The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1862-03-18 00:00:00

LAW AND CRIME.

MCIIIDKR AT Dustuow.—At the Chelmsford
Assizes, on Thursday, Henry Eagle, a determined-looking
young man, was charged upon an indictment, and also
upon the coroner's inquisition with the wilful murder
of James Barber. It will ive remembered that the
deeeaaed was a poor old man, who got his hying by selling
umbrellas about the country, and on Saturday night he
was at Dunmow, when he met the prisoner and some
other men who had just left a beer-shop. The prisoner
commeneed jeering the old man, and at length an
altercation took place between them, and the prisoner
tried to:trip-up the deceased, who, thereupon, struck
iiim with an umbrella, and the moment he did this, the
prisoner thurst a large clasp-knife, a most formidable
weapon, into his stomach, and he did so with so much
force, that the instrument passed completely through
the body and struck against the back-bone. The jury
found the prisoner guilty ofl manslaughter, and be was
sentenced to ten years' penal servitude.

StRIOUS CHARGE AGAINST A CLERGYMAN.—At
Nottingham Spring Moises, on Monday and Tuesday, an
action, " Royle v. Ward." was tried. The plaintiff is
the perpetual curate of Walken, Notts, and sought to
recover nominal damages from the defendant, lately his
servant, for defamation of character. It appears that
the girl had accused the plaintiff of entering her bed-
room on the night of the 24th of October lest, and
having criminal intercourse with her against her will.
The evidence of the girl, and of those to whom she had
teld her story, was of a very scandalous character, and,
if substantiated, would suffice to ruin the plaintiff's
character. In eonsequence of the report, the parishoners
had absented themselves from church, and the bishop of
the diocese had demanded an investigation. It appeared
that the conduct of the girl had been very discreditable,
as she had not told her mother of the alleged Outrage
until three or four weeks after it was said to have
occurred. After hearing evidence and counsel at length,
the jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff, ls.
damages.
THIC POACHING AFFRAY NEAR EAST RETTOPD.—
On Tuesday, at the Nottingham Assizes, five men, Chas.
Marsh, Adam Marsh, Martin Wilkiuson, John Jackson,
and George Jeffery, were elrirged With night poaching
at East Drayton, near Rettord, and with assaulting
one of the Dote of Newcastle's gatnekeepers, named
Carnet', on the 22nd of November, 1861. Cornell, with
some other beepers, was on the duke's estate on the
night of the day mentioned, when the prisoners were
discovered in • field in the occupation of Mr. Whitely.
Upon seeing the keepers the prisoners at once began to
throw stones, and shouted "Come on
Cornell was hit on the shoulder with a stone, and
several others of the keepers were knocked to the ground
insensible. The prisoners Marsh and Wilkinson were
sworn to as being two of the men engaged in the fray,
and the others were proved to have been on the spot.
One or two of them were apprehended at the time, and
others were taken into custody by Superintendent
Sandford. His lordship sentenced each of the prisonen
to seven years' penal serritnde.
John Robson and William Randall were, on Wednes-
day, tried at York Assizes for attempting to drown
Hannah Wood, at Rothweli, near Leeds, in November
last. Randall was a cab-driver at Leeds, and Robson
resided at Thwaites Mills, near Leeds. Hannah Wood,
who is the wife of a coal miner at Cherwell. hired
Randall's cob to convey her home, having remained in
Leeds too late to travel by railway. Instead of driving
her home, Randall, who was acoornpanied by Robson,
conveyed her to Thwaites Mills, where, on resisting
the immoral proposals of Robson, she war thrown into
the canal and tuft to drown. The evidence for the
prosecution rested chiefly on the statement, of the
woman. who it appeared made no mention of the
outrage until two days. after the time of its ?lieges!
perpetration. Her Moll. ' when told, was also in
several points so improbable, that after the speech of
Mr. Mauls for the defence, the learned judge at once
put it to the jury whether it was necessary to proceed
further with the ease, and the jury immediately agreed
to a verdict of not silty as regards both the prisoners.
At the Glamomanshire Assizes, on Wednesday,
Thomas Carroll, aged twenty-eight, was charged with
the wilful murder of Patrick Bransfield, at Aberdare,
on the 19th January. The prisoner, who is an Irish-
man, lodged with the deceased at Aberdare, and on the
night in question a quarrel ensued, when Brandafield was
stabbed with a knife by the prisoner, so that he died
almost immediately. The jury found the prisoner guilty
of annalaughter, and hews. atotanood to penal tom.
tub for twenty years.