The Statesman. — London, England, 1821-07-05 00:00:00

11 IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. NOUS* OF LARDS.I - WfincEso‘y, JrLy 4. CRUELTY TO kNISIAT.S. The Earls of Doman and KINGSTON presented Petitions from Christ Church,in the Countyof Surrey; and from the City of Bath, in favour of the Bill for ireventing Cruelty to Animals. The Earl of LAUDERDALE objected that the Petitions were directed against Cruelty to Animals, • whilst the Bill to which they referred was only in tended to prevent Cruelty to horses. He disapproved of legislative measures to enforce the practice of hu manity, more particularly as the existing laws were silficient for the purpose. The Petitions were then read, and laid on the table. Petitions to the same purpose were then presented from the Inhabitants of the Precincts of Bridewell, from the Merchants of London, the Parish of St. Ann's, Blackfriars, from Clapham, and from Northampton.— Laid on the table. HUSBANDRY HORSES. The Husbandry Horses Duty Repeal Bill haring been read a second time, The Earl of LAUDERDALE said, that he should postpone his opposition to the Bill until its third read ing, as by that time the Papers relative to the Revenue might be laid before the House. The Mohair Duties Bill was read a third tinge and passed. Mr. BitoGIMPI, Mr. WROTTZS LEY, and others, brought up the following Bills from the Commons : The Lottery Bill, the Irish Stamp Duties Bill, the Exchequer Bills for Public WorLs Bill, the Customs Officers Relief Bill, the Bankruptcy Court Bill, and the Appropriation4lill.—Read a first time. The Duke of Clarence's Provision Bill was read a seco:ltl tine. The Customs Duties Bill, the Hop Exportation Drawback, the Isle of Man Trade, the Captured Slaves, :tn,i the [risk Silk Bounties Bills, went respectively through Committees, ar.tl wet:. reported.—Adjou&ued. HOUSE OF LORDS, Jt Lv 2, 1621. IMPOATANT QIIRRTION acLaTtra TO TOR TRIAL DT JCAY. WOLTZ, APPILLA NT. TLe Appellant in this case was one of the parties who, together with Kinnear and others, was indicted and cout•icted in the Court of King's Bench about a year and a half ago for what was at the time termed the Commercial Conspiracy. In the course of the trial, the Court adjourned, and the Jury, by the pr ,,,i4siths uf the Court, were allowed to go at large. This soparatiou of the Jetty was subsequently made the ground fur au application for a new trial, in sup port of which some attempt was wade to show that one of the Jurymen had been tampered with, but it failed ; the application, however, nas refused. A writ of error coram *obis was subsequently obtained, and the case heard before the Judges, who delivered •toe judgment tub tilentio, as it is termed, i. e. with out assigning their reasons, affirming the previous de rision of the Court of King's Bench, refusing the new trial. In this [Danner the Lase canoe on by writ of error in the House of Lords. The Lm,D CHANCELLOR delivered his opinion at great length, and stated that unless some strong ne cessity conli be shown, the separation of the Jury ought not to be allowed : it was clear that danger and injury might be sustained, and it was therefore proper to gnar , l against even the possibility of tampering with any of the jurymen, which could only be effected 4- keeping them together without the means of having ciontionication. His Lordship concluded by moving. that the twelve Judges be directed to attend that House on Friday next, at 12 o'clock, which was or dered accordingly, in order that their Lordships opi nion, and the grounds on which they had acted, might be known. POPULATION RETURNS. Barnsley.—Males, 4E85; females, 3999; total, 8284 it crease, 3270. Haildon.—Males, 1:31; ;males, L.:48 ; total, 2679 ; it.rre4se, 606. Dewsbure.—Males, 3106 ; females, 3274; total, 6380 ; increase, 1320. Drighlington.—Males, 832; females, 987; total, 1719 ; increase, 354. Eccleshill.—Males, 1065 ; females, 1111 ; total, 2176 ; increase, 569. East Halton, near Skiptou.—Males, 69; females, 72 ; total, 141. Township of Gomersal, which includes Birstall, Little Gnmersal, Great Gomersal, and Birkenshaw.—Males, •2906 ; females, 3046 ; total, 5952 ; increase, 950. High Harrogate.—Males, 867 ; females, 10116 ; total, 1933; increase, 351. Rothwell—Males, 1059; females, 1096 ; total, 2155 ; increase, 444. Swillington.—Total. 510; increase, 19. Tad caster.—Males, 1150; females, 1276; total, 2426; increase, 292. Parish of Whitkirk. including the Parish of Seacroft and Austhorpe.—Males, 1083 ; females, 1124 ; total, 207. Raweliffe, near Doncaster.