The National Register. — London, England, 1812-03-15 00:00:00

166 ISLE OF 1:1.Y. At the Assizes for this Isle, held on Wednesday, the 9th of March, Vichael Whiting was capitally convicted of havin g , on the 12 th. of March, 1811, at Downhatn, in the said Isle, feloniously administered a deadly poison, or other obnoxious and destr..etive substance to George leangman and to Joseph Langman, his brother, with intent therewith to murder thein.—Th!s was one of the most extraordinary cases ever heare in a Court of Justice, end evinced a remaquattle instance of human de cavity, very strongly resembling the case of Captain Dettallen, who wets convicted sonic years since of the murder of Sir Theodosius Bough ten. It appeared in evidence that the prosecutors are young r..en (the eldest under :24 residing together at Dowithant, near Fly, in the house of their late father, who was a small farmer, and whew. business they Stew carry on between them. The prisoner is a shepkeeeer, and miles near the prosecutors, whose sister he married :shout three years since. The prosecutors, in the month of March lest, feel a female residing with them of the name of Catherine Carter, in the caparity of housekeeper spot servant. On Tuesday morning, the reth of Mat ch, the ?moiler having learnt that Carter was going to Chatteris for h few days to Visit her frienda, went to the prose, utters' hour t with a letter he wish td her to convey to Chetteris, and then told the prosecutor that as their housekeeeer was going out, he woule send them srmie flour and pork to make a pudding for their dintitrt. Shortly afterwareh , he re turned with a beson feted with flour and pork, and addressing himself to the housekeeper, said, "Catherine, he sure von make the b'sys a podding before you so." He then desired a little girt, who was the only inhabitant of the hOuse, besides the prosecutors and their housekeeper, to go borne and dine with him. The puddings were made and left in a kneading tr ugh, and the prosecutors cooked thee] ; u i eating only two or three mouthfuls they were both taken very ill; and vomited execs tiVely for upwards of one hour. The elder bt ocher recovered in a few bouts, but the younger one remained very ill for 4Vvrral days. • .Mr. Al,l. Y came down from Londan specially for the prisoner,Whose defence was, that he had then lately attempted to poison the rats in his house with nut ironlica, and that the Nilson in the pudding must have teen conveyed into the fiour-bin accidentally by the rats. "1 he prisoner said that he dealt in flour, and that the fi etr , he gave the bagman was taken out of the bin from which he suppted his customers; lie ad mitted that he sold poison, but denied ever having any corrosive subli mete in hte possession. It appeared, however, from the testimony of Mr. Woollaston, of Cambridge, Professor of Chemistry, who analysed the pudding, that It contsined a very great cluartity of corrosive subli mate, and no other Folsom - ;is ingredient; - ata it also appeared that the prisoner bad purchased four ounces of sublimate, as part of the stock of I the person he succeeded in the shop. it also came out in evidence, that the - prisoner, immediately upon its beir g discovered that the prosecutors had eaten poison, threw the contents of the flour bin into the privy, and washed the bin thoroughly. These were the leading circumstances of the case. 'l'he pro-ectuters had an estate worth 15001. one moiety of which the prisoner's wife would have hetet ited in the event of their death. The prisoner's purpose seems to have been defeated by using too Much poison ; the few mouthfuls that were eat_] wool!! not remain upon the stomach a moment, and the medical men state, that one-tenth part of the quantity wed would liztve • fh'ctua'ly destroyel both the pro et cutors. The novelty of the above c-, , se, :1 , 11 'he (In, uni4tance clf the prisbner's b , ing a rezpectal.l , - sh.pke, i•reacher. ex cited so much cariosity throughout toe te!.- and county of Cambridge, that the Court was crowded in every part at a very early hour. T..1 . ` .• HAMPSHIRE.. Harriet Mapes, was indicted for an assault nn William Dellow. Thic trial a!ose out of the circumstznce of %%lro. rvlagties stealing the child in London, in November last; and, alter many arguments ura•:d coon el on both sides, it was agreed the offence was committed in j.ondon, and not in Hampshire; consequently she was acguitted.— hr.• was tried on a Aeennd indictmtnr, fu i haviug two hu , :bands ; there beln nu evidence to substantiate the charge, she was again acquitted. CAM r)RlpGn. TRIAL OF D. DAWSON, FOR l't)lbON:N£l HORSES AT NEW- This trial, which has occupied so ir.uch of the attention of the sport ling, world, took place on Fiiday, at theCarrahridge Assi4es, before Mr. Justice HE A Tif. Th e Court was so much crowded, that the business Was greatly impeded. The pris.)ner was iticlicred for wilfully and mali ciously poisoning a colt, by Baal:, the prar..erty of Sir F. S:zudi sh e by infusing a quantity of white arsenic into a water trough on the New inarket course, in April, 'pi 1, • Mr. Serjcant SELLON, on the part of the prosecutor, detailtd the case pa the Jury. Cecil Bishop, who had been conamittyd as an accomplice with Daw son, was admitted an approver in the case, and thar.a.iibstance of h's evidence was as follows;—He had been acquainted with the prisoner since he year 11E97, witness being at th..t time shopman to a claymist zind &insist in Wardour. nis acquaintance with Dawson origi nated in consequence of the latter having represented to him that lie had A feud whose horse h. 141 been played tricks with, and in order to