The Sun.
London, England, 1855-12-11 00:00:00

.Her ever moving against us was out of the ques-
tion. It would be her annihilation. In neutrality
she fondly imagined lay her security ; but she finds
neutrality almost as dangerous as a bolder course.
If she move now, it must be with us ; and if she
press urgently for peace, it is upon our terms.
There has always been a vast deal of expediency,
in the policy of Austria, and her not very chi-
valrous reason for not joining us in the outset in
the defence of interests unmistakeably European
and eminently Danubian and Austrian was, that
she felt compelled, by the large armies of Russia
in Poland and along her frontier, to let " I dare
not wait upon I would." But since then the
scene has changed. Russia is not now so rich in
men—and, with a prodigious force in the Crimea,
and a vast army that she will be compelled to
station next year along the Baltic, she will have
but a meagre and sorry array with which to threaten
the legions of Austria, who need no longer fear
her ; but who, in case of quarrel, might now en-
counter with considerable safety her once gigantic
neighbour.
Austria, though perhaps hitherto lacking the
decision which would have become so great a
Power, is not wanting in sagacity ; and, matters
standing as they are, it will not surprise us to learn
that Austria accepts as certain the defeat which
Russian pride may yet refuse to foresee, and that
the Cabinet of Vienna, having made up its mind
as to the final triumph of the Allies, had resolved
to urge, even now, a peace upon their terms, pre-
paring even to break altogether with Russia iu the
event of her refusing them.

Naval and Military Intelligence.

South Cork gave 15 volunteers on Thursday to the line
—viz., 11 to the 9tb, 3 to the 40th, and 1 to the 59th.
On Saturday 35 volunteers from the Cavan Militia to
regiments of the line embarked under the command of
an officer at Dublin, for Liverpool.

Capt. H. R. Yelverton, C. 8., of the Arrogant steam-
frigate, has been offered, and has accepted, the command
of a divisional fleet of gun-boats, 40 in number, for ser-
vice in the Baltic next year. The Arrogant will go into
dock at Portsmouth to-morrow, to have her defect exa-
mined and repaired. Her sternpost will, it is expected,
be removed, and a new one put in. She also requires
new decks.

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.

HOME CIRCUIT.
_ CHELMSFORD, DEC, 10

Admiral of the Blue Richd. Thomas, we are informed,
has received the service pension which fell in on the de-
mise of the late Admiral Carthew, and will be in conse-
quence removed to the Reserved List, thereby promot-
ing Vice-Admiral of the Red Sir Thomas Cochrane,
K.C.8., Commander-in• Chief at Portsmouth, to be Ad-
miral of the Blue ; Vice-Admiral of the White Charles
Sibthorpe John Hawtayne, to Vice-Admiral of the Red;
Vice-Admiral of the Blue Henry Prescott, C. 8., to be
Vice-Admiral of the White; Rear-Admiral of the Red
Alexander Renton Sharpe C. 8., to be Vice-Admiral
of the Blue ; Rear-Admiral of the White Wm. Walpole,
to be Rear-Admiral of the Red ; Rear-Admiral of the
Blue Sir Michael Seymour, K.C.8., to be Rear-Admiral
of the White ; Capt. Charles Graham (1830), C. 8., Aide
de-Camp to the Queen, to be Rear-Admiral of the Blue.
The crew of the Royal George, 102 guns, Capt. Henry
J. Codrington, C. 8., are engaged sending guns, carri-
ages, and all her heavy stores away in lighters, to lighten
her ready for her being taken into dry dock at Sheer-
ness. Her engines and boilers are in good order, not even
a screw having given way during the time she has been
from England. Her average speed has been rated at 9i
knots, with 58 revolutions and 151 b. pressure of steam
on the square inch. Mr. Henry D. Grant, late mate of
the Royal George promoted to Lieutenant, received his
discharge from that ship on her arrival at Sheerness,
and has left her.

