The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1867-02-19 00:00:00

Lain ant grim.

COIIIIITTAL. OF • C•11-D1rf ER FOR MAYSL•OOBTZL
—A cabman of Leeds named Jobn ficaile was on Thursday
committed for trial on • charge of manslaughter.
Smile had been driving at • rapid whim he
knocked down Iln. Wood, the wife of • , ant
she suffered such injuries that death resulted in a few
days.
- - - - -

Arrinerrun Mullan.—Cin Thursday, at the South-
wark polies-court, • person named Morriss Glover,
described as • hawker, was charged with attempting to
murJer a young man named Henry Wheefright. It
appears that on the previous night, about half-past
eleven. Whee'right and another young man were
passing Castle-court, Kent-street, on their way home,
when Glover, who they had just noticed sharpening •
large knife on the kerbstone, rushed at Wheel,libt, and
male a ferocious attempt at cutting his throat. After
hearing evidence which wee pretty conclusive, the
magistrate expressed his intention to send the case for
tn.].

EXTIIIBI9I ROBBIE= AT Alf /INTL.—labile Cage
under boot, at the Ball Hotel, Scarborough, as bees
&masted on a sharp of committing numerous robberies
from visitors. Property has hems tossed to his poreseion
consisting of eleetro-plated srtieles in tee and coffee
pots, and a toast rack ,• silver•mounted scent bottles,
and other similar item of tich cat glans ; gilt ornament.;
a solid silver jug; gold studs and iewsllery; fancy artistes
in ivory : in large pieose, and in ties, mark, and
hankerebiefs : Cameos; costly lade shawls end Berlin
wool work; and gold chains. The police have farther
traesd several mewl?, gold Albert and other watch
&eine which prisoner bad given away and otherwise
disposed of to persons of doubtful character. limy of
the articles have been identified by gentlemen who have
come forward to dabs them.

Tan Law or usu. has long been in • very uneatis-
factory stet*, and the bill which Ins been introdiuted by
Sir Colman O'Loghlen and Mr. Baines will remove •
great deal of the injustice to which journalists bare so
long been subjected. The bid provides that no pro-
prietor of • newspaper or.perioclical publication shall be
liable to an action 'or prosecution for a faithful report
of • speech at a public meeting, unless he shall decline
to rublish, if required, an explanation or contradiction
of the statements complained of, and thst a speaker at •
public meeting shall be liable to be used and prosecuted
for defamatory matter spoken by Lim at sack meeting,
as if he had written and published the same. This,
however, is not to affect the privilege of Pacli•ment or
other public. bodies. When the damages in an action of
libel do not exceed flee potted', the plaintiff I. not to
get more mete than damages. Criminal prosecutions
for libel are not to be entered on without the sanction
of the law officers of the Crown.

Heart Dineen got SIDUCTIOL—On Thursday, in
the Dublin Court of Common Pleas, an Kenos for
damages for induction was ooneluded, having been under
investigation of the court for some days back. The
plaintiff was Mr. Charles Murphy, and the defendant
Yr. Hobert Doughty, both oeenpying good Donal
positions. On behalf of the plaintiff it was stated that
the two families were intimate, led made reciprocal
viWts, the defendant often sleeping at the house of the
plaintiff, On one occasion be left the bedroom sesigsed
to him and spent the night in the room of the plaintiff's
daughter, • young lady of considerable attreetions.
The merit we. the birth of an illegitimate child and the
death of the girl from shame and grief. Mr. Wee
Batt, Q.C., who condacted the care, commented in
severe terms on the inidnuation of the defendant that
somebody else was the father of the child. Yr. fierivent
Armstrong, for the defence, said he would not go into
any evidence for the defence. The jury retired, and
after an Amines of fifteen minutes returned with •
verdict for £l,OOO damages, and 6d. cod

Ti. cause of "Hump v. Robinson," whieh, after
eight days' bearing, has just been conelsded In
the Court of Common Pleas, farniehes an illus-
tration of the beeuties of our artificial haws rf
evidence. The plaintiff is • child five years old,
and the jury bad to decide whether he was legiti-
mate. le be were, In was entitled to estates said
to he worth £3,000 a year ; if not, the defendant
wan entitled. The plaintiff's ease wee that be was
born in 1862. tbe 800 of John Hemp and his .if. ;
the defendant contended that from 1858 to 1863
Mr. and Kra Hemp lived apart, and never saw snob
other iind that cotueqaently the child could no
b. .Is.b. eirepring. The legal premunption t
tbe child of • married woman is legiUmate is so strong
that nothing but the strongest evidence of tetel abeam
from her husband will rebuke It. The sole question,
therefore, was whether it was quite certain that for •
long period before the birth of the plaintiff the parents
were completely esperated. The jury, after listening
to an enormous mac, of indirect and eironmstsatial
wideness, were last night discharged without agreeing
to • verdicia The question which will Immediately
mow to the uninitiated observer is thia—why not rut
the quietism point Meek to the surviving
the mother? Common sense would suggest the en.
pedieney of letting the jury have the hem& of
her tratimony, and weighing it for what It is worth. As
men of ordinary intelligence, they mist 8 be supposed
capable of weighing its credibility. The judge, bow.
ever, in obedience to a technical rule, dailies that Kra
Hemp must not open her mouth upon tbresubjest—that
she must not give any evidence of her means of life
whilst she was living separate from her husband,
between 1858 and 1863. The Jul have, therefor*, the
eatideetion of deciding on information avowedly insom-
Plido. sod of Wag preoldnified frees besting
witish wadi mebsialy haws be nimbi% sad posabla
osatiodw.