The Express.
London, England, 1848-01-12 00:00:00

STATE OF THE COUNTRY.

Two murders of a moat cruel character have been perpe-
trated at Castletown Bache, County Cork. A poor lodging- ,
house keeper, very industrious, and supposed to have some ,
money accumulated, was murdered, together with her niece,
a little girl residing with her. Two men who lodged with ,
the unhappy woman one night last week ate supposed to be
the perpetrators of this atrocity.
An attempt at murder, which happily failed, has been ,
made at Leitrim. Mr. Lauder, an agent under chancery on
the estate of a Mr. Browne, charged his local bailiff with
some commands which he was proceeding to execute,
when be was fired at. The bailiffs name was
Quinn, and a man named Foley was with him at
the time. The Mail, in relating this story, says:
A man dressed in woman's clothes, with his face black-
crud, came up to Quinn and Foley, and desired Foley
to go home, and Quinn to fall upon his knees, until he
should shoat him. Foley immediately commenced shouting ,
murder, and ran away ; but Quinn, although unarmed, ;
bravely refused to comply with the mandate, and seized
stones to throw at the ateassin, who fired at him, but pro-
videntially without effect, although the ball passed close by ,
Quinn's coat, and the wadding lighted upon his shoe.
Quinn, nothing daunted, contiued flinging stones at him, ,
and the bloodthirsty ruffian dared not tire the second pistol ,
he held in his hand. well knowing, from Quinn's courage and
coolness, that should his second shot prove ste ineffectual as
the first, Quinn would have &recited him and handed him
over to justice; such, however, was the dead:y inteit
of the auassin, that when Quinn made him retreat to
the ditch on the roadside, he deliberately pro-
ceeded to reload the pistol he had discharged, in-
tending, no doubt, to fire again at Quinn, at the same time
to retain a loaded pistol to protect him from Quian's arrest.
Quinn seeing him thus preparing for a second attack, went
to an adjoining house, and asked the loan of a gun or pistol,
that he might capture him, which, it is unnecessary to say,
he was refused, the assassin always receiving protection.
When Quinn came out of the house, he saw the ruffian run-
ning away; and thus he escaped through several men wbo
were digging close to the scene of outrage, and never offered
Quinn the least anistance.
THE. LATE "AFFAIR Or HONOUR" AT Coax.—A can
of criminal prosecution, directed, as it was supposed, by the
chief military authorities, for an assault committed by Mr.
Robert Hardy, of Cork, upon Captain B. G. Bunbury, of
the 67th regiment, lately stationed there, was tried nn
Friday, before the Recorder of that city. The proceedings
arose out of circumstances connected with the interruption of
an engagement subsisting between the proeecutor arid &young
lady, the sister of the accused. Captain Bunbury was
examined at great length, and his answers varied the aspect
of the affair very materially from what it had appeared in
the statements before published. He swore that, upon his
representing the consequences, to the happiness of both,
that would ensue from a marriage under the circum-
stances in which the threatened displeasure of his father,
with his own want of fortune, would place them, the lady
herself, at an interview, released him from ell previous en-
g Temente. If she had not, he declared that he was deter-
mined to fulfil his promise of marriage at any ride. Captain
Banbury's demeanour, in giving his evidence, was dirtin-
guished by the utmost delicacy at every reference to the
lady, and regarded as highly honourable. In this respect
his counsel proceeded further, and expressed himself, with
regard to her personal attractions and her dignified feeling
apparent in the transaction, in terms bordering upon enthu-
plasm. According to the instructions of his client, also, he
interposed no technical objection to the defence. As to
the reason for his client's not retaliating upon his
assailant, he observed, it was evident, from the physi-
cal strength of each of the parties, that, had not Captain
• Bunbury been actuated by a spirit of forbearance, he might
have raised Mr. Hardy and dropped him over the side of
the vessel on board of which the assault wascommitted.—
, Evidence was offered to contradict some portions of the
prosecutor's statement relative to conversations ha 1 with the
lady's friends, but the court declined to admit this, as not
relevant to the issue.—The jury found &verdict of Guilty ;
but, as if to show the feeling entertained towards the law in
their country, added that. although guilty in its sight, they
considered Mr. Hardy as justified in every other respect.—
The sentence was postponed to allow affidavits to be put in
in mitigation of the offence. Meanwhile the treveiser, who
was stated to have net yet attained hie majority, entered into
a recognisance to come up for judgment.

SCOTLAND.
EDINBVkOH, JAN. 10.
Paisley pauperism is again a subject of discussion.
The sheriff and magistrates have addressed a stringent
memorial to the parochial boards, representing that
the able-bodied operatives have been in diztrcsa since
Nov. 1846, that upwards of six thousand persons are
at present on the relief list, that the weekly expendi-
ture is above 320!., and that such an outlay can no
longer be provided by subscription.