The Sun.
London, England, 1863-05-26 00:00:00

This Day.

COURT OF QUEEN S BENCH.

(Sittings in Banco before the Lord Chief Justice Cockburn,
and Justices Wightman and Blackburn.)
WARD V. LAMPERT.

This was an action by a boot and shoe maker, formerly
residing in Lambeth, against the defendant, a gentleman
residing at Hounslow, to recover damages for falsely repre-
senting that the premises taken by him of the defendant
were well drained and in a healthy and habitable state.
At the trial which took place before Mr. Justice Wight-
man, at the sittings in Middlesex, the jury returned a ver-
dict for the defendant.

Mr. Ribton had obtained a rule nisi for a new trial on
the ground of misdirection in not telling the jury if the
representations made by the defendant were within his means
of knowledge, it was a fraudulent representation if untrue.
After some lengthened discussion,
The Court said that as the evidence was conflicting on
both sides, they would recommend that a stet processus
should be entered, as neither party would be benefitted by
a new trial, and the case was ordered to stand over.

FORSTER V. FORSTER AND DERRIDGE.
This was a suit instituted in the Divorce Court by the
petitioner, a major in the Indian army, for a dissolution of
his mat riage with the respondent by reason of her adultery
with Mr. Berridge, the co-respondent, the manager of
Meux's brewery.

At the trial which took place at the sittings after last
Middlesex term, before Sir Cresswell Cresswell and a spe-
cial jury, the jury found the adultery proved, and assessed
the damages at £5,000.
In the last term Mr, Coleridge, Q.C., on the petition
of a Mr. Graham, applied to Sir C, Cresswell for leave to
intervene, and stay the proceedings, on the ground that the
Court had no jurisdiction, inasmuch as the domicile of the
husband and wifo was in India, they both having been born
and married there, although the adultery took place in Eng-
land and the husband also came to this country. Sir C.
Cresswell held, however, he had jurisdiction, and refused
to allow the intervener.
Mr. Coleridge moved with Dr. Trisham, for a rule to show
why a writ of prohibition should not issue prohibiting the
Court of Divorce and Matrimonial Causes from making the
decree nisi to dissolve the marriage absolute ; end, also,
from further proceeding against either or any of the said
parties thereto.
The learned counsel having at great length stated the
circumstances of this remarkable case, and which has been
fully reported in The sun.
The Court granted a rule to show cause.

THE EARTHQITARE AT RHODES.