rera #atta, •triscincr asked s cvitness his advice: as to whit was giVt• k‘l.gt 41 44p NA:Venl4in without kiN4 kla ; Ara in othgr Words, what THE NATIONAL REGISTER. MARCH 11. would produce similar effects on the horse spoken ot. Witness.a..o the prisoner became very intimate, avid Bishop's evidence, which w as i n some part corroborated, opened a scene of iniquity never exceeded. They had been together at different races, and witness 1..4 procured solutions of arsenic at various times, which had been intured into a trough at Done. , ter. ' At Newmarket one brood mare and a ha c k wei e destroyed i n July, 11,0. They had also attempted to poison Lord Darlington's Rabons, which NVOII the Pavilion Stakes at Brightou in 18C9; hnd they , succeeded in an attempt .at Newmarket iu the same year. In conjunction with a man, by repute named Trieste, yeit. ness had been employed by the prisoner to infuse poison Into the ttosvihs at Newmarket in 1811. The horses were under the care of Mr. Ptince, a stable-keeper, at Nevionrrket ; and also a training groom, in high esteem among the Members of the Jockey Club.—Mr. Prince had under his care tke principal horses for the Clan t Stakes ; amongst which were Spaniard and Pir incite, the property of Lord Foley; the Doady, the property of .I...•'rd Kinnaird ; and the Eagle cult, the subject of ti os indictittent, all of which were poisoned, but some reetivercd. Bishop said, that he had infused the arsenic into the troughs, three in numl, i .►tr, where Mr. Prince's horses watered, by means of a syringe, in conse quence of their being covered and locked. Dawson was the acting nian in the back ground, and Tikate was the person veto was to hack the field against the favourites. After having watered the horses en the Ist of May, the day after the Claret Stakes seem run for, they were all taken ill in the stables, refused their cc:rn , and the four which died may be estqnated, corWeering their own value, and their engagements, at 12,0001. Whilst Dawson awes in London, Bishop was busy in keeping arsenic in the trough ; and he addressed the prisoner by the appellation of MiSi Datesim, and received in return of Dawscn enclosures to enable him to carry on his nefarious practices. The poisoning of the horses was completely proved by Mr. Prince, who had been apprised of for plan, and, owing to his exertioes, the perpetrators were brought to justice. A young man. inAned Longford, proved. that the prisoner had met him at Is•Jewmarket in 1810, and consulted him with regard to lending himself as an agent on the occasion. Dawson had often called on him, but he refused to participate in his plans. After Bishop's evidence had .been gone through, the Judge stopped the proceedings, and after hearing arguments on the part of Mr.Ser jeant SELLON, for the prosecution, and Mr. KING, for the prisoner, directed an acquittal, on the grounds that the prisoner had Iseen in dicted as a principal, instead of an accessary, before the fact, which, in point of law, could not be maintained. The prisoner was acquitted, to the mortification of a crowded Court, but was detained until next As sizes, on a charge of poisoning race-horses in 11109. 7'UESDAY'S LONDON GAZETTE. • This Gazette contains the official account of the victory atchieved itt the Mediterranean by the squadron of frigates commanded by Captain Maxwell, over three French vessels of superior force. With the result of die e-gagement we were already made acquainted by one of the defeated French Captains, who was liberated on parole, and on condi tioo tha he should tratn4ruit the intormation ro England. The Pers - Jire way tAken by the after a loug run, and after a most severe acti ,e. bet.ween the Pon - u.ne and Pauline, and tae Aleeste and the Active, die Pornone .was caoute4, and the Pauline escaped owing to the Alceste having her n aimtop mat shot away. The loss on board our skips, we regret to say, was considerable. , Fhe Alceste had twenty killed and wounded,, and the Active thirty-two. Captain Gordon lost. leg, an.: his first lieutenant an arm. Admiral Fceeniantle, in forwarding the account of this su:ceqs, mentions the loss of another French frigate, called the Flora. which wai wrecked in December last, off Chiozza when the whole of the crew, except five or big, perished. This Gazette also contains an Order of Council, importing that ret sob.; connected with mercantile houses in F ugland, whether Spaniards or English, anti resident, for the purposes of commerce, in towns ot the Peninsula osetipitti by the , •tienty, are tint, En that accounte cv sitirml as enemies or traitors; hut, if hpaiiiards, are to - 7134 n their rights and character of alien friends ; if Englishmen, of British subjats. Carlton House, March 10.—His Royal Highness the Prince Regent has bet) , graciously pleased to make the following appointments : Vice Chainlit-Hain—The Earl of Yarmouth. To be L.4rds of his Majesty's Beachamhcr—The most Hon. the NTar quis of Headfort ; the Right Hon. Viscount Velhouro ; t he Right Ho. L.:11 - 1Heaiiitield'; the Right Hon. Lord James Murray ; and the Riglit Lord Viscount Petersham. -First Groom and Master f the Rohes.—Nassau Thomas. r FN. Grooms of the Bedchamber--General (*harks Leigh; Cental F. Stephens; General T.Slougher Stanwix ; Fl qn . Henr y Stanhope; L o low it'A; General 6ir J. Craddock; Lieut.-General William Keppel; and C Wilson.Bradyll. Clerk Marshall and Chief Equerry,Colonel Benj. Bloomfi eld. Equerips—i-Mtjor-Gcneral Hammond ; I,ietit.-Colonel William C nal r!: p:eve; Major. General cgidstrilrn Guards; Hon. Frede ioward a tatlt Light Dragoons; an4l colonel Viviien, 7th DraLcol, • \