The Sun.
London, England, 1864-09-17 00:00:00

The Extraordinary Charge.

Last evening, after the ordinary business of the day had
been disposed of by the Hon. G. C. Norton at Lambeth
Police-court, Mr Edward Hammond and Sarah Allen, his
servant, who had been before his worship the previous day,
surrendered to their recognizances. It will be recollected
that Mr Hammond was charged with a misdemeanour in
having kept his wife confined for two years in her bedroom,
to the great injury of her health; and that Sarah Allen
was charged with having assaulted her mistress. On Mrs
Hammond entering the court the improvement in her ap-
pearance since Thursday was a subject of general remark.
i‘lr E. T. E. Besley, of the Home Circuit (and not Mr
Beasley, as stated by mistake) appeared, as before, for the
prosecution, and Mr Neale for the defence.
Mr Besley, addressing the magistrate, said—Sir, at the
close of the examination of the unfortunate lady yesterday,
which lasted for a considerable time, ono or two questions
arose, and a different issue had been raised on the part of
the husband, Mr Hammond, that the lady was of unsound
mind. I beg, however, to call to the recollection of your
worship the opinion you were pleased to express of close rea-
soning, her unimpaired memory, and the lucid detail in
which she gave a narrative of the wrongs she had sustained.
Her sanity, however, having bean brought in question, I
felt it was my duty, as the adviser of those who have insti-
tuted these proceedings, to request that they would allow a
medical gentleman to see Mrs Hammond. Dr Sewell, now
premat, has had a long interview with her, and I will at
once place him in the box, in order that you may hear his
opinion of the soundness of the unfortunate lady's intellect.

Dr Charles Brader Sewell, of 76, Guildford-atreet, Rus-
sell-square, was then sworn, and described himself as a
member of the College of Surgeons and a Doctor of Medi-
cine of the University of London. Ho had been in practice
since IS6I, and since that time had been in the daily habit
cf attending. patients.
Mr Norton—DJ you mean patients mentally effected ?
Witness—Generally. I have not directed my attention
entirely to those c tses.
By Mr Beslev—Dr Sewell, did you attend Mrs Ham-
mond yesterday ?—I received a note last night, and saw her
this morning.

Was7that at the request of;her sister's husband ?—Yes
it was at the request of Mr Morgan.
How long was the interview you had with Mrs Ham-
mond ?—About an hour,

Did you make an external examination of her body ?—I
did.

Generally speaking, in what state was her body 2—Very
much emaciated, but not unhealthy.
That is a relative term. Can you give me some idea ?
Have you seen patients as much emaciated P—At the
termination of a fever is the nearest I can give to a
professional person; but I cannot give any nearer appear-
ance to a non-professional person than that she was very
much emaciated. The muscles showed out very distinctly,
showing great emaciation.
You have used the expression, "at the end of a fever."
What kind of fever ?—A continu-ms fever.

Supposing a patient is attacked with fever for some weeks,
is that what you mean P—Yes ; I only use it as an illustra-
tion.

Supposing a person was attacked with fever and had to
submit to the treatment necessary for several weeks, would
a patient in such circumstances be in the same state as Mrs
Hammond P—Yes.

You are probably aware that it has been proved before
the magistrate that Lhe was kept from September, 1862, to
May, 1863, in a place called Lanark-house, and then
removed to the horn.) in Ahich she was found yesterday in
May, 1863, and during the whole of that time kept locked
up in a single room. Is her appearance consistent
with that ?—I had no notice of that before I started to see
her. My only know edge was what I obtained through the
newspapers, and having read that I should say that her ema-
ciated state does correspond exactly with such a state of
things as her having been confined during that time.
Mr Norton--Would such a confinement produce such a
result ?
Witness—Yes.

Mr Besley—ls there anything else you would wish to add
as regards the external appearance of the patient ? Not with
regard to the external appearance.
Were her physical powers lowered by the emaciation?
Had she the corporeal power of moving about ? That I had
no opporl unity of seeing, as she was in bed ; but I saw her
moving about just now. There was no necessity for testing
any physical power.

Now, as to her mental power. Did you converse with her
for a length of time ? Yes, I conversed with her during the
whole time of my being there.
With the view of testing her mental powers P—Yes.
Mr Norton—Will you be kind enough to give the result ?
—The result was, that I could detect no indication what-
ever of any want of mental powe r. Her answers were
delivered coherently, and nothing indicative of loss of
memory or mind presented itself.

Mr Norton—Of what order do you consider her intellec-
tual faculties to be, so far as you have had an opportunity
of judging ?—I should say she has intellect of a very high
order.