Speaking of the late terrible catastrophe, the Levant
Ileratcl says :—" Rhodians go early to bed as a rule; the
calamity, therefore, found three-fourths of the population
under their yorghans, in--what proved for many—their last
sleep. I happened myself to be sitting up, and the shock su
shook my house that I was literally thrown from my chair.
I cannot attempt to describe the scene which met my eyes
and ears outside in the town on my rushing out—crowds of
half-dressed men, women, and children rushing from every
door, mingling their screams with the dull rumble of falling
houses and party walls. The whole formed a combination
of terrible sight and sound of which I can convey no im-
pression by any words of mine. Though only a few hardly
perceptible shocks took place again during the night, this
sad scene continued with but little abatement till daylight,
when the real extent of the damage done to the town be-
came apparent. This, though disastrous enough, has hap.
pily been less so than the horrors of the night prepared one
to see. About 1,000 houses, more or less, have been injured,
some 400 of which have been nearly altogether destroyed,
and the remainder either partially knocked down or rent to
an extent that will compel the pulling down of most of
them. Inside the enclosure of the citadel about 20 have
been demolished, and several others greatly damaged.
Great injury has also been done to the fortifications, and the
architectural relics of the knights. Of these last, the beau-
titul square tower of St. Michael, at the entrance to the
larger harbour, has been rent from top to bottom, nearly
the whole inner half of it landwards—knocked entirely
down. The old palace of the grand masters—novr a prison
has been rent in several places, as has also the lighthouse."
This informant states the loss of life on the night of the 22d
at about 50, and the maimed and wounded at more than
double, but these numbers are confined to the town itself.
In an account given by another resident, we read : -
" Throughout the island above 240 people were killed, and
a great many hart. Twelve out of 44 villages were en-
tirely destroyed, and the others greatly injured. The village
of Missari was levelled with the ground; even the church,
strongly built three years ago, was shattered; the roof had
fallen in, the, walls were rent, and the stone arches fastened
with iron were torn asunder. Out of a population of 200,
126 persons were killed and about 30 hurt. It was a sad
scene—bodies lying about and crushed under the ruins,
and the survivors mourning their dead. Some of the
people from the neighbouring village of Malone, which had
partially esc4ped, had come to Messari to help to bury the
budie a. At Lindos, several houses and the inner
walls of the old castle had been thrown down. Great
stones had fallen, threatening to crush the village." The
same writer gives the following account of the destruction
in the city of Rhodes itself : " The beautiful Arab's Tower
—a prominent object in the view of Rhodes from the sea—
was in ruins ; the N.W. angle of the tower, with wall,
staircase, turret, and centre tower, were torn away, and the
two remaining walls were widely split and leaning over.
One side of the tower of St. Nicholas, on which the light*
house stood, had fallen, together with the staircase. The
walls of the fortifications were rent in various places. In
the town and suburbs houses had been thrown down in all
directions. Other dwellings—the consulates among the
rest—were much injured. Thirteen people were killed,
one family being buried in the ruins of their houses. All
the mosques, with the Greek and Latin churches, had
suffered more or less severely, A minaret and large round
fountain had fallen.
During the next day, the 23d, slight shocks were re-
peatedly felt, and these were succeeded by others, till, on
the 26th, a violent thunderstorm with rain threw down
more of the partially ruined houses, adding to the misery
of the populace. We are told :—" The terror caused by
the first earthquake was beginning to abate, when the in-
habitants were again alarmed by a strong shock, at noon
of the 30th, followed by a more severe one in half an
hour. The houses were immediately deserted ; tents and
huts of sails, carpets, boards, or anything that could be got
together., were set up in every vacant space. European
consuls, natives, everyone made up such shelter as they
could, Mr. Callender, the British Consul, and his family,
took shelter in their garden in a tent made of a ship's
awning and some boat sails. Fie:ds and gardens were
occupied by whole families huddled together in but scanty
room. Two Turkish families asked leave, which was of
course granted, to make their dwellings in the Protestant
cemetery in an unexposed situation. The crowding of
the tents was so great that it was feared sickness would
break out. A Turkish steamer arrived that evening with
an aide-de-camp of the Sultan, who had sent 500,000
Piastres to help the sufferers, On the 3d May, a steamer
appeared with the Kaimakan of Mitylene, and next day
the Monette arrived from Syra with three surgeons on
board, sent by the French admiral. The weather had
changed and became sultry and oppressive, the ground felt
feverish and quivering, a sirocco wind and leaden sky and
strange
another she rumbling noise under ground, all seemed to portend
ck ; the natives in terror believing the island
would sink into the sea. A new danger now threatened the
inhabitants. The earthquake had so shaken the prison, the
grand master's palace, that it was feared the prisoners might
get out. On the evening of the 4th a plot was discovered ;
the convicts, :08 in number, intended making their es cape--
they had dug a passage under the walls of the prison.
Soldiers were posted at different points, and on the top of
the palace, with orders to fire on the prisoners if they made
any attempt to escape. Some of the convicts have con-
fessed that they intended to set fire to the town, kill every
one they could, carry off all the booty they could lay their
hands on, and get off by the boats, Fresh alarm ensued ;
every one who had the means armed himself, and regular
watches were kept during the night at all the tents. On
the sth of May the ringleaders and most desperate charac-
ters were removed to a small prison, where they are
chained and watched; the rest remain at the old prison
strongly guarded. From the desperate character of the
convicts it is fortunate the plot was discovered in time,
otherwise most frightful atrocities would have been corn.
witted."

A very curious fact will give our readers a more exact
idea of the force of the shock. On the night of the 22d of
April, between ten and half-past, the precise time of the
great shook at Rhodes, the Greek ship Panaia, Captain
Dimitri Diakopoulo, from Marseilles, with a cargo of wheat
and barley, was sai:ing about 30 miles to the east of Rhodes,
when, with a sudden and violent shock, the ship stopped
short in her course for some seconds, and the cessation of
the ship's impetus caused the masts and timbers to crack in
a frightful manner. A quarter of an hour afterwards one
of the masts suddenly fell, without any apparent cause,
breaking in two and bringing down the other mast with it.

THE LATE MURDER IN THE BOROUGH.—The
unfortunate lad, Daniel Ledbetter, died early this
morning at Guy's Hospital, from the extensive wounds in.
flicted on his throat by his father. The inquest will be held
on both bodies to-morrow before Mr. Payne, the coroner.
A MAN OF HORRIBLY BAD TASTE!—The indiffe-
rence of the Kaffirs as to what they eat is perhaps
as remarkable as the extent of their appetite. Mr. Baldwin,
in the Traveller,
.oine describes himself as having had to restrain
from young urchins who were with him on one excursion
Baffl eating pieces of old shoe leather, and one Kaffir, named
Ramer had, he says, the moat depraved stomach he ever
saw :—" He always bothers
tly enjoys me for medicines, and he evi-
den I
have tried him castor-oil, rhubard, and ipecacuanha. In
fact, with all the most nauseous drugs,
mixed up in any manner to make them still more disgust
in gto the taste, and to get rid of him. 1 once gave him a
spoonful of mustard in a pint of warm water, which
like coffee I I then told him to follow it up
hlaer
with plenty of warm water, and I believe it had no effect
whatever on him. He will drink a cuptul of strong vinegar
• nothing disagrees with him„
at a time if he can get it, and
large
epped off