The Express.
London, England, 1866-08-17 00:00:00

THE EXPRESS, FRIDAY EVET4TING AUGUST

To dmiduLt.

. r

f'4 ASEUE INTELLIaNei.

NORFOLK CIROVIT.-- Irozwim, AUGUST 16.
(Bofors Lord Chid Jura* WI. sad • Specdol Jury.)
Asostna ACTIOZ lel LIBEL. . .

The court during the pest two days has been occupied in
trying the case of " Athill e. Somali "—ea action for libel
%Mut the Norwich Argue.
Mr. Keane, Q. 0., and Mr. C. Cooper appeared for the
plaintiff ; and Mr. O'Malley, qc., and Mr. Evans for the
defendant.
The libel arose out of some very amusing eir-
cminstanoes. The cottage occupied by a Mrs. Lasky,
in Sprowston, has had the reputation of being
haunted. A short time ago a couple, of young men
had been shooting rabbits in the neighbourhood of
Sprowaton, and finding sport rather tame they re-
solved to pay • visit to Mrs. Lingley's ghost. The home
was shut up, but they broke open the window snd fired
their guns into the room, one of them aiming at the
cupboard where the ghost was said to be. Some of the
furniture was damaged. Mrs. Tingley on her return home
gave information to the police, and the plaintiff, who is
deputy chief constable of the Norfolk police force, went to
the spot with two of his men. Next morning he returned
bringing with him the two persons whi had fired into the
hoots, and who were anxious to settle the affair. Mrs.
Lingley, however, now stated that some linen articles
of small value had been stolen, and as tke police
were not satiafied with her story they proceeded by
her pe-misaion (as they said and she denied) to examine
the contents of the box from which the articles had been
taken. A few days afterwards a letter purporting to be
written by Mrs. Ling'ey
.appeared in the Norwich Argue.
of which the defendant is the publishe-. This letter was
the libel complained of, and alleged amongn other things
the, the plaintiff and his men had been •ty of indecent
conduct and langvage while cramining the box above men-
tioned, that the plaintiff had read a bundle of Mrs. Lingley's
letters and "made vest derision of them and of her," that
they had ransacked her chest, and thrown her things
about the floor, and that one of his men bad put on the
lady's chemise.
A plea of justification was on the record, but the plaintiff
himself, the two constables, the ghost-hunters, and anothr-
man who happened to be present when the box was
searched, swore positively that all the statements in the
letter were untrue, and that the search was conducted in
a proper and orderly way.
On the other side Mrs. Lingley was called, and sworeto
all the facts stated in the libel, with some additions, es that
the policeman had asked her which gown the ghost wore on
week days and which on Sundays.
The jury, after an interval of an hour and a half, came
irto court and asked the learned Judge what amount
would carry costs. His lordship told them 40a., on which
they said that they were seven to five. They were then sent
back to consider their verdict. After a further interval o:
two hours they returned with a verdict for the plaintiff
damages, one farthing.

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT.

(Before the Reoorder.)

Joseph Rowe, a stableman, was charged with conspiring,
with another man named Turner, to obtain 1101. from
Colonel Greer, of the 68th Regiment, by false pretences.
Mr. Wood prosecuted, and Mr. Cooper defended the
prisoner.
The prosecutor in the course of July was attracted by
an advertisement published in the Times newspaper an-
nouncing for sale two valuable homes, the property of •
gentleman, which were described as quiet to ride and
drive, and to be perfectly sound. The colonel called at
the address given in the advertisenient, • livery stables in
the Borough ; and on inquiring for the horses so
advertised, the prisoner presented himself and said the
horses belonged to his muter. He asserted that one had been
ridden by • lady and the other bad been regularly hunted
with the Queen's hounds. He added that they were
perfectly souud. The colonel purchased the animals for
1101., and desired them to be sent to the Waterloo Station
to be forwarded to Southsea. He, however, changed his
mind and countermanded the order and told the prisoner
he would call the next morning when he should like to
see his master. He called the next morning with a vete-
rinary surgeon, and was introduced to the confederate
Turner, who had the appearance of an elderly clerical
gentleman, and who gave to the horses the
same character as had Lis supposed servant, the
prisoner. On being examined by the veterinary surgeon
the horses were both discovered to be unsound, one being
spavined and the other a roarer. In the meantime the
pretended owner and his servant (the prisoner) got away,
but the latter was subsequently apprehended.
Mr. Cooper made • humorous address to the jury on the
part of the prisoner, and said the maxim of caveat emptor
applied to the prosecutor, who bad purchased the horses
with his eyes open.
The jury, however, returned a verdict of Guilty, and the
Recorder sentenced the prisoner to eight months' hard
labour in the House of Correction.

