The Sun.
London, England, 1839-10-28 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX COUNTY COURT.

" For what have you summoned Henry North ? "
asked Mr. Sergeant HEATH of an errand boy, who
claimed I Is. from the defendant. Boy—For breaking
the handle of master's truck.

Mr. Sergeant HEATH—How did that occur? Boy—
I was standing close to the curb in Fetter-lane with the
truck, when a cart, with the name of Henry North on
it, drove over the handle and smashed it.

Mr. Sergeant HEATH—WeII, what do you say to
this Mr. North ? " Don't know no more on it," said
North, inserting both hands beneath his coat tails—
" Don't know no more on it than a babby wot's just
born."

Mr. Sergeant HEATH—Was it not your cart that
did the damage ? North—Von't say, 'cause I can't.
There's plenty more Norths than me, and vy not vun of
their carts. There's Tim North, of New North-road.
There's Tom North, of North-street, and there's Bill
North, of North-coat, Northumberland-street North.

Mr. Sergeant HEATH-But your name is Henry
North, and that name it appears was on the cart.
North—Eleven shillings is a deal of money for the
handle of a truck. If the haccident had happened to
a valuable wehicle sitch as a brick cart, and von of the
sharps had been broke, it vouldn't a come to much more.

Mr. Sergeant HEATH—Here is the bill of the person
who repaired it.

North—l keeps a veeler and a blacksmith, and vy
not ven the haceident happened let one know about it ?
Now spose t'other vay vas the case, and a gentleman in
his cab or breeches (query, britska) runs agin von of
my rubbish vans and bustes in the side—vot would be
my course ? Vy I should naterally act as von gentle-
man ought to do to another, and ax him to send my wan
to his coachmaker, or let me get it done and he pay the
damage. In this here case nobody never lets me know
nothing, and so I think the owner of the truck didn't
oughtn't to go for to expect as how I'm to pay vot his
vorkman chooses to charge.
Mr. Sergeant HEATH—Why I think it but fair that
you should have had notice of the matter. Does any
one here understand the value of such repairs ?
A person in Court said he was acquainted with such
work, and he was certain 7s. was a fair price.
The jury reduced the claim to that sum, very much
to the satisfaction of the defendant.

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT.

OLD COURT.

MURDER. ON THE HIGH SEAS,—John Wentworth
Fairbank, aged 19, the steward of a vessel, called the
Secret, was indicted for the wilful murder of Arthur
White, the Captain of the same ship, on the 14th of
April, on the high seas, within the jurisdiction of the
Admiralty of Englraid.
Mr. Justice BOSANQUET summed up the evidence
with great perspicuity, and the Jury, after about twenty-
five minutes' deliberation in their box, retired to consider
their verdict at twenty minutes past two o'clock.
At about half past seven o'clock the Jury returned
into Court, and declared the prisoner Guilty of Man-
slaughter.
Mr. Justice BOSANQUET then addressed him, and said
that it was not for him to say that he was guilty of the
high crime imputed to him after the verdict which the
Jury had returned. It was his duty, however, to pro-
tect the lives of her Majesty's subjects, and he should
not be acting rightly if he did not make an example of
him. The Learned Judge then sentenced the prisoner
to be transported for life.
A fresh Jury having been sworn,

George Minty, aged twenty-eight, the witness in the
last case, was put to the bar, and arraigned upon the in-
dictment found against him,, which charged him with
the murder of James Shaw, on the hiz,h seas, within
the jurisdiction of the Admiralty of England, on May 21.

Mr. C. PHILLIPS and Mr. CLARKSON defended the
prisoner. Mr. ESPINASSE appeared for the prosecution.
On the death of the captain the prisoner took :the
command of the vessel ; the deceased, who was of a
weak constitution, was cook. The witnesses who were
examined spoke to the prisoner having often struck Shaw
with a coult and broomstick, and on one occasion, after
beating him severely, be went away, giving the imple-
ment to one of the boys to continue the blows after he
had gone ; that after repeated floggings the deceased
died on the 21st of May, when he was buried in the
usual manner, the prisoner saying prayers over the body.
On the cross-examination of the witnesses, it appeared
that the crew were in a inuticous state, and that many
complaints had been made of Shaw's conduct ; the
prisoner was steering the ship towards Rio, but the
crew compelled him to steer .for the Falkland Islands.
Two of the crew had lost their wages from the prisoner's
representations.
Mr. Hunsworth, whose fa .al ily were with him as pas-
sengers on board the vessel, ,s•cated that she was short
of hands, and that the passen.gers were obliged to work
as well as the men ; the ship was in want of water,
and in a bad condition, and it was necessary that she
should go into the Falkland Islands for assistance and
repairs ; he never saw any misconduct on the part of
the prisoner to the deceased.
Mr. C. PHILLIPS addresE;ed the Court for the pri-
soner, urging that it was not shown of what complaint
Shaw had died, and that the necessity of punishment
was proved from the mutinous state of the crew.