—Males, 726 ; females, 770; total, 1496 ; increase, 353. Thorne, near Doncaster.—Males, 1670 ; females, 1793 ; total, 3463; increase, 750. Topcliffe, near Thirsk.—Males, 334; females, 325 ; total, 659 ; increase, 70. Fletching.—Males, 899 ; females, 792 ; total, 1690. St. Nicholas Parish, Warwick.—Males, 1047 ; females, 1085 ; total, 2132. Increase in population since 1811, 583. Stafford.—Total, 5736 ; increase, 869. Newcastle, Staffordshire.—Total, 7031 ; increase, 856. Burslem.—Total, 10176 ; increase, 1551. Plassotrrn,Jus 28.—The population of the parish of Stoke-Dainerell (Dock) has jolt been completed, •it. —lnhabited houses, 3,147 ; uninhabited ditto, 148 ; males, 14,719 ; females, 18,419 ; total population, 33,137. Maker.—Total, 1796. Mt. Stephen's.—Total, 1325. In taking the population of Droitwich. there were found six sisters (all of them widows) whose united ages amount to 443 years ! sit. Elisabeth Everton, 86; Ann Underwood, 77 ; Mary Bourne, 75; Martha Blackford, 71 ; Margaret Noke, 68 ; and Hannah Kendall, 66. Gosport in 1911, was 7,788 ; in 1821, 6,184 ; decrease, 1,604. The number of uninhabited houses in 1811, was 19 ; in 1921, 311. The Census of Population without the walls is not yet finished. Soutbampton.—Males, 5,714: females, 7,148 ; total, 12,962. In 1802, the population amounted only to 7.00'!• Andorer.—Males, 2,036: females, 2,047 ; total, 4,123. Lymington.—Males, 1,431; females, 1,773; total 3,104. TO sTAr MOST EXTRAORDINARY CASE. COURT OF COMMON PLEAS. Maus, Juin S 9. • cevartgatv r. BROW NE. The further argument in this case having been resumed this day at the sittings of the thmrt, Mr. Sergeant Joy addressed their Lordships to th.• folinwieg effect : MY Loans—ln this case I shall take the liberty of ad-1 dressing your LornThips in heitalf of the defendant, and in support of the demurrer, iehich he has set up to this action. This is an action of deceit, env Lords, brought for an injury alleged to have been sustained by the plain tiff through the false affirmation of the defendant. The defendant Las demurred, on the ground that on the face of the declaration an action does not lie. The declara tion states. that the defendant induced the plaintiff to marry a certain woa.an vt :sorra, he ii presented as a moral. and well-conducted maiden, and a pure and undefiled virgin ; the plaintiff states, that trusting to these representations, he did marry that young woman, and that in truth and in fact, she was not a mo ral and well conducted maiden, that she was not a pure and undefiled virgir, but on the contrary, she had been debauched and defiled. and that a child Lad been got ten on her body by the clefend.iiit. Ile further states, that she was delivered of a child, six months and three days after her mart;age u ith the plaintiff, and that be sustained grievous Oamages and injury, and was put to great expetilie in providing medical attendance for her during her illness, and in maintaining the child begotten by the defendant. I shall not occupy the time of the Court by going through all the counts laid in the declaration, but shall confine myself to the observations which have been made by Counsel in support of the at-' tion. It has been insisted, that this action is maintain able on two allegations—the deceit practised by the de fendant, and the injury sustained by the plaintiff; and further, it has been laid dr..enas a maxim, that for every injury or damage the law provides a remedy. lily Loads, where the injury or damage is of such a nature as the law recognises, I do not quarrel with that maxim ; where an injury or damage has been done to the person or property of an individual, I fully coincide in that opinion; but the law provides no remedy for an in jury done to a man's feelings ; there must be some thing more alleged in the declaration, to sustain an ac tion. If a man slaniers another, by an imputation of vicious inclinations or propensities, which may be more hurtful to his feelings, than Lis having been charged with some particular act, the law gives him no redress. I will go further, I will put the case of a father, whose daughter has been seduced. Is there any injury to the feeling greater than the debauching the daughter of a fond and an aduting parent i vet there the law requires some temporal damage to be aliewn, and an actual loss or damage to Live been sustained. Mr. Justice JouNsos: here observed, that in case of the seduction of a daughter, the father must bring his action as the master, and :tut the father of the girl, and " for the loss of her .iervices " Mr. Serjeant Joy I C:stlitt , d. The case of Deane v. Peille, in sth East's Report,, hears some analogy to the present. Iu that case the git I was debauched, aid got with child whilst on a visit to har sister-in-law, but the action could not be bustained, as she was not at the time the seduction took place iu the actual service of her father.