aem wissmieloftllve who were told off to prevent the men
from leaving the vesseL When the captain of the Cale-
donjon came on board be asked if any of the men wanted
to go ashore. An hands answered " No." Captain Ellis
then directed witness and the other petty diem to IS
off fifty men, and get them to say that they were
to go to a port in Spain, to fit oat the Mary, of
land. Others were to say that they IMO engaged flee
a " patent slip " in the same poet. Witness bed
forgotten the name of the port. The others were to say
that they were engaged as navvies to work on a railway.
Some chests, which appeared to be arm chests, were
brought on board and the captain (Ms) told the men to
he careful at smoking, es there was ammunition on board.
Mr. Sleigh then ed that the awe should be sent for
trial before the Court of Queen's Bench, pointing out that
the magistrate had power to take that course under the act.
Mr. Poulden, however, urged that the cam ought to be
tried in Kant and a long discussion of a very technical
nature ensued.
Sir Thomas Henry said the ease was unquestionably one
which ought to oto the Queen's Bench, and if be were
to commit the defendants to Maidstone, an application
would be made to a judge in chambers to remove it to the
Queen's Bench. He should commit the prisoners to be
indicted before the grand jury sitting on the first day of
the next term of the sittings of the Court of Queen's Bench
at Westminster.

THE ALLEGED POISOBING OP SEVENTEEN
PERSONS BY A COOK.

Yesterday Mr. J. H. Todd, the coroner for the
County of Banta, resumed the inquiry at the Plough Inn.
lichen Abbas, into the death et Mark Simi aged 90, who
died on the 25th of July under circumstances which gave
rise to very strong suspicion that he had been poisoned-
The facts of this very remarkable case have created
throughout the county, and especially in Winchester and
district, the utmost possible excitement. They may be thus
epitomised : —Mr. John Malcolm Corrie is a gentleman
hying in style at a house called " The Cot-
tage, , ' at lichen Abbas, his establishment consist-
ing of himself, his wife, six daughters, two sons, a
governess, and nine servants. On the 4th of July, at the
early parlour dinner, hot baked veal, cold bacon, potatoes,
and cabbage were served and the servants afterwards par-
took of the same food. Martha Tully, the cook, dressed
and dished up the meat, the kitchenmaid attending to the
vegetables. About twelve hours after, almost the whole
family were taken ill with symptoms of some foreign irri•
tent, causing sickness, purging, pains in the limbs, and
other indications of poison. It further appears that Mrs.
Corrie was in the habit of sending a hot dinner daily to
the grandfather of one of her servants, the old man the
cause of whose death was yesterday under investi-
gation, and on the day in question, the 4th of July, •
portion of the dinner referred to was takento him. He did
not eat it that day, but it was put by to get cold, the
woman who attended to him giving her children the gravy
and vegetables, after eating which they were taken seriously
ill with the same symptoms. On the following day (the
sth of July) old Sims ate the veal, and in the evening
.was
attacked with violent pains in the stomach and vomiting ;
he continued ill for three weeks and then died. Prior,
however, to the death of Sims Mr. Corrie gave the woman
Tully into custody, end she was taken before the
magistrates by Mr. Superintendent Everett, end
charged with administering • deleterious drug, with
intent, ko. She was remanded several times,
and at last discharged from defective evidence.
At the inquest en immense deal of evidence was given
setting out the above facts, and further that the woman
Tully had said she would serve out any one that offended
her. It also appeared that she was under notice to leave.
A great deal of evidence was yesterday taken, and that given
at the previous hearing was read over, in the presence of
the woman Tully, who, after being duly cautioned by the
coroner entered into • long statement as to the manner
in which she had prepared the food, and protested igno-
rance of the presence of any injurious substance.
After some deliberation the jury, through the foreman (Mr.
Thomas Earle), returned the following open verdict:—
' That the deceased, Mark Sims, died from inflammation
and ulceration of the bowels, but whether such inflamma-
tion and ulceration was occasioned by natural causes or
otherwise no conclusive evidence appears.:: The women
' Tully then applied to the coroner for a certificate of
exoneration," but the learned gentleman told her that no
one was accused before him. She had given her evidence
L as a witness, and left the court with her character as un-
tainted as she entered it. The proceedings then termi-
r :rated.