By Mr Besley—Would such treatment as has been
proved before the magistrate, confining her against her will
in a single room for two whole years, without admitting
her to take air and exercise, be likely to injure her health,
and produce her present wretched appearance P—Yes ; such
a state of things would injure anybody.
Mr Neale declined to cross-examine this witness.
Police-constable John Spinks, 65 L, deposed that on going
to serve the warrant on Thursday morning he was accom-
panied by Mr Morgan, her brother in law, and the solicitor
of Mrs. Hammond. On approaching the house ho found the
outer gate locked, but got over it, and the solicitor knocked
at the front door, but nobody answered it, though ha had
seen the female defendant Allen at one of the upstairs win-
dows. lie at the same time got into the kitchen, and saw
Allen aied another woman, Emily Wakeman there. He
asked them where Mr Hammond was, and they said in the
garden, They all three went there to him, and the solicitor
said he wanted to see Mrs Hammond. Mr Hammond said
" You cannot see her, for she is in bed." The solicitor said
ho was sure he could see her, for he had observed her at
the window only a moment before. He was not aware
that Mr Hammond made any reply, but ho demanded that
he should see Mrs Hammond, and Mr Hammond said "Oh,
yes, you may see her." When they got into the room
Allen was by the side of the bid, and appeared to be trying
to prop her mibtress up by pulling clothes over her. The
bedroom was on the ground floor of what appeared to be a
wing of the house, and was very meanly furnished. There
was a small iron bedstead ; the bed and bedclothes were
very old and bad, and much stained. The bedstead appeared
to be mended in two or three places, and the smell of the
place was most offmsive and loathsome.

Air Norton—Did the room seem comfortubly furnished;

Witness—No; quite the reverse. The things were of
such a description that I would not have them myself if
they were given to me.
In answer to further questions the witness said that
while bringing Mr Hammond to this court in a cab he said,
addressing Allen, who was in the vahicle with him, that he
put his wife in the room for his own safety ; that he was
afraid to live with her, because he found knives under her
pillow. He was very glad to get rid of her, for, indepen-
dently of finding the knives, she had threatened to murder
him. He said he had never seen her while she had been in
the room, for that he was afraid of her ; that he kept Allen
wholly to attend on her; that he was very glad she was
gone, as she had been a great trouble to him, and as they
had taken her away they might keep her; he should never
receive her again.
Nothing was elicited in cross-examination.
This concluded the examination, and Mr Bosley applied
for a summons against Emily Wakeman for the assault on
Mrs Hammond, and the case was adjourned to next week,
Mr Hammond and his servant being admitted to bail in the
interim. It may be added that prior to Dr Sewell leaving
the court he was bound over to appear and give evidence
against the prisoners at the next Surrey Sessions.

