The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-05 00:00:00

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE,

-
MIDLA.ND CIRCUIT.—WARWICK, Dec. 4.
Baron Martin took his seat in the Crown Court at 10
o'clock this morning, and proceeded to try
Charles Beere and Henry Beere, who were indicted for
the murder of Charles Plummer. The prisoners also stood
charged with the same offence on the coroner's inquisition.
Mr. Ed win Bennett and the Hon, E. Chandos Leigh con-
ducted the prosecution; and Mr. Fitzjames Stephen de-

fended the prisoners.
It appeared from the evidence that the deceased, who was
67 years of age, and who is well known at Warwick, where
he has lived for many years, was staying on a visit with
his nephew, Mr. Thos. Ricketts, who is a farmer at Fenny
Compton, in this county. On the evening of Sunday, the
18th August, the uncle and nephew were walking in a field
belonging to the latter, called the Second Ground, through
which a public footpath runs, on which the prisoners were
walking. Mr. Ricketts had a small terrier with him, which
ran towards the prisoners, but did not bark at or offer to
bite them. The prisoner Charles made use of a coarse ex-
pression, whereupon Mr. Ricketts told him to go on and
not speak in that way. The prisoner Charles then said,
" Who are you?" Mr. Ricketts said, "I am the occupier
of this field and the parish constable, and if you don't go
on, I will have you taken up for being drunk and disor-
derly." The prisoners appeared to have been drinking,
Charles Beere then said, "I'll let you know whether I am
drunk, and whether you are the parish constable," and
raised his fists in a threatening attitude. Henry Beere got
before his brother Charles and tried to stop him, saying,
"You shan't strike him." Charles, however, got past his
brother and struck Mr. Ricketts on the head, who there-
upon seized the stick—a common oak hooked walking stick
----which the deceased, who was lame, carried to assist him
in walking, and knocked Charles Beere down with the
hooked end. After he was down Mr. Ricketts struck him
again once or twice with the stick, and Charles Beere said,
" Don't hit me while lam down." The deceased also in-
terfered, and said, " Don't hit him any more." Mr. Ricketts
then desisted, and the prisoner Charles got up and rushed
at Mr. Ricketts again, but was a second time knocked down
with the stick. He got up and made at Mr. Ricketts a third
time, who again struck him with the stick, which however
broke in two. Charles Beere and Mr. ilicketts then closed
with one another, and after striking a few blows both fell
to the ground. Mr. Ricketts got uppermost, and, kneel-

ing on the chest of his antagonist, caught him by the throat.
Charles Beere then said to Henry, " Why don't you go
into him ?" Henry replied, "If you can't go into him I
can," and began to kick Mr. Ricketts. Charles also get
free, and then both prisoners beat and kicked Mr. Ricketts
for some time as fast as they could. During all that time
the deceased took no part in what was going on beyond
begging the prisoners not to kick his nephew. Mr. Ricketts
at last with some difficulty got away from the prisoners and
ran towards his farm buildings, which were about a quarter
of a mile off, the prisoners pursuing him as far as the stile
leading into the next field. On his way to the farm build-
ings Mr. Ricketts met his servant, Win. Ricketts, whom he
sent to take the =en up, while he also sent a little boy for
the policeman, and himself went into the house to wash his
face. In the meanwhile Wm. Ricketts went towards the
scene of the affray, and on arriving within about 160 yards
he saw Henry Beere with his hands round Charles's waist
trying to pull him back. When he got to a distance of about
70 yards the prisoners ran away, and on going nearer he
found the deceased lying on the ground and covered with
blood. Mr. Ricketts and the policeman then came up, and
the three went in search of the prisoners, leaving the other
people who had also come to the spot to carry Mr. Plum-
mer into the house. They found the prisoners near North
End, about half a mile from Fenny Compton, and charged
them with the assault. The prisoners said they were going
from North End to Fenny Compton, and on being taken
into custody began to cry. They were then taken back to
Fenny Compton, and driven to Southern in a cart, and on
their way Henry Beere said, "Yeti know, Charles, if you
had been ruled by me and had not kicked the old man we
should not be here." Charles replied, " I know that; I have
got in, and must get out the best way I can." The prisoners
were then left in the Southern lock up. In the meanwhile
Mr. Plummer was attended by Mr. Elkington, of Fenny
Compton, who found him with his face covered with blood,
which was flowing from his mouth and nose, and in a very
exhausted state. On the Monday morning he was unable to
speak; he became unconscious about the middle of that day,
and died the following morning at 3 o'clock. Afterwards,
on the same day, the policeman at the lock-up told the pri-
soners that Mr. Plummer was dead, whereupon the prisoner
Henry said, "If my brother Charles had been ruled by me

