The Express.
London, England, 1866-03-16 00:00:00

ASSIZE INTELEMBNOIL

HOME CIRCUIT.—M.AmeroNs, MARCH 15.
CROWN BiDl,—(Belfore the Lord Chief Baron.)
John Ilumplrey, 18, a respectable-looking young man,
surrendered to take his trial upon the charge of feloniously
throwing a deg at a train upon the London, Chatham, and
Dover Railway, with intent to injure the passengers tra-
velling by it. He wee also charged with the misdemeanour
of usaultieg Heart Wells, a guard of the train.
Mr. Herniae was instructed to prosecute on behalf of the
company ; Mr. Ribton appeared for the prisoner.
The cimumstarrees of this ease were very remarkable.
The prisoner was in the service of a ration fn the neigh-
bourhood of Bromley ; and it appeared that on the 16th of
December his master told him to takes dog that was about
the premises away, and get rid of it in some way or other.
He appeared at first to have tried to sell the dog, but eonld
not emceed, and be thou endeavoured to give it away, but
was equally unsuccessful, and he then appeared to have
hese struck with the idea of throwing it over ore of the
bridges of the railway upon the line. An express train
Gene up at the moment, and the dog struck against the
glass In front of the guard's van, broke the thick plate
gime of which it was composed, and struck Wells, the
guard, each a violent blew as to render him inseesible for a
considerable time. Fortunately there was another guard in
the carriage, and he did what he could to restore his com-
panion, and the dog was found lying dead at the bottom of
the carriage. There did not seem to be any evidence that
the prisoner had the least intention of sawing mischief, and
it was, oo doubt, merely an act of thoughtleasnem on his
part, which might, however, have been attended with very
serious coesequences.
Mr. Ribton having called his lordship's attention to the
facts of the ease, said that his learned friend who append
for the prosecution felt that the evidence was not eotßrient
to support the charge of felonious intent on the part of the
primmer ; and with regard to the minor charge, be felt that
be could not straggle against a conviction for that °trawl,
and the prisoner would, therefore, pleed guilty to it. He
at the same time reminded his lordship that although the
prisoner bad, no doubt, acted most improperly in throwing
the dog upon the railway, if it had not bees for the extra.
ordinary coincidence of en express train ooming up at the
moment, no mischief whatever would have beau done.
The Lord Chief Baron said—Or if it had been a luggage
train, travelling at the reasonable rate of fifteen miles an
boor, all that would probably have happened would have
been that the dog would have had a journey to London for
nothing. (A Lush.)
Mr. Ribtoe—Ha might, perhaps, have got iota trouble
for riding without a ticket (Renewed laughter.)
The prisoner having pleaded guilty to the indictment,
Several witnesses were then called, who gave him an ex-
cellent character, and
The Lord Chief Baron ordered him to enter into recog-
nissoc.s io small amount to rimier and naive judgment
if he should be milled upon to do so.
MIDLAND CIRCIIIT.—Nommuum, MAacs 15.
Clown Court.—(Before Mr. Justice Keating.)
TES Buenos RIOTS AT ROTTISGRAIL
Thirteen persons surrendered on bail to take their trial
on the *hero of rioting at the late election at Nottleg.
bate, in July 1886. Mr. Berjeant O'Brien appeared for
the prosecution, and Mr. Digby Seymour, Q.C., for the
prisoners. Two affidavits were put in on the part of
the prosecutioe, stating that in the preemie excited state
of the town a fair and impartial trial could sot be ob-
tained ; it was therefore requested that the tried sbeuld be
put off until the summer arises. Mr. Seymour, fee the
defaces, made no objection, and his lordship accordingly
postponed the Vials. One of the rioters, named Mary
Wakefield, was discharged.

SOUTH WALES CIRCIIIT.--SwAiisn,
lima 15.
(Bdore Mr. Justice Blackburn.)

THE MOUNTAIN ASH MTHIJMOL--bENTIFNCS.OI, MATH.