-1 gill go farther, and come to the relations be tween man and vile; even there no action lies for call ing a woman a prostitute. Although the husband may be pointed at uhenever he goes, although his appear. ance may raise a titter in every drawing-room where he enters, whilst the wound is sinking deeper and deeper into his heart; nay, although be believes, though falsely that his wife is guilty,whilst his every nerve is cauterised, and his veins seem to flow not with blood, but vitriol, yet the law will give him uo redress in proving the adultery, he must not only chew the loss he has sustain ed in being deprived of the society of his wife, but he must also prove that he has thereby sustained a real, temporal, and substantial loss. An action for adul tery must be laid as fur trespass and assault. Sir James Mansfield bas said, that the word " assault" does not there mean violence. and that if it did, it would amount to rape. There is certainly more of equity than common law in this opinion. With respect to pro perty, if a wife delivers the goods of her husband to another, theliusband cannot recover, because the goods are supposed to be equally the property of the wife, but if another enters by the connivance of the wife, that amounts to a trespass, and the husband can bring an action. If Mr. Penuefather says, that the word " as sault" is a mere fiction, as used in cases of seductton, then why does the law borrow it ? Because an action grounded on a were injury to the feelings could not Le suetained. Let me now, my Lords, distinguish between an injury done to the feelings, and a real, a substantial, and what may be termed a legal injury. The first count states, that the said Ilannah Darling was not a moral and well conducted maiden, that she was not a pure and un defiled virgin, bat that she had been debauched and de filed, and that a child had been Rotten upon her body by the defendant himself. It is no small objection to this action, that it cannot even be argued without offend ing against decency. 11 that be the case at present, what will it be when the evidence shall be laid before a Jury ? Your Lordships have said that you have been met at the turning of every street, by per sons enquiring anxiously as to the progress of this argument. It has become the general theme of conversation by all ranks and classes of persons, even among ladies of the highest respectability, consequently the nature of the evi dence that must be gone into, and even the argu ments that may be used, spew the imperative necessity there is of checking the further progress of this action. The declaration states, the defendant represented her as a moral and well-conducted maiden—this expression is too vague, my Lords, for me to dwell on ; but it goes on to say, that be represented her as pure and undefiled.— None of the counts in the declaration impute the slight est impropriety of conduct to her since her marriage— she might be as virtuous a woman as ever lived notwith standing the declaration. If this action should be per mitted to come to trial, the whole case would resolve into this, which would be the plain question the Jury would have to decide, " Was she a virgin at the time of the marriage? Pnt it in a thousand ways, and still that would be the mere simple question the Jury would have I to decide. It would afterwards become a question, " What be lest by the loss of her virginity ?" But, my Lords, she might be as virtuous a woman as ever breathed, and yet not a virgin at the time of her marriage.— There are various nays in which she might have lost her virginity; she might have been ravished; she might have been deceived by a false marriage ; and though in either cases her body would he defiled, yet she might still have been pure in mind. Suppose that she had even been seduced, and had afterwards become repentant, and was moral and well conducted in her conduct, in that case what would he his loss ? She might be a more vir tuous woman 'lnn if she had never sinned—pure in mind, and correct in conduct. The declaration, states that she was not a virgin at the time of the allegation ; hut it does not impute to her any impropriety of conduct, or any act of immorality since her marriage. She might have been the dearest object to his heart , if not For 'her alleged want of virginity. It is evident that her not being a virgin at the time of her marriage, is the sole ground of action. Judge FLETCHER here observed, that if such a princi ple was recognised by die Judges, as a legitimate ground of action, he would not say how many it would involve is litigation.