The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1860-08-07 00:00:00

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MITRDED, AND S031N.13110:1.1:01.

Tu tht Er!dor of ilir Times.

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Sir.—The suggestion has Leen made that tl.e rmine
murder may have been comeniitedlluring the condition
of sleep-walking, or somnambulism.
Without offering any opinion a; to the probability or
otherwise, as applicable to the partieular C3St., Ibore can
be no doubt that such a probability could exist. 1 will
give a case in 'mint :-
111 1686 the brother of Lord Culpepper was indicted
at the Old Bailey Cr shooting •of the (Maras and
lie bor... Ile pleaded soinnanibuli.iii. Foal W.:acquitted
on producing ample evidence of the extramdinniy things
be did while asleep.
I might multiply caws of a charact,r indicating that
the most difficult and complicatsol act, of life may be as
perfectly pc:formed during the soiunawbulic state as
when awake.
August 1.

Your obelient servant,

THE POLICY OF THE E3IPEItoR NAPOLEON

* TOWARDS ENGLAND.

We are requested to publish the following important
letter from the Emperor Nenelcon to the_ Ambassador
of France, to which Lord John Russell on Wednesday
night referred in the House of Commons
"ST. CLOUD, Jrtv 25, 1860.
"My dear Persigny,—Affairs appear to me to be so
complicated—thanks to the mistrust excited everywhere
since the war in Italy—that I write to you in the hope
that a conversation, in perfect frankness, with Lord
Palmerston will remedy the existing evil. Lord Pal-
merston knows me, and when I affirm a thing he will
believe me. Well, you can tell him from line, in the
inost explicit manner, that since the peace of Villafranca
I have but one thought, one object—to inaugurate a new
era of peace, and to live on the best terms with all my
ueighboursondespecially with England. I had renounced
Savoy awl Nice; the extraordinat y additions to Piedmont
alone caused inc to resume the desire to see reunited to
France provincesessentially French. But it will her/bp:et-
c,' • You wish for peace, and you increase, immoderately,
the military forces of France. I deny time fact in every
sense. My army and fleet have in them nothing of a
threatening character. My steam navy is even Cu front
! being adequate to our requirements, and the number of
steamers does not nearly equal that of sailing sbiie
deemed necessary in the time of King Louis Philippe.
I have 400,000 men under arm.; but deduct from this
amount 00,000 in Algeria, 6,000 at Rowe, B,OiXl in
China, Ale.lo gendarmes, the nick, and the new
commeripts, and you will see—what is the truth—that
my regiments are of smaller effective strength than
during the preceding reign. The uniy addition to the
Army List has leen made by the creation of the
I eperial Guard. Moreover, while wishing for peace, I
desire also to organise the forces of the country sn the
best possible footing, for, if foreigners have only seen
the bright side of time last war, I myself, close at hand,
have witnessed the defects, and I wish to remedy them.
Having said thus much, I have, since Villsfranca,
neither done, nor even thought, anything which could
alarm any one. When Lavalette started fir constauu.
nople, the instructions which I gave him were confined
to this—' Use every effort to maintain the S'ai Sal 41110 ;
the interest of France LI that Turkey should live ZUI
long as possible.'
" Now, then, occur the massacres in Syria, and it is
asserted that I ani very glad to find a now occasion of
making a little war, or of play ins,- a new pert. Really,
people give me credit for very little common sense. If
I instantly proposed a expedition, it was IWCZUM,
feelings were those of the people which has put me at
its head, and the intelligence from Syria transported
no. .itia IlldiZtuktiuo Uy first thought. nevertheless.
was to come to an understanding with England. What
other interest than that of humanity could mince me
to send troops into that commtryl Could it be that the
possession of it would increase my strength? Can I
conceal from myself that Algeria, notwithstanding its
future advantages, is • source of weakness to France,
which for thirty years hid devoted to it the purest of
its blood and its gold! I said it in Ittn at Bordeaux,
and my uj ,i ~ ion is still the saume—l have great conquests
to make, but only in Fiance. Her interior organization,
her moral development, the incremtre of her resources,
have still immense progress to make. There a field
exists vast enough for my ambition and sufficient to
satisfy it.
"It was difficult for me to conic to an understanding
with Englaimil on the subject of Central Italy, because 1
was bound by the peace of Villafraimea. As to Southern
Italy I ant free from engagements, and I ask no Letter
than miconcert with England on this point, as on others ;
but, in Heaven's name, let the eminent men who are
placed at the head "(the English Government lay aside
petty jealousies and unjust mistrusts.
" Let us understand one another in good faith, like
honest men as we are, and not like thieves who desire
to cheat each other.
"To soul up, this is my innermost thought. I desire
that Italy should obtain peace, no matter how, but with-
out foreign intervention, and that :ay troops should be
able to quit Rum without compromising the security of
the Pope. I could very much wish not to be obliged to
undertake the Syrian expedition, and, in any case, not
to undertake it alone; firstly, because it will he a great
expense, and secondly, because I fear that this inter-
vention may involve the Eastern question ; but, on the
other hand, I du not see bow to resist public opinion in
my country, which will never understand that we can
leave unpunished, not only the massacre of Christians,
but the burning of our consulates, the insult to our flag,
and the pillage of the monastries which were under our
protection.
"1 have told you all I think, without 'disguising or
otnitting anything. Make what use you may think advt.
sable of my letter.
. -
' Believe in my sincere friendship.
" NAPOLEON."

