The Sun.
London, England, 1852-12-16 00:00:00

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.

NORTHERN CIRCUIT—YORK, DEC. 13.
John Hugh -^ CROWN COURT.
Hughes, aged 17, and James Butler, aged 23,
havingwere charged with having committed a highway robbery,
with violence, upon one dward Bowyer, and stealing
from him 19s. 3d. in money and one knife.
Mr.: Price appeared for the prosecution ; the prisoners
were undefended.

It appeared that the prosecutor is the landlord of the
Victoria Hotel, in York ; and on the night of Tuesday,
the 14th of September last, he called at a public-house
called the City Arms, kept by a man named Charles
Gibson; thinking that he should see there some Irishmen
who owed him some money. He. went into the kitchen,
where there were about a dozen men assembled, and sat
down near the door; and whilst there he observed

amongst the men, the prisoners and a boji named Edward
Hardcastle. After staying about three-quarters of an
hour he left the house, and proceeded up Walmgate to-
wards his "own home, but when he got a little way on
his road, opposite a butcher's shop, kept by a man named
King, he wasjostled liy several persons, and his hat was
knocked off, and ran away with. He,. however, proceeded
on until he met a policeman, who returned with him to look
after his hat, which they could not find. Shortly after
they saw in Hotham-lane a dozen men, one of whom
was the prisoner Butler. The boy Hardcastle then
came up, and said he would see the prosecutor home,
and accordingly went with him, but when they arrived
opposite King's shop, in Walmgate, Hughes, and a man
named Masser, came up and said, " That is the chap
that was in Charley Gibson's," and gave him his hat.
They then went up Walmgate, the prosecutor and boy
following, and when they came to an entry, the prisoner
Hughes and Masser told the boy to go on, as they
would see the prosecutor home. The boy then went
away with Masser, and the two prisoners followed the
prosecutor towards his house. When they arrived near
the Spotted Cow public-house, the prosecutor heard foot-
steps behind him, and the prisoners having come up,
Hughes seized his neckerchief and twisted it so as to
strangle him, and prevent him giving an alarm, Butler
then came up and kicked him in the ribs, and brought
him to the ground, and they then rifled his pockets
of 18s., some copper, and a knife. The prosecutor
then said, " You've taken all the money, Tom don't
kill me." Upon which Butler said, " Oh, d—n•him,
he knows you," and commenced kicking him on the
ground, inflicting severe injuries on his face and various
parts of his body, one being a frightful gash under his
right eye. They then left him, and shortly afterwards
he was able to get up and proceed to his house. A
neighbour named Hields, having heard him, helped him
into his house and put him to bed. Hields then en-
deavoured to find out the robbers, and for that purpose
he went the next day to Gibson's public-house, and
having ordered a bottle of ginger beer, purposely broke
the cork into the bottle ; he then asked if any of the
company could lend him a knife to take it out, upon
which Butler took a knife out of his pocket and lent it,
and Hields directly recognized it as being the prose-
cutor's knife. Butler was then given into custody, and
Hughes was subsequently apprehended, when he denied
having been at Gibson's that night.
His lordship having summed up, the jury returned a
verdict of guilty.
His lordship then ordered sentence of death to be
recorded, intimating that their lives would be spared.