_ .
this would never have occurred. I held him back with all
my might, but he got away. I never touched him." The
policeman said, " Who do you mean by him?' " He re-
plied, " Mr. Plummer." Charles said, " That is quite
right; he never touched him." At this time Charles was
crying bitterly. Mr. Elkington made a post mortem exa-
mination of the deceased, in conjunction with Mr. Ebbage,
of Leamington, when it was found that externally the head
and face were severely bruised. There was a wound over
the right parietal bone, and the scalp was torn from the
head for some little distance round the wound. There was
a similar wound on the other side. There was a wound on
the right temple and another on the left of the forehead.
The bridge of the nose and a portion of the bone over the
left frontal sinus were broken down and driven in. One
tooth also appeared to have been driven in. On opening
the head there was found an effusion of serum, and in the
left hemisphere of the brain a largo clot of extravasated
blood, weighing upwards of two ounces. That, in the opi-
nion of the surgeons, was the cause of death, and was occa-
sioned by the external violence. The chest was examined,
and three of the ribs were found to have been broken. The
other organs of the body were all healtb.y. The wounds
were such as might have been produced by kicks with a
boot. The left boot of the prisoner Charles was examined,
and a gray hair was found on the tip of it, corresponding
with the hair of the deceased.

At the close of the prosecution Mr. Stephens submitted
that there was no case against Henry Beere ; and
lit.,_i4 Lordship at once so ruled.
.'. ur the 0.. . .
one 01
le_ tiler prisoner it was contended that the case was
drunk. erTelaughter, and not of murder. The man was
received, h...,uited almost to madness by the blows he had
known, iteZlirder circumstances which could not now be
the cause of beenplummet's ilty of the violence which was
an absence of anydeath. There was, however,
the passion arou„eciklu':€l whatever for that violence except
went inflicted upo,"l"ieltile prisoner by the severe punish-
under similar cirenbasta__A case was cited to prove that
wlethwTaaathtoi:
amount to manslaughter :a the crime had been held to
His Lordship, in summiLlY;
they believed the killing of7haP,.tlireeted the jury that if
Prisoner then had in
sequeno
of any ill• will or ratatl:etathilal:
he
ammer was the con-
hisite ficokretthtse panrid-
mind towards him, and that the:
sorter to cool between his struggle
thehis
wounds violence
tt
oo the
died,
the off
inflicted
amount to murder. But, if the prisoner's a oftence would
which deee
the'is° deceasedd'
result of foregone ill-will and malice, b et was not
at was
is the
under the immediate influence of the blows he '
haqpretrated
from Thomas Ricketts, without time to cool, and from
natural depravity of a man smarting under the injurteet&
had sustained, that would only amount to manslaughter." I
The jury almost immeliately found the prisoner Charles
Beere guilty of manslaughter; and his lordship, after re-
marking that, although in his opinion the offence was man_
slaughter only, and not murder, yet it approached so near
to the dividing line between those two crimes as to require
the most severe sentence the law permitted, sentenced the
prisoner to penal servitude for life.
The other cases disposed of to-day were of no public in-
terest, and concluded the business of the assizes for this

county.
The commission day for Lcicestorlis Monday, the 7th inst.

HOME CIRCUIT.—IIEnEroun, Dec.,4.
CROWN' COURT.
(Before Mr. Justice Williams.)
The learned Judge this morning charged the grand jury.

