The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1826-08-08 00:00:00

DUBLIN POLICE.

STEALING A CHILD.
The affection of Irish nurses fur their foster-children, as they are
termed, has been long since recorded as forming a peenliar feature
among the other peculiarities of the natives of this country. The
present easels strikingly illustrative of this feeling.
Cttliarine Hannan was indicted fur maliciously steeling a child
from Catherine Philips, one of the nurses employed by the I. ound-
hng Hospital, The prisoner having no Counsel, Mr. Bethel and
Mr. Finlay were assigned her by the Court, and earlrrted themselves
with rnrch•abillty and good feeling in her defence.
The circumstances that came out in evidence were as follow t
The prisoner had been engaged by the lovernors of the Hospital,
' to wet nurse the child in question, who was a foundling; she had
had the care of it Mr seven years, when it was taken from her, in
July, 1825, rind given to another nurse, Catharine Philips, ot' Dun-
cantown. After the child had been there a short time, the prisoner
and her husband took a journey of twenty miles to see it. some
months after this, Philips came to town with the child, to get the
wages which was due for nursing; the prisoner, who happened to
be in town at the time, met them in Thomas-street, and forcibly
possessing herself of the child, she made off with it, no doubt con-
sidering it the greatest treasure she could have acquired. A young
man who ovitnestied the transaction. knew the prisoner, and the
place she was stopping at, and information being given at the
fuutulling Hospital, search was made for the prisoner and child at
the house in T hem as ..st re et where the former was then residing.'
After carefully examining every part of the house without dis-
covering either nurse or child, the party were about to give up the
search, when they thought they observed through the dormant
windows something moving on toe roof of the house. Search was
accordingly made here, when muse and child were discovered, the
latter with a two-penny loaf in his little list. All the witnesses for
the prosecution admitted the.kindness and affection which the pri-
boner displayed towards the child.
The Learned HECURDEa, in charging the Jury, explained the
provisions 6f the Act under which the indictment was framed, and
informed them, that should they convict the prisoner of the offence
with which she was charged, the judgment of the Court would be
very light. It was quite evident, and given in evidence by the pro-
secutnrs themselves, that no malicious motive could be attributed
to the prisoner, but that she had acted from the feelings cf a kind
and affectionate heart.
The Jury, after consulting for Same time, returned a Ittrtlict of
acquittal.
The iteconDEn, in ordering the prisoner to be discharged,
wished to have it understood, that the Governors of the Fon:idling
Hospital. as the guardians of a great public establishment, kid in-
stituted this prosecution, that it might be generally known, that
when the Governors of the hospital thought it necessary to remove
a chill from the nurse, that curse had no right to possess herself
afterwards of the child. Had the Jury found the prisoner guilty,
it would have made no difference, as the Court, under the circuit:-
stances, would have merely sentenced her to a nominal punish-
ment ; but if' any case of the kint; should again come before him,
after this public notice, the Court would IN; bound to inflict exem-
plary punishment otitthe offender. lie was sorry the Jury had not
found the prisoner guilty. It was the intention of the Court to
have tined her sixpence. The prisoner was then ordered to be
charged, to the great satisfactinn of every person in Court, who
deeply sympathised in the maternal affection of the poor woman.
Mr. LIEN eETT conducted the prosecution.

CORON E RS' 1 NQUESTS.