—(Laughter.)—Many Gentlemen who had spoken to him on the subject, laughed at the idea of Con sidering this action, or supposing for a moment, that it could be sustained. Mr. Serj . eant Joir.—My Lords it amounts to this, a man may come into Court, and say, to your Lordships and the Jury, "My Lords and Gentlemen, I have the hest wife in the world ; she is a virtuous, mural, well con ducted and religious woman."--" Well, Sir, what do you want ?"—" My Lords, I want what somebody else got a long time ago."—(Oreat laughter.)—But, my Lords, supposing the Gentleman Lad got it, where would it be now ?—(Continned laughter.) In the case of the seduction of a daughter, the father, in bringing . his action, although he states her to have been a virgin, must allege some actual temporal loss to have been sustained by him in consequence of his having been deprived of her services. Judge FLETCHER observed, that the great number of circulating libraries aided the cause of seduction very much, and that the young ladies of the present day read too many novels. Mr. Serjeant jor.—The plaintiff, in the present case, my Lords, comes into Court in the character of a hus band, not tomplaining of having been deprived of any thing which he was in possession of—not complaining of the impropriety or immorality of his wife's conduct —not complaining that she was extravagant, that she was a drunkard, or a termagant—uot complaining that she has sustained any temporal damage, except what arises from the loss of his wife's virginity; and this, my Lords is the so:e and only ground of action. The declaration further states, that she was debauched and defiled at the time of the allegation, and that she was then pregnant of a child begotten on her body by the &fends:id, and that she was delivered of that child in six months and three data after her marriage with the plaintiff; and that lie the plaintiff was put to great ex pense in providing medical aid and attendance for her in her illness, and during her delivery, and in maintain ing the child begotten by the said defendamt. This. my Lords, puts the plaintiff to the necessity of proving that the child, of which she was delivered, was begotten by the defendant and no other person. Judge Jonssos said he did not see bow the Court could go into that inquiry. Mr. Sergeant Jov —My Lords, in this action the issue you would hare to try would be, whether the child which :Le bore for six months and three days after her mar riage, was begotteu by the defendant or nut, and in this case the wife, wbosc testimony alone could decide, would not be permitted to give evidence, as she would not, as the wife of the plaintiff, be a competent witness. In Vince* Abridgment, vol. -1, page 216, title Bastard, it is stated, that if a woman is grossly exceiate, and that the child is afterwards born in marriage, that child is not and the re is a marginal note from Brook, which goes in support of the same rule. Judge bloom/ here remarked, that if a Judge was in clined to be jocular, he might say that the Court would not Brook such evidence as would be necessarily ad duced.—(6reat laughter. in which the entire Court, in cluding Lord Norbury, heartily joined.) Mr. Serjeant Joy resumed—There is another remark able case mentioned there, niy Lords—it was where a woman Was alleged to be grossly eaciate by 11., and she herself said that it was by W.—See, my Lords, the diffi culties that would arise by going into such an inquiry. In I I East, 132, there is a settlement case mentioned, where the mother of the child, after the death of her husband, gave evidence of leis non-access. ' f he husband was theu dead, and although it was urged that the evi dence could not cause disunion between man and wife, yet the Court would not permit the woman to bastar dise her own child. Coke says, that by cu 1111 l ion law, if the husband is within the four seas, to wit, in the King's domiiiions, he is the father ; unless the utter im possibility of procre.,tion shall be proved on the part of the husband. That term has since been altered to non access. But, my Lords, is it impossible that the child, in the present case, was begotten by