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

TIMEB.—The last reports of General Sherman's
movements before Atlanta were so confused that
they required the explanation now received by the
China to be intelligible. The town was stated to
be in the possession of the Federal forces, but no-
thing was known of any assault on the place. It
now appears that Atlanta has been abandoned by
the Confederate commander, under circumstances
which considerably diminish the weight of the
blow, if it had been struck sooner, or the town
taken by a sudden attack. It has been so long
threatened that General Hood has had time to pre•
pare for its surrender with the least possible loss.
For a period that may be almost reckoned by weeks,
the Southerners have probably seen the danger im-
pending. Atlanta was an important depot of sup-
lies and stores of all kinds, and, being the point of
juncture of four railroads, of which three run east
and south, could be drawn upon for materiel by
widely separated armies. It was, beyond question,
an important position to the Confederates, but per.
haps less capable of long defence than Richmond.
At all events, the fortune of war has favoured Gee
neral Sherman with a success denied to General
Grant, despite the enormous sacrifice of life he has
incurred during his long campaign. But still this
success is qualified. The Federals hoped, and
might fairly calculate, that Atlanta would fall into
their hands with all its magazines well furnished.
But while the defence was protracted, General
Hood, who must have had strong reasons for the
measure, was removing the supplies of every kind,
or destroying all he could not send away. He then
blew up the works, and retired from the city,leays
ing only 14 cannon to fall into the hands of his op-
ponents. In w hat direction he has retired and
whither he has conveyed his stores is not known.
The details of the operation that compelled the
abandonment of the town are clearly described.
Sherman, whose force was posted to the north of
Atlanta on the 30th of August, had probably dis-
covered that it was not easily assailable from that
direction. He therefore made a sweep round it, just
as Grant has several times moved in successive
curves round Richmond. Sherman's detour brought
him by the west side of Atlanta, a little to the south
of it. Crossing the line of railroad to West Point,
and leaving it 'behind him, he pressed on due east,
to Jonesborough, a station on the Macon Railway,
a few miles more southward. At Jonesborough the
Confederates held some works, from which they
were dislodged, after a sharp engagement, attended
by considerable loss on both sides. But this advan-
tage was evident on the side of the Federals, as they
were, by the result of the battle, enabled to place
their army between Macon and Atlanta, an opera,.
tion which seems to have compelled General Hood
to the final measure of evacuating the town. On
the 2d of September the Federals occupied it, but
in a thoroughly dismantled condition. The posses-
sion of Atlanta is hailed by the North as a great
success, and a heavy blow to "the rebellion." An
important position has passed into the hands of the
Federals, not by a direct attack, but as the result of
an engagement in its vicinity. Compared with the
great battles of the war, the action at Jonesborough
is little more than a skirmish. Yet it has been more
decisive in effect than all the fighting and bloodshed
of Grant's campaign. President Lincoln once de-
clared that the great want of his Cabinet was such
cess in the prosecution of the war. General Sherman
by land, and Admiral Faragut by sea, have obtained
something of what the President desired, It is true
that Mobile is not taken, but the attack by the
Federal fleet contrasts favourably with the attack on
Charleston. The cfficial party will make the utmost
possible use of the gleam of good fortune. The two
events are already turned into political capital in the
contest for the Presidency. Mr. Lincoln has recom-
mended a general thanksgiving in all the churches
for the success of the Federal arms, and salutes have
been fired from all the navy-yards and arsenals
in Federal possession" in honour of the recent
victories. One of the salutes, indeed, was not
limited to blank cartridge. General Grant cele-
brated the occupation of Atlanta by " shelling
Petersbu-g," with what effect is not stated. Every
act and declaration of the Government must now
be regarded as an election manoeuvre, whether they
waken the pulpits of the churches or the guns of
the forts. Mr. Lincoln is under the necessity of
doing nothing that might injure his chance of re-
election. He could not have enforced his own pro-
clamation, calling for a draught of 500,000 men,
without coming into collision with that portion of
the population which must have furnished it. We
are not, therefore, in the slightest degree surprised
to learn that the levy of men which was to have
commenced on the sth inst. has been " postponed."
It is more likely the measure has been given up as
impossible to put in execution. Further time is
given for " filling the quotas by volunteering." It
is being discovered that the different States have
already large " credits" for men enlisted. New
York is especially lucky, though for many weeks
past the journals of all parties have commented on
the visible reluctance of the people to enter the
service. The number of men due to the ranks in
the city of New York is somehow reduced to the
low figure of 1,114 men. If the statement is correct,
the number is scarcely sufficient to feed one hour of
one of Grant's battles. Still better is another dis-
covery, announced by Mr. Seward in what is evi-
dently an electioneering speech. He declares that
no - draught will be necessary, " as the armies are
being recruited as rapidly as required by volunteer-
ing." The tactics of the great political campaign will
justify almost anything in the eyes of Americans.
[hey do not esk for an explanation of the most in.
credible statement, provided it " tells" for the ob-
ject of their party. But Mr. Seward's declaration
cannot be reconciled with the manifestations of
public opinion during the weeks that have elapsed
since the call for hundreds of thousands of men,
without whom the war could not be continued. We
have heard one unvarying tale of the general reluc-
tance to enlist. The highest bounties offered by the
Central Government, the several States, the city cor-
porations, and private societies, had not influence
enough to draw men into the ranks. The recruiting
in Europe, and the attempts to raise more black
regiments, confirm the reports of the difficulty. We
have heard of no revival of enthusiasm to account
for the sudden change of feeling that must have
taken place if Mr Seward's statement is correct. If
the call for 500,000 men was not necessary, it was
impolitic to make it. It is quite possible that the
forced levy may still be necessary, but its impolicy
has been discovered. Ever since the proclamation

was issued the Government has endeavoured to abate
the public apprehensions on the subject. It was
found that the convenient " credits" of the States

would reduce the total force required to 300,000
men, Then these States were said not to be so much
in arrear with their quotas as was supposed. Now
the draught is postponed, with an official assurance
that it will not be necessary at all. But that 300,000
men, or any considerable fraction of that number,
have voluntarily enlisted since the date of the Pre-
sident's proclamation we cannot believe. In the
same speech Mr Seward asserted that the salvation
of the Union depended on the reelection of Mr
Lincoln. It depends a good deal, we think, on the
will of the Southern States, whoever may be Presi•
dent of the North. The only possible end of such an
obstinate conflict must be a compromise. In 1860,
before the actual war broke out, Mr Seward, in
answer to the question " Who can save the Union ?"
declared the Union " would be saved by no one in
particular," Ho probably meant that it was too
firmly established to require individual advocacy or
defence, It was a political system strong enough to
save itself. Now it depends on the destiny of Mr
Lincoln. But as the first prediction has been falsified
so may the last. Another declaration made by Mr
Liecolu's Foreign Minister is more credible, and in-
dicates that the extreme Abolitionists of the Repub-
lican party may now be thrown over and defied.
Mr Seward says, " Slavery is no longer an issue of
the war, and will not be interfered with after peace
is restored." This reads like an appeal to the
moderate section who exhibit an inclination to
coalesce with the Democrats. But, whatever may
be the Republican policy, if the election gives the
party another lease of power, it is satisfactory to
find Mr. Seward speaking of the restoration of
peace as possible. We should rejoice to see it
openly avowed as the chief object of both sides iu
the political conflict.
POST.—From the accounts received by last mail
it appears that the war in New Zealand continues
to be carried on with an activity and bitter n as un-
abated, with but little more of conclusiveness as re-
garde results, and on the part of the natives with