...L.
CATTIVITI 11U.1.N.-71.11E CONVICT SOIP.--1 OM ship,
which boa heen fined up and stationed at this yard (Devon-
port) for the reception of convicts, is moored about twenty
feet from a jetty head; a brow or swing bridge is fixed on a
swivel and carried from the hulk to the yard„ as 8 passage
to and from the ship which at night is hauled on board, to
cut off all communication with the shore. The hulk is
fitted up with three lush decks, that is, a main, gun and
,orlop deck, each of these are divided into three parts, fore
and aft the ship, by iron railings, leaving die centre or add-
' dle part for a passage about six feet clear; the other coin-
partments on either side the ship are subdivided into hays,
by bulkheads fixed from the floor or deck
,to the beams
aloft, each of which bays are capable of containing twenty
men ; each bay has a door, which when the prisoners are in
is kept locked by the overlookers ; the ports are secured by
iron gratings; the galley where the meat for the convicts
is dressed is under the forecastle, that for the officers on
the upper deck. A commodious chapel is fitted up at the
after part of the ship, where divine worship is performed
by the chaplain, the Rev. Mr. Prowse. There are also
cabins, &c. for the officers, and a dispensary for the
,sur-
geon. The convicts go on shore to work at seven in the
morning and continue till five in the evening, with the ex-
ception of their dinner hour, from twelve to one. As soon as
they come on board they are ordered below to their bays.
During the night each deck is lit by lan' thorns suspended
from the beams, and every preciution is taken to preserve
good order and discipline. Those who are found to be
refractory are punished by confinement in a prison below,
where the light, of heaven cannot visit them. The convicts
are employed in piling timber, and dragging it from one
part of the yard to the other, in tinlo.ading vessels, taking
out and putting in ballast, and in work of that description ;
they are divided into pangs, each gang superintended by a
convict, who, front bearing a good character, is exempted
from work and placed in an office; these ere again directed.
by officers duly appointed by the Government. Each con-
vict has a gyve round one of his. legs, some heavier than
others; they are dressed in a coarse grey clothing. On
Thursday lest Bevel: convicts, most of whom were young
men, joined the bulk.
At about one o'clock on Sunday morning last, the fa-
mily of W. Simonds, Esq., of St. Peter's-street, Win-
chester, being alarmed by the barking of the dogs, in a
yard adjoining the house, Mr. Simonds looked out of win-
dow, and observing a man below, called out,-.-" Who's
there ?" The reply was, " You shall soon know who,
and what we want." On this Mr. S. said, that unless the
man immediately departed he would fire on him, to which
the villain retorted a direct defiance, and, calling to WOW
one in the road, was joined by another man. Hearing
more voices near, Mr. Simonds found there was no time
to lose, and therefore fired a pistol, loaded with ball, .with
as good an aim es the darkness of the night would permit,
towards the spokesman of the gang. The whole itwue-
diately made off, not without one more shot in their rear,
and as afterwards appeared by the condition of the fences,
&c., and a soldier's foreging cap left behind, their retreat
was not a little confused. The cap led to a discovery. By
the prompt assistance of Col. Faunce, seven soldiers of the
tth Regiment, in our gatrison, were discovered to have
been the offenders, amid they will, of course, be punished
with deserved severity. The watchmen were searched for
and called for, during two hours, without effect ; at three
o'clock Mr. Simonds visited the watch-house, which was
just locked, without a single inmate.
The crew of the Falcon, Lord Yarborough's yacht, being
upwards of 70 hands, have given their consent, by signieg
' a document, to the effect that it is necessary, for the cake
of gbod order and discipline, that corporal punishment
`could be inflicted on those who merit it, by their old
'1 the ost-d-nine-tails.

FOUR NRSONSPOISONED.-111111LCiliately after tliuncr on I
Sunday, the three children and maid-servaet of Mr. Dicks,
a fishing-rod and tackle maker, in Bell-yard, Temple-bar,
were at once taken ill, all labouring under the same sensa-
tions, viz. stupor, with great pain and retching. A sus- •
picion arose that their indisposition originated from their
having eaten of a plum pie at dinner, especially as neither •
Mr. or Mrs. Dicks, who had not eaten of it, felt themselves
indisposed. Mr. Jones, a surgeon in Chancery-lane, was
called in, and discovered, upon examination, that there was
something deleterious in the crust. He immediately ap-
plied the proper medicines, and succeeded in placing his
patients, after several hours of excruciating suffering, out
of danger. Mrs. Dicks herself made the crust, the flour of
which was purchased in Bell-yard. Mr. Jones has
taken a part of it for the rurpose of analyzing it.
On Thursday last, two young men, belonging to the
83d regiment, now stationed at Tynemouth barracks, were
unfortunately drowned whilst bathing at the place called
" the Short Sands." It appears to be the custom to take
the men out to bathe every morning, under the inspection
of an officer, and the young men in question (one of whom
was shoemaker to the regiment), had swam some little dis-
tance out, too far, indeed, for their ability to return, as
there was a considerable swell on at the time.
Daaanrur. Acetnli NT.—On Saturday morning, between
eight and nine o'clock, as two children belonging to a gen-
tleman of the name of Swift, residing in Furniial's-lnn-
Court, Holborn, were looking out of the two-pair window,
the iron bar that went across gave way, and the youngest,
a child about five lean old, fell out, and was unfortu-
nately killed on the spot.

