The National Register. — London, England, 1809-07-02 00:00:00

JULY 2. THE NATIONAL REGISTER. 429 last she was prevailed upon to accompany the defendant to Lon don, w here her ruin was accompliAted in a brothel. The se ducer users a man of rank and family, almost twice the age of this unfuriunate young person, and though the injury she ha 4 sustained ruts irreparable, yet he trusted that the Jury, who were tiIeIWCIVCS mostly the fathers of families, and therefore could feel in its full force the loss which his client had sustained, would give such exemplary damages on the - present occasion, as would _hew that the peace and happiness of families were not to be invaded with impunity. The first witness called on the part of the prosecution was Miss Strange, the young woman herself, whose appearance was, very pretty and iuteeesting. The purport of her evidence was, that she had first seen Capt. Gore at Kingston, but had not spoken to him sui that occasion. In January last she had gone upon a visit to a Mr. Bue, at Hampton Court, ‘Thete Capt. Gore was quartered. When walking out with a maid servant of the name of Jane flicks, she met him uear the Barracks, when the Cp tain introduced himself to her. A few daya tater she again met the defendant, who made advances to greater familiarity with her, such as kissing her, and swearing that he never saw any one whom he liked so well, and that he would go to her father for his consent. After this he sent her, at Mr. flue's, a present of " some grapes, tett he sent also a one pound note to the servant maid, Jane Hicks. A day or two after this she was prevailed upon to go to the Captain's lodgings at 11 ampton Court w ith one of her female companions, where he got her to drink some n and staid so late that site began to get alarmed, and said that she was afraid logo home to her father's. The Captain said he would take her to a young Lady with whom he was acquainted, and begged her not to be at all alarmed. The defendant ac cordingly accompanied her and her companion from his lodgings, pretending that he would take her to this Lady's house; and after having gone a little way, a Nlr. Let rester, an Officer of the same reginsent, came up, and found means to walk off with her companion, so that she was left with Captain (lore. After walking together sonic way. she did not know where, they got lute the high road, and near Hounslow the Captain procured a post-chaise, which he prevailed upon her to eet into, and 4tey drove to London. When in, London he carried her to ChandoF„. street, where they supped, and where the defendant accninpl:sh ,ed his purpose. The next night Captain Gore carried her to a house in Suho-square, and the following tine to another in St. Martin's-lane. tie then took lodgiagsc for her in Thanet-court, near Temple Bar, where they paused a; man and w ife, and from whence, on being discovered a fel- days after, she was taken, home again hy her father. While at Hampton Court the Cap tain had written a great many le!ters to her, which we full of the strongest expr-ssionsof atfectiou and regard. On her cross-examination by Mr. Best, the stated that afters her mother's death, some veari ago, her father had taken infer his house a feMale, who sat at his table, and whom she looked upon as her methtr- in-la w. She acknowledged, ho wever. she had heard from people in the town of Kingston, that this woman was not married to her father ; that she hnd been a hear-maid tat some neighbouring inn, and that she had lately left her father's, and now went under the name of Wood. She also acknow ledged that the first time she saw Capt. Gore, at Kingston, she nodded to him, though he had not spoken to her, and that her female companions sometimes called her Mrs. Gore in jest.— She had also express. 'a w ish to leave her home, but that was when she was teased by her hrathei and others. She acknowledged also, that when walk Sae out sy i:h th is Jane H ut Hampton-Court, that female had thrae, it alt small gravel against the Captain's window:: in the room w here he lodged; upon which she ran away, and the Captain 'came out, and fol lowed her, and overtook them. But this was a mere frolic of the maid, and nothing improper had then taken place. Miss Budd, who keeps a boarding-school at Richmond. said, • that Miss Strange had been two years at her school, whichshe had only lately left. Her behaviour had been always proper and becoming a modest young woman. Mary Brtt - Ce deposed - to C - a . ptaia Gore having takzn lodgings at her house for himAelf and Miss Strange, where they passed as a married couple. Mr. Sedeant Best then addressed the Jury with his usual ability on behalf of the defendant. He commented with great severity on the conduct of the plaintiff, who had brought into his own house a prostitute from the - lwr of an