The Sun.
London, England, 1865-01-16 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE—(This Day)•

COURT OP COMMON PLEAS."

Before Chief Justice Erie and Justices Williams and
Keating.)
ROBINSON V. SOUTH WESTERN RAILWAY.

Mr. Sergeant Ballantine said this case was tried last term,
but leave was reserved for the defendants to move the court
for a rule calling upon the plaintiff to show cause why the
verdict should not be entered for the defendants. The
action was originally brought by the plaintiff against the
railway company to recover damages for refusing to carry
a horse, but the company denied the demand, and in
answer pleaded that they were justified in the course they
took. The Act lays down that up to the value of 501
railway companies should carry horses at certain published
charger, but that where animals of a much greater value
than 501. were sent for transit, then it became necessary
for the sender to inform the company of the value. of the
horse, in order that the additional per tentage allowed
them by Mr. cardwell's Act might be levied. The
plaintiff in this instance had purchased a horse (of

the value of 1351.), and notice was sent that a horse-
box, &c., would be required. The company refused
to carry the horse while the value of the animal was de-
clared, and the plaintiff, after some correspondence,
brought his action. The company said there was no re-
.

rusal on their part to carry the horse, but that the refusal
was oil the part of the plaintiff—viz., that he was not will-
ing to pay a reasonable charge made by the company. The
learned counsel said there were various intricate points

that would have to be discussed at the trial to which he
would not further allude.

The court granted the rule.

The cases before the judges of the Courts of Exchequer
and Queen's Bench were devoid of interest.

LORD MAYOR'S COURT.
(Before the Recorder and a Special July,)
EXTRAOR.DINARY ACTION AGAINST THE LONDON FIRE BRIGADE

-CHETWYN Y. CAPTAIN SHAW.

This was an action to recover 501. damages, " for that the
defendant so negligently and carelessly managed a certain
fire engine then under his care and control, that the
plaintiff's horse, then being, as it lawfully might, on the
public highway, was frightened and terrified, insomuch
that it became by reason unmanageable, and ran against
another engine, also under the control of the defendant, and
was wounded, and in consequence died."
Defendant, pleaded, "Not guilty." .

Mr. Francis (instructed by Mr. De Medina) appeared for
plaintiff ; Mr. Day and Mr. Pattison (instructed by Messrs.
Ashley and Tee) representing the defendant.
UpOn the question as to whether any gentleman was a
shareholder in a fire office,
His lordship said—Lam afraid I am.

Mr. Francis—l do not challenge your lordship. The
learned counsel then proceeded to state the facts of the
case. The plaintiff was a horse dealer of Finsbury, and
on the 7th Nov. last plaintiff's son was taking some horses
to Kingsland, and when in the Kingsland-road there were
two engines near the scene of a fire, one being on one side
of the road and the other opposite. They did not appear
to be in play ; but just as the plaintiff's son passed the fire-
man blew off the steam, the engines being steam fire en-
gines, drawn by horses. Now the noise of the steam blow-
ing off was so great that one of the horses plunged
across the road,:striking itself and inflicting:such a wound
that it died. The learned counsel then referred to a
plea put in by the defendant that the engine was not under
his personal control at the time. Now, this was a plea
that should not be put on the record, because it was well
known that Capt. Shaw was the head of the fire brigade,
and it would be useless to sue the man actually in charge
of the engine at the time of the accident. It would be
sheWn to the jury that these steam engines had no name
upon them, and were really driven in a reckless and dan-
gerous manner about the streets, and, in addition to the
fact that Capt. Shaw was the responsible head of the
brigade, it would be seen that he had interested himself
very particularly in the matter. In reply to a letter written
by plaintiff's instructions, Capt. Shaw stated that the
engineer in charge of the engine at the time of the accident
was playing at the time, and the plaintiff's son was passing
throngh the crowd on a nervous horse without any proper
reins. This would be proved to be an error. The crowd
had been cleared at the time of the accident, and there
were proper reins. This being so, plaintiff was clearly
entitled to recover damages.

The plaintiff said he had been informed that an accident
had happened to one of his horses, and he went to White-
cross-street fire station. Plaintiff saw three men, but not
defendant. Plaintiff subsequently saw defendant at
Watling-street, and he said he knew nothing about the
matter—that was the first he had heard of it. He added
" I'll telegraph if you stop." It, was then agreed that
plaintifLshould take a man from the Bishopsgate-street
station to look at the horse. A man accompanied plaintiff
to see the horse, and afterwards a communication was
made to defendant.