the plaintiff? Judge Joussox said, that it appeared that the child 11.. d arrived at full maturity at the time of its birth. Mr. Serjeant Jnv-1 do not well understand, my Lord, what is meant by the full maturity of a child. Judge Joussos said, that the Court should employ an accorehear to decide un that part of the case. Judge FLETCHER remarked, that it frequently hap pens that a child is born within six or seven months but that it seldom occurs except with the first chid Judge JOHNSON said, that a child had been born in the Royal Family, at the end of seven months ; that this frequently happens, but he supposed that it was always with the first child. Mr. Sergeant Joy resumed. In the case of the King v. Luff, 8 East, 193, it was laid down as the criterion of law, that in all caws of anti-nuptial generation, if the child was born in matri ffiony the Court could not look to the time when gesta tion began ; it would cut up society by the roots, if, in cases of anti-nuptial generation, the law would permit evidence to be adduced, and an inquiry gone to, as to when the period of gestation began. If a child is born in matrimony, the physical impossibility of the husband's having begotten it, must be proved before the law will bastardize that child. Mr. Justice le Blanc says, that it is an established rule of law, that a child born in ma trimony is legitimate, and that the rule is not to be bro ken, except in the case of the i s mbecility of the husband. In this case the whole fact stated in the declaration amounts to this, that a child was born in six months and three days after marriage. The allegatiuti states, that Mat child was not begotten by the plaintiff but by the def'eadaat hituse(f; so that the physical impossibility on the part of the plaintiff, would not be sufficient, but he must prove also, that the child was begotten by the de fendant, and by no other person. If a child is born in matrimony, no matter how begotten, the law says the husband is the father.—My Lords, it would be against the policy of law to permit a parent to bastardize his own child. The indecency of the evidence that must be adduced, if this should come to trial, is a strong ground of objection. I do not mean to say that inde cency is a bar to every case ; in actions for adultery, where a naked injury has bees inflicted, such evidence mast be permitted; bat here a man enters into a stipule. Lion with whether as to the virginity of his wife. tti .. it could be thought of the refindd feeliugsof a man why) • y come into Court, and tell the Judges and the Jury, ;t:.1! they should decide for him uhet her his wife W 3.1 a sr—, or not? what recompense would he deserve? A man w would seek to prove his wife a prostitute. should be dis couraged and discountenanced in every Court.—Wlia: must he the feelings of any of her relatives, of whom he had lulled questions as to her virginity. It wocli not surprise me, my Lords, if a man u lie would dare to ask a &flier questions touching his daughter's virginity, should have reason to complain of having sustained tent petal damage. My Lords, the law will not permit any man to go into evidence which may tend to wound the feelings of a third person. Judge FLETCHER said, that she must have some eon• nectioni, whose feelings ought to be considered. Mr. Sergeant Jov—My Lord, her awn feelings oug:. Judge Nlootta thought her leelings ought not to ire taken into consideration. Mr. Serjeant Jot —My Lord, you speak on the sop position of her guilt ; 'but, my Lord. although woman has been dragged before the public, she will n be permitted to give evidence as to her innorencv the eye of the law she is innocent at present, awl 1..1 own testimony might prove her so in the tics of at world. My Lords, the law will not permit a man to defame his wife and bastardise his child. If sat.h a principle of law was recognised, what advantage% might not be taken of it by an abandoned man ? On the wl:ft.e of this case, my Lords, there are so many radical oirje. • tions to its being permitted to come to trial, and to the disclosure of such evidence as it must necessarily in• volve, that I trust your Lordships will see the necessity and propriety of allowing the dettiurrer.