The Sun.
London, England, 1849-11-24 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE.
COURT OF QUEEN'S BENCH, Nov. 23.
(Sittings in Banco.)
BRUFF V. E:TSENBERG.

This was an application to set aside a distringas,
and an execution thereon, on the ground of irregularity.
The form of the rule set forth that the plaintiff, in
obtaining the distringas, had done so at his peril.
The defendant, his wife, a Mr. Peter Dimond, and
Chambers, one of defendant's servants, deposed in
affidavits that when the distringas was issued on the
Learned Judge's order, he (defendant) was out of the
country, on the continent, and that the Learned Judge
must therefore have been deceived in the affidavits on
which he issued his order. _

The plaintiff, a Mr. Hooper, Davis, a sheriff's
officer, and others, made affidavits on the other hand,
deposing to their belief that defendant was at the
time in question in the country.
The affidavits on both sides were of the most
conflicting character. The Court remarked that the
matter was so important as to require their considera-
tion, and postponed judgment for that purpose.
The Attorney• General, Mr. Martin, Q.C., and Mr.
Lush showed cause against the rule ; Sir F. Thesi-
ger, Mr. Whateley, Q C., Mr. Cockburn, Q C., and
Mr. Bramwell, appeared in support of it.

William Muggeridge, Edward. Fowler, Thomas
Bruce, and James Garner, four persons attired in
the garb of sailors, were brought up to receive the sen-
tence of the Court fur resisting Custom-house officers
in the execution of their duty, who had endeavoured to
prevent them from carrying on their nefarious practices
as smugglers at Portsmouth. The officers were most
grossly assaulted, and one of them had his jaw broken.
Mr. Sergeant KINGLAK6 addressed the Court in
mitigation of damages.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL replied; and showed the
conduct of the prisoners to have been of the worst
kind.
They were respectively sentenced to eighteen
months' imprisonment and hard labour in the South-
ampton county gaol.

IN THE MATTER OF MