The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-02-15 00:00:00

THE BRITISH PRESS.

LAW INTELLIGE.VCE.
COURT OF KING'S BENCH, 31o:wax% Fisa. 14.
Sittings at Niel Prise before the Loan Cater JUSTICE at
Guildhall, and a Commix Jar).
YtAjL v. THODIAs.
Mr. Cast,HELL stated, that this was an action to recover
damages tor certain slanderous language made use of by the de-
fendant, regarding the plaintiff, in the earthy of Foreman of the
Leet Jury, of the manor of Stepney.
Mr. ScaRTETT stated the case. The plaintiff has for two site.
costive years been appointed foreman of the beet Jury of the manor
of Stepney; the duties of the office were of considerable importance,
and the plaintiff wag elected to the office a second time in conse-
quence of the faithful manner in •which he had discharged the
duties of it the first time ; in the course of the business of the jury,
certain tines were received by the foreman of the jury which at the
next Court were accounted for to the Lord of the Manor, which
lines the plaintiff had regularly accounted for. Some party feuds
had existed in the hamlet of Mile-end Old-town„ in which hamlet
both the plaintiff and defendant resided ; a trill for regulating the
parish had been brouglit into Parliament, which bill was supported
by the plaintiff, and opposed by the defendant ; during the pro-
tfreas of the bill, the detendant met a fellow-parishioner (a Mr.
Thompson), and to whom he made use of language regarding the
conduct of the plaintiff, which imputed to him that he had em-
Wailed the tines, received by him as foreman of the Court beet
Jury. The defendant, although since called upon, had refused to
retract or apologize for the words he had uttered, and plaintiff had
therefore been driven to the present action, in justification of his
own character, and the Jury would have to award the damages the
plaintiff was entitled to, the defendant not having ventured to put a
justification on the record.
John Richards Parnell—ls Chief Bailiff of the Manor of Step-
ney. lie produced the rolls of the Manor, which proved that the
plaintiff was foreman of the Leet Jury. Part of the duty of the
Foreman is to receive certain fines, sod account for them to the
witness, which the plaintiff did.
Cross-examined—The Jury impose the fines themselves, and de.
duct what they please for their expencee ; has heard that the Jury
have dined when they are engaged, but does not know that they have
handsome dinners. The witness produced the plaintiff's account,
from which it appeared that the amount received by the Jury for
fines was 121/., and the amount deducted for expenses swallowed
up all that sum except fin, and the expenses far dinners was be-
tween three and four hundred pounds. Witness has no means of
checking the account, but takes it upon the oath of the Foreman.
Re-examined—The office of Juryman is very laborious ; the
manor is very extensive; and to do the dnties of the office properly,
it would occupy a Jorytnan'atirne nearly the whole year.
Mr. Cheeswright is an inhabitant of Mile-end Old Town;
knows the plaintiff and defendant; was present when a Mr.
Thompson met thc defendant in the high-road, on horseback ; the
defendant said that be " hail taken some trouble to inquire into
the abstract of a bill which Mr. Thompson had sent him, and that
it contained a parcel of d—d lies, but he supposed it was the
production of that vagabond Bob Hall (meaning the plaintiff) ; a
pretty fellow lie was, to be Foreman of the Leet Jury for two years,
and never make any return of the money ; it was nothing better
than robbing the public and the poor trades'-people."
The witness was strictly cross-examined, as to what else passed
upon the occasion between Thompson and the defendant, but he
denied that any other words of the least importance transpired.
Mr. Gun is EV for the defendant, addressed the Jury. lie con-
tended first, that the precise words alleged in the declaration, had
rot Wen proved by the witness. If, however, the Jury should
think they were, then a farthing damages would taffy the justice
of the ease. The Learned Gentleman then proceeded to comment
upon the extent of the sum expended by the Jury compared with
that paid over to the Lord of the Manor, and deprecated the whole
conduct of the Leet Jury, who merely imposed these fines for the
purpose of providing themselves with dinners.
Ihe Lunu CHIEF JUSTICE charged the Jury, that if the al-
legation was proved to their satisfaction by the evidence of Chees-
wright, the plaintiff was entitled to their verdict, and be saw no
reason to doubt that the allegation was proved ; perluips.the man-
ner in which the fines alluded to were imposed and received, was
not to be altogether approved of, but the plaintiff was not
to blame, for he only pursued the plan previously laid down
for collecting these fines, and which had peen adopted by all for.
mer Lest Juries. The question of damages was entirely one for
their consideration, and they would form their verdict upon their
opinion of the merits of the case.
The Jury consulted together for a few minutes, and then returned
with a verdict for the plaintiff—Damages 101, costs 40s.

COURT OF COMMON PLEAS, 31oxDAY, FEB. 14.

Sittings afire Hilary.. Term, at Westminster, lsepre Chief Jus-
tice Urn end Common Juries.
This was an action to recover 351. being the amount of an attor-
ney's bilL The defendants were father and son, and the defence.
was, that the son was not liable, as the plaintiff had only been
employal by the father, wbedind subsequently taken the benefit of
the Insolvent Act. Verdieltfue the defendants-
PREROGATIVE COURT.—MorenAY, Fes. 14.
Ii Tilt 00005 0/ endlitsv. sea. PHTLLIPS, Dressiaten.
Dr. Annams said, the lilemped died in October, 1007, leaving
lbw behind hint his widow, what appointed residuary legatee for life ;
the widow has since died, behind her three eons surviving,
the Be,. Robert Phillips, . W. Phillips, and E. Phillips,
who by the will of thee oars sublidtated residuary legatees
in ease of the death of dile riaossr. ?twin was •• considerable
amount of stock, beloagiagla the in ancemed, still standing
on the books of the Plait hi era diainiall's name, and
on the death of the widoarbitssm at 0 to the pro-
perty were granted to the almiessoas one of the Sella had, how-
ever, since become a lunatic, sod a committee had beets appointed,
but there was considerable difficulty in getting passodos of the
stock now lying in the Bank of England, in consommes of this de-
fect in the administration. The learned Counsel bad caused a
search to be made for a precedent to this particular cue, but he bad
not been able to find one, and he therefore prayed that the Court
would older the administration to be brought m by the three
brothers, and then grant it to the two competent administrators.
Sir Joni; Isitcnot.--Will not the Act of Parliament allow the
two brothers and the committee of the third to act ?
Dr. Austaus said, he apprehended not.
Sir Joux hltchoL then ordered that the two brothers and the
committee of the third do bring in the administration, and be would
then grant administration to the two.