—Judgment deferred. . DEATH OF BONAPARTE. (IFURTHEt TARTICIMARS.) The dispatches announcing the death of Bonaparte were brought to Englan4 in the Rosati° sloop of war, which arrived at Portsmouth early yesterday morning Soon after the arrival of Captain Andrews yesteirfr morning at the Adntira!tr, with these divatehes Vis count Melville forwarded the substance of the dispate:, in a box by a Messenger. Mr. Croker, the Secretary to the Admiralty, followed ::ono after to the King's Palace. Captain Cocket arr:eed at the Colonial ()theirs with dispatches, containing the account of the same event, at a quarter past II o'clock. The Earl Bathurst not bein; at the Office, and the Captain having a private letter from Sir Hudson Lowe, to be delivered only into Isis Lordship's hands, the Camaiu proceeded with all pos•:- ble speed to the Noble Earl's 'route, in Stanhope-stret •, where he delivered the letter, as well as the regular di patch. After perusiug them, the Earl Bathurst sent an account of the important event to the King, aad cular box to all the Cabinet Mini,ters. The substance of the dispatches was immediately coo - tuunicated to all the Ministers, and to the Ambassador•, by whom couriers are understood to base been despatch ed to their different Courts. At noon a Special Genet a l Court of Proprietors of the Cast India Cotnpany hap pening to be held, the Chairman rose in the midst of a discussion, and said he had received an official nolo from Sir Iltid4uti Lowe, which he read as follows: " St. Helena, May I, HMI. " Sin-1 beg leave to infortn you, that General Bona. parte expired at ten minutes before six o'clock on Um evening of the sth May, after an illness which had con fined him► to Isis bed since the 17th of March. Captain Crochet, the orderly officer who attended upon General Bonaparte, will have the honour of delivering this dis patch. "To the Chairman of the lion. Court of Directors." In 'the evening the following articles appeared, which, from the form in which they were published, were un derstood to have the stamp of official authority " ST. HELENA, MAT 7.—Bonaparte died on Satur• Jay the sth, at 6 p. ut.. after an illness of six weeks; the last fortnight only considered dangerous. The body has been opened, and the disease ascertained to be a cancer ou the stomach, with a great extent of ul ceration. "He has been lying in state since yesterday afternoon, the Admiral, Governor, and Leads of departments hav ing,► first seen the body." During the lirst 4 weeks of his illness,it did not assume any very dangerous appearance, though he appeared himself to be conscious that it would terminate fatally. During the last fortnight it was evident to all the meth• cal attendants that he could not recover. It is said that he ga►e directions about his affairs and papers till five or six hours before he died, having retained his senses till that period. He said he ►eished to be opened, in order that his son might be informed of the nature of his dis ease. The body was opened by Isis owls surgeon. We believe that he lift a will, uhich, with his other papers have been, ut will of course, be transmitted to this count ry. ANOTIIER ACCOUNT. [rause OTIIZR &outsets or intoanavtom.) The despatches brought by Captain Croker, announc ing the death of Bonaparte, are dated St. Helena, May 17. That event took place on the sth of May, at tea minutes before six in the afternoon. The illness of the ex• Emperor lasted, in the whole, six weeks; and its ef fects on his frame, as described by an oMeer who bad frequent opportunities of seeing him dicing that period, were so powerful as nearly to reduce him to a skeleton. and to obliterate all traces of his former features. Dur ing the latter part of his illness he frequently conversed with his medical attendants on its nature, of which he seemed to be perfectly aware. He declared that it wa% hereditary, and that his father had died of the now disease. On examination after death, the stomach Wdli found in a state of extreme ulceration, so that it ap peared in some places perforated in large openings. His medical attendants gave it as their decided opinion, in which the physician who was called in coincided, that the disease was incurable, and that the climate had hail no effect in producing it. One trait of character dis played itself in his last moments, which marks the ruling passion strong in death." As he found end approach, he was habited, at hi. own request, in his uniform of Field Marshal, with the boots and spurs, and placed on a camp bed, on which be a'a• accustomed to sleep when in health, and preferred to every other. I n this d ress be is said to have expired . It has been asserted that the Heron, which brought the despatches, also brought the body of Bonaparte to England, but this we understand is not the ease. Ilis V I i 0 1 e • - Pt • 0 a le 1- • ni to g• .111 T. tis •t Cr - . tli al r Lie F t