The Sun.
London, England, 1864-10-06 00:00:00

Curious Charge of Perjury.

Yesterday the Brighton borough magistrates, consisting
of Mr Brigden (mayor), Mr A. Bigge (stipendiary), Mr
Montagu Scott, Mr Cordy Burrows, and Mr Hollis, were
engaged the whole day in investigating a curious charge of
perjury preferred against a tradesman. The party charged
is Mr Henry Mowbray, auctioneer and estate agent, on the
Grand Parade, and also agent to the Railway Passengers
Insurance Company. The prosecutor is Mr Samuel
Thorncroft, assistant overseer of Brighton, and registrar
of births, marriages, and deaths for St. Peter's district in
that town. It appeared that on the 20th August Mr
Mowbray called on Mr Thorncroft, at the parochial office,
at the b Atom of Church-street, and asked Mr Thorn-
croft to insure with him, and that a conversation ensued,
which resulted in Mr Thorncroft agreeing to insure for £250
the expense of which'would be £l. In payment Mr Thorncroft
dr,,w a cheque on the London and County Bank, and took
from
.f,:y Mowbray a receipt for £l. A few days afterwards,
on looking ,at the counterfoil in his cheque-book, he found a
at the corresponding cheque was £.5, and
memorandum ti
this he immediately corrected to £l, but when he received
his bank book at the euld of the month be found that he
was debited £5 in the name Cr Mowbray. Finding that he
had thus inadvertently drawn s cheque for £5 instead of
£l, he sent for Mr mowbray, and azked:for the restoration
of the £4. Mr Mowbray replied that when Mr Thorncroft
paid him the £1 he said he never drew cheques for so small
an amount as £l, and that he consequently drew a cheque
for £5, receiving from him (Mr Mowbray) the £4 ,balance.
This Mr Thorncroft denied. He declared that he stover
received the £4, and that he said nothing whatever as to
net drawing small cheques. In fact, the very next cheque
that he drew was for £l. The parties being unable to
agNe upon the facts, Mr Thorncroft sued in the county
court fo; the £4 a fortnight since, when both parties
swore to what j 8 mentioned above, Mr Thornoroft support-
ing his version of the transaction by the evidence of Mr
Underwood, the deputy assistant overseer, and a clerk
named Carpenter, both of whom denied that any coin passed
on the occasion in question. The judge of the county court
(Mr Furner) gave a verdict for the plaintiff. Mr Thorn-
croft, ordering the immediate restoration of the £4 by Mr
Mowbray. Since that time Mr:Mowbray had is conversa-
tion charged Mr Thorncroft with perjury; and Mr Thorn-
croft replied by summoning him before the magistrates
and charging the perjury on the other aide. Mr A. T.
Mills, of Brighton, conducted the pi secution; Mr J. G.
Langham, of Uckfield, was engaged for the defence. Mr
Ewen Evershed, the registrar of the county Wirt, and Mr
Woolham, the usher of the court, produced the record of
the case, and gave evidence of the defendant having swprn
that he handed the four sovereigns to Mr Thorncroft.
Mr Thorncroft himself was examined, and having
detailed all the circumstances of the case reiterated his
averment that no money passed. He was cleverly cross-
examined by Mr Longhorn. Mr Underwood and the boy
Carpenter gave evidence in corroboration. They did not
see Mr Mowbray give Mr Thorncroft the four sovereigns,
although they were in a position to see that took place.
Mr Longhorn, in a powerful address, urged that it was far
more probable that Mr Thorneroft's memory failed, than
that Mr Mowbray bad committed deliberate and wilful per-
jury. Mr Mowbray came from Leicester, where he. had
presented him
with a pice of plate. He proposed to ca 1125 witnesses, who
would give him the highest pc ssible character. The m age.
strates, after a sitting of six hours, decided on committing
Mr Mowbray for trial, but admitted him to bail, himself in
£lOO, and two sureties in £5O each.

MADLLE. LINAS MARTONELLE.—This distin-
guished Spanish soprano (who achieved great
success, together with her sister, Madlle. Emma, at the
concerts of th• nobility in London duriag the last season
and also at Barcelona in the spring) is likely, it is said, to
be amongst the debutantes at the Italian opera in Faris it
season.