The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1804-09-15 00:00:00

CUTTING AND MAIMING

Milian. Car, egias was capitally inJined
for making an assault on Thomas Dounleday, and
with a sharp instrument striking and cutting him on
his two fore fingers of his left haridi with intent to
disable him.
It appeared that on the I sth of January last a
funeral was ploceeiling down Holborn towards the
Pantheon Chapel, which was attended by the charity
girls. In passing Gray's Inn Lane, the Prisoner in-
sulted the children, and conduCled himself in a very
indecent manner. Some gentlemen, who saw the
transaction, interfered, and assisted the undertaker,
who happened to be a constable also, to take the
Prisoner into custody; he mad:: violent resistance,
and used every effort to make his escape. On
some persons crying out " He's got a knife, take
care of him," the Prosecutot, Doubleday, perceived
the two first fingers of his left hand cut to the bone :
the Prisoner at the same moment was observed to
throw a knife away.
Justice CNANIBIE, in summing up the evidence,
observed, that the Ad of Parliament, on which the
indielment was framed, was a very recent one, and
made the crime, with which the prisoner was
charged, a capital offence. To support the indiA-
ment, it was necessary to satisfy the minds of the
Jury, that the aft was .tone with intent to disable, or
do sortie grievous bodily harm. In the present in-
stance, no such case had been made out, and there
was another error also in the indiftmcnt ; it called
the prosecutor, in one count, by the none of Tho-
mas, and, in the others, by the name of William ;
upon the whole if the case, he thought the Jury
should acquit the prisoner.
He was accordingly emitted, but was remanded,
to be tried for a felony the ma Sessions fir the
colrity if Slimy.

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e'rn.o,;4:nis Iyv

riki T.

A ciraintttance, which we cannot 'this much lament,
caused an inquisition to be held yestcria7 at the
Swan Inn, at Stratford. in Essex, on the holy of
Mr.Josepli Biggs, who died on Wedncsday morning
Mr. .11.sitor, the Coroner, in a very feeling way,
explained to the Jury the cam; thcl were met upon,
and tile case they had to determine, and then pro-
ceeded to call the evidence.
Mr. Islanby, who. three Teats ago, ',erred the of-
fice of High Sheriff of Esser, some time since Wal
instrumental in raisiiig a Corps of Volunteers at
Stratford, who, on tlier bci3g e'mlsodied,cle&S hint
to he their Major. The Corps exercise weekly, on
Thursdays; on the 50th of August,. they had In.ert
out, and about six in the eveninp, were returning
home : the Corps had to pass the Swan Inn, where
the deceased was standing. He was reckoned one
of tire most facetious men in the tosTe, and could
blin..-10. as the coachman's phr: se a rum sink.
lI used some etpref.sionit at which Corporal Smith
took offence, who struck him in the tia ahead with
the butt-end of his musket. The deceased being oh:
viously much hurt, one of his four sr ns in law
sent a cLaisc for Sir William Wizard, who,. on
the first view, declared the patient could not
live long ; the OS frantic was completely fractur-
ed, and so driven in, as to produce a c ineussion
of the brain; the extravasated blood from whirls

would inevitably lodge in the glands, and cause
mortification. The event proved his juigment
for, after languishing under the most excruciating
pain, for thirteen days, he died on Wednesday
morning, without a groan, leaving a son, four
daughters, and fourteen grand children, to lament
his lots. The Jury, under all the circumstances,
brought in a verdia of Alawhiug/icr against Corpo-
ral smith.