hopes considerably raised and confidence ranch
augmented by the victory which they obtained in
the conflict of the Gate Pah, by the unhappy Luis'
conduct, to use the mildest expression, of one of our
own regiments, who however, we are glad to learn,
have done much in their last engagement to remove
the stigma to which their disgraceful panic on the
former occasion had subjected them. Still, the
state of things is very unsatisfactory. The action
is described as hard fought and hardly won, nor
does it appear that it has brought us any nearer the
termination of the war. It is only in this condi-
tion that hostilities are said to be suspended till the
spring. They are not concluded, and the colonial
papers seem to rest their hope of conclusion mainly
upon the probability of the local Government being
able between now and then, to put an end to war
by pacificatory steps or conciliatory measures. It is
singular, and as unsatisfactory as it is remarkable,
that notwithstanding the lessons we might have
learnt, one would have thought, in the old Amerif
can wars, notwithstanding our more recent eD
penances in our long and frequent campaigns
with the Keffirs, we have made no visible advance
or improvement in our modes of carrying ca
war with savages in uncleared countries.
It is essential, with savage peoples, to impress them
most absolutely with a sense of our power, and it
is especially important that our movements should
be indicative of a settled purpose from which
nothing will turn us; that our blows should be
rapid, strong, and decisive. There has bees
nothing of this either in our policy or in its adall'a
nistration. We have sent insufficient bodies 01
troops against forces numerically large and consist,.
ing of men physically strong, resolute, well armed,
and possessing a considerabis natural aptitude for
war. The consequence is, that when we gain
victory we do it hardly and with but little to spare;
and that we do not seldom fail in our object, eau
sometimes are positively defeated. What ought to
be a short, decisive campaign, thus degenerates
into a war dragging a weary length along through
a series of unsatisfactory conflicts, which damage°
our prestige, giving the native population a very
erroneous idea of our real power and resources,
and takes a great deal of money out of our pockets'
with comparatively small results in exchange for
the expenditure. We sow a good deal in the
aggregate, but we sow the seed in driblets, and
we naturally reap a very small and unsatisfactory
harvest. This defective mode of conducting our
wars arises partly from the unfortunate circumstance
that we have never been able to make up our min&
as to the principle upon which our colonial admini4
stration ought to be conducted, and more particular',"
upon the very important question of the amount of
aid and protection which it is right or politic that
the Mother Country should afford to her dependete
cies. Oar opinions and our conduct on this pciat
are for ever in a state of fluctuation. Sometime
we blow hot, sometimes we blow cold; now we
assure a colony that it cannot walk without
" go-cart" prJvided by the Parent State ; then we
repudiate all claims to assistance, vow the colon);
has attained to years of discretion, or is a second
Minerva issuing forth at once all-armed and ail
wise, and button up our pockets with a look el
grim determination against responsibility and 100,g
bills. We do these things alternately, to the beWio
dement of nation and colonists, placing sometimes
one and sometimes the other in ascendancy ; or We
da worse—we adopt and carry out a policy of conl:
promise—a very favourite way of getting throng!:
a diffi2ulty with representative Governments--ac'
we send to the colony an insufficient assistance'
under pretest. We despatch a handful of troops'
jest enough to keep the war alive, but quite incouv
patent to bring it rapidly to an issue of such absolute
success as to make pacification conclusive, and to
render the superiority of the European race a matter
of universal and proverbial recognition. Thus hall
we been acting in New Zealand. Indecision is
Parliament, absence of interest and lack of kncf:e
ledge in the country, produced half action on tUA
part of the Executive. Driblets of soldiers, loon;
insufficient, reinforced from time to time with other
driblets, supplies with reluctance, and a sort of it.a;
definite hope, like Sir Anthony Absolute's in tR,,
play, that " perhaps the fire would go out of itself,
have, after a series of struggles very inglorious'
' expensive in valuable life and costly in outlay
money, landed us on a sort of debatable land, whet
we may talk of victory without being contradicted
I perhaps, but from which we may certainly eee
vista of new contests in the distance.