittal, and suggested their de portation if suspected, THE PRESS. gjilitarg nttiligtnce. LIEUTENANT. GENERAL THE HON. T. AsnnunNitim, C. 8., appointed to the command of the military force about to be despatched to the seat of war in China, left town, accompanied by several military otlicers, on Saturday evaning for Alexandria, via Paris and Marseilles, on his way to Hong Kong, to assume the command-in-chief of the land operations. COLONEL SYMMONB, C. 8., British Commissioner for the settlement of the Turco Russian frontiers in Asia, left Paris on Saturday for Marseilles, on his way to Constantinople and Erzeroum. THE APPOINTMENT of Major of the Tower of Lon don, vacant by the demise of Major Elrington, has been conferred by Viscount Combermere on Colonel Whimper, a meritorious soldier, who, in consequence of severe wounds received at the battle of the Alma, has been rendered unequal to active service. IT IS HER MAJESTY'S INTENTION, we have reason to believe, to distribute the Victoria Cross in person to those appointed to receive the decoration, of which due notice will be given by the authorities at the War Department and Admiralty. _ . SoME EXPERIMENTS on an extensive and interest ing scale were performed on Saturday at Woolwich marsh, with the scantling of a 30-gun frigate, erected for the purpose of testing Martin's shells (contain ing a charge of 281bs. of molten iron) in the destruc tion of ships of war. The point of attack showed a perfect broadside, resembling a ship at sea, into which a number of shells and red-hot shot were alter nately projected, over various ranges varying from 1,200 to 400 yards, giving ample time between each discharge to observe the effect. It was remarked that the ignition produced by the liquid iron was considerably more speedy and effectual than by the agency of the red-hot shot. The time reouired to dissolve the metal, and the means now employed to effect the purpose, are more available than those necessary for heating shot, and the advantage was, therefore, pronounced t , ) be in favour of Martin's shells. H.M.S. Transit, of naval review notoriety, left Spithead on the afternoon of the 7th with eight hundred troops on board fi.r Hong Kong. A heavy fog came on soon after, and the commander, doubtful of his course through the Needles, anchored in five fathoms otf Hurst Castle. In the night, with change of tide, the ship was allowed to swing over her anchor, drove a hole in her bow, and by the morning had five; feet water in the hold. The commander, finding the leak gain on the pumps, steered at once for Portsmouth, and ran into harbour in a sinking state. The uoops were at once disembarked, the ship taken into dock, and an official inquiry ordered to be held upon the cause of the accident. THE GUNBOAT FLOTiLLA at Portsmouth is being hastened forward with all speed for servioe in the China seas. AT CHATHAM a great deal of activity prevails in consequence of an under which has been given by the Admiralty to complete those steam screw cor vettes and vessels now constructing with all despatch. The vessels now in progress at this dockyard give an aggregate of •O,IXIO tons. SATURDAY, The trial was long, lasting two days, and involved a huge amount of " treacherous memory " on one side or the other. The jury returned a verdict for the Abbe, with 5001. damages : Mr. KE trrtio said that as it was proved that the docu- ment was last seen in the hands of Mr. Wyse in Decem ber, 18-17, he hoped his lordship would stay execution, in order that the defendant might communicate with Mr. Wyse to see if the paper could be procured. Mr. HUDDLESTON said the action was commenced in December last. and there had been plenty of time to coin municate with Mr. Wyse at Athens. Mr. Justice CROWDER thought the application an un- usual one, but his lordship ultimately stayed execution till atter the fourth day of Easter Term (this day week). THOMAS NATION, charged with the barbarous murder and robbery of one Aplin, at Wiveiiscombe, particulars of which have already appeared in THE PRESS, was tried at Taunton last Friday before Chief Justice Cockburn, found guilty, and sentenced to death. The evidence of Mr. Herepath was curious as exhibiting the application of the powers of science to the detection of crime. Mr. Herepath stated that on the 31st of December he received a knife, smaliclothes, black coat, shirt, waistcoat, and. one legging, smeared with blood ! Minute portions of blood were taken from the knife for purposes of examination. The blade had been immersed in living blood up to the hilt. The blood had not coagulated until it was on the knife. Blood from a human body would coagulate in about twelve minutes. Could not say positively from what animal the blood had come. The globules were the size of those of his own blood and of other men. Ilad compared them with the blood of the ox, the sheep, and the pig, and these globules were larger than those of either of the three animals. The difference in size was considerable. The inference was that it was not the blood of either of those three animals. They approximated nearly to the human blood. There was on