The Press.
London, England, 1853-08-13 00:00:00

SATURDAY,

down deeply moved. Rising some minutes after-
wards, he pushed home a few queries which elicited
that at the time the plaintiff had sworn he was ill
for eighteen months in 111 he had been lying in
Ilebester gaol imprisoned for horsestealing.
The counsel for the plaintiff then threw up their
brief's, regretting that they had ever been concerned
in the case. Defendant's counsel, being appealed to,
afterwards expressed a conviction that the solicitor
for the prosecution (Mr. Catlin) had also been
grossly deceived.
The plaintiff was ordered into custody, and removed
to gaol on a charge of perjury, all the documents,
including the letters, bible, seals, rings, pictures, &c.,
being impounded.

THE ColtticPT DISPOSAL OF INDIAN PATRONAGE, as
alleged by Mr. Bright lately in the House of Com-
mons, and then pointed with circumstantial state-
ments, which, however, the hon. member declined to
particularise by giving names and dates, formed the
ground of an application urged by Mr. Clarkson, on
behalf of the East India Company, at the Mansion-
house, on Wednesday last. Various inquiries had,
it seen►s, been made in order to trace the parties re-
ferred to by Mr. Bright; and it was discovered that
the charge in question was based on information
derived from Mr. N. A. Wilkinson, M.P. for Lambeth,
and that the person who was mentioned as receiving
the offer of an Indian appointment, for a certain con-
sideration, was his brother, Mr. Norman Wilkinson,
a stockbroker. The application made by Mr. Clark-
son was for a siunmons against that gentleman. it
was true that, as it appeared, he had declined the
appointment (which was a cadetship for his son) on
discovering the corrupt nature of the transaction;
but, as the act included those who " bargained for
the sale or gift of office," as well as those who
actually sold such office, in its penal clause, Mr.
Clarkson contended that the words were wide enough,
and Mr. Wilkinson's bargain had apparently gone
far enough to bring him within the provision of the
statute. The Company, however, it was evident,
wished only to get at the party who made this offer,
but whose name Mr. Wilkinson had refused to dis
cover. Mr. N. A. Wilkinson. on whose evidence the
whole charge was grounded, being examined, stated
the impression lett on hit: mind by various conversa-
tions with his brother Norman :
" I do not know exactly whet t the time was; it may have been
a year and a half or two )eat a ago. Ido not know, but my im-
pression is that my brother vommunicated to me that he had
had an otter made to hint of an appointment in the East India
Company's service. My hnprt•asiou is that my brother column-
ideated to me that he had had an offer front some friend of his
of such tut appointment. Afte r that 1 understood that he had
been given to understand by this party that he expected com.•-
tluag in return for that apron anion. After that he communi-
cated to me that he had acc...rtained still further that he should
be obliged, he found, to sign NUM declaration that he had nut
given any consideration tia• this appointment ; and that, ill
consequence of that, he had declined to have anything more
to do with it ; and that is in substance all that 1 know
about it."

The witness positively declined, on a point of honour,
to disclose the name of the "fiend," and stated that
his brother shared in that conscientious refusal.
All that was elicited in the course of prolonged
questioning by Mr. Clarkson was a declaration that
the party was not a director of the Company. The
summons was granted, Mr. Clark son throwing out a
warning that the information now refused did not
belong to the class of privilege d communications
which a court would protect a win tess in withholding
upon a trial.
TILE LONG VACATION.—On Woduesday the long
vacation commenced, but not the long vacation of
former years. The Common Law Procedure Act has
made an alteration in law proce ?dings. Pleadings
are still stayed from the 10th August to the '_'4th
October, but writs are issued wit It special endorse•
ments, and, in the event of a fort-appearance, judg-
ment can be signed, and execution issued in the
vacation. Thete is no judgment by default in the
county courts, and no long vacation. One of the
inquiries by the commissioners ab out to investigate
those tribunals will be to ascertain whether by default
the expenses of suits cannot bet materially lessened
and the fees diminished. In tF:e superior courts
judgment can be obtained for about 3/. for sums
under '2O/. The profession compl: tin that the outlay
is greater in the county than in 11 to superior courts.
The object of the commission wi 11 be to make the
county courts more conducive to cheap and speedy
' justice, if such a thing can be obtained.
TIIE MASTERS' OFFICES closed on Monday, and
remain shut until October. The re is no vacation
master.

IN THE. INSOLVENCY COURT Mr. Law took his seat
on Tuesday as Chief Commissioner, and on the 30th
inst. the new Commissioner. Mr. Sergeant Murphy,
will sit for the first time. The commissioners have
appointed two days during the vacation on which
applications for bail are to be made ; and parties in
prison, by availing themselves of the opportunity,
can save some weeks' confinement. The days are
the 15th and 30th instant.