The commission of assize and gaol ;delivery for the
county of Essex was opened in this town to-day. Mr.
Justice Crompton came down by the 12 o'clock train,
and his lordship at once proceeded to the Shire-ball to
open the commission. He afterwards attended Divine
service, and at 2 o'clock the business commenced.
There are 15 prisoners for trial, not one of whom ap-
pears to be able to read and write. The offences charged
are of a serious character, and comprise arson, highway
robbery with violence, shooting at with intent to murder,
and burglary.
William Cary, 22, was indicted for burglariously en-
tering the dwelling-house of John Pilgrim, and stealing
a bottle containing a quantity of home-made wine, some
money, and other property.
Mr. Rodwell prosecuted. The prisoner was defended
by Mr. T. Chambers.
It appeared that the prosecutor left his cottage about
half-past five o'clock on the morning of the 11th Jan.
last, and when he returned at half-past six he found it
had been entered, and that a stone bottle, containing
seven or eight pints of bullace wine, and some other
articles, had been stolen. About half-past seven o'clock
the same morning the prisoner was found lying in a field
about a mile from the prosecutor's in a state of stupid
intoxication, and the stone bottle, which he had nearly
emptied, was by his side. It appeared that he after-
wards absconded from the neighbourhood, and he was
apprehended at Ipswich, and upon the constable taking
him into custody, he said he knew what it was for, and
he might as well go back and make it all comfortable,
as he knew that, at all events, they could not hang him
for what he had done.

The Firefly, 4 guns, paddle-wheel steam-vessel, Capt.
Henry C. Otter, arrived at Sheerness at 8 a.m., yester-
day, from the Baltic. She left Kiel on the evening of
Wednesday, the sth inst., proceeded as far as Ven-
geance Shoal, and there anchored for the night, and
waited next day for the Admiral and fleet passing, which
had left on the 6th inst., at 8 a.m. The fleet consisted
of the Duke of Wellington, 131, bearing the flag of Rear-
Admiral the Hon. R. S. Dundas, C. 8., Captain of the
Fleet Commodore the Hon. Frederick T. Pelham, C. 8.,
in command ; the James Watt, 91 guns, screw steam-
ship, Capt. Geo. Elliot ; the Orion, 91 guns, screw
steam-ship, Capt. John E. Erskine ; and Majestic, 80
guns, screw steam-ship, Capt. Jas. Hope, C.B. ; also
the French Admiral's ship Tourville and the French
line-of-battle ship Duquesne. At 3 30 p.m. the same
day these ships all passed Vengeance Shoal. At 4 p.m.
the Firefly got under way, and proceeded after the fleet.
The whole fleet, except the Firefly, passed through the
Great Belt and the Cattegat at midnight, although ex
tremely dark. The Firefly parted company at midnight,
going through the Lasso Channel, thereby saving a dis-
tance of 30 miles, the fleet going out through the Catte-
gat by the deep water channel. On the forenoon of the
7th the fleet were observed passing the Scaw, it then
blowing a gale of wind from the north-east, with heavy
snowstorms. The Firefly made her passage from the
Scaw to Sheerness in 67 hours. On the morning of the
9th saw a line-of-battle ship distant about 20 miles east
of the Lemon and Owers light-vessel. Commander
Edward Burstal (late Lieutenant of the Firefly) comes
home in her, he having been promoted for the proceed-
ings of the Firefly near Wasa in August last, the vessel
having been engaged with a number of troops, amount-
ing on the first day of attack to 300, which afterwards
increased to 900, with a battery of artillery. The firing
of the field battery was highly creditable to the Rus-
sian gunners, many of their shells bursting imme-
diately over the ship, and their red-hot shot whizzing
by close under stem and stern. Complete volleys
of Minie rifle balls were fired by the Russian soldiers
with great accuracy, and numbers of them struck the
vessel. All of them were of a very large size.
One of the balls passed through the standard staff,
at a computed distance of 1,500 yards. Such was their
precision of firing that, had it not been for keeping the
vessel sometimes steaming ahead, at other times back-
ing and filling, so as to shift position, nearly all their
shots would have told on the hull and crew, as they in-
variably passed at short distances, allowing for the ves-
sel shifting her positions. The latter part of the season
the Firefly was engaged in the upper part of the Gulf
of Bothnia, where the Fins were carrying on an exten-
sive trade with the Russians, which was effectually put

The jury returned a verdict of Guilty, and the pri,
boner was sentenced to four months' hard labour.