At this stage the Jury stopped the Learned Counsel,
and after a few words from Mr. Baron MAULE, they re-
turned a verdict of " Not G uilty," and the prisoner
was instantly discharged.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

QUEEN-S(4, U ARE.

On Saturday, William Cockerell, the keeper of a
chandlers' shop in Old Pyc-street, Westminster, was
charged with keeping his ho use open till past two
o'clock on the morning of Sunday, the 14th irstant.
Two constables of the B divis.ion deposed that, seeing
the defendant's door open on the day and at the hour
in question, they went in, and found fourteen men and
women, all improper characters, in an inner room.
Some of the party were eati ag, others were drink.
ing ginger beer ; a few were chronicling small beer,
while five or six were eating, ,3rinking, smoking, talk-
ing, and singing, all at once. On being asked what,
he had to say to the charge, the defendant said he kept a
shop in the general line, and gave credit to most of his cus
tomers, who always settled with him at the end of the
Week. Since the closing of the public-houses at 12 o'clock
on Saturday nights they had reserved the time of pay-
ment till then, and when turned out of the gin shops
they came to him to settle. The: persons present on the
morning the police visited him had come there for that
purpose, and they were not bad characters. Defendant
then called witnesses to prove his assertion.
Two men were successively called to prove the re-
spectability of the company, and both were immediately
identified by the police as associates of thieves.
A woman, who called herself servant to defendant,
was about to speak as to the respectability of the house,
when she was recognised as a common prostitute, and,
when found out, said the police were fools not to let her
gammon the Magistrates she was a modest woman.
The Magistrate said he had never listened to a more
impudent defence, the defendant having called thieves
and street-walkers to give him a character. He should
inflict the extreme penalty of 51., and if not paid by five
o'clock he should commit the defendant for a month.

. MARLBOROUGH-STREET.
SHORT WEIGHTS.-Mr. Reeves, inspector of weights
and measures, summoned several tradespeople of this
neighbourhood for having short weights.
Elizabeth Morgan, general dealer, 46, Carnaby-street,
was charged with having used a fraudulent weight-beam
and scale, and a one-pound weight deficient several
drachms.

The inspector proved that he went into the shop, and
on examining the scale he discovered that a contrivance
had been adopted by which a penny-piece was added to
the scale. The penny-piece weighed upwards of one
ounce, and of course all articles sold by weight would be
deficient of that quantity.
The defendant admitted that the penny.piece was as
the inspector described, but she said it had got in the
situation it was found in by accident.
Mr. LONG remarked upon the aggravated nature of
the offence, the parties thus cheated being persons in
circumstances that made ths loss a serious consideration
to them. If the defendant were again brought before
him he should inflict the full penalty of 51. On this oc-
casion he should reduce it to .21. and costs.

John Grosse, oilman, Tyler-court, was charged with •
having seven weights not of the standard waight.
Mr. Grosse said he had another shop in Marylebone,
and a short time ago he sent the weights used in that
shop to the scale-maker to have them properly ad-
justed. The weights were sent home, and he then de•
sired the scale-maker to use the same process towards
the weights in his Tyler-court shop. The scale-maker
said he had so much business of that sort that he could
not attend to the weights for a day or two. It was
the intention of the scale-maker to have sent for the
weights on the very day they were seized. h e inspec-
tor could corroborate the truth of this statement.
Mr. Reeves said he had reason to believe that the
explanation was correct ; but even admitting it to be
true, it was clear the weights must have been a consi-
derable time in use in their defective condition.
Mr. LONG said, as the defendant had seen his error,
and had, though rather tardily, set about correcting it,
he should make a distinction in his case, by inflicting
the fine of ‘2.os. only.
Isaac Smith, 48, Carnaby-street general dealer, was
charged with having had seven defective weights in his
possession. . .

The defendant declared he was quite ignorant of the
circumstance. One of the weights, the 71b, weight, in
which there was the greatest deficiency, he was ready
to swear had not been used more than once or twice
within the last twelve months.

Mr. LONG said so many weights were deficient, that
it was clear the defendant had not used proper care in
sending them at stated times to be adjusted. As a
protection to the poor he should inflict the penalty of
21. and costs.