The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1858-01-12 00:00:00

SENTENCES OF PRISONER&

(Before the Rev. H. F. YIATIIAN, L.L.8., Chairman.)
Henry T. Irvine, embeasling £2O in the name and on
the account of Alfred Samuel Mason and John Ticard, his
masters, at Dorchester-12 months.
. _

Nathaniel Clark, Henry Hurlstone, John Phillips,
Robert Mitchell, Esau Dollen, assaulting Geo. Gregory,
a police constable, in the execution of his duty, at Yid.
dletrenthide—not guilty.
Harriet Angel, stealing four pieoes of cord, the pro-
perty of Thomu Jauning, of Weyniouth—also stealing •
piece of print, the property of Alfred Burt, at Wey-
mouth—one week; also stealing three table covers, the
property of Charles Galpin-4 months.

THURSDAY.
Mary Suniption, stealing a black silk cape and other
articles of wearing apparel, the property of Robert
Perry, at Colyton-1 month.
CHARGE AGAINST A COUNTY MAGISTRATE.—Swan v,
Richmond and ButUm—This was an action brought by
Mr. Thos. Swan, a resident of Charmouth, against Win.
Richmond, gamekeeper to John Tatchell Sullen, Bag.,
• magistrate of this county, and Mr. Sullen himself, for
an wank alleged to have been committed upon the
plaintiff, at Whitchurch Canonioorwu, on the afternoon
of November 21, 1857. Mr. Stock appeared for the
plaintiff, and Mr. Ffooks, Mr. Saunders, and Mr. Tem-
pler appeared for the defendants. The hearing of the
case occupied from an early hour on Thursday till half-
past eight Thursday night and all day Friday till about
half.paat seven in the evening, becoming, in fact, the
last case heard at these sessions. There were two other
indictments affecting the same parties, one charging
Richmond alone with an assault, and • cross-action
brought from the Beaminster Petty Sessions by Rich-
mond against the principals in the present plaintiff's
case. From the evidence adduced it appeared that on
the 21st November Mr. &Wen, Mr. Gundry, and Mr.
Langworthy were shooting in a cover, in the parish of
Whitchurch Canonicorum, surrounded by land in the
occupation of Mr. James Green, farmer. Between two
coppiees, in which Mr. Sullen his the right to shoot,
' runs a piece of grass land, traversed by a church path,
and about twenty yards wide. This dividing patch is
called the" Drang." After Mr. Bullen's shooting party
had been in one of the covers adjoining the Drang sonie
litthi time, Mr. Swan and M. Green came into the

Drang. Word had previoudy been sent to Charmouth
to Mr. Andrew Tucker, a solicitor there, a relative of
Mr. Swan, who had been in the habit of shooting upon
Mr. Green's land. Mr. Tucker being absent Mrs. T. dei-
patched Job Canterbury, on a fiy horse, with a blinker
!rifle, to Bridport to inform Mr. Tucker of what- wais
afoot at Whitchurch. This messenger met Mr. Tucker
and Mr. Joseph Addison Day, a solicitor of Bridport, to-
gether in the street in that town. The two solicitors at
once rode off to Mr. Green's, one of them riding on the
horse Canterbury had used, and having a blinker bridle
on. and proceeded to the Drang, where birds flying over
from one copse to the other were fired at by them.
Mr. Swan had some time before this taken Mr.
Tucker's gun to the scene of action. Plaintiff'
witnesses Messrs. Green, Swan, Day, John Fol.
lett, two boys named Thomas Prosser and William
Taylor, and Mr. Tucker, averred that a pheasant
which had been shot at fell into the Drang, and
plaintiff put his foot upon the bird, whereupon the de-
fendant Richmond bolted through the hedge, leaving hie
hat behind him, hutted head downwards at plaintiff,
grabbed him by the private parts, and put his hand
under plaintiff's leg and felled him, both going to the
ground. No word was spoken. On rising plaintiff at-
tempted to strike Richmond with a walking stick, which
the defendant parried, receiving but a very slight blow
on the hand. Richmond then rushed upon Follett,
floored him also, and proceeded to square up to and
assault Mr. Tucker. Mr. Bullen on the first affray and
almost immediately, with several beaters, also came
into the Drang, Mr. Bullen commanding peace, and be.
having, to use Mr. Tucker's words, in the most courteous
way to all. Mr. Day, who owned that, through feat of
being shot on hearing the guns go off, had crept beneath
the hedge for greater safety, said he heard Mr. Bullen at
the Beaminster sessions admit that lie ordered his man
over the hedge to fetch the birds. It was likewise com-
plained that Mr. Bullen's keepers beat around and kept
the game closely within cover, not allowing the tenant
"a fair opportunity," but it was admitted that a man
had planted food on parts of Mr. Green's land outside the
covers in hopes of attracting the game. No evidence
having been given implicating Mr. Bullen, and though
Mr. Stock argued that when one person ordered another
to commit an illegal act—as here where Mr. Bullen
ordered Richmond over a fence which was committing a
trespass—and the person when complying with that order
commited an additional illegality, the inciter to the first
was guilty of the second offence, yet the jury, on the
instruction of the Chairman, acquitted Mr. Sullen at
the close of the case for the prosecution. The Court
resumed on Friday morning, and by the defence which
was then gone into it appeared, upon the statements of
Messrs. Tatchell Bullen, John Copp farmer at Whit-
church, Job Canterbury, George White, schoolmaster,
four beaters named James Hanham, Richard Vincent,
William Grinter, and Walter Roper, and Mr. Lang-
worthy, solicitor, that the words used by Mr. Mullen at
Beaminster were used in a different case--one for tree-
in—nurseit_of rame..—and referred to partridges,
whilst on'November 21Mr. Sullen had given his keepers
general instructions to the effect that if any birds he
should kill fell outside the cover the keeper was to fetch
them, but committing as little injury possible. On
Richmond going up to Swan and as for the bird,
plaintiff struck at Richmond violently an raised • lump
on Richmond's forehead as large as an egg, and a second
blow from the same walking stick hurt the back of Rich-
mond's hand very much, he raising his hand to his eyes in
self-protection as the blow was dealt. Richmond then
caught Swan around the legs and both parties fell.
Thus Swan began the assault. Mr. Mullen followed
Richmond and his beaters almost instantly, and ear-
nestly strove to maintain order and restore peace, whilst
Mr. Tucker still loitered about the Drang. After
Mr. Stock had replied upon the whole case and the
Chairman had summed up, the jury found a verdict of
guilty against the defendant Richmond, who was ordered
to appear when called upon. The other indictments
were withdrawn. It was said that the transaction was
over in less than five minutes, one witness said two;
but the history of the brief struggle as voluminously de-
tailed by the large array of witnesses occupied, as we
have said, two long days.