The Press.
London, England, 1858-11-06 00:00:00

THE PRESS, NOVEMBER 6, 1858.

1082

A LETTER•CARRIER has been committed for trial
by Mr. Jardine, at Bow•street, for stealing a letter
containing a 5/. note. His house was searched, and
half of another Si. note, rings, pins, and other articles
were discovered. A boy engaged at the Coventry
street branch-office was also committed for stealing a
money letter.
THE COURT or• ERROR gave judgment on Wed-
nesday in the case of "Waddington v. the City of
London Union," relating to the Manini frauds to the
extent of between 40,000/. and 50,0001. It will be
recollected that Manini was one of the collectors of
rates for the City of London Union, and that he and
Paul, s clerk to the guardians, had embezzled large
sums of money collected from the ratepayers. The
guardians then made a rate equally on the whole of
the union to make up these deficiencies, which the
plaintiff refused, on the ground that Manini was not
the officer of the whole union, but of a portion of the
parishes only, and that, therefore, the other parishes
had no right to be called on to pay for his defal-
cations ; and secondly, that the deficiency ought to
be made up by those parishes whose servant he
was, and not spread over the whole of the union.
The Queen's Bench decided that the guardians had
the power to make a rate over the whole of the
parishes for the deficiency ; but the Court of Error
reversed that decision, giving it as their opinion
that the deficiency must be made up by those
parishes whose servant Manini exclusively was.

AN Ito:ocErrr MAN has, it is supposed, been
convicted. At the recent quarter sessions for the
county of Surrey .James Clark, alias Mack, was
convicted, under very peculiar circumstances, of the
robbery of a young lady in Richmond-park, and was
sentenced to three years' penal servitude, there being
very good ground for supposing, from what occurred
at the trial, and from what has since transpired in
reference to the matter, that the prisoner is innocent
of the crime of which be was convicted. The prisoner
bad no counsel, but he made a most earnest and
sensible speech to the jury on his own behalf, and,
after positively asserting his innocence, he asked
them whether it was likely, if he had committed such
an offence so shortly before, that he should have
gone to the very place where it occurred, and wher3
he was almost certain to be taken into custody ? He
said, also, that he was told that the police had been
making inquiries respecting a person who answered
his description, and that if he bad been doing
anything wrong he had better "step it," and his
reply was, that he had not been doing anything that
would make him afraid of the police, and that,
consequently, be would remain where he was, and it
appeared that shortly after this had occurred he was
taken into custody. In addition to this three wit-
nesses were called who swore positively that at the
time the robbery was alleged to have been committed
in Richmond-park the prisoner was employed in
wood-chopping at Westminster, and although these
witnesses were severely cross-examined by the counsel
for the prosecution, their evidence was not shaken in
any material particular, and the general impression
in court was that they were speaking the truth. The
chairman evidently was impressed with this idea, for
he summed up the case to the jury very strongly for
an acquittal, but, to the surprise of almost every one
present, they returned a verdict of " Guilty," and the
prisoner was sentenced to three years' penal servi-
tude. The feeling, however, was so strong in the
mind of the bench and the bar in favour of the
prisoner's innocence, that the sentence has not yet
been put in force, and the prisoner still remains in

Horsemonger-lane, and it is understood that a
memorial will be sent to the Secretary of State pray-
ing for a pardon for the prisoner, as, from subsequent
inquiries that have been made, there appears to be
very little doubt that tha witnesses for the prosecution
were mistaken in speaking to his identity, and that
he is really innocent of the crime of which he has
been convicted.
A SINGULAR APPLICATION was made at the Mary-
lebone Police-court' on Tuesday, by Mr. Overton,
a member of the Marylebone Vestry. He stated
that his daughter had been engaged as a companion
in a gentleman's family, and that she had been
converted to the Roman Catholic religion. He
wished to know whether be could demand the restora-
tion of his daughter and her submission to parental
authority. As the yonng lady was twenty-two years
of age, and, therefore, old enough to judge for her-
self, the magistrate said he could not interfere in
the matter.

MR. HUMPHREY BROWN, late M.P. for Tewkesbury,
and director of the Royal British Bank, passed his
last examination before the Court of Bankruptcy ou
Thursday. li, was adiudicaTed a bankrupt, as a
shipowner, of Little Smith street, Westminster, and
Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. The assignees of the
Royal British Bank claim against his estate
63,6731.; but this is disputed, and is the subject of
arbitration. A claim, however, for 1001. was admitted
without prejudice, for the purpose of giving them a
locus stansh at the certificate meeting to be held on
the 30th November.

*ands anb Offences.