NEW RESERVOIR OF TIIE k,sAti
dt.She'
ef,
DaLni
rdOe
oDr 0
xe
WATER WORKS.
On Tuesday an Inquisition wsa held before Joint Milne. Est, \
Coroner, at the Nicholson's Arms. Heaton Norris. Manchester. on The great increase of building in the eastern part of the
viewbe of the belly
ay
molahldordsieFaleatmelemor.f wßhoophwaisiarrpereportedia
atorundwivca.
smetropolis,tratfoni,Boarw, well
v easstinf talitne,aadtjunihinegivdolliangietys of Hackney,
lei; necessary supply water, great exertions have been made
tiered the former reservoir altogether inarletjunaate"lig ren.
kilte Stockport. The ease having caused conorosid:arbalnde .mna
of
tion in the above town and relghbonrhoml, we subjoin a falbstatt-
tive report of the evidence adduced before the C
stage. ground
iged
to
nptrhoicsu
procure
sidesor on re the
on Riverthe
other l:ea
sipee,saantal:hleldJmurey of
ao dthielsalevernl townships of Heaton Norris, Reddish, to remedy the defect. From the difficulty of obtaining
The first person imarnined was James Wilson. of Stockport: hes weer
mnde tent and the other three, and which are united togeder,
stl, that three weeks last Thursday he was in the Black Boy
have excavated two reservoirs, one about eight urea in ex.
that of s
ian
pcostrtraotrrr
ayarowiedth
Fletcher,
nittine.houre in Stockport. between eight and nine o'clock at night,
very irregular form, in Raw Marsh, near Old Ford,
eg4
haarpdersoa
nirll nwr
words about a horse, and were very angry with each other. At and communicate with the former reservoirs and thin; '
length Fletcher snuck Harper. and they immediately began to i engines, by means of an iron aqueduct, three feet ' am
ilheirlstanddrrnykerinagi ntorteleertter,il
tight. Harper seized him by the breast sad threw him backwards I in dia-
on the form, and kept striking him about the face whilst he bad 1 _
, meter, carried across, below the bed of the Lea. By the
him there. No peraon offered to interfere; but examinant 1
taw . lone of the steam engines, the united power of which
is
hold of Harper and pulled him off ; they were then parted. • I equal to that of 230 horses, the water may he raised l',o feet
%Villiam Wyatt, of Heaton Norris. stated that on the night of , above the level of the Lea—and the reserro7m being 10 feet
the 11th of July, he was at the flack Roy public-home, when liar- . dap, it is estimated that they contain at all times :It
prr anal the deceased were fighting. Harper had the advantage, .
to supply the district for 10 day% f the • emu"
and threw Fletcher down on the form, They were separated, and it excavation of the
Fletcher struck at Harper again. Harper then set at Fletcher, reaervoir (which has been under the
superintendence of
threw him down, and struck hint about the face and Left ear whilst Mr. Stevens, the engineer, and of Mr. Wilson) many
he was down. Fletcher seemed quite helpless, rad could not rc- Homan antiquities have been discovered, as swords and
stet. Examinant though! that Harper had no intention of honing . coins; and in the gtavel, about 9or 10 feet blow the tat_
Fletcher, oral was of opinion that be was only defending himself.
!face, were found bones of 1 toms, stags,
Samuel Hardman, the younger, of Stockport, deposed that be Some of . . .goats, and sheen
the stags horns are of great aisle
was present during the altercation between Harper and Fletcher.. "_ , r.
. The lowest
In addition to the facts related by the two preceding witnesses, he , stratum was found to consist of gravel, 18 inches in depth;
stated that Ilarpar did not kick Fletcher ; there was no kicking en above it, is a stratum of peat, two feet in depth ; next is a
either side ; Fletcher, who seemed to be the most drunk, appeared . stratum of clay and peat, mixed together;above which
to he much punished about the face, and bled a great deal.
i a stratum of whitish clay, for two or three feet; and at the
Mr. Ihogden Sled lon, of Stockport, surgeon, stated that ,
surface is e
on the Ilth of July lie was called in to the deceased, and found him common cla i -
in bed complaining of pain on the left side of the ,body. Exami- i On Thursday last, the ceremony of opening the Reim,
mint bled him immediately, and visited him until last Friday I voirs was conducted with great pomp, in the presence of
hut one, when 51r. Joseph Andrews, surgeon, was called in. On an immense concourse of spectators, including a large
Friday examinant was called in again. owing to Mr. Andrews' ab. ! portion of the beauty and fashion of the East. if V
sense, and continued visiting him until his death, which took place ,
the CI •- r• aux,
on Sunday morning last. Oa the same day t
ae body of the de-1 Chairman matte a abort address after which thr
ceaaed was opened by Sir. Edward Lricey, surgeon, in exami- 1 water was admitted, and, during a royal salute, fire boats,
nant's presence, assisted by Mr. Andrews, and the disease which decorated with flags, coritaiaing the Directors, the Officers,
caused his death was found to be situated on the *left aide of the I and their fair friends, praceeded through the Reservoir,
chest ; it might have proceeded !rem a blow or a fall, a pressure or I
, sometimes in line, sometimes abreast ; and also performW
natural disease; the lung.; were not generally healthy. The head I varioue evolutions. A rowing-match then took
wait also opened by Mr. Lacey, but no causes of death appeared. place he-
