The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-12-31 00:00:00

" A FRENCHMAN'S T.READMENT IN GLASGOW,
A PAINFUL CASE."

Under this prominent heading, our contemporary the
Glasgow Daily News, in its publication of Wednesday
last, published a letter from a party signing himself M.
Roubaseb, in which he made certain serion; charges of
maltreatment against the police, which, if found to be
true, would reflect in other terms than those of commen-
dation on the organisation of the force generally. As
many of our readers may not be aware of the contents
or 'airport of this letter, we subjoin a vidimus :—After
alluding in terms of the most complimentary nature to
the brotherly relationship at present existing between
France and Great Britain, and the mutual fellow feeling
which that affection might be expected to produce, the
writer goes on to say that when he was leaving his
residence in Dundee street, on Monday morning last, a
gentleman whom he met asked him to accompany him.
When they had passed a fruit shop, the gentleman, writes
M. Roubasch, " winked at a woman who was in the
shop, and, as the lady answered him by shrugging her
shoulders, he called for some policeman, who-seemed to
have been waiting for him." M. Roubasch was then taken
to the Northern Police Office by the constables, on a charge
of having passed a base sovereign, and, as he says, was on
the way " literallykicked from spot to spot." From thence
he was under the wing of the same parties, transferred
to the Cenral Office, and during his transit thither he
was shackled with the " snitchers," led through the
principal streets, opprobrious epithets and insulting
language were applied to him, and lie was escorted
by
" a large crowd who seemed to enjoy it as sport." On
arriving at the Central Police Office he was "searched, and
also undreesel till quite naked." He was afterwards con-
finA in a cell, and detectives were despatched to search
his home, but nothing occurring either to fix a charge
against him of passing base coin in the above instance, or
having been in the practice of so doing, he was liberated.
M. Roubasch then complained in the above manner, and
as the higher authorities felt that if the allegations were
true there was necessity for an impartial investigation, a
meeting of the Watching and Lighting Committee of
the Municipal Police Board was called on Friday at 12
o'clock, when M. Roubasch was invited to appear
and substantiate the charges he had made. The
members of the committee present were : Mr. Moir
(chairman), Bailie Taylor, River Bailie Webster,
Messrs. Couper, Gemmill, M'Culloch, Cairns, Neil, and
lll‘Lean. M. Roubasch, who was accompanied and advised
by Mr. J. Taylor, writer, entered into a lengthy detail of
the conduct that had been shown him by the police,
re-stating in many points the charge lie had made, but in
others softening them down to a much more unexag-
gerated narrative. In answer to several queries put to
him by members of committee, he stated that he n
the
was
married, but had no children ; he had been i
French army for three years, but having left the service,
he was now engaged as a chiropodist. He further
said that on the present occasion be had been in
Glasgow but a short time, that he had not visited it
for fifteen months previous, and that in the interval he
had resided five months in Edinburgh. He had gone
by the name of Mayers Roubasch, which, in •Hebrew,
corresponded to Martin Roubasch. When being liberated
he said that the former ill•usage to which he was
subjected was turned into kindness and servility, and
that the police were then most obsequious to him.
Two constables of the northern division were then
called and stated the circumstauces under which M.
Roubasch had been given into their custody, and
also denied having used him in the manner alleged. Miss
Johnston, fruiterer, Buchanan street, in whose shop M.
Roubasch was said to have passed the bad sovereign,
stated in evidence that she knew him from having seen
him do former occasions, and that in her own mind,
without saying sopositively, she believed him to be the
party who had defrauded her. Mr. Taylor, agent for
Roubasch, inquired of Miss Johnston whether she would
swear solemnly that this was the man • but Mr. 41-Jean
interfered, saying that the witness had already suffieiently
answered the question in her own way, and that she
would not be allowed to be browbeat. Mrs. Cauley,
fruiterer, Stifling road, stated that when passing Miss
Johnston's shop on the day mentioned, she saw M.
Roubasch standing at the counter, and on scrutinising
him, believed that he was the party who had the same
week attempted to pass a counterfeit half sovereign upon
her. She bad followed him to the police office, and stated
that to the best of her memory and judgment, this was
the identical party. She still was of that opinion.
Some civilians were then called, who corrobonved, in
every particular, the statements of the two constables,
and stated that during the whole transit of M. Roubasch
from the one office to the other, no violence or bad
treatment, either by words or blows, was given him.
Delay on the part of the complainer was then asked for
by his anent and granted, but, as stated in our impression
of Saturday, M. Roubasch was, on leaving, taken into
custody on a more recent and still more distinct charge.
We nudereand also, that there are several parties that
have given their names to the police, who state they can
substantiate other frauds of a similar character which
have been perpetrated by the same individual, and,
therefore, should the ease fail upon the weight of that
upon which he has been examined and committed for
trial, others are in waiting which will render this
extraordinary affair still more tixtraordinary.—Glasgow
Daily Mail.

