The Express.
London, England, 1853-03-17 00:00:00

SIR ALEXANDER COCK BURN AND AIR. WILCOX

DECLARED DULL

When the committee met this morning,
The Chairmen (Mr. H. Herbert) said he wished to in-
form counsel that, after ten days' inquiry, the committee
felt competent to come to a decision upon the caso without
further evidence ; but they had no wish to prevent the
sitting members being called as witnesses if they desired to
be examined.

...
Me. E. James said, as some personal charges had been
made against them, they were desirous of clearing thein•
selves from an imputation in reference to their conduct at
the election.

Sir Alexander Cockburn and Mr. Willcox were then
called, and they both positively denied having been guilty
of al.y corrupt practices, asserting that their positive in-
structions to their agents were that the election should be
contested on the fairest principles.
The room was then cleared, and on the re-admission of
the reporters,
The Chairman said the committee had unanimously come
to the resolution—
.

That Sir Alexander Cockburn and Mr. Willcox were
duly elected for the borough and county of Southampton at
the election in July, 18.52, and that they were of opinion
that there were strong grounds for believing that George
Warren and Samuel Masters, in giving evidence before the
committee, had been guilty of wilful and corrupt perjury,
and that the chairman be directed to move in the house that
the Attorney-General be ordered to prosecute these pa rb1)11
for the said offence."

Mr. Serjeant Kinglake applied for costs on the part of
the sitting members, on the ground that the allegazious in
the petition were vexatious and frivolous.
'the Chairman intimated that the committee entcttaintd
a strong opinion against allowing caste.
Mr. Alexander opposed the application.
The room was cleared, end, after a few minutes' delibera-
tion, the committee said they had come to the resolu.ion
that there was no reason for giving costs in any matter
arising out of the ',resent case.
The committee then broke up.

NEW WINDSOR.
When the committee re-assembled eesterilny,
Mr. Power proceeded to sum up the evidence m, tLe part
of the petitioners against the sitting member, Lord C. W.l-
- Ile submitted, that though the sitting memb:•r
might not have been shown to have been personally cogni-
cant of the acts of bribery and treating alleged, and a bicei
he (the learned counsel) corvended had been faily proved,
yet there could bo nu doubt that those fur whose conduct
the law most justly made the sitting member re,ponsible
were guilty of those acts of illegal treating and bribery. The
learned counsel addressed blase If first to the rises of treat-
ing, which by the 4th and dth Vietoiia, which extends the
time of the statute, the ith William 111., and brings the
act of such treating of voters by any agents of the sitting
member within the meaning of those astute:. and cons -
(Neatly renders the election a void election. The learned
counsel then went through the details of the •minus
acts of treating spoken to by the different witnesses,
pointing out the fact of Mr. Venice, the avowed legal scent
of the sitting member, and his managing clerk (Mender),
being present on different occasions when this treating took

Serjeant Wrangham made an application to the corn-
mittteo to release him from attendance in that room for the
remainder of the day, as he had been uuix•uctedly cull
upon to open the case for the situ: g members before the
Malden committee, the case for the petitioners in tha'
mxtter having come to a much earlier termination than wa,
expected; and OR there was a cross petition, the Maldon
committee insisted on the ease going on without interrup-
tion, it being so near the Easter holidays.
The Chairman, after consulting with the rest of the com-
mittee, and getting an undertaking from Mr. Serjeant
Wrangham that this ease should not extend over Friday,
acceded to the request of tho learned serjeant ; uad Mr.
Power having concluded bi 3 address,
The committee adjourned at half-past one till half-past
11 o'clock this meriting.