The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1870-07-26 00:00:00

DORSET SUMMER ASSIZES.

eantettailon for holajoi these mi.,s was opened
si a Shireh•ll, Doeeheetor. on Friday aftrifao'h.n•
before Mr. Justice Wilks, wb e°ll6,tirue on
t--
Writers eirwatt is kr. Moron Martin. the learned
Judie "Tithd ee the trtin due at 12 5 Mouth-Weatent station by the
2 front
proceeded in the Hi Ralivbary. gh Sher. Ws Mr. Justice Willow
juditee lodglelle et the CO priv
u,4-7 Mouse, and at half-peat
ate carriage to the
two went to th• Shirehoir hethg sccontPeht°4 by
ltl
the nnifoi of • dtowty.lieucetniot ; the hiub sheriffs
the shvriff. fleeter km", Re; . of K. loin 'sham in
chaplain, Hew. fer,hoodie,
.1. H. Carnegie, vicar of
eteehotee l the undei-sberiff. Mr. F. T. Johns. of
iiien'tfettl ; Commission endll the county Clerk, Mr. G. J. godreer.
attended ['['v.,1111ilig ten ....th Learneded, the Learned Judge
i soro ,oioe at sCpethrie church. He wee
met at the yeti...nags by the Mayor of the borough
(J. F. Hodges, R.N..) ei
eeeena ovnibers of the
corporation, wh m
o wore their robe, of nonce. Fray. pi were reed h 7 the rector of thri lokr E ,sh, the Rev. . W.
Prob,ndat y
Pears' abd the WMOII WWI pl..ached hi the I{-••
Corn"ie. teem i. 5.,..,..1 .1.. 15. 16 -
"And idamnel
And he Judged Israel ell the 4.y. ni I.i. life.
went f
°,i1114 su„i d Mieneli, en rom you to
year in cocoa to Bethel awl
d ju lied I•rsel in all those
eine 'ravine eoooludtd, Mr. Juatioe Wine.
I"ate.a." "
returned to the kap., kiegie4s.

m.
the

CROWN COURT, SATIMDLT.
Before Mr. Justin, WILLI.%
The business of the Crown Court commenced at 10
o'clock, whet the f wi"mu en
o 0 Di gentlemen were
the Grand Jury
Sir Joint Muntut., K.C.8., foremon,
T. B. Bower, Rsq.
R. Ewq.
Joe. Condi.), Esq.
J. Brinier, Esq.
O. W. Ferrer, Esq. H. Willioms, E q.
IL C. Goodden, F.4q. Certwrght, Esq.
R. P. Cambridge, E.eq J. E. Bridge. 1.:94.
tagn•WlLliaums;E.sq. E. J. Weld, E.g.
R. 0. P. gge.„,d. Esq. E. W. EEL.
B. Lit ileheles, Baq. B. A. Wood, E.g.
G. Warry, Req.
J. M. P. Montagu, Esq. 8. 8. (-km. ir,q.
C E. Astell.
11.• M. Middleton, Req. C. O. Bwaffield,
U. C. Goodie., Esq., wee el. emlled upon to Nerve on a
sneak' jury In the Nr.d Primp Court; but on hie aopesiritie
uncertain where he war required to attend, his Lordship
sold that Mr. Gooddwn would make his own election if
be decided to serve on the •pecial j,iry ; hawing been
rolled thereto. he (his Lordship) could not require him
to serve on the grand jury.
Mr. Goodden said that he would prefer to serve on the
grand jury.
His Lordship said that, Mr. Goodden having been
ealled 00th. grand jury, he hada right to serve. Mr.
Goodden was then sworn on the grand jury.
The Moral Proclamation hawing been read, his Lord-
ship geoesesded to deliver the following

