The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1883-04-10 00:00:00

TRIALS OF PRISONERS.
WEDicanar.
Be'ore J. Floyer, M P. ( -lbairman), 14. Pe tree,
11.3., Capt. Mengel, U. Flyr, sort J. Batten. Ewve.
_Tn. following gentlemen were swore on the OrAnd

Jury
Mr. Rieke' (Whitchurch) foreman, J. Allen
and W. Bartlett (Dumbest o.), H. B ratite/sin
(south Perrott), .1. S. Braid (Shoal.. ,tr),
CrahU (lira F Con (.1 sturi Igo), It. Dyinon
(choirminster), G. %V. Case (Melo 'tube Reels), S.
Fancy (Lytchett), T. Dow, W. A. Hunt (Sherborne),
G. Hawkins (Fordington), A. Hones (Hinton),
J. Jeffery (iturminster Newton), H. Keeping (Wyk'
Rste;s), W. B. Meech, G. W. Munden (Yekorobe
Regis), G. P. Kendall (Burton Bradetock), W. Sprake
(Winterbourne Stickland), J. S. Stroud (Dorchester),
T. Wallis (Weymouth). and G. Young (Wimhorns.)
The CirelaWan, in charging the Grand Jury, said
the calendar contained the names of five prisoner., a
smaller number than they usually had to deal with at
these Sissiona That in itself was satisfactory. but
they must look • little wider an Ii litt'm further bet or..
they came to any definite conclusion up m the state of
crime in the c runty, because he was inform,' there were
11 persona (an unusually large number) who would
shortly be tried at the Assizes at Winchester
from the county of Dorset It Was true they
were not many cases of a very serious kind; but were
chiefly made up by a number of persons committed for
trial on account of having maliciously set fire to fume
or heath in the eastern part of the cJunty. That was
• kind of special crime —a special offence, but of •
very serious nature ia one point of view, because it
might lead to very serious injury and des of property.
Still there was nothing, upon the whole view cf the
crime of the county, that need cause them any special
dissatisfaction with the general state of the outer! in
that respect, and there was nothing in the soli-flaw to
which he need call their particular attention, thecae,*
being such as their experienced chairman knew ye y
well how to deal with. Before dismissing them, how-
ever, he allude I at considerable length to the new
Casual Poor Act, which was both administrative and
penal. By one id ita provisions power Was given to
magistrates to de summarily with persona obtsining
relief from the rat •by false statements. Under the
former law it w•oild probably hays hese necessary to
wand such oases t Qtarter Seas oas for obtaiud g
money or g rods by false preteuces. This new
Act would en Mle magistrates to deal with each
p•rsoos summarily, and pass sentences upon them in
accordance with the provisions of the old Act for
it-sling with r,iguea, varaboods, and rd,rly persona.
He dealt In an orhatptive manner with the ailininis-
tredve part of the Act, which enabled Boar Is of
Gum ltins to detain in workhouses vagrant. who might
apply for relief for one clear day between the day id
admission end discharge, and if they had been
admitted in the workhouae previously within a month
before this second admission, then the Gum, lane
might order vagrants to be detained for three days in
the workhouse. Having oil.vied to the recent confer-
ence at Winch • emr, the (Malan in alluded to the
difficulty ”1 di.crimanating between " pridivaionals
ant the holiest way fours in .arch of work lie
admitted the I lifficulty, and in n'ione I the disparity di
the opinions of expel ie. col men at tho c inference.
There was o e Shins they must keel, in mini In this
matter. While doing all they could in their power to
discourage Mmilmioey, they should not treat it with
a. severe an I repressive measures as to lie I the public
to bslieve that pnrc ins who unfortunately had got into
the habit of begging might be liable to suffer seriously
from wand of drool or sheltsr. If thsy gave room for
any well-grounded belief id that kind it would be
impossible to check the large charitable heart of
England. Although that we, the last Wog they
might wish to chock, where there was real necessity
for alms, still so I 'rig as indiecrimieate alms were
kirrn so long would vagrancy prevail, more or las.