NORTHERN CIRCUIT.
DURHAM, DIM 7.

(Before Mr. Baron Martin.)

THE EXTRAORDINARY MURDER BY SLOW POISONING.
[We briefly noticed this case in Thc Sun yesterday.
We subjoin a more lengthened report :—]
Mr. Edwin James, Q.C., Mr. Leofric Temple, and
Mr. Davison appeared for the prosecution ; the prisoner
was defended by Mr. Sergeant Wilkins, Mr. Overend,
Q.C., and Mr. Laurie.
The prisoner was indicted for the wilful murder of his
wife, Jane Wooler.
Mr. James, in stating the case, commenced by ear-
nestly entreating the jury to dismiss from their minds
all they had previously heard of this extraordinary case.
He should produce all the evidence in the power of the
prosecutor, whether it made for or against the prisoner.
Mrs. Wooler, the deceased, was the daughter of a medi-
cal man, and married the prisoner 18 years ago. They
resided in different places, and for some time in India.
About seven years ago they took up their residence at
Burden' near Darlington. She was never of robust
health, but experienced no serious illness till the Bth of
May last, when she was seized with vomitings. Mr.
Jackson, a medical man, was then called in, and at-
tended her till her death on the 27th of June. His as-
sistant, Mr. Henzell, saw her on the 16th of May, but
not again till the 4th of June, and thence continually till
her death. Her illness continued, accompanied by diar-
rhea. On the Bth of June Dr. Haslewood, of Darling-
ton, was called in. Consumption being apprehended,
her lungs were examined, but nothing wrong could be
discovered in them. Dr. Jackson treated the case as
one of influenza. The three medical men continued their
attendance till her death on Wednesday, the 27th June.
For 14 days before her death their attention was at-
tracted by certain indications. On Friday, the 29th, a
post-mortensexaminatien took place, from which they con-
cluded the cause of death to be an irritant poison. A por-
tion of the viscera was tested by Dr. Richardson, and he
detected the presence of poison. An inquest was held
on the 30th of June, and, by adjournment, on the 13th
of July. The conclusion of the inquest jury was that
the deceased died by poison, but no person was charged
k with administering it. Soon after Mr. Wooler was ap-
prehended on this charge. The body was exhumed on
the 4th of elugnst, and a portion of the viscera was sent
to Dr. Taylor, of London, who would say that he had
no doubt of the presence of arsenical poison in it, and
apparently administered from time to time in small por-
tions in solution. Dr. Richardson, of Newcastle, also
tested a portion of the viscera, and detected the pre-
sence of arsenic. The evidence of Dr. Haslewood, Dr.
Jackson, and Mr. Henzell, who attended the deceased,
would also be given. The symptoms exhibited during
her illness also indicated death by slow poison. Assum-
ing, as the learned counsel said he was entitled to do,
that the cause of death was poison, the next question
was, who administered it ? The prisoner himself had
said, " It is stated that the body exhibits traces of poison
—if so, it has been contained in the medicines adminis-
tered by the medical men." It would be supposed that
if poison had been in the medicines it happened other-
wise than by carelessness only. Yet, as their attention
was directed to symptoms of poison so early as the 17th
June, was it possible that such care would not have been
subeequentlylused as to prevent the possibility of the
accidental further introduction of poison ? The bottles
containing the remains of medicine which had been ad-
, rnio6tered wero Mao submitted to competent persons,
and in those remains no trace of poison could he disco-
vered. The poison must have been administered by some
person of skill. The deceased objected to the attendance
of a nurse, and none was engaged. Two friends, Miss
Middleton and Miss Lanchester, frequently saw her dur-
ing her illness. These two ladies, with the exception of
the prisoner's brother, were the only persons about the
deceased during her illness. It would be shown by medi-
cal evidence that to use poison in the way in which it
must have been administered to the deceased required
skill and knowledge in the subject of poisons. It would
be shown by the evidence of Mr. Wooler's own con-
versation that he possessed this knowledge and.
skill. He was about her during the whole of her ill-
ness, with the exception of one day, the 20th of
June. His hand administered the injections and other
i medicines. Her stomach would not retain medi-
cines ; &injections were therefore necessary. On two
occasions the prisoner produced to Dr. Hazlewood and
Dr. Jackson a small basket containing bottles, one of
which was labelled " Fowler's arsenic," a well-known
preparation of arsenic. They spoke to him on the sub-
I jest of this arsenic. What had become of the bottle?