The calendar contains the names of 25 prisoners, in 14 cases.
In three cases there are three prisoners jointly charged, and
in one (a case of fowl stealing) not less than six. As men-
tioned yesterday, there is no case of homicide (though
there is one of attempt at suicide), and the cases are mostly
of an ordinary character. The only cases at all remarkable
are the case of night poaching, in which three prisoners were
charged : a case of stack burning, in which three prisoners
were charged; a case of maliciously setting fire to farm
buildings, with intent to injure—a case in which also three
prisoners were charged ; a remarkable case of burglary in
the house of the Hon. and Rev. W. Chetwynd Talbot. at
Hatfield ; a case in which the robbery (of plate worth £600)
is said to have been committed by the butler.
The learned Judge, in charging the grand jury, adverted
to this case, and recommended them to be very particular in
observing the evidence as to the footprints remarked on the
hoar frost found in the garden path both to and from the
house, and told them especially to observe whether the foot-
prints in both directions were the same. The case for the
prosecution is that they were, and that the butler, with a
view to divert suspicion, took the plate basket and put it in
the garden, where it was found, according to the depositions,
dry, although a hoar frost covered the ground all around
and made the footprints quite conspicuous.
Tho first case tried was the night poaching case,
Two men, described as labourers, one named Hankin, 36
Yeats of age, and the other Garrett, 23, with a youth named
Scales, 17, were indicted for being together armed with guns
on land belonging to Mr. Puller, M.P., at Thundridge, in
this county, for the purpose of taking and destroying game,
which by the late Poaching Act includes rabbits. They
were also charged with an assault.
Mr. Wocllett was for the prosecution ; Mr. Codd for the
defence,

At 2 o'clock on the morning of Sunday, Nov. 22 last,
two keepers saw the prisoners in a lane coming from a wood,
the property of Mr. Puller, and attempted to apprehend
them. They seized Garrett, who had a gun. A setae en-
sued, in which happily the gun having been already let off
and not reloaded the keepers secured him. The other two
ran away, but were taken in the evening at a public-house.
The night, the keepers said, was " middling ; misty, but
moonlight ;" and they both swore to their identity. On
searching Garrett there were found upon him six snares, or
wires for snaring rabbits, a powder pouch, with powders
and a rabbit, which, having been stuffed, was produced in
court amid much laughter. Near the place where the men
were seized many fresh pheasants' feathers were found
lying scattered on the ground. On searching Hankin's
house a gun was found which appeared to have been
recently fired, and which he at first said had not been
fired for six years, or six months, and then that it had not
been fired since "the last currant season." Garrett, when
before the magistrates, said, " I suppose the keeper will say
I hit him on the head with the gun, but I was not within
three or four rods. I was in the lane and ran after the
others. I ain't done much amiss as I know of. The rab-
bit I had I had given to me, which I can call a witness to
prove," but which witness was not called. Hankin said,
"We were all in the lane. The keeper came and clawed
hold of me, and said, Oh I it is you, is it ?' While we
were scuffling up and down one of my mates came and got
me off. The keepers swear I had a gun, but that is false,
for it was in my coat pocket and he could not have seen it.
When we were running down the lane it dropped out of my
pocket." Scales said, " I was not there and have nothing
to say." No witnesses were called for the defence, and at
the close of the case for the prosecution,
Mr. Codd submitted that there was no case for an assault,
because the keepers had no right to seize the men in the
lane ; and he cited a case to that effect, but
Mr. Woollett said, under the late Act men might be
seized anywhere.

The learned Judge said, there was no necessity to deter-
mine the point at present, nor unless the jury should acquit
the prisoners on the grayer charge,
Mr. Codd, having addressed the jury for the defence,
especially as to Scales, urged that there was doubt as to
identity.

The learned Judge then summed up the case very care-
fully, and rather favourably as to Scales,pointing out, how-
ever, that it was not essential, to convict tha other two pri-
soners, that they should be satisfied as to his identity, sup-
posing they were satisfied that some third person was;with
them, even although he was not Scales. The essence of the
offence was in three persons being together at night, armed,
and with intent to take and destroy game or rabbits. If they
were satisfied that the two men were there with some third
man with that intent, then they should convict them of the
main offence, whether they were satisfied as to Scales or
not; and if they were there with some third person it
could hardly admit of question under all the circumstances
that they were there with the intent charged. There did
not appear to be any doubt that three men were there; the
only serious question appeared to be whether Scales was
ono of them.

The jury consulted a considerable time, and at length
they found the two men guilty of night poaching ; and as
to the youth Scales they said they thought " the evidence
was not sufficient"—in other words, they found him not
guilty.