Mr—Joseph Andrew+, of Cheadle, surgeon, a'atcd that be con- tween two watermen. The Directors, after this, went to
ctirred with the last witness in his opinion as t.) the cause of the old works, on this side of the Lea, and started an en-
Fletcher's death ; he further added that the lunge were diseased, gine of 70 horse power; and concluded the day with an
and such disease would be hastened by any external violence; but elegant entertainment.
he could not positively say whether the deceased died from violence _ -
or from natural disease; there were marks of violence on the left
side.
Upon the above evidence the Jury returned the following verdict :
—" That on the lith of July last a druken scuffle took plate be-
tween the deceased and one Ralph Harper, at the Black Boy pub-
lie-house,in the township of Stockport, and words and blows passed
on both sides; but it is not possible to ascertain, front the evidence
of the surgeons who attended the deceased prior to his death,
whether he died by violence received in such drunken scuffle, or
from natural disease."
On AVedneaday an inquest was taken at Mount Pleasant, near
' Newport, Isle of Wight, before T. SEWF.II.. Esq. Coroner, on
the body of Edward Kirkpatrick, Ent., late of Southampton, who
was unforturatcly drowned in Sandiest:won River on the 22d July
last, when it appeared, from the statement of Mr. F. Coxwell, that
Mr. Kirkpatrick, with Mr.Cnxwell and a boy named John Gandy.
left Southampton, for the Isle of Wight, in a pleasure-boat, caned
the Hope, belonging to Mr. C.; and about two o'clock in the
afternoon, as they were off Ilamble, a sudden gust or squall of
wind laid the boat upon her beam ends, and in an iastant rate was
filled with water. Mr. Coxwell, who was at the helm, succeeded
in righting her, and attempted to ease off the main-sheet, but it
was belayed, and the sail filling on the other tack, the boat began
to sink stern foremost. Mr. Coxwell then jumped into a small
punt towing astern, and cut the painter,. end with much tiiiiict.lty
reached the bowsprit, and to whirl' Mr. Kirkpatrick was ClUlging.
The boy got into the punt ; and Mr. Colwell catching Mr. Kirk-
..et*i—
ck by the villa, of his coat, raised hint in also ; but, frost ex-
F
austian, Mr. Kirkpatrick rolled so the o,ileT side, and the punt
immediately upset, by which all three were thrown into the water,
and Mr. Kirkpatrick unfortunately sunk. The boy was tiken up
ry the Preventive boat from Fawley ; and Mr. Coxwell, who load
an to the stem of the punt, was taken off by a boat from flamble.
The body of Mr. Kirkpatrick was picked up on Tuesday morning,
lay one of the crew of Captain Dore's boat, between Hyde and the
Motherbank, at a distance of nine miles from the spot where the
I fatal accident happened, and after having been under water nine
idays, the time which usually elapses before a body floats. The
Jury returned a verdict of—Accidentally drowned.
On Thursday afternoon hat, between eight and nine o'clock,
John Eyre, a labourer, in the employ of Chandos Leigh, Esq.
t wwastantling near an oak tree, in a field near the Dog Kennel, at
Stoneleigh Abbey, and in the act of patting Ilia coat on. when a
Hash of liesning, attended with insttlat 'bawler, struck him to the
ground, and be immediately expired. The lightniog made an in.
eisision into the bark of the tree, about a foot long, and an inch
wide, aid feet from the earth. At the same ins•art that Eyrt a fell,
a IMO holding the fore-horse of a team, about 20 yards from Eyes,
wu knocked down, and is now confined to Ina bed, complaining of
sickness at his stomach. A labourer, of the name of Claridge, was
within a yard of Lyres when he tell, and received no injury. An
inquest was held on the body ofLyres on Friday. The deceased was
not discoloured; no wound or bruise could be discovered upon hint
and his clothes went untouched. The Jury returned a verdict of—
" Died from the effects of lightning." lie was advanced in years,
and has left an aged wife, but no children.

MARKETS.

CORN EXCHANGE, Mammal', Aro. 7.
Having a better supply than usual of English Wheat this morn.
ing, and the weatf..r bring very favourable for securing the her.
vest. the trade was dull at a decline of Va. to 4a. per quarter on
English, and Is. to 2s. per quarter on Foreign Mrheat, from last
Monday's quotations. There were some samples of new "Vilest at
market this morning, a few of which were very thin. It is vet too
early to form. an accurate opinion of the crop; it is generally
thought to be interior in quality, quantity, and weight, to that of
last year, but to what extent moot be ascertained until the whole
is secured ; some of that already harvested is nearly equal to the
best elan year's growth, but not generally an. There being ray
Little pro'uability of the ports opening for Oats next week, end the
r supply from the coast being very small, an advance of Is. to 2s.
per quarter was generally asked, and in a few instances obtained.
Oats in bond maintain their prices, under an expectation that they
will come in at the low divy in November, but this is very doubt-
ful. The high price of Oats has occasioned a little stir in Barley,
but without much improvement in prices. Peas maintained last
week's prices,and Beans were 2s. per quarter dearer. Linseed
was Is to 2s. per quarter dearer. Lirrseed Cakes also were 10s. to
I.is. per ton dearer. In other articles no material alteration.