At the inquest it was sent for from the prisoner's house.
Several bottles were brought back. This could not be
found. There was another important circumstance. Ene-
mas were employed for administering injections. The
prisoner bad a syringe of pewter, which was used. On
one occasion the elastic pipe got stopped up. The pri-
soner burrowed a syringe of Mr. Fothergill, a medical
man. No other syringe was used till her death. Pother-
gill's syringe was then returned to him. Some time after,
when this matter became talked about, Mr. Fothergill
examined this syringe. The pipe was stopped up. It
was carefully examined by him, and in his opinion
arsenic was there. His test, it must be admitted, was
not a safe one; but a further and more accurate
examination showed a greater quantity of arsenic
than the test could contain. The conduct of the pri-
soner was next to be considered. He apparently evinced
the utmost solicitude for his wife during the whole of
her illness. It was not, however, until several times
urged by Dr. Jackson that he consented to further ad-
vice being called. Then there is this book (said the
learned counsel, exhibiting a book), containing entries be
the prisoner of the medicines administered to the de-
ceased down to the 14th of June, after which there are
no further entries. Among other undoubted symptoms
of poison there is tingling of the hands. Oa the 23d of
June Dr. Haslewood ascertained from deceased herself
the existence of this symptom. It was not till the same
day that the prisoner, who bad seen the deceased after
she bad told the circumstance to Dr. Haslewood, told
them. In his presence the medical men asked her how
long she had. had this tingling. She answered, " Three
or four days." He remarked it was not so long. She
replied that it was, and that she bad requested him to
inform the doctors, but he had forgotten it. Mr. Hen-
zell examined the deceased's stools and urine before
the 22d and after the 23d of June. On the former day
Mr. Henzell went to the coachhouse, where the urine
was usually kept for examination, but he could find
none. He asked prisoner for some. A bottle of urine
was sent on that day, but it differed in character from
what he had examined previously or subsequently. The
servant girl on the 22d brought the urine from the coach-
house into the kitchen, whence prisoner himself con-
veyed the bottle to Mr. Henzell. He sent a letter with
it. He had therefore the opportunity of changing the
contents. Another circumstance must be mentioned.
The symptoms were the same every day except on the
21th of June, when she was much better. On that day
the prisoner was from home. Just before the deceased's
death the clergyman who had been praying with her
came to the prisoner's dressing-room, and told him
his wife was dying. He was undressed, and said,
" Am I to Cornet in this way I" The clergyman threw
something over his shoulders, and took him to her
bedside, At the very moment that she was dying
he asked the clergyman if he Was going to Darling-
ton. He did not attend the funeral. After her death,
and before the medical men bad left the house, a bell
rang, upon which he invited them into the garden to see
the hiving of some bees, in which operation the bell was
rung. Some correspondence took place during Mrs.
Wooler's illness. On the 29th of May, when she was
seriously ill, he wrote to a Mrs. Vint stating that his
wife had had a slight illness. On the 9th of June he
writes that her illness was considerable. On the 12th of
June he writes that she had a tendenoy to consumption,
On the 14th of June he Writes to a Mrs. Rymer that his
wife was in a very critical state with disease on the chest,
and that the doctors told him they could not hope to delay
God's verdict, and that the upper part of !her lung was
diseased. The doctors never told him anything of this
sort. On June 16, he writes to her brother, Mr. Buck-
nell, stating that she was fast sinking, and that it was
only on the Bth that he ascertained from the doctors that
her disease was in the upper lung. He expressed great
desire to see Mr. Seymour Dixon at Burden. To Mr. S.
Dixon himself the prisoner writes, on the 11th, that the
doctors thought there was a favourable change in his
wife, and that Mr. Dixon need not come. On the 23d of
June he writes to his nephew, a pupil of Sir John Fife,
that, if the deceased's case were mentioned to Sir John,
he might give an opinion. He then details systems dif-
ferent from what he stated to others, to the effect that
the doctors apprehended slight consumption. His nephew
would seem to have suggested that Sir John Fife should
be telegraphed for, since in another letter to his nephew
says that the clergyman and medic* men at Burden
had said it would have been of no use to call in Sir John.
The clergymen and medical men will deny having ever