EXPENSE OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL ESTABLISHMENTS IN
THE INDIES.--No less a sam than .£20,300 was expended
on the ecclesiastical establishments of the West Indies in
the year ended the 31st of March last.
THE VALUE OF HORSES.—Bell's Life says 231 thorough-
bred yearlings have been sold under the hammer this year,
realizing £24,302. The average of the present year is about
105 gs. on 231 sales, whereas the average in 1855 was 117 gs.
on 200 sales, and 137 gs. on 182 in 1854.
THE ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF 7HE
Krco OF
NAPLES.—A Naples correspondent of the Allgemeine Zei
idtung
relates that upon the trial of Agesilao Milano,
the Present
Pianneli asked him whether he had any thing to add to
t had been said for him by his advocate, and the priso-
whaner replied, " I know that to you, and to society, I am
merely an outcast, but my conscience is tranquil. In a few
hours.' shall go do down Into the grave,
Bat I and my fate
here
will
not be mourned by any generous soul. wil
publicly declare myself to be a true Christian, and not an
atheist, as the public accuser has unjustly called me. I
will only ask you this one thing, Mr. President—let the
humble petition of a man who will scarcely see the sun of
another day be presented at the King's feet. My petition
is that the King will visit once the provinces of his king
howdom
and see the misery in which they are pining, and his
subjects are governed there?" As he mounted the scaffold
on the day of his execution, he cried aloud, "Long live
liberty, long live our country!
SINGULAR DEATH OF A CONVICT IN MILLISANK PRISON
West-
.
—On Monday evening, Mr. Bedford, coroner for
minster, held a long inquiry in Millbank Prison, relative to
the death of Elizabeth Taylor, aged 34. Elizabeth Nash,
one of the matrons, deposed that she had charge of the
deceased on the 26th inst., and she then appeared in her
ususl health, eating her breakfast and dinner with a good
appetite. Witness left her at about a quarter to four
o'clock,'and did not see any more of her until she discovered
her the next morning lying dead on her bed in the cell.
There was a quantity of blood on the floor, which appeared
to have flowed from her mouth. r. ailey, p
the hysician
to the prison, said, when he was called B
to see the deceased,
on the morning of the 27th, he found that she had been
dead for several hours. There was about a pint of blood on
the floor, and nearly a quart more in a pan. He had made a
post mortem examination of the body, and was of opinion
that the cause of death was from the bursting of one of the
vessels of the left lung. A verdict in accorance with the
medical testimony was returned.
AN AMERICAN STEAM BATTERY.—The Harbour steam
.battery which has been building at Hoboken for a long
time past, by Mr. Steevens, is being roofed over prepara-
tory for winter, as the work has been suspended, except
onlithe engines. It is still carefully screened from public
view, and visitors are seldom admitted. The original pro-
jector having died, the work is carried forward by a sur.
viving brother. Among the estimates of appropriation by
the United States Government for the ensuing year is
$86,717 for this enterprise. She has been planked
plaup to
nking
the
main deck with iron plates, and amidships the
had been extended several feet higher, for the protection
of the machinery. It is understood that other layers
of plates are added, so as to make a wall at least six
inches in thickness, proof against shot and shell. The
appropriation already made and expended for this obbej en
ect
was 250,000 dollars. In addition a large amount
expended by the builder in the excavation of the dry dock
in which to construct the vessel. The length of this iron
battery is about 400 ft. She will be equipped with a
armament and fnrnaces for heating shot, and be propelled
by steam power at unusual speed. It is asserted that
she might run into any ordinary vessel, and cut her
in two. This work was commenced after' a long series
of experiments, under the supervision of Commander
Stewart aad Colonel Patten, representing the army and
navy, to determine the penetrating power of common
shot upon plates of iron. Their report was satisfactory'
showing that wrought iron plates, 4tinches in thickness,
formed a perfect defence against a solid 64 lb shot, tired
at a distance of ten yards, or' that successive layers of
iron plates, with intervening spaces, were equally effica-
cious. The Secretary of the Navy was soon after
authorised to contract for the work hero noticed. For
harbour defence such a craft as this must prove" highly
efficient, moving about rapidly, choosing its positions at
pleasure, regardless of the most formidable missiles of the
enemy, and hurling its heated shot and other projectiles
in every direction, the havoc committed would be fearful.
The cost of this " infernal machine," complete, has been
estimated at 1,000,000 dollars.--New York Journal 0
Commerce.