The trial of Adore Coe her the murder of John Davis, at
Mountain tsb, on the 2nd September last, was not eon-
eluded until to-day.
After the despatch of ear parcel yesterday afternoon
seems' witnesses were mansiemd to prove that an are woe
borrowed by the prisoner of one Robert Swan. Swan bin).
self deposed that a day or two before the god September
Cloo had asked him to lend hios his hatchet on the following
Saturday, to cut some rods with, and that he lent it him.
Other Memos. could not speak so positively to the day
when it was borrowed. Whim retorted, the are wee dirty
aid sotebed.
Henry Cooper and Polimaapseiatendent Wren proved
ststeinests made by the prisoner, who, when asked (after
Davis was missing) what be had done with him, said he bad
left him going towards the Dyffron wood (where the body
was found). When in custody he made a stitemest as to
how be had spent the Saturday 'vendee and &today, and
accounted for all his time on the Saturday evening except
about half an hour. The seat piece of evidence wee meet
important ; it was that of
Samuel Brans, who deposed that the prisoner worked for
him three weeks in October. One day the primmer asked
him if he had heard of anybody having been murdered at
Mountain Ash, adding that it wee the talk of the people
there, sod that the murdered =Ws head had been chopped
off. Witness told him be did not believe it,. for that if it
IMP so, there would be something *bout it is the news-
; Papers.
Cromemmined—The prisoner, while working for wheelie,
had been accused of stealing • cape.
Mr. G. Russell, produced the severed skull end
vertebra foiled in the wood user the body, and slated the
reeulte of his examination. He found several severe cuts
io the skull, some of them peeetrating through the skull,
quite through. There were similar cuts in the lower jaw,
• portion of the jaw being sliced off. The blows on the
vertebra most have severed the bead from the body. One
of the vertebra was crushed so as to be indistieguishable.
The hatchet produced was each as insthunest sa would
have caused these wounds.
Dr. Brows corroborated the evidence of the last witness,
and added that he submitted the hatchet to examination,
and found blood in • deep notch in it, but Gould notary
that it was human blood, though he believed it was. It
certanly was Dot the blood of sheep, pig, or cow.
Dr. Hemel* received the hatchet on the Ist of March,
and submitted it to a chemical examination. He toned
no trams of blood superficially, sad cut off sections of she',
wood from the handle under the ring. Some marks on
. them were the result of oxide of iron, bat ethos pretested
traces of clotted blood, and in some cases the woody Mots
wee infiltrated by oolocrisg matter, chained in chars/ter
by the &shoe of water. Be was able ca some of these
sections to trace blood earpuscles. and by the micrometer
to measure their sire. Bet finding suck small traces of
blood he made more extensive sections of the hatchet, im-
mersed them is distilled WOW, and obtaioed a slightly
coloured solstice, which, after filteriog, was ready for
chemical taste and for optical exassioatioe. Be submitted
a portion of it to the action of light. II had nedoubtedly
the properties due to blood. The whams described these
properties, sad came to the opinion that the result which
he observed es a miorosonstio glass was bleed. He would
sot swear it was homes bleed, hat it was his opinion that
it wsa. _ _ .

Tins wee the ease for the move, and—
Mr. Bowen addressed the jorr for the prisoner, Ina
colubatine the widows of Wealthy of the rentaies as
those of Davis, the Maim men, and aususseetieg epee
the weakens of the come thooughoab Thu whole of the
primmer's time on the Saturday evader hid been
accounted for with the ex tire of Isalf.m.bonr. is which
time it was morally impossible that be could have lured
Davis to the wood and reordered him. Be quoted from
. Dr. Taylor's work to show that it wee impossible to distill.
raish human blood from the blood of other animals. sad
made, is conclusion, • powerful appeal to the jary.
It being now seven o'olook his lordship deterred hie sum-
ming up so this moreinr.
His lordship this merging summed up very carefully, and
recapitulated the whole of the evidence. In reference to
the statement made by the prisoner to Samuel Enos about
the 'moat of a mwrder of a man who bad had his bead est
off. ft wee toe the jury to as, whether they meld believe
that Evens had, from any Ashen's' motive. fabriested mob
a story ; wed if tide stetrmest was meek, it wee sot messim-
test with the ptimmer's igeorenos of the murder.
The Jeri retired shortly after twelve o'clock. and were
atoms just over se beer. Oa their relate they prommeed
eke maid et Gssilly.