CBMIGE.
Sir John Michel and gentleman of the grand jury—
an semi:Wed here by the Queen'a command to
administer the criminal justice for the county. I am
were glad though it is a matter of congratulation,
more, Perhaps, to the county, but to myselt also•sourc-
of Plat seti•faetion—to see a grand limy in their fall
lawful "Lather., to render obedience to the Queen's
Command, and to add to the proceedings that tek- place
the weight which their station and intelligence
Mast Gormand. Its • very great advent rge,rif which
.1 hot* that the murk of criminal law will nuer be
Witted : it is a very great advantage to the judge and
ayrzygreat eafrenart to the people that 'he minds of men
et intellect are broug
ht to bear on the proceedings, and
act as a shield bet seen the juige and the pri•oners for
trial; and they were a remarkable protection to the
People of the country against any error will e.'t "ay
Olspreation —that probably in the present .1.) is ineon•
ceivable—on the part of the judge who may happen to
Dreads. The calendar with which you will have to
deal is somewhat remarkable : addle en the one hand
them are some very serious caps indeed, on the other
It would be quite an exaggeration to say the calendar
Ii itself of • serious kind. Ido not find a simile case in
which the crime of personal violence is charged
against any one, not a single case of assault upon a
woman. With the eseeption of the three charges of
Murder which stand on • very peculiar footing, and
cams of arson, of which a word just now, there is not
anything at all of • very grave kind. Of course all
criminal charges are more or less grave, but I mean of
a seriously grave kind. A man named Hitch& is
charged with the murder of Edward Bly at Portland.
You are all no doubt aware of tec general character of
the cam One of the conviote at Peril ecil, it appear,
from the depoations, assaelted • warder with a spade.
gave him a serious woundowhich ended in blood-poison.
um and death in about • couple ol montbs af•er the
wound was inflicted. The prisoner, it appeared, both
before end after the injury used menaces of • deadly
kind against the man he is said to have murdered ; and
he is also said to have followed up his crime by statin
that he intended to take away Bin's lit,, o" that of
some other warder in the place. Perhaps I ought net
to detain you further on this we. It may be that
there will •ppear circumsteticesin favour of the prison,
which way affect the decision of the petty jury ; but,
acting as a gnat.' jury. I think von can have no heat..
Son in finding a bill, and that bill must be in the terms
of the charge- one for wilful murder. There are two
eases in which yoanz women, one tt end another about
19, are charged with the murder of their needy-born
infanta. These are cases which ri quire a rerotrk. I
dare say mtny of you have had your attention etlled
to the piooeedings before a commission composed of
eery diatingutshet pusons ; of which Lord Stanley
was chairman, soil the members were persons di.tin•
guiehed In the state and in law—Mr. Horace Waddin •
ton, Mr. Hardy, Mr, Cardwell I think, and others, on
the subject of murder, and with reference to the
procedure, the definition of the crime, and the
death punishment. There was • great deal of
evidence on the subject of child-murder, but
there was no such doitinction known to the
Law—it was only a popular notion . The murder
of • child, if completely born into the world.
though it only line a seeou.l, as much murder
as tfie murder of in adult. If you Lave paid any
attetition ti the evince, you nau4 hat' , tern struck
with the distinctioe unturationtblv exists, and
must be regarded in the adiniiiirerstion of the law, so
that those who do administer it shouldtake owe that they
keep within its limits. Any injury done to the child
when it is completely a' pirated tn•in the mother,
excepting the st•Terane• G. tire waif; les cord, may
Constitute inueler. To pro. nre tour I( r bolero the
com-
plete birth is • reeat misdemeanour, bu it is not
murder, because the definition of • person wen comes
within the inflection of the law, is • &Sid comp etch'
born. Whether that is physiologh:ally rational is not
for us he inquire. There lima be proof before there
can he • conviction for merrier, that the child was
entirely bore. Cams him occurred, and no doubt will,
while •be law remains an it is, in which the mother
desiror • the life of her r •pring in the courts) of the
both when no prison was leaking on—and she always
11•1 two loottliolet—otie thet the irjaries have ben
inti cted in toe course of self•delivery, and the other