DREADFUL POISONING AT BRADFORD.
Os Saturday night a person named William Hard-
aker retailed a large quantity of peppermint lozenges
in the Bradford marketplace. On Sunday morning
it was reported that two boys had died suddenly in
the town. Little was thought of the incident at the
time, but as during the day several other persons
were reported to be ill, and others dead, an inquiry
was instituted, which led to the discovery of the fact
that these persons had died from the effects of taking
arsenic, which was mixed in the peppermint lozenges.
These lozenges had been made by Mr. Joseph Neil,
wholesale confectioner, of Stone-street, Bradford, and
sold by him to Hardaker to retail. About a fortnight
ago Mr. Neil purchased 12ths of plaster of Paris,
called by the trade " daft " or " allibi," of Mr.
Hodgson, druggist, of Shipley, near Bradford. A
young man named George Goddard was in the shop
at the time, his master being ill in bed. He asked
his master whether he had got any of the ingredient
called by the person "daft," and was told by his
master that it was in a cask in one corner of the
cellar. Goddard went there, and, it appears, in
mistake served the customer, Neil, with arsenic
instead of plaster of Paris, the casks containing both
ingredients being in the same corner, and neither of
them being labelled. The mistake was not discovered
till several persons had died on Sunday from taking
the peppermint lozenges made by Neil, and sold in
the market by Hardaker. 12Ibs. of arsenic were
mixed in 401bs. of sugar, which would give eight or
ten grains to each lozenge, as much as would poison
two persons. Neil, the maker of the lozenges,remarked,
in making them, that they were unusually long in
drcing, and bore a darker colour than usual, but he
never suspected they contained poison. Hardaker,
the vendor of the fatal lozenges, is himself so ill
that his life is despaired of, be having partaken of
them. It is stated that Neil, the manufacturer, and
Hodgson, the druggist, are particular friends, and
that Goddard, the young man who has been the
cause of the calamity, has only been in the employ
of the latter a few weeks, having recently left school.
Thirty-six pounds of the unsold lozenges were found
on the premises of Hardaker. The total number of
deaths arising from this horrible catastrophe is,
according to the latest accounts, 17, and 190 persons
are still suffering from the effects of the arsenic.
The lives of many are despaired of. On the cause
being discovered, Mr. Leseratt, the chief constable,
took steps to put the public on their guard against
eating lozenges purchased in the market-place, by
sending out bellmen and policemen to make it
known in various localities, and placards were thickly
posted upon the walls. The circumstance has
caused great sensation throughout the district.
God•lard has been brought up before the Bradford
magistrates, and remanded till the coroner's inquest.

LORD AND LADY MUNCASTER had a most narrow
escape on Saturday, the 23rd ult. The party left
the castle near Ravenglass, at noon, with the
carriage and four prancing horses, two postilions,
a coachman and footman, and drove up to the head
of Eskdale leaving the two front horses at the
Woolpack Inn for their return. On their way back,
whilst crossing Wayer's Bridge, which is some
fifteen feet from the water, the horses took fright,
and leaped with the postilion into the water. The
pole broke and saved the party. The horses and
man fell into the stony river, laming the rider, and
broke the back of one horse and injured the other.
As they leaped the bridge wall, the pole and harness
held the horses, and the man fell into the water, and
the horses hung in the harness and fell near to him.
The coachman leaped from the box and ran to the
man and horses, got him out, cut away the harness,
got one horse out, and found the otber only worth
shooting. Lord Muncaster and the ladies were
stuck in the narrow bridge, and were got off without
any injury, and soon conveyed back to the castle in
a cart. The bridge is some three miles from the
parish church, and is built in the shape of a wheel,
and has just sufficient room for a carriage to pass.
The wall is about four feet high, and has a dangerous
effect whilst driving across. On Sunday the other
horses were able to walk home, and the man was out
of danger. On Monday the bridge was christened
" Lord Muncaster's Leap."
A SERIOT:S FIRE, attended with the destruction of
several thousand pounds' worth of property, broke
out shortly before two o'clock on Monday, on the
extensive premises of Mr. E. M. Holden, toy and
basket maker, No. 66, Upper-street, Islington.
When the first alarm was raised the destructive
element bad obtained so strong a hold that the lower
part of the premises was completely enveloped in
flames. The Royal Fire Society escapes promptly
arrived, then Inspector Baddely and Conductor
Newell succeeded in rescuing Mr. and Mrs. Smith,
two children, and the servant girl from the adjoining
house, which was then taking fire. The powerful

1 I
parish engine was shortly on the spot, followed In
the engines from Watling•street, Whitecross street,
Hilborn, Jeffery-square, and others, when, with I
good supply- of water, they got to work ; but in spite
of the most strenuous exertions of the firemen the
flames spread with amazing rapidity, and were not
extinguished until eight o'clock. The premises of
Mr. E. M. Holden, toy and ba,ket maker, warehouse
and dwelling house burnt down ; No. 63, Loper
street, Islington, Mr. James Smith, bootmaker, burnt
No. 62, Mr. J. Aleston, bookseller, burnt out;
Mr. Shelton, haberdasher, considerably
ddiwinn taghed, as well as other houses. The cause is
unknown, and the loss will fall on the Sun, Pboxix,
Royal Exchange, and other offices.

A SINGULAR CAUSE OF DEATH has been disclosed
at an inquest, held at Bermondsey, on the body of
Thomas James Ardley, aged twelve months, the son
of a journeyman gas•fitter. On Friday the mother
and father retired to bed with their infant, and about
five o'clock the following morning the former was
aroused by her eldest child crying, and then missed
the deceased from her side. Upon going to bed on
the night before, she took the precaution to place a
table 133 the side of the bed to prevent the deceased
falling out; when she missed the infant, she obtained
a light, and found that it was suspended by its neck
between the table and the bed. Medical assistance
was at once procured, but the poor child was quite
dead. The jury returned a verdict of "Accidental
death."