a stop to for the six weeks she was there, during which
time her surveying officers made very valuable additions
to their surveys for the new charts. On leaving Tornea,
the extreme north part of the gulf, on the 14th of Octo-
ber last, the thermometer was down 14 deg. below freez-
ing point, and the ship being in one mass of ice it be-
came difficult to make use of the boats. It is expected
that the Firefly will be taken into dry dock at Sheer-
ness, to ascertain if she has been injured by the burst-
ing of one of the enemy's infernal machines under her,
at which time fore and aft and thwartship bulkheads
were displaced by the explosion, and the vessel consider-
ably shaken. The Firefly brings home two Russian
soldiers, who deserted and came on board her when off
Brandon, one bringing his musket with him, which is
of very large bore. One states his name to be JeF.ne
Drafinoff : the other Halle Somenoff. They earnestly
solicited to be allowed to join her in any capacity, and
are doing duty at present as ordinary seamen.
The Cressy, 80 guns, screw steam-ship, Captain
Richard L. Warren, was put out of the fitting basin,
Sheerness, yesterday, and moored at harbour moorings.
The Thistle gun-boat was also put out of the basin, hav-
ing had her defects repaired.
A new steam-sloop, nenned the Victoria, arrived at
Southampton on Saturday from Limehouse. This vessel,
which is commanded by Captain Norman, late of the
General Screw Steam-Shipping Company, has been built
at the sole expense of the Colonial Government of Aus-
tralia, under the sanction of the Secretary of State for
the Colonies. The duties for which this vessel is in-
tended will chiefly lie in the inspection of Government
coastworks. She is also fitted with accommodations
suitable for the occupation of the governor, and can be
used by him as his State yacht. The Victoria is a hand-
some vessel, constructed of mahogany on the diagonal
principle, by Messrs. Young, Son, and Magnay, of
Limehouse, upon designs furnished by Mr. 0. Laing,
Master Shipwright of Pembroke Dockyard. She is of
580 tons burden, with direct acting trunk engines by the
Messrs. Rennie, of 150 nominal horse power. The Vic-
toria has been fitted and armed as a sloop of war, under
the immediate superintendence of Commander L-ckey,
R.N. Her dimensions are 172 feet over all, with 27
feet beam, and she is propelled by Moresby's improved
feathering screw. The Victoria left London on Wed-
nesday, but on account of heavy weather and strong
N.W. winds was obliged to put into Dover Roads. The
weather having moderated she left on Friday, and ar-
rived at Southampton on Saturday morning. Upon
passing the measured mile her speed was tried, when
she accomplished 13i knots per hour, with 84 revolu-
tions of the engines, and an indicated horse-power of
570. Daring the other portions of the voyage the ave-
rage of speed, with from 60 to 65 revolutions, was from
eight to nine knots. Mr. Scott, of the firm of Rennie
and Co., in superintendence of the engines, Mr. Braith-
waite, Government Inspector, and Commander Lockey,
R.N., accompanied the vessel to Southampton, where
she has called for the purpose of taking in live stock for
the voyage. The Victoria is very heavily rigged, and it
is intended to make the voyage to Australia solely under
canvass. There are two broadside guns and one long
32-pounder, on a traversing carriage, on board.
The sailing transport Sir George Pollock, with troops
for the West Indies, and the Castle Eden, with convicts
for Bermuda, sailed from Plymouth on Sunday. The
American merchant ship Golden Gate, Capt. Dewing,
from Marseilles, Nov. 16, for New York, which sprang
a leak in the Mediterranean, and split all her sails in the
Atlantic, put into the Sound on Sunday, with eight feet
of water in her hold.
Her Majesty's ship Alban, Lieut. Fisher, arrived at
Cuxhaven last Wednesday afternoon, having been obliged
to run for shelter from Heligoland, where she made an
unsuccessful attempt to land recruits on the 4th inst.,
and, owing to a sudden shift of wind during the gale,
was for some time in imminent danger of being lost. On
the 3d inst. the Alban and her consort, the Pigmy, were
frozen in eight miles above Gluckstadt, and with some
difficulty extricated themselves from the ice, which in a
few hours had assumed a firmness dangerous to any but
iron vessels.