that death ensued before the complete birth of the
child. In eitch of hue cases there is clear proof
of onemalnier t of birth by the secret ellannsitioe
of the body, toil no doubt they may be onnetcted of
that charge, and, it so, so far as one can judge, they
ought to be Prinialied as very serious came I say this
subject to •ny explanation the evidence may warrant.
You must consider eh, ther the evidence will make out
• charge of murder, and, if there isa prism /dere ea.',
send down th-• bill ; but, if not, you may fiee • bid for
enticealinent of birth only. With reference to the Mit
Cele, be advised the grand jury to have the book in
wb.ch tilys depositions were taken plaeed b• fore them,
and not a copy. Passing on to the oases of arson, his
lordship said he was sorry to see there were Dismal,
although they were in • less serious form than was
sometimes the bale, yet still very mischievous
—the setting Are to flume. With reference, to all these
cases, be obreseed that the intention of setting i e to
smother man's propaty is wilfully and maliciously
setting fate within the meaning of the law—it is riot
neeeseary there should be maitre. He mentioned this
because often when cases of this kis4 were defended a
goad deal was said about Hot persons chariot having no
spite. Intentional de.truction by fire of the prop orty
of another constituted the offence. One was the care
of • little boy of 12, and another that of three persons
going through the country, who seemed to have set fire
to the property from wanton mischief. In Shorey's
be appeared throughout to have insia.sed that he
was riot the man, and although the depositions raised •
easetof enspielon, he could not make out it amounted to
sufficient proof. Bet they would have the advertises of
bearing the ',Houses, whereas he had only had an op-
portunity of reading the depositions which were written
In a coloured ink to which his eyes were not accipe
towed, and which he hoped would not become general.
ft was a very handsome colour (violet), but quite out of
keeping with the masculine simplicity which usually
characteri-ed the men and the proceedings of this
county. There weir( two oases of bietimy. Now in
various statutes husbands and wives were tirade ad•
tuiesible witnesses exeept in criminal cases, and wises in
which proceedings were institutat by reason of adultery.
Last year • further exception was made, by which the
thew, as to proceedings instituted on account of adul-
tery was struck out. He presumed it was on that
ametunt, and from the rea Mg of thet statute, that the
tirst wives—the oily real wives—had b. en ••
witnesses in these two asses against the husbands.
They were cases in which on account of V.«
remote period at which he first marriages took
place,and the long time —as long in one case as
12 yesn..umnce the separation, it was necessary
to prove that the hestands knew the wives were living.
But, according to his readieg of the statute, the wives
were not admissible slimmers Bigamy wumsblinutd• Fricist.
meeting on account of adultery, h g
be tad es he left the church before any consuming.-
adultery. and
:foodree t
d !'x''
arja swt "in raring; tof the mere
..tio.c.,:n.digthhtorbediiperiuc b
performance of a secood cortruony of marriage. To his
misd, therefore,
the exception id criminal cases remain-
is, the wives' evideme was, not admissible. If
they liked to refer to the act they woeld find it in the
3 and 33 Viet., C. GO. 11. then dismissed them to their
.2
duties.

BILLS IGNORED.
The Grand Jury ignored the bill against Edward
Bborey, for setting fire to farm building., cattle
CIII implement abode, the property of James Cox, at
Mrlib:pions, on June 13.
Aso against Ann flo.brod, for frlonionsly and nil.
fully anbeg, pommelling. arid procuring Mary Blow
both Hindu-al to kill and murder her infant tool, child
at Breadm.yne, ou Atoll 1.
Also against Annie Peoroe, for wilful murder or her
rewly.born female child at Melbury Abbas, on July 2.
The Petty Jury copiloted of the follosons :—Mearrß
T. Homer, (foreman), George Oxford, Willi.,
Farnham, William Roberts, James Bowler, Thetnne
Km.. John num', Philip James, Thomas Ford,
James Brown, John Bennett, John Ashley.

"Aos AT AWANAGZ.

---
Thomas Slyket, 16, was indicted for malioioasly and
feloniously setting fire to • steak of straw, the property
of tismuel Hunt, at Swaney. on April L
Prisoner seemed stunned by the appearance of the
Court, and when asked if he was guilty, said that he
lid not do it on purpose. lie us little b.y, appare,u7
much younger than stated in the calendar.