Mr. Woollett said it was believed, on the part of the
prosecution, that Hankin, who was an old offender, had led
the other prisoner into the matter.
The learned Judge said there were circumstances in the
cases which he should wish to consider before passing sen-
tence, but he begged to intimate that he should not consider
the fact stated, without evidence, that the prisoner Han-
kin was an "old offender," and the learned counsel would
forgive him for saying that ho thought he had said it rather
inconsiderately.
Mr. Woollett apologized, and acknowledged that the
words had escaped him without reflection; his object,
however, having been not to aggravate the case as against
nankin, but to mitigate it as against Garrett.
These observations are deemed worth reporting as worthy
of the attention of magistrates, who are a little too careless
sometimes in allowing prosecutors or police to describe pri-
soners after conviction as "old offenders." The law, it
should be stated, makes proper provision for the legal
proof of previous convictions, and in the very next case—in
which three prisoners, of whom one was named " Robert
Peel," pleaded guilty to a charge of maliciously setting
fire to farm-buildings, and the records of the previous con-
victions were produced, and the prisoners acknowledged
their identity—their sentences were postponed.
A youth named Gravastock, only 16 years of age, pleaded
guilty to a charge of burglary in a farmhouse, where he
was servant.

Mr. Tayler prosecuted.
The learned judge sentenced the prisoner to a year's im-
prisonment.

WESTERN CIRCUIT.—WINCFILESTER, Dec. 3.
(Before Mr. Baron Pigott.)

Valentine Barnbrick, a soldier, and Charlotte Johnson,
spinster, without occupation, were indicted for violently
assaulting Henry Milner Russell, and stealing from his
person four medals, of the value of 305., at Aldershot, on
Nov. 15.
Mr, H. T. Cole prosecuted.

It appeared that the prisoners were standing at the door
of a lodginghouse in Pickford-street, Aldershot, at night,
on Oct. 16. Russell, who was lance-corporal in the com-
missariat department, came up. Bambrick asked Russell
to drink, and he took some beer out of his pint. They then
went into Russell's room, who lodged in the house, and
Russell said he would stand some beer, and ho was in the
act of giving the female prisoner some money to get the beer
when Bambrick seized him by the throat, throw him on the
bed, and tore from his breast four silver medals, one for the
Punjab, one for the Sutlej, and one for the Crimea. Russell
called " Murder," and his cries were heard by some of the
other soldiers, who rushed in and took Bambrick from off
Russell, and he was conveyed to the guardhouse. Two of
the medals were afterwards found in the passage. Russell
was insensible, having been nearly choked.
Bambrick made a long address to the jury. Ho stated
that he had been in the service 10 years, and would have
been discharged the day after the occurrence. He had a
pension of £lO a year, and, what was dearer to a soldier
than any other modal, a Victoria Cross; but ho would tell
the jury the real facts. On that night, as he was walking
with the female prisoner towards this house, in which she
also lodged, he heard cries of " Murder." He hastened
and ran into the house, and saw a girl named Ilayley
coming out of Russell's room. She was crying, and said
that Russell had beaten her and nearly strangled her. lie
went into the room and struck Russell, and they had a
struggle together, and then the soldiers came in and took
him up. These facts he could have proved on the first day
of the assizes, because then Hayley was in Winchester, but
as she was what was called an " unfortunate," she could
not afford to remain in "Winchester,

The learned Judge having summed up,
The jury found the prisoner guilty.
The Judge said he should defer passing sentence till the
morning.

Bambrick—lt is of no consequence what you do now. I
don't care about losing my pension; but I have lost my
position. I don't care what you do with me. You may hang
me if you like.

This morning his Lordship passed sentence. He said,—
Valentine Bambrick, I don't know that I ever had a more
painful duty than in considering your case. I have felt
great anxiety about it, and have considered everything you
urged in your defence ; but the evidence which satisfied the
jury has satisfied me, and it does appear to me to be as clear
a case as ever was tried. You say you had a witness, and
that witness might have put some other construction on
don't think any
the matter. If you had made an application to have your
trial postponed, I should have been the first to listen to your
application, and I can't help thinking, from the intelligence
7",
andwitness
choked and
You displayed, you must have been aware that you could
wlihnsedtnedfoonunhditii ntharoat
was almost
have made such an application. lam bound to say that I
witness could have altered the facts. You
deadly
isstrugglewictlheaarn:ither man. F wa;
seauidifothoaattowdhheyn
thheofpord v•- -d
. ~u Russell
swore of your
medals and perfectly
..,e was robbed of his
2 60,2123 of them were fo-
the woman lodged, Row and at the house where
nlleowdoduihdt they
you
have cern, from' co'--ti' d they have come there ?
. . she breast of Russell ? I have
courage, and hay.
vf:xihibited great gallantry and great
Had it. notb • entitled yourself to the Victoria
een toryour Character, lin force ,ho provisions of but c er, should have put
cent statute and subjected
You 'tp peronal castigation,, as it is,
I deal '
, with your
Cross.