The Express.
London, England, 1848-08-16 00:00:00

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.

HOME CIRCUIT.—OVILDFORD, Auo. 16.
Before the Lord Chief Baron and a Common Jury.
SIMUCTION.—COX O. How.—This action was brought by
Elizabeth Cox apnea George lb.:. to recover compensation
tin damages from him, in consequence of the loss of the ser-
vices of her daughter, by reason of his having seduced her.
S. rieant Shee paid that the plaintiff in this action was the
widow of a draper who formerly carried on business at
Newport Pagnel, iu Buckinghamshire, and who died in
1837, leaving his widow and a daughter, Mary Anne, the
subject of the present inquiry, in straitened circumstances.
The daughter carried on the business of a dressmaker, and
by her exertions she contributed materially to the support of
her mother, and by their united efforts they were enabled to
maintain a position of respectability, and, as he was sii•
structed, the family were respected end esteemed by their
neighbours and all who were acquainted with them. It was
while they were in this position that the daughter of the
plaintiff, in the year 184 G, became acquainted, or rather re-
newed an acquaintance, with the defendant, which resulted
in her ruin.
Mary Anne Cox —I am the daughter of Oe plaintiff. I
know the defendant George How. He lives at Milton, near
Newport Puna. in which town I reside with my nether.
I first met the defendant at a ball at the Saracen's Head,
Newport Pagnel, and I danced with him. This was seven
oe eight years ago, and I did not see him again until the be-
ginning of September, 1846. I was going upon an errand in
the evening, and met the defendant in the street. I ant now
27 years old, and :the defendant is about 30. When I saw
him on this ocession he got off his horse and came to me and
said he was happy to see me as he had not seen me so long,
and he wished me to meet him on the following evening ;
but I rather refused him, and we parted. He came by my
mother's house on the following evening, and I went out to
speak to him. I did not tell my mother. I made an
appointment to meet the defendant at the house
of a Mrs. Paybody in the town on the following Wednesday
evening, and 1 and the defendant went out for a walk to-
gether. The defendant professed love for ma on several
occasions, and I met him once or twice a week in the even-
ing, and we used to walk out together, and for some time he
behaved " very gentlemanly." I did not tell my mother of
these meetings, but she knew of them from other people.
The detendant seduced me in March, 1847. When I up-
braided him with his cruelty he said that if I was quiet he
would make me his wife. A short time b. fore I was con-
fined 1 was talking to the defendant about my condition, and
he asked me if I could not " take something," to which I
replied, " George, you surely do not wish me to kill your
child ?" The defendant made no other reply than that hie
pony was waiting and he must be going, anti he rode away.
I was confined with a girl on the 16th February, 1848, and
the child is still alive. The defendant has never contributed
one farthing to the support of the child. At the time in
question I was living with my mother, and amid to perform
the domestic work in the house.—Cross-examined : I am a
dressmaker. I swore the child to How before the magia-
tratte, but they refused to make an order upon him. When
I wee examined upon that occasion I swore that Mrs. Pay-
body had Inard the defendant offer me marriage, but when
she was examined she contradicted my statement.
N.r. Joyce, a silversmith in Newport Pagnel, deposed that
he had known the plaintiff and her daughter for twenty
years, and 'hey always bore a respectable character, and he
never heard any imputation against the daughter.—Oise or
two other witnesses were then examined, who also deposed
to the respectability of the pl dead, and this closed the case
on her behalf.
Mr. Chambers addressed the jury for the defendant. He
alluded to the lotus of the action, and said it was one of such
a character that counsel hardly knew how to deal wi'h it,
and it was in his opinion much to be regretted that as time
had gone on and the ineonven'ence of the pre sent state of
the law hail become 110 manifest, the legislature had not put
the matter upon a proper footing, and established a form of
action by which the party who was really aggrieved might
make a claim fur damages. At present the law was almost
unintelligible. In the first place no action of this kind
could be sustained at all unless it was made out that the
parties stood in the relative position of master and servant,
and when this was done, feelings and affections were allowed
to enter into the matter. The jury, however, were now
called upon to say what damage the plaintiff had sustained.
The young woman, who had been called, had positively
stated that she had never had any other lover than the de-
fendant. In the first place he should submit that this was
very unlikely, but he should positively show them that this
unhappy girl—
The Chief Baron here interfered, and inquired whether
the learned counsel intended to show that the young woman
did not steed in the paladin of servant?—Mr. Chambers
paid he could not do that.—The Chief Baron : Then any evi-
dence with regard to her conduct will be quite immaterial
in the present action. 1 donot see how you can escape from
a verdict for the present plaintiff.—Mr. Chambers said he
must admit that thia difficulty had struck him. The plaintiff
prubabi' most have a verdict u ion the question of loss of
services and expenses —The Chief Baron was of the same
opinion; and therefore it would be quite unnecessary
to occupy the public time, and unueceesarily wound
the feelings of the parties without any object —Mr.
Chambers proceeded : Requite concurred in the observations
of has lordship, and he should therefore merely address him-
self to the facts of the ease as they already appeared in evi-
dence. The learned counsel then proceeded to state that it
appeared plain that the young woman had thrown herself in
the way of the eletendant, and her conduct led to a very
strong inference that he was not the only man with whom
she had been intimate. He MIS sure the jury would not
encourage such an action, for if they did there WAS hardly
a village or a town in the country where young girls chose to
walk out, either with farmers er labourers, on a moonlight
night that would not furnish plenty of similar actions at
every suites. He admitted that the plaintiff must have a
verdict, but he called upon the jury to give her no greater an
amount of damages than would pay for the medical attend-
ance and the actual expenses she had incurred.
The Chief Baron, in summing up, said that he concurred
in many of the observations of the learned counsel with re-
ared to the nature of actions of this description, and he said
that if he bad to write a panegyric upon the law, this was
certainly not the particular part of it which he should chime*
as the theme for praise. No doubt the origin of the law was
to give • master a remedy when he sustained an injury by
his servant being enticed away from bim, or it any one
wounded a man's servant he might bring an action for the
loss of his uremia. The present form of action had no doubt
seise % out of that -tate of things, and the law held that da-
mages might be given commensurate with the injury that had
been inflicted upon the teelings of the party. The learnedjudge
then alluded to the circumstances of the case, and said that
it did not appear to be anything like a case of deliberate
seduction—no hospitality Lad been violated—and it appeared
to be merely an exhibition of profligate morals on both sides.
The learned judge concluded by stating that it was the duty
of the jury to look at all the circumstances of the case, and,
having done so, to say by their verdict what amount of in-
jury they considered the plaintiff had sustained.
The jury, alter a very short deliberation, returned a ver-
dict for the plaintiff—Damages, 201.

