The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1884-06-17 00:00:00

WTIMIOIOIIII.
PETTY BEBBIONB.

FitinAT.—Before Mr. O. J. Parke, Rev. 0. J.
(Ilya, and Mr. H. F. Brouncker.
Mary Vincent and Emma Vincent, mother and
daughter, were charged with assaulting Elizabeth
Vincent, wife id ileorge Vincent, id Kinson. The
conuAainaut's hu.lund was • man who was in tolerably
good circumstance., but who left his wife and went to
live with the defendants. On the day in question the
complainant. who was in absolute want, seeing her
husband taking beer to the house in which he
with th.. defendants, went to him and asked him to
give her some money. He refused, and she then
Followed him until they got near the defendants'
house, when the defendant, Mary Vincent. rushed out
at her with a hammer in her hand, knocked her down,
striking her with the hammer and knocking her about
till she became insensible. The younger defendant
came to her with a bri..m and also assaulted her.
was very ill afterward., and had to keep her bed
for -one time, and was obliged to be attended by a
doctor.

--tli;re was a CrOWs.,uturu..n. charging Elisabeth
Vincent with assaulting Mary Vincent.—Complainant
denied haring struck Elizabeth Vincent with a
hammer, but admitted striking her with a stick, after
having been first struck with the same stick by defem
dant. —The Bench dismissed this cross•summons, and
for the assault on Elizabeth Vincent fined Mary and
Emma Vincent gl each and the costs.
William Burbidge, a small farmer, of Lytchett, was
summoned by Shadrack Scott for assaulting him on
the 7th inst. The parties had some words Mg to wages
due to complainant, and defendant ultimately struck
the complainant. —befendant was fined 10s. and 105.
coots..

At the request of Supt. Batty the Bench sent
constable to the office of Mr. Robert Thomas
Sebastopol Seymour, to ask that gentleman's attend-
ance, aud upon his arrival in Court, Mr. Batty said
he had a very serious complaint to make against Mr.
Seymour. On Tuesday night last he had two prisoners,
alleles, named Penfold, in custody,_ and as one of
them was so violent as to place his (Mr. Batty,,) life
in danger, he called on Mr. Seymour for aid, but that
gentleman positively refused to assist him. If he had
summoned Mr. Seymour on a charge of refusing to
assist the police, the magistrates would have no
alternative but to send the case for trial, as the Act
under which such proceedings must have been
instituted did not give the magistrates the Power to
deal with it suminanly. However, he had no vindic-
ti% e feeling against Mr. Seymour, and he did not wish
to resort to those extreme tuessures ; but be wanted
the public to know that whenever the police were in
a row and requires' assistance in the execution of their
duty anyone who was culled 'isby them was bound to
assist.—The Chairman asked Mr. Seymour what he
had to say on the inatter.—Mr. Seymour said that he
should have been quite willing to assist Mr. Batty if
he thought it had been necessary—Mr. Batty: I MU
the best judge as to the necessity of aseistanoe.—Mr.
Seymour said that another reason why he did not
assist was that there Were-,, many People round the
man who WOW hung taken into castody that he could
not get to him very well.-11r. Batty : I deny that.—
me. Seymour said that h, was in his office at work,
when he heard people crying out and making a great
noise. He went out, and said that he thought the
man oeing taken into custody would go along all right
if lie were allowed to walk quietlT. Mr. Batty then
said to him "Will you help me? to which he replied
that he did not see that lie could. He would, how-
ever, willingly have assisted Mr. Batty if he could
have done any —Mr. Batty denied this statement
is Rita The man he had in custody when he asked
for ansirranco WAS kigAing violently, end hie

(Mr. Batty's) life was in danger. The man
warn being taken for attempting to rescue
• prisoner in custody. Mr. Seymour was
requested to assist, but refused to do so, saying that
the man in custody would go
_quietly enough if
allowed to walk. Etcacceptesl Mr. Seymour 's sug-
gestion, but when asked if he would walk, the MAU
in custody commenced kicking and biting, and when
he was tieing taken round Poole corner another
attempt at rescue was made. Mr. Seymour walked
out of his odice and looked on with his hands in
his pockets as tli.gh he thought it a piece of amuse.
ment. —Mr. Seymour: I beg pardon, 1 W3lO n..t there for
UM wwwrist. —M r. Batty: I have li.vl (0( years' experience
in the police force. and I am happy to state that this
is the first time I have ever had t. CoMilligiU of a man
refusing to assist the police whrn called on.—The
Chairman said that the case appsured to he a sery
had one, and after what Mr. Batty had said it
might be as well not to say much more about it, or
they might even now think it ads viable to order pro.
ceedings to be taken.—The Res. Carr .1. Glyn (to Mr.
Seymour) : It is a very bad Cast., and it is very kind
.d Mr. Batty not to take the proceedings he might
have done. Asa public man you ought to have been
one ..f the first to assist the polite.—Mr. Brouncker
said that if a person f the lower order were asked to
assist he might refuse to do so, if Mr. Seymour were
allowed to do AO without any notice being taken of it.
—The Rev. C. J. Glyn; It is a hail case.—Mr.
Brouneker : Yes, it is, and I think it is very kind of
Mr. Batty to bring it forward in the manner that he
has, instead of the manner in which he might have
done it. —Mr. Batty said that there was a regular riot
in the Leigh-road when he called on Mr. Seymour for
help; in fact, pc...111e iii the neighbourhood had told
, him that they had never seen such a riot in the town
before.—The Rev. C.. 1. Glyn: As magistrates we are
oound to protect the pollee. —Mr. Batty said that lie
had been accused of using the gipsy man roughly in
taking into custody. but it was a fact that when
brought up b before the magistrates on %Yednestlay the
nun not a single scar or mark of ill-usage on him.
After Mr. Seymour had refused to help him, two
tradesmen, Mr. Collett iLsititlisn and South-Western
gods agent), and Mr. Sim., draper, Caine out and
assist's! him volkintarily.—The Chairman said that
Mr. Batty had Liken a very lenient course, and he
hop.sl that the newspapers would take cognisance of
the whole matter.