Mr. Francis—ls Capt. Shaw here ?
Plaintiff (looking at the. captain)— Well, that is some-
thing like him, but I only saw him once.
His Lordship ruled that this was not sufficient to bind
Captain Shaw. It was new to make the manager of an
establishment liable.

Mr. Francis—Then I must call Captain Shaw.

Mr. Day—l am desired to say that Captain Shaw will
not shelter himself under the plea referred to. He is willing
to have the case settled upon the merits.
Plaintiff (recalled)—I had sold the horse for 231. 10s. I
had put a lip-string in the horse's mouth, and the halter
made a bridle. There was an iron bit, but the string acted
as a gag, and was right round the lower jaw. My son is 19,
and has been in a racing stable.
Cross-examined—The halter cannot slip, but before a
fastening is made it is a common slip halter. The lip-
string is no part of the halter.
By the jury—The lip-string is made of whipcord, but on
this occasion it was made of hemp.

Cross-examination continued—lt is put behind the horses'
fore teeth. There were five horses altogether. A man in
my employ had three and my son two. I should think that
34 yards would be the rope length of the halter. All five
of the horses had the lip-string. A horse can be pulled up
in a second with a lip-string.
Plaintiff's son said he was riding one horse and leading
the other. As witness passed, the fire appeared to be over,
and none of the engines were playing, but the steam was
very suddenly blown off. The noise and smoke frightened
the horses, and the second horse ran away. The horse
witness was riding jumped on to the engine, and the people
cried, "Oh, the boy is killed!" The horse had alarge hole
in its side, and I put my cap in.
Mr Francis—How were you hurt ? Tell us this slowly.
Witness—l was not. I jumped off and stuffed my cap
in the hole. Then I got some tow, half a quartern of flour,
and a tallow candle, and put them all in the hole. (Laughter.)
It was a hole sufficiently large for me to put my arm in up
to the elbow. The wound was sown up afterwards, but the
horse died.

• Cross-examined—The horse was quiet. I turned the
horse round before he shied, and then I went again. At
the first whistle the led horse ran away, and I turned the
horse I was on back. As I was walking him back the
whistle went off again. I did not put my heels into the
horse, but I stuck my knees into his ribs and gave him his
head. The led horse got away from me and a man held it
for me. The led horse got away from me when the whistle
was blowing, and at the time I got up to the engine on the
second occasion the horse was not with me. The prisoner
kept on blowing the whistle, and I thought it was done
on purpose. No one said to me Don't go through
that crowd," and no one told me to get off the horse. I only
tried to pass. he engine once. I don't let a horse have the
better of me in the London streets if I can help it. The
horse turned round upon the first occasion and galloped
back four or five yards. I turned him round and walked
him up to pass the engine.
Re-examined—l saw difficulties arising out of steam
blowing off. There was plenty of room for me to pass,
and the traffic was going on. Lip string acts as a curb,
Reins can be formed by tying the end of a halter to a por-
tion of the lip string.
William Seeley, the man with the three horses, deposed
to the Whistling, but saw nothing of the accident. Saw
nothing to stop the traffic until he got up to where the
engines were.
The case was proceeding when we went to press.

Liverpool Cotton Market—This Day,

Market steady. Sales, probably 5,000 bales.

DEATH OF SIR A. D. CROFT.—The death of Sir
Arthur Denman Croft, Bart., one of the justices of
the Court of Queen's Bench, is just announced. The de-
ceased baronet, who was born in 1801, was the second son
of the sixth baronet, by the daughter of the late Dr.
Thomas Denman. He was called to the bar in 1839, and
was appointed to his mastership by Lord Denman. He is
succeeded in the baronetcy by his son, Herbert George
Denman, who was born in 1838. The mastership in the
Court of Queen's Bench, which becomes vacant by his
death, is in the gift of Sir Alexander Cockburn, Bart., the
Lord Chief Justice.

A SECOND CHARING CROSS RAILWAY.--The new
railway will commence at a junction with the Hampstead-
road, pass under the centre of the Chalk-farm-road, under
the Regent's Canal, and along High-street, Camden-town,
under the North-western and Metropolitan Railway, along
Tottenham-court-road to Oxford-street, thence down St.
Martin's-lane under the Strand, without altering the level,
and so on to a junction on the Hungerford-bridge at the
Charing-cross station. The junction with the main line of
the London and North-Western will be made near the
bridge by which Stanhope-street and Stanhope-Place are
carried over that railway.
The Charivari publishes a woodcut in which 1864
is giving instructions to 1865, both represented under the
guise of young women. In front of them is to be seen a
tremendously fat Prussian soldier walking about with hgr eat
self-complacency. "If that customer," says 1864, should
call for anything, be sure not to serve him, for ever since I
, have been here he has done nothing but help himself