A SHOCKING ACCIDENT occurred on Monday at the
Matlock-bridge railway station, which terminated
fatally to Mrs. Royale, wife of Mr. Royale, confiden-
tial valet and interpreter to the late Duke of Devon.
shire. It appears that the lady had been making
some inquiries at the station, and stood on the
line when .ne 9.30 a.m. train was signalled to ap-
proach, and one of the porters left the platform to
warn her of the impending danger. He took hold
of her, and was pulling her aside, when the engine
buffers caught the dress of Mrs. Royale, and
both fell under the wheels. The unfortunate lady's
head being cracked like a walnut shell, it is almost
needless to add that her death was nearly instants.
neous. The porter's body was also passed over, and
he was killed.

A VERY DISTRESSING CIRCUMSTANCE has occurred
during the past week. A lady, belonging to a family
resident in Worthing, who has been for some time
labonring under mental depression, left her home
on Wednesday, as it was supposed, to visit a relit-
non. No particular notice was taken of the circum•
stance until evening, when it was found that the lady
did not return, and a messenger went in search of
her. The family was much alarmed at learning that
she bad not been seen at the place where it was sup.
posed she bad gone, and the town was ransacked to
find her. No information could be gleaned for a
long time, until it was ascertained that a person an•
swering the description of the unhappy lady had been
traced to Cissbury, one of the chain of hills forming
the South Downs. Search was made in that direr•
Lion during the whole of the night, but unsuccess-
fully. Her two brothers went in search of her over
the Downs, but still without finding any traces of her.
The superintendent constable of Worthing, with
great alacrity, collected all the available men he
could under him, and started in search. During the
whole of the night the poor lady and her pursuers
remained ou the hills. On Friday a strange woman,
in passing a pond in Rustington, about eight miles
from Worthing, saw the poor creature lying in an
exhausted state at the water's edge, her clothes
being saturated with water. The unhappy lady had
been wandering about the district in a deranged state
for two days and two nights without food or shelter•
She was soon restored to her distressed friends, but
in a most emaciated condition.

*—
A FATAL COALPIT :ACCIDENT occurred at the Cae
Coalpit, near Llanelly, Carmarthensbire, on Thursday.
The pit was inundated by a rash of water from old
workings, and ten colliers were drowned.
A DEATH FROM FRIGHT has occurred at Much
Hoole, a village near Preston, resulting from a heart-
less joke perpetrated by two young men, named
Richard Forshaw and Robert Mawdsley. On Friday
evening, about six o'clock, Martha Spencer, aged
thirteen, and six other girls, on their way home along
the turnpike road, saw a coffin lying across the foot.
path ; and, when they were within four yards of It,
the coffin moved, and a hollow sound proceeded from
it. The girls all ran back screaming till they met
!lia
man named Gill, who persuaded them to go
him to the spot. The deceased and another girl
clung to him trembling, and then they saw Forshaw
Mawdsley lifting the coffin on their shoulders to
carry it away. They afterwards acknowledged they
had done it to frighten the girls, Mawdsley behind a
wi
hedge pulling a string tied to the coffin handle s,
the girls approached. After dinner on Saturday tne,
girl became ill, on Sunday morning began to corm,s
blood and a dark coloured fluid, and soon afterward
expired. Forshaw and Mawdsley have been Cam
witted for trial by the coroner.

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THE PUBLIC HEALTH.
THE quarterly return of the Registrar-General com-
prises the births and deaths registered by 2,197
registrars in the districts of England during the
summer quarter that ended on September 30, 1858;
the marriages in 12,303 churches or chapels
and
about 3,997 registered places of worship unconnected
with the Established Church, and 629 superinten-
dent registrars' offices, in the quarter that ended on
June 30, 1858.
The depression of the country diminished in the
spring quarter of the year. The marriages, never-
theless, remained below the average number. The
birth-rate was sliphtly below the average in the
summer quarter. The mortality was less than the
average of the summer season, and this is to some
extent the result of sanitary improvements.
MARRIAGES.

39,909 marriages were celebrated in the quarter
ending June 30th, consequently 79,818 persons mar-
ried in the three months. This is nearly 20,000 in
excess of the numbers married in the previous
quarter, but is somewhat less than the numbers in
the corresponding quat ter of last year. The people
married at the annual rate of 184, the average rate
of the season being 171, in 10,000. The rate of
marriage is lowest in winter ; and in the last winter
it was 125, or 16 below the average of that season, so
that the improvement of the prospects of the people
in spring is evident. The agricultural counties of
the south of England, the northern counties and
London, were but slightly affected ; Staffordshire and
Lancashire experienced the greatest degree of de-
pression, but that was not very considerable.

157,149 children were registered in the quarter
that ended on September 30th, or 3,768 less than
the births in the corresponding quarter of the previous
year. The birth-rate was 3,195, or slightly below
the average rate of the season, 3,247.