the knife certain scales such as are found in the mucous membrane of the throat. They are a kind of empty cells. They were much larger than the globules of the blood, and were perfectly distinguishable. They were totally different to those of an animal. From the appearances, the knife had passed through the mucous membrane which forms the lining of the throat. There were a few fibres in the nail notch of the knife. They were fibres of cotton, and were as if the knife had passed through cotton twice. They were plainly visible with the microscope. This witness was cross-examined at great length, but nothing was elicited to upset or qualify the evidence he had given. A DISPUTED CHURCH-RATE CASE was last week tried at Bishop Auckland Police•court, Durham. The summons was against Mr. Pease, a Quaker, and brother to the present member for South Durham. The defendant's attorney applied to have the summons dismissed, according to 53 Geo. 111., cap. 57, on the ground that the rate was not valid, the churchwardens having neglected to make an assessment alter the vestry bad decided to make the rate. The rate was granted by the vestry on 25th March, 1h56, and the churchwardens took no steps in the matter till sth March, 1857, which neglect defendant maintained constituted a valid objection to the rate. The bench dismissed the summons. Mn. J. STAPLETON, M.P., was examined on Wed nesday at the usual weekly hearing of the Royal British Bank case. Mr. Stapleton gave his evidence frankly. He had been a director since July, 1855, and had held on to the hank in the hope that it would recover itself. Upon becoming a director Mr. Cameron had persuaded him that the batik paid six per cent. dividend. Though he did not approve many of the measures adopted by the direction, he had "held his peace " ; but he refused to sign the report of the last balance-sheet. He also supported the appointment of a special committee to investigate the accounts. Mr. J. Crawford, who prepared this last balance sheet, frankly admitted that the general plan of the audit was ", to mislead." Mr. J. Simons said it wit.s greatly to be regretted that Mr. Cameron could not appear for examination, owing to ill health, which had kept him out of the country. He had been made a scapegoat for the sins of others ; and he desired to be examined as soon as he should be able to appear, feeling that he could vindicate him self, and throw great light on the transactions of the bank : He (Mr. Simons) hoped that his honour would be able to intimate that Mr. Cameron might give evidence before him free from the consequences which were likely to attend his appearance in court, and be in a position to speak out. Of the ultimate result, Mr. Cameron had no fear whatever. Possibly the assignees might give some undertaking in the way of protecting him. Mr. 'ANIMATER said the assignees were only the ser vants of the court, and could not hold themselves respon- Bible for ulterior steps, whatever these might be. Mr. J. &moms declared that he did not seek to suggest a guarantee against criminal proceedings, of which Mr. Cameron had no fear. The CommisstosEn said he could give Mr. Citincron nu further protection than the law gave him. Mr..l. &mows thought a certain number of days inigitt be allowed him to instruct his solicitor. The COMXISSIONER said he c ould gno directions on the subject. anb Volta. A TRIAL of great interest, in which Cardinal Wiseman was defendant, took place at Gloucester last week, before Mr. Justice Crowder. The action was brought by one Abbe Roux, a French priest, who sued the Cardinal to recover a document in trusted to him, and which it was alleged he detained. This document was an acknowledgment of a debt of 25,000 fr. (1,0001.1 by the Princess Letizia Bona parte, niece of the late Cardinal Fesch, first cousin to the Emperor Napoleon 111., and wife of Sir T. Wyse, British Minister at Athens. This document the Abbe, in Nov., 1847, had given to the Cardinal, who was to endeavour to obtain the money from Sir Thomas (then Mr.) Wyse, at Ath ms. It should be observed that Mr. Wyse and the Princess were sepa rated. In Dec., 1847, the document was seen in the hands of Mr. Wyse, who was then in London on leave. Mr. Wyse refused payment, and for the next seven years the Abbe appeared to have been content to let matters take their course. When Napoleon 111. ascended the Imperial throne he paid off the debts of his family. The Abbe Roux, learning this fact, applied to the Cardi nal, in 1854, either for the restitution of this docu ment, or for his interest with the Emperor to obtain payment of the debt. This the Cardinal declined to give, and the consequence was that the Abbe could not obtain repayment of his money, which, it ap peared, he had originally borrowed, and for which he was now paying interest. Cardinal Wiseman, upon his part, denied ever having received the docu ment in question. A deposition also was put in from the Princess Letizia that she now owed the Abbe nothing, but she acknowledged having signed a document to the effect that she owed him 25,000 fr. lIIIISIMIIIMINIMMINIMINIMmimeimmimmineemminiiimMINIMII