HORRIBLE CRUELTY BY A SCHOOLMISTRE3B.

At the Southwark Police Court on Thursday last,
Mary Allen, a sanctified-looking female, residing at No. :
8, Parvey's-place, Bed Cross-street, St. Saviour's,
Southwark, was brought before Mr. Btu-chain for final
examination, charged with cruelly assaulting and dis-
gustingly ill-treating Caroline Lefevre, aged eight years,
who was entrusted to her care and protection. The
court and every avenue leading thereto was densely
crowded, chiefly by females, and it was with some
difficulty that the officers could prevent their taking
summary vengeance on her. A subscription was got
up among the neighbours to prosecute her, owing to
theto a unwillingness
sewwife.
rthe Williamitl.
if , woho in i,mrriesl
Newiiigtou
causeway, however, undertook the prosecution gratui•
bounty. As soon WI the prisoner was placed in the dock
she WWI saluted with groans and yells, which were
immediately suppressed.
The evidence given on Monday week before Mr
Maude, who sat for Mr. °wide, allowed that the pri-
soner hail for sonic time kept a child's school at No. 8,
Parvey's place, Itsslerosst-strect, Borough, and that the
father of the child, who is • porter in the employ of
Messrs. Barclay and Co., sent her to the school about
two years ago. The child was merely a day scholar f.r
twelve mouths; but at the end of that time her father
married a second wife, and then art-Augments were
made for the primmer to keep her altogether. Almost
immediately afterwards the alleged cruelty commenced.
The evidence on Thursday showed that the prisoner
WY. not content with cutting the poor child about with
a stick awl a cane, suid with a poker and shovel, but
she actually burnt her with a red hot iron, and made
her eat human excrement. On the lust esamination
evidence of that was not forthcoming, but now that
fact, as well as other testinumy. was established. The
evidence as to the flogging was snout horrible. The
injured child was brought into court. She appeared to
have much improved since last week. On that occa-
sion her eyes were so inflamed and swollen that she
could not distinguish anything. The flesh, howder,
was still much discoloured, and the marks and bruises I
were very prominent. The child'a head and upper part
of her person was uncovered for his Worship's inspec-
tion, when every person in court, except the prisoner,
expressed their horror at the sight. The poor child is •
very intelligent girl, and gave her evidence with such
clesrness that it excited the compassion of every one.
At the close of the examination of the witness, Mr.
Barcharn said—This Us all the evidence, prisoner. Have
you anything to say in answer to the charge? If you
have it will be taken down, and may be used in evidence
against you at your trial.
Prisoner (ealisaly)-1 have nothing to say now.
Mr. Burchain.—Then you are cominittrsl for trial at
the next Central Criminal Court sessions.

On being removed front the dock by Downe the, gaoler
she WAS greeted with yells and groans, and a crowd
of women forced their way towards her, and, had not
the precaution been taken 'to have several constables in
the pasaage, she would have been roughly handled by the
mothers of the children she bail had charge of.
She trembled violently, but was soon placed in one of
the cells.

THE Arnim:sr Pomo:4mo CASE. —The examination
of Witudow, who is charged with having poisoned Mrs.
James, of Liverpool, was comi.leted at the Liverpool
Police Court on Monday week. It was shown by Professor
Taylor and Dr. Edwards, who has aualysed the stomach,
viscera, and discharges of the deceased, that antimony
must have been adunnistered during life, and Drs.
Cameron and Pemberton stated that, in their opinion,
death had been accelerated by the administration of
that poison. The erisoser was corarsittad for trial, his
solicitor reserving Ins debase.