The Sun.
London, England, 1865-05-19 00:00:00

WESTMINSTER.

A NOTORIOUS THIEF AND IMPUDENT DEFENCE.—Jane
Mansell, a middle-aged woman, who has been reps .tedly
charged with felony and other delinquencies, was placed at
the bar charged with robbing Henry Hayes, a working
man, of his purse containing £1 6s.
Prosecutor said that he met the prisoner, whom he had
known for years, yesterday afternoon, in Chelsea, and went
with her to a beershop in Oakham-street, where they had
something to drink, and while standing engaged in con-
versation afterwards the prisoner put her hand into his
pocket and robbed him. He seized her hand and endea-
voured to take the purse from her, but she struggled vio-
lently and got away for a moment to some companions,
and prosecutor again seized her and held her till the land-
lady came and a policeman was fetched.

Arnold—Has the money been found ?
Prosecutor—No, it has not.
Prisoner—How should it be when they've taken the
wrong party. If they had taken Mary Elliott they'd have
found it. I saw her take the purse. She was going to do
it, and I said, " Don't, he has paid for some beer," and she
said, " Mind your own business," and then she took the
purse and walked out of the house. The policeman knows
it as well as I do.
William Beat, 238 B, was called, and said he found pri-
soner in the grasp of the prosecutor, and took her in
charge. _

Mr. Arnold—Did she give this account then ?
Policeman—Not a word, until after she had been locked
up some time.
Prosecutor—Her hand was in my pocket at the moment
I first laid hold of it.
Prisoner was remanded.

RAILWAY ON EPSOM DOWNS.—Epsom races will
this year be signalised by the opening of a new
railway—the Banstead and Epsom Downs line—terminat-
ing within a short distance of Tattenham-corner, and not
more than half a mile from the Grand Stand. This rail-
way, which does not exceed 41 miles in length, was pro-
jected by an independent company, but it has now passed
into the hands of the London, Brighton, and South Coast
directors, whose main Epsom line it leaves at the Sutton
station, and gradually ascending to the village of Banstead,
terminates, as already mentioned, between Tattenham-
corner and the Grand Stand, each of which are within a
a few minutes' stroll over the greensward. Captain Yol-
land, of the railway department of the Board of Trade, has
certified the line to be in perfect working order, and it is
fully anticipated that the great bulk of the railway passen-
gers to Epsom will tilts year adopt the new route, thus
avoiding the extortion of fly-drivers, and the insufferable
nuisance of traversing the dusty road between the village
of Epsom and the racecourse. The new line is in direct
communication with tho Victoria and London-bridge Rail-
way stations. •

PROOF POSITIVE.—The Graaf Reinet Herald tells
the following amusing story anent a wool farmer,
who was anxious to get full value for his produces. It says:
—" Since it was known that there has been no assizing of
weights in this town for four years, and that there were
differences in the scales of several dealers, an amusing in-
cident occurred. A. farmer who reads his newspaper came
to town resolve dio be wide-awake in selling his wool ; so
he went to the first store, and brought up the subject of
weighing people. Stepping on the platform scale, he said,
" I wonder what I weigh now ?' His weight was read off.
and away he went to the next store ; and so on to others
When he came back he knew who had the lightest scales,
and did not go there with his wool."
THE MAOMES.—As to the natives being " neither
cruel nor vindictive," not Inds than 88 sold-blooded mur-
i-letstif unartned Mon, women, and children were committed
by them during this war, as shown in the Governor's pro-
clamation exempting from the amnesty the perpetrators of
those crimes. In the war of 1845 and 1846 a natal officer
was scalped, a captain of the regiment I heldnged to *as
mutilated and partly eaten, a wounded soldier was roasted
alive, another soldier, who had strayed from the camp,
was found with both his eyes scooped out, and his tongue
and cheeks cut off. In the present war some of the soldiers
were decapitated, and Captain Lloyd's head was paraded
about for months as a trophy. I know not how a people
who act thus can be considered " neither vindictive nor
cruel," though no one can dispute their bravery and mili-
tary qualities. I have no feeling against the natives; but
as a military officer who served in the colony for a number
of years, commencing from a very early period of its history,
I think myself an impartial and competent witness, and,
considering the colonists to have been grossly maligned, I
write in the interests of truth and justice, in opposition to
a sentimental but mistaken philanthropy—" mistaken"
even in the interest of the natiyes themsslyes.—New Zea-
land Examiner.