NORTHERN CIRCUIT.—LANCAStEII, Aco. 14.
Before Mr. Justice Comorell.
LAIICASMIRB FIGHTINO.—R. Cotterell, 29, was charged
with killing and slaying J. Duckworth, at P reston.—lt
appeared in evidence that, on the evening of the 26th April
last, the deceased and • man named Townley, were
drinking at a public-house in Preston. They eventually
quarrelled, and Duckworth challenged Townley to tight.
Townley accepted the chalienge and they adjourned to
the yard for that purpose.--ootterell then came up,
and on learning what was going forward, told Townley
he would tight Duckworth for him. Duckworth, after some
demur, consented to this arrangement. Atter squaring for a
' few seconds at each ether, Cotterell caught Duckworth by the
thigh, and raising him partially from the ground, ran down
an adjoining slope with him, when they both fell, Duckworth
undermost, heavily against the stone edge of a channel.
On being taken up he exclaimed, " I am a dead man l" and
expired soon atterwarda—Mr. Holden, surgeon, of Preston,
who made • poalmorfern examination of deceased, deposed
that the cause of death was an effusion of blood on the liver,
occasioned by the fracture of four rib. on the left aide, two
of which had penetrated the liver. In croeteximin;tion,
the witness stated that Duckworth's body, independent of the
fracture and effusion, w../ in • very diseased state, so that a
slighter injury than one inflicted on a person ins rod general
state of heath would have produced death.—Thejtu7 having
found the prisoner Guilty, Mr. Justice Creswell said that as
the prisoner did not appear to have been the &avatar, the
court was disposed to deal nacre leniently with him than would
otherwise have bean the case. He was then sentenced to a
month's imprisonment with hard labour in Preston house et
correction.—Duckworth was formerly a noted price-fighter, '
and a poison of very quarrelsome disposition.
CHAEOZ OP EKBEZZLEMIDIT AGAINST A POITMAN.—
J. Bickersto,ire, 26, wu charged with having, at Thurn.
embeeat d a post letter, he being in the employment
of the pose.cdfiee. The prisoner acted sa postusaff between
Lancaster end mason. In July last David Lund, a joar•
neyman blockmaker, N7orking at the latter place, and Who
was in the habit of ;lending money through the po't
to Mary Shandley, a married sitter at Liverpool.
gave Mrs. smith, the le e of the Gleason Pltd
muter, 11. Oa. 4d., for the pgrPowc procuring a poet