THE EXPECTED ExECITTION AT MANCHESTER.—
The execution of James Burrows, sentenced to death at
the late Manchester Anil," was fixed for Saturday next,
but there is now some doubt thrown upon the arrange-
ment by the discovery of a difficulty. Manchester has
not had much practice in the art of hanging since feudal
times, and is now entirely unprepared for the work. Tho
new gaol erecting behind the Assize Courts is not suf-
ficiently advanoed towards completion to have been
legally constituted a county gaol, and the execution
cannot take place there. The New Bailey prison in Sal-
ford is unsuitable, because it u so hemmed in by other
buildings on three aides that there is no room for the
people who would naturally be attracted to witness the
execution. The most suitable place in this building would
be the angle formed by the junction of New Bailey-street
and Stanley-street, but an objection arises to this from
the fact that the great niass of the population would be
thrown upon the Albert-bridge over the river Irwell, and
there is • doubt u to the strength of the bridge to bear
such an enormous weight. The only other spot is the
south-west angle, at the junction of Stanley-street and
Irwell-street, but • serious obstacle to this 'pot is that
in the event of great pressure loss of life might arise from
the people approaching by liwell-street coining in collision
with those arriving by way of Stanley-street, in the corner
formed by the junction of the streets, neither of them
having a separate outlet. It is said that so strongly has
this view of the case been forced upon the attention of
the county magistrates that • deputation has been sent
down to Liverpool to wait upon the High-sheriff, Sir
Elkanah Armitage, who is at the assizes, with • view to
seeing if some arrangement cannot be made to have
the execution at Kirkdale gaol, where all executions for
the southern division of Lancashire have hitherto taken
place.
THE ATTEMPTED MURDER AND 817ICIMI IN BETH-
NAL-GRlON.—Yesterday. afternoon, Mr. J. Humphreys,
coroner, held an inquiry at the London Hospital relative
to the death of George Moyce, aged 40 years, who com-
mitted suicide after attempting to murder his wife, at 9,
Wellington-street, Bethnal-green, as reported in yester-
day's paper. After hearing • few witnesses, the case was
adjourned, in order that the wife's evidence might be
taken, in the event of her surviving, as to the circum-
stances of the crime and the atateof the deceased's mind at
the time.

--
CHILD MUHDHR.—Dr. E. Lankester, at a recent
inquest, said he had been blamed in many quarters for the
statements he had made respecting the prevalence of
child murder, and was charged by some of the journals as
" a libeller of his countrywomen.' The facts and the de-
ductions therefrom were these :—ln one year be held in-
quests on 80 children found dead in the streets, and he
believed he would be justified in assuming that there was
an equal number of children hidden, and their mime
not discovered. This would be 160 murders in his own
district, while there were two other districts in the metro-
polis, each probably bearing an equal proportion as re-
Forded infanticide. This would make 480 child-murders
in London in one year; but in order to be on the
lowest side, he wauld take it for granted that
the number would be 400 only. The mothers who were
discovered to be guilty of the murders of their chl-
- were found to be on an average 20 years of age ; and,
as the expectancy of life of a young woman of that age
wan 60 years, or 40 years of additional life, he multiplied
the 400 by 40, and the startling deduction was that there
were in London alone 16,000 women who had murdered
their offspring. This was based on the assumption that
the same woman only once imbued her hands in the
blood of the child. But the abominable crime of child
murder now not only included infants newly born—he was
grieved to say it wasextending to childrenof several months
old, and in the latter case he felt convinced there must be
&complied', or at least persons who would min the child,
and who might come forward if they had a chance of giving
evidence.

75071311 IWO COMPENSATION FOS RAILWAY ACCI-
DENTS. —• singular ease, which was not finished in time
for despatch by our Wednesday's Liverpool parcel, was
tried before Baron Martin, at the Liverpool amazes on
that day. The plaintiff was a draper's assistant, named
Bell, and the defendant, a general agent named McEvoy,
both residing in Manchester. The plaintiff, having
suffered by a railway accident on the Great Western Rail-
way II
in June last year, authorised the defendant to obtain
compensation from the company. McEvoy represented
that he could obtain 1,2001., and asked the plaintiff to sell
him his chance of all which he might succeed in getting
from the company over 5001. Subsequently the defendant
stated that he had only been able to obtain 1501., of which
be paid the plaintiff 145/. But it was proved by one of
the company's clerks that McEvoy had actually re-
ceived 3271. in settlement of the claim, and the jury re-
turned a verdict for the plaintiff for 1261. 15s. The learned
judge said he should impound the agreements which had
been obtained from the plaintiff by the defendant, and
that if the railway company wished to have a copy of his
notes of the trial, should they choose to take any action
against the defendant, they might have such a copy.
COLLISION AND SINKING OF • VESSEL IN THE
AVON. —About 12 o'clock on Wednesday night the Taff, a
steam coal barge employed in conveying teals to the
Bristol railways, was coming up the river Avon, and when
opposite the station of the Port and Pier Railway, a short
distance below the Suspension-bridge, she was rust into by
the Anton*, a steamer trading between Bristol and Glas-
gow. The Antona struck the Taff on the bow with such
force as to cut her right in two, and she immediately be-
gan to sink, going down so quickly that the crew had
barely time to get into a boat before she disappeared.
They saved nothing but the clothes which they wore at
the time. The captain of the Antona, it is said, took no
notice of the occurrence, but steamed away on his course
without it . The Taff was insured for 1,2001.
Heweins' mutem.—By an act of parliament
just printed it is provided that after the 30th pray au
hawkers' licenses are to expire on the 31st of Msrok is
each year.