ivn, with wlmin he had lied in open fornication, and by thi. rontatninatiag example had sapped the foundations of hi. dnultr•ter's virtue, of which he was the natimil protector. A malt sts regardless his daughter's virtue could not feel very ocotely 1(,-.r its loss, ar.A• though reparation should be made to this unt 7 i,prunate )i)kirg. LYCEUM THEATRE. Menday night this Theatre was opened on thelagreeable plan of repre,;•nting English Comic Operas ; and we trust it will he cherished by the public as a most valuable species of entertain ment. Under good auspices it may be made the means of cul tivating. and improving our national taste, and of sheaving that in scientific hands our language may he adapted to the sublime, as well as to the playful in music. The Theatre itself is un commonly neat, and on :t scale which enables the actor to com municate his expresion, both to the eye and ear, without that distension of lungs and features that is so disgusting in the over sized theatres, to which we have been, by nn impolitic monoply, so long condemned. I fere the slightest gesture is remarked — the lowest whisper is heard ; and therefore ail the finer inflex ions of the voice—all the varied workings of the countenance, have their full and just influence upon the heart. The CAinlic Opera with which the Theatre opened, was en titled, "Up al/ Night." We do not know the author of the words. The music is by Mr. P. King. As a Drama, it has little to recommend it. The fable is extremely slight, the cha racters common, and the business uninteresting; but there is a vein of good humour runs through the whole, that keep: alive the attention ; and the songs are introduced naturally and hap pily. The great novelty to the English audience nose Mr. Phillips, a young vocal performer, whose fame had ex cited a lively expectation of superior talents. He cer tainly has endowments to recommend him to the favour of the people. His voice is flexible and clear, his stile chaste, and be has the never-failing charm of articulation. lie siags to the understand lug. Langttne I: not sacrificed to a flourish ; and hi- cadences are riven with a simplicity that strew genuine taste. - defects arise from imitation. He copies a good model, in deed ; but like all imitators he has seized on the worst parts of his original. lie has caught the jerks of Mr. Braham. But, we trust, he will get confidence in his own powers, and study his art with passion ; for his road to excellence now is open and ens V hunt her new candidate for public favour, a Mr. Horn, has not equal pretensions. Ills voice is feeble, though sweet ; and his , manner uncultivated. Mr. Smith's fine voice was power fully displayed in a seaman's Fong, and Mr. Dowton was ex trewly comical in a sung heginaing—" Old Ham was a lawyer so grim.'' It was irresistibly lau,y,hable from his admirable act ing, and was universally enchored. The charm, however, was lost by the repetition ; for it was impossible that the actor could bring his features back to the gravity of his outset, nor could the spectators fed main the [uprise of his humour. Mrs. Mountain sun a'd looked gracefully ; and Mrs. Orger per formed her sprightly character with great ease and playfulness. Of' the 'noble we can only say, that its merit has long stood the test ; for though delivered to us under the mask of new stotoloination, there isscarcely a pri;inge which a musical ear cannot assign to a former author. Perhaps Mr. King could not fireciscly distinguish het wecn what he invented and what. he remembered; hut, however, it is brought together in a way that passes muster, and we forgive the plagiarism fur the sake of the pleasute. L.4IV REPORTS. coulur OF EXCIIIQUER. SEDUCTION. STR.INGE V. GORE. This was an action brought to recover damage; for the loss of service, Itc. sustained by the plaintiff, through the seduction of his daughter. The damages were laid at £3OOO. Mr. lMuncey opened the case as Council for the plaintiff. client was a respectable watch-maker at Kingston, and the flrfeutiatit, who had acconiplished*he ruin of his daughter, %VHS a Captain in the army, w ho happened to be quartered at Hamp ton-Court, which was only a short distance from Kingston. sotue time before January last, the defendant found means to introduce himself into the society of Miss Strange, who was then only fourteen years of age, in fact, a girl come from board ing school. Gentlemen of the Jury must he well aware how susceptible the mind of a girl at such an age must be, and how liable to be influenced by the warm professions of ardent affec tion. Accordingly all those arts were had recourse to by the defendant for accomplishing his purpose with this unfortunate young woman. She was plied by letters, breathing the most ardeut pmsitso; all the arts of httripe were set at work, till at I . Age 1