The National Register.
London, England, 1812-09-20 00:00:00

SEPT. CO.

fen .atiL was his only son, and as appeared from the statement of the
proseeutor, had been an extremely extravagant and wild young man.
The prosecutor's wife, the mother of the defendant, had been dead up-
wards of twelve years, having died of an abcess in the side. In conse-
quence of the prosecutor having refused to continue to supply the de-
fendant with money to support his extravagance, he had accused his
father, both by word of mouth and by, letter, with having murdered
his mother, and the letters containing the accusation in question were
time libel complained of. These letters were put in and read, hut
owing to a clerical error, in stating the libel on the record, the Learned
Chairman directed the Jury to acquit the defendant.
He w.s then put to the bar on an indictment, charging him with an
assault upon his father, who is upwards of 66 years of age, on the
`2llth of May last. This assault was proved by the evidence of the
prosecutor, corroborated by. that of a gentleman named Herbert, who
went up to the spot where it was committed, (a stable-yard in W bite-
diaper/ and saw the prosecutor on the pound, and the defendant
beatine, him with a mop-handle.
Tice defendant denied haviug ever struck his father, who, he de-
clared solemnly, lead murdered his mother, and that he had seen him
perpetrate the horrid' deed, not content with that, but he had since
tried to injure the defendant's innocent et-spring, a little girl about nine
years of age, who was standing by the side of her father.
The prosecutor said, so far from having injured the child in question,
she was mind. r his protection till the defendant came and took her away
by force ; a son of the defendant's was at boarding school, where the
prosccut4r supported him, and he had left each of the children 501. a
year in his will. The Jury found the defendant guilty, and the Court
:,chienccd to be imprisoned for one year in the House of Correc-
tion, and at the exp ra'ion ut' that film, to find security for his pod
bJuiviour fur two )ears.

OLD BAILEY.

Werinesday these Sessions were opened by the Right Hen. the Lord ;1
l‘layor, Mr. justice Heath, Mr. Justice Bailey, Mr. Justice Gibbs, .!
the Recorder, Aldermen, and other City Officers.
Thomas Cutter, a youth of about IS years of age, was indicted for
cutting and maiming.
John Hedges, an o!ci man, between 70 and SO years of age, deposed,
that he rents a garden at Hampstead, and on the 6th of July last, about
ten o'clock at night, he observed the prisoner who'n he had known
a, a labourer about four years) among his cucumbers in his garden.
He spohe..to him, but received no answer, and ran away. Prosecutor
then ran after and caught him upon the paling, just as he was getting
over into the adjacent garden. The prisoner would not speak for
some tone, a•ici the prosecutor perceived raw hing about him ; at last,
however, he drew a large clasp knife, and cut the sinews of his right
hand in two places, cut him also in the head, and made a cut at hiip
throat, w.nen he efrected his escape.
A singe, n attended, and dressed his ;Mr. Hedges') wounds, and the
prisoner %vas apprehernletr at his mother's house, where he pretended
to be asleep, with his tread on a table. He at first denied a knowledge
of the transaction, but being told he had better try to settle it with
Mr. Hedges, he confessed the whole, and seemed desirous of settling
it. On his being searched the knife was found in his pocket, covered
with blood. A surgeon swore to the state of the wounds; but it
appearing that Mr. Hedges struck the prisoner with a sti,ilt before
lie received them, the Learned Judge observed, that the (Vence,
however atrocious, did not come within the meaning of tire Act
of
Parliament, and tine prisoner was consequently discharged.
Thursday, James Hunter was put to the bar, on a charge of stealing
one pair of stp,es, of the value of five shillings, privately, in the shop
of Thomas Matt hew Redaway.
Mr. Redaway is a shoemaker living in the Strand, and on the after-
noon of the day stated in the indict rnent, the prisoner, together with
two other persons, went to his shop to buy shoes, and shortly after
they had departed he missed the shoes in question. He was appre•
hended a little atter, and the shoes were found upon his feet ; he was
immediately conveyed before the Sitting Magistrates at Bow.street,
and instantly recognized as the sailor who had been all the previous
night in custody for having thrown a dog from the one shilling gallery
of Covent-garden Theatre into the pit, and who had been liberated out
of mercy.
The case was fully proved, and the prisoner being called upon for
his defence, disavowed all knowledge of the shoes as to what means
he had come possessed of them ; saying he had been but two days in
Lon:lon at the tone he was apprehended, and that he had been kept
drinking by the women, who were with him the whole time, and that
he knew not what he had been doing no more than the child unborn ;
he served his Majesty and his country on board the Victorians, in
several cngagemennts, anti at that moment had a ball lodged in his
hack, that could never be extracted. The reason of his being then
in London was, that he obteined leave of absence to see some fiends,
and that it his Captain and his messmates knew where he then was,
they would one and all give hint a good character ; that during eight
years he had served in the Victorious ire had never had a blemish of
any kind against hire, but fairly did his duty.
The Court enquired of the officer who had apprehended him Nch--
ther
he WAS sober or otherwise at the time ? The olticer answered,