The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1826-04-18 00:00:00

THATCHER r. THOMPSON.

This was an action brought by the plaintiff to recover from the
defendant, an accredited agent of the Venezuelan Government, the
amount of • quantity of military equipments and atores, shipped for
the service of that Stare in 1818. ,st the trial before the Lord
Chief Justice in this place, at the sittings after last Hilary Term,
it appeared that two supplies had been' furnished by the plaintiff,
the latter of which had been paid for with an order drawn by the
defendant on the Venezuelan Government, which was duly
honoured. The present action was brought to recover the amount
of the first supply ; and after 111 r. Scarlett had objected that the
transaction was illegal, the Jury found for the plaintiff, under the
direction of the Lord Chief Justice.

aIIr..SCAILETT now moved for a rule to chew cause why a non.
suit should not be entered. on the ground of misdirection in the
Learned Judge who tried the cause, as he told the Jury that it did
not appear the plaintiff knew the first supply was furnished for the
service of a country engaged in war with her mother country. The
Learned Counsel contended that the plaintiff must be aware of that
fact from the payment of the amount of the second supply with an
order on the Venmulan Government, and therefore the present
claim could not be subject matter of investigation in a British
Court of Justice.
The LORD CHIEF JUSTICE read over the whole of the evi-
dence given on the trial, and the Court was unanimously of opi.
nion, that though the plaintiff was aware that the second supply
WAS furnished to a state at war with her mother country, no such
knowledge was proved on his part, as to the supply for which the
present action was brought—Rule refused.
THE BOROUGH OF CA MELFORD.

DOE ON DEMISE OF THE EARL OF DARLINGTON V. TEE
MARQUIS OF lIERTFORD.
-..

This was an retion of ejectment brought by the Earl of Darling.
ton against the Nuble defendant to recover pottscssion of a piece or
parcel of land. containing 41 feet frontage, in the borough of
Camelford. The defendant was assignee of a lease for lives of the
ground in question, which contained a covenant that no waste
should be committed by the tenant to the amount of ten shillings;
and if there should be, and the same was not remedied or paid for
within three calendar months, there was a clause of re-entry. The
breach assigned was the convenion of one tenement into four,
and the erection of three cottages on the site of an ancient bullock
shed.

The Jury found for the plaintiff:
31r. C. t. IWA sts now moved foe a rule to 'thew cause why
a new trial should not be had, and contended that this was not
waste, but improvement.
Mr. Justice BAYLEY observed that the defendant had made
seven votes where there had only been one.
Mr. I %.F.lrt LI. I AMR said he had no doubt that that was the sub-
ject of dispute between these two noble persons, from the very corn-
oendiroui mode of ejectment to which the plaintiff had resorted •
because, finding that these cottages were building. he had taken ad::
vantage of a power reserved in the lease to dig and search for mines
and minerals, and having sunk a shaft near the forge in quo. he
cut an edit under the erections. and with about half a hundred
weight of gunpowder blew the whole into the air. (laughter.)
The Lotto ('titer J ST ICE--Some of us at least are of opinion
that you have laid ground sufficient for a rule to chew cause. In
one sense, waste may be committed by an alteration of the surface,
as, for instance, turning arable land into pasture, so is to destroy
evidence of title; but here the question is, whether actual waste
has been committed to the amount of ten shillings ?
Rule granted.

Mr. Horace Smith has proved, by the production of his
popular Novel of Bramble/ye Horse, that his talent in not confirid
to burlesque and parody, but that his 0/ i,,?;///// vein is no less re.
markable than his imitative. The keen insight into character, a..!
power of depicting it, as manifested in the shove work, witet,-iu tit,
profligate Charles 11. and his Court of Cavaliers and jewelled
dames, revel and make love and are witty, as in actual life, are
scarcely surpassed by any living author ; and, from the complete
success of his first attempt in Novel-writing, we may venture to
predict that the public will be entertained, from time to time, by a
series of works which will do honour to English Literature.
SINGULAR COURAGE.—We have to record sit instance
of female heroism in a servant of Mr. Ridding. the town clerk of
Southampton, that is rarely equalled, arising out of her determined
and successful resistance of two villains, who on Saturday morn-
ing, broke into that gentleman's house. Mr. R. sleeps out of the
town, and there were none hut females in the house. About
two in the morning Eliza Oakley, the female in question, was
awakened by a noise below stairs ; and having alarmed bliss' Rid.
ding, the courageous girl descended to reconnoitre, and arming
herself with two pockets, discovered two men with a lighted candle
in the passage, and the office and cellar doors open. To intimidate
them, she called out the names of Mr. R.'s clerks, as though sum-
moning ale.istance, but this was of no avail, as one of the villains,
telling her that he knew there was no man in the house, began to
ascend the stairs. The girl instantly made several blows at him
with one of the pokers, which he, however. parried widi his aims;
and, ar length, wrenched it from her ht.f.l, and in so doing stag.
gered down the steins. She then threw the other poker at hi n, but
missed him. The other rulian, who had remained in the passage,
now betrayed his fears of detection, and endeavoured to persuade
his companion to go: this he refused, taut again endeavoured to
ascend, but was repulsed by the girl, who had armed herself with
wine pieces of coal from a coal scuttle, lied throwing some large
lumps at him, she kept him at hay, until the villain, observing that
her missiles were nearly expended, again endeavoured to rush up
the siairs,when the girl threw the coal scuttle (a heavy copper sine),
coals and all, at the head of her assailant; the blow took eft ;
he foil backwards down the stairs, and was carried by the other
villain dos n the cellar stairs: by this titne a woodman, who had
been alarmed by the cries of the oilier females from the window, ar-
rived, and after springing his rattle, warred deliberately up to the
cage to procure assistance, on the arrival of which it was discovered
that the thieves had gained an entrance by scaling the garden wail,
forcing open the shutters of the back cellar, anti thug ascending
into the house. In the passage were three coats ready for removal ;
and in the back yard was found a tray, containing the plate. and
some small boxes, taken from the kitchen and laundry, and a con-
eiderable quantity of meat from the larder. A great quantity of
blood wan found on the spot where the fellow fell, and a large piece
of flesh, which had been eat by the scuttle from his face. IV, are
happy to find that the girl is likely to be rewarded for her extraor.
dioary courage by several gentlemen.