In the list of naval appointments given in the Times of
Saturday Paymaster Allen was mentioned as having
been appointed to the Leveret. The ship to which he
has been appointed is the Transit.
Lieut.-Colonel Chas. Pelham Beauchamp Walker, from
the 7th Dragoon Guards, is about to exchange from the
unattached half-pay, with Col. the Hon. Cecil Forrester,
of the Royal Horse Guards Blue.
,It is stated that army agencies are to be abolished and
their business transferred to the War Department. The
saving to the Government will be very great.
The first transmission of warm clothing from the Cri-
mean Fund arrived on Saturday at Brompton, Kent, to
be disposed .of by Second-class Surgeons Robert Bat-
tersby and Henry. C. Reade, and Staff Captain T. A.
Rawlins, who form the committee for such distribution
to the wounded.
A few invalids arrived yesterday at Chatham from
Balaklava, in charge of Staff Assistant-Surgeon Herbert
C. Miles from the ship Calcutta.
The standard for recruits for the Royal Marines Light
Infantry has been raised to 5 feet 6 inches for growing
lads from 18 to 20 years of age, and 5 feet 5i inches for
grown. men.
Second-class Staff-Surgeon George M'Cullock, sth
Dragoons, is ordered to preceed to New Tavern Fort,
Gravesend, to relieve Staff-Surgeon Jonas K. Carr,
M.D., in medical charge of troops at that station.
Capt. J. Stawell, temporary barrackmaeter, Chatham,
has been appointed to Devonport, vice Capt. J. Buckley.
A notification has been made to the colonels of the
household regiments of cavalry, that officers, half of each
rank, who are entitled to furlough at this time of the
year, may volunteer, if they wish to see foreign service, as
supernumeraries te the different cavalry corps at Scu-
tari.

THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 11 1855.

said so. On the 23d he details her symptoms in writing
for Sir J. Fife, but omits the tingling of the hands. On
the 27th he announces her death in a letter to his bro-
ther, who was at a distance, inviting him to her funeral.
To her brother, who resided nearer, he also wrote, but
did not invite him to the funeral. On the 29th of Jure
the registrar called to learn the cause of death, and
was informed by the prisoner it was ulceration of the
bowels. On the same day prisoner received a letter from
Dr. Jackson stating that a further examination of the
body was neces-ary before he could give a certificate
to the registrar other than that of which a copy was en-
closed, the purport being that the symptoms indicated
death by poison. Prisoner exclaimed to the servant
Ann Taylor, " Why, they say that my Jane was poi-
soned. I had better gather up all the bottles." Ann
Taylor accordingly placed them in her box. Prisoner
then left the house, and never returned until after the
funeral. On the 11th of June he makes a will, which
we have given notice to be produced. It may be asked
what motive could the prisoner haves The learned coun-
sel said that he could not suggest any. Of that, as well
as the other puint3 in the case, the jury must judge after
hearing the evidence.
A number of witnesses were examined, and the evi-
dence was not concluded when the Court rose on Satur-
day evening.