The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1805-09-20 00:00:00

NCRIIIMBEALdIott) AlsIzES.

TR/ KING V. Till 11/HABITANTS dr CROCUS'S
This was an indielment against the inhabkaste of
Crookam, for suffering the body of William Darin
Who died a violent death, to he buried without a
Coronet's Inquest. The law throws the bUrthen
upon the hundred where a man diesby violence, and
is buried without the Coroner's Inquest. It appear-
ed, from the statement of Counsel tor the Prosecution,
that, ih November, 1801, the deceased, together
with some others, went into the country to get some
smuggled gin ; and, Alter having obtained their ob-
jeet, their return they met some Excise Officers
and soldiers, and the deceased met with his death in
the struggle that ensued.
The first witness, John Hewnrth, of Coldstream,
in Scotland, stated, that in the latter end of 181a1,
he and seven others, with Wm. Dover, the deemed,
went to North Sunderland to get gin. He said, " we
returned on the same night ; and on our return
were met by Excise Officers and soldiers, who fired
at us. I did not see William Dover fall, but we
reckoned W. Dover was shot. He appeared to be
shot in the leg. I saw the wound, when I was at
Bemborongh. After the first fire, we surrendered
the horses and cargo. The deceased, on the follow-
ing day, went home to Crookam, and died. After he
received his wound, I told his wife, and the people
of Crookam, what had happened. This happened
be&we his death, and I have heard the people of
O'ookam talking about it."
Upon his cress-examination, by Mr. RSilit, he
said, they had not any smuggled salt at that time. He
beard the deceased say he was hurt, befote he got to
Bamborough.
George Thompson stated, that be did, in the lat-
ter end of 1801, see a party of custom-house officers
and soldiers, who had William Dover in custody at
Bamborough, and they wanted to send him home.
" I then proposed, if they would give me money, I
would go with him, as I had a horse of my own. I
could not get him on to the horse, without the assist-
ance of two men. When we got to Belford, he said,
he could go no fun her for pain; I, therefore, stopped
with him about an hour. We then proceeded, but
not before I had seen the wound, and a poultice ap-
plied t it.
Eleanor Dover, the widow of the deceased, prov-
ed his death, and that it was known to every body
in Crookam, that he had died of the wound he had
received.
Mr. Andrew Scot, surgeon, attended the deceas-
ed, asd descnbed the wound to be between the bone
and the teed° not quite through, which
appeared to be done by a sharp instrument. He
said, he slapped the hemorrhage, and was quite sure
the wound was the cause of his death, on tile 2.1 of
December, 1801.
Mr. Lindsay stated, that he and Mr. Scott were
Coroners at that time for the county. and that he had
never been applied to by the township of Crookam,
as to the deceased's death, and, he believed, Mr.
Scott had never been applied to.
Mr. RAMS stated this case to be a new experiment
in law, that the Coroners might get something more
into their pockets.
Here the case ended.
The Juoo it said to the Jury, that this was an indiet-
merit for a nigleet of public duty, and, AI he under-
stood, brought forward At the insulation of some of
the Magistrates for the county, to decide an obso-
lete question of the law; but his Lordship wished
they had waited for a stronger case, for it was evi-
dent that the soldiers were justified in what they
had done, and, therefore, there was scarce any
question necessary to ask how the deceased had come
by his death. Verdict—Net Gritty.
Jabs CherUom was charged with manslaughter, in
killing Thomas lludson, jun.
The circumstances of the case were as follow :
The Prisoner was a boy about 14 years of age,
the son of Forster Charleton, Esq. of Alndike,
near Alnvrick, and Payments of the Northumber-
land Militia. The .weased, a youth about 10 years
of age, and son of Thomas Hudson, of the same
place, labourer. The Prisoner had gone with a
fowling-piece in his hand, on the forenoon of the
15th ..f September last, to the house of one Jobson,
in Alemouth, about four miles distant from Ala-
dike, and asked his son, John Jobson, about 12 years
of age, to go asshooting ; they both went, accom-
panied by James Smith, and another boy, to Ale-
mouth sands, and, during the time they were there,
fired several times at see-galls. Between two and
three o'clock in the afternoon, the Prisoner went
again to Jobvin's house,with the same boys, and then
went a shooting to the same place. On their road
to the sea-side, they were joined by a sailor, and
when they had got there, the Prisoner bathed; and it
raining at the same time, Jobsou took the guu, and
covered the lock from the rain, and carried it to the
bathing-house. When the Prisoner bathed, he took
the gun, and all four went up the links, and Prisoner
iies4 at some see-gulls. After they,pame down
from Oscine, Smith fired a Jobson's he l, which an-
other boy, of the name of Smart, put upon the mind.
The sailor got the gun to shoot rabbits. The Pri-
soner, Smith, and Johann, remained on the sand for
some time, when the Prisoner Went and got the gun
Ire n the sailor, and e ime to the place where Jobson.
Smith, and deceased were sitting. Prisoner asked
the deceased (who was tending his father's cattle
1 on the links), whether there were any stints (a small
sea-bird) in the Howkiln ? to which the deceased
answered "Yes." They then went to the How-
kiln, and the deceased called after them, that he
would go there, and raise up the stints, which they
forbid him to do. However, he went along the
links, till he reached a place where a small bank in-
tervened, by which only the upper part of his body
was seen, being at the distance of thirty yards from
the Prisoner. In this position, the deceased held up
his bat, and cried,--" Can you hit that?" on which
the Prisoner immediately put the gun to his shoul-
der, and it went off; the deceased fell at the same
time, an I he immediately got en again, and ran
about 100 yards, when he again fell; by this times
the boys had reached him, the Prisoner raised him
up, and appeared much concerned ; the other boys
went to Alemouth, to tell what had happened. The
bey was carried home, and attended by a physician
and surgeon ; but, notwithst .riding thi. medical as-
sistance, he expired four days after the accident
happened.
The evidence on the part of the Prosecution nor-
. I roborated th.se fads, and further stated, that the