The Press.
London, England, 1858-12-18 00:00:00

THE PRESS, DECEMBER 18,1858.

There was an a,tempt at applause, which was in.
stantly suppressed.
The prisoner was ordered to be discharged.

WEATHERLEY, v. THE DUKE OF BEAUFORT.
Mr. Lush and Mr. M. Kerr appeared for Mr.
Weatherley ; Mr. M. Chambers and Mr. G. Somer-
set for the Duke of Beaufort.
Mr. Lush in opening the case for Mr. Weatherley, said
the transaction out of which these actions arose
occurred on Brighton racecourse in August last.
Mr. Weatherly was riding a friend's horse on a por-
tion of the course divided off by ropes, and the Duke
of Beaufort was indulging in an amusement common
on racecourses, consisting of throwing sticks at a
figure with a pipe in its mouth. and trying to strike
the pipe without striking the figure. The duke was
playing very vigorously, and bad struck the pipe out
of the figure's mouth several times. He had a
bludgeon is his hand, and was iu the act of taking
aim when the horse of Mr. Weatherley passed. The
duke struck against the shoulder of the horse. The
horse naturally started a little out of the way. The
duke used an expression not very complimentary to
Mr. Weatherley, and then committed the gross and
unprovoked assault of which damages were sought.
The following witnesses were then examined :
Mr. Thomas White Weatherley : I am the plaintiff
in the first action, and the defendant in the second.
I attended the Brighton races in August last. There
was a person throwing at a black doll with large
sticks, which was the cause of the crowd. I saw a
gap between that gentleman (whom I afterwards
found to be the Duke of Beaufort) and the crowd
who were gathered round him in a circle. I attempted
to walk the horse through the gap, and at the same
moment the duke was in the act of making aim at
the doll. In so doing his shoulder came against my
horse's near shoulder. This caused the horse to go
a few paces. The duke exclaimed, "D— your
eyes, where are you cantering to?" I said, "I am
not cantering," but be did not hear that ; at least I
think so. He then threw the stick which he was
before about to throw at the doll at me, and struck
me on the loins. I was about five or ten feet only
from the doll at the time. The stick was about
eighteen inches long and two inches in diameter. It
was the kind of stick usually employed in the game.
I said, addressing the duke, It is not my fault."
He then threw another stick of the same size at my
head with greater violence. I put up my arm to
ward off the blow, and received a very severe blow
on it. He then picked up another stick of the same
description, and aimed it violently at the near side
of my horse. That caused the horse to be very
restive. I then said, as before, that it was not my
fault, and was about to explain the cause of the
occurrence, when the duke came to my near side,
took my left foot in his hand, and tried to shake it
from the stirrup, which I prevented him doing by
pointing my toe downwards. Finding he failed to do
this, be pulled my leg from the horse's side and
forged me off on the off side. I got on my legs and
walked round to the duke, and asked him bow
could be guilty of such an act. He said, "You d—
tailor, you have no business here; I suppose you
have never crossed a horse before." I said, "I do
not wish to be insulted as well as ill-used. Yon will
oblige me with your name." He said, I'll see you
d— first." My ancle was very much hurt by hang.
ing in the stirrup. My arm was quite stiff, and I
was unable to use it. I had terrible pain between
my legs, in consequence of their being extended so.
This was Mr. Wecherley's case.
Mr. Chambers addressed the jury for the Duke
of Beaufort, and characterized the action as one to
extort money. To show this he read the following
extracts from the " attorney's letter " to the Duke of
Beaufort :
It would almost seem the sport on which your grace was
engaged is rather more becoming the humbler frequenter of
the racecourse—the apprentice than a peer of the realm.
However, ifs peer thinks fit so to beguile his time he must
conduct himself with the same propriety as others, or the
law will reach him as well as a poor man.
In the absence of a full apology, and such an offer to
requite my client for the personal injury and insult shown
to him while unprotected, which, if made, shall be sub-
mitted to him with every desire to atop farther inquiry, if
possible—l have to request your grace will refer me to
your solicitor by return of post, to whom I may send the
usual process.
The Duke of Beaufort was then called and
examined : I was at the last Brighton races. My
carriage was taken inside the ioclusare ; the " Aunt
Sally" was three or four carriages ofE I went and
played at that game. I stood eight or nine yards
from Aunt Sally," the figure to be struck. The
stick produced is very much th 3 same as the one I
used.
To Lord Campbell : The object to be struck is the
tobacco pipes, which is supposed to be the nose.
They gave me four sticks for one bout. I bad
thrown the first one and broken the pipe. I stood
perfectly still, waiting for another pipe to be put in,
when I received simultaneously two violent blows,
one on the right heel and the other on the back of
the head and shoulder. and I was sent forwards a

1235

few yards. I struggled to keep on my legs, but I
think I must have fallen if I had not caught with
one hand the splintetbar of a carriage. I turned
round to see the cause of my being thrmn in this
way, and I perceived a man riding away on a grey
horse. He did not express any regret, or even look
round, and he was going away. I said, " Oh, this
is too bad," and I threw three sticks one after the
other at him. He then turned his horse round, and
rode towards me with his hand up. In his hand
was the crop of a hunting-whip, and I thought he
was going to strike me. To avoid that I seized his
horse by the bridle, jogged his bead up in the air,
and made him rear, and at the same time I laid
hold of Mr. Weatherley's leg, and pushed him off on
the other side, and he alighted on his right leg. He
did not fall, because we looked at each other over
the saddle. That was the first time I saw his face.
I never made use of the expressions he has attri-
buted to me. I then went back to my carriage.

Mr. Henry Dundas Drummond said : I saw the
Duke playing at Aunt Sally. I was not in his com-
pany. I had spoken to him a few minutes before,
and was looking on. I saw him break the pipe, and
then I saw him violently thrown forward by a grey
horse striking him on the back. He was thrown
forward several yards, and I thought he would have
fallen. Mr. Weatherley rode on perfectly unconcerned,
and was firteen yards distant before the duke bad
recovered. The duke threw the three sticks at him
one after the other as quick as possible. Mr.
Weatherley turned round and rode towards the duke
with a stick in his hand 4. He was riding with his
hands up, and reins, stick, and hands all in confu-
sion. I certainly did not see him offer to strike the
duke. The duke took hold of the bridle, jobbed the
horse back, or he might have been ridden over. He
then took hold of Mr. Weatherley's foot, and lifted
him out of the saddle. His legs touched the ground,
he held by the wall, and did not fall. I said," It
serves him right, a tailor, be ought not to be
trusted with a horse," for he had previously nearly
ridden over me. Weatherley said to me, " Sir, you
are adding insult to injury," and I laughed at hi.n.
The stick produced is just like those the duke used
to throw with.

Lord Campbell in summing up, said that the
plaintiff in the first action was entitled to their ver-
dict, and it became a question of damages, upon
which they might take into their consideration how
far the conduct of the duke could be excused or pal-
liated. It was clear that he did throw the three
missiles at Mr. Weatherley, and the plea that be did
so in his own defence entirely failed. The throwing
the missiles was not done in the duke's defence, but
to punish Weatherley for going away without making
an apology. He did not think it was a ease for large
or aggravated damages, nor yet for merely nominal
damages. As to the cross action, although
the Duke of Beaufort did well to defend the
action brought against him, to show that he
had done nothing unbecoming a nobleman and a
gentleman—nothing which could not be pardoned
and forgotten—he might just as well have abstained
from bringing an action against Mr. Weatberley. In
that action the duke charged Mr. Weatherley with
having caused him to be inprisoned. The duke
might have been in what the law regarded as a
state of imprisonment, becauee the policeman said,
" Please to come with me," but that was not the act
of Mr. Weatherley. Mr. Weatberley only wished
to get the name, and never sanctioned what the
policeman did.
The jury, after a short consultation, found a ver-
dict for Mr. Weatherley in the first action, damages
100/.; and for the Duke of Beaufort in the second,
damages one farthing.

Lord Campbell certified for a special jury in both
cases, but refused to certify for costs in the second
action.

THE IMPORTANT CASE OF KEATS V. KEATS AND
MONTEZCESA. was heard in the Coart:of Probate and
Divorce on Saturday. Mr. Keats, who was recently
High Sheriff of London, sought a dissolution of his
marriage with Mrs. Keats, on the ground that she
had committed adultery with a Spanish music teacher
named Don Pedro de Montezuema. The defence set
up was that the conduct of the lady arose mainly
from ill treatment on the part of her husband, and
that he bad forgiven and condoned the offence. At
the conclusion of the learned Judge Ordinary's
summing up, the jury retired, and after some difficulty
and delay, owing to one of the jurymen refusing to
accept the Judge's definition of eondonation, returned
a verdict, finding that Mrs. Keats had committed
adultery with Don Pedro de Montezuema, with da-
mages against the latter of 1,0001., and further that
Mr. Keats had not condoned his wife's offence.
MESSRS. DAVLDSON AND GORDON, colonial brot
of Mincing-lane, applied again for their cert''
the Court of Bankruptcy on 'Wednaed-
evidence was giver. • "Ming, howe
novel or materiai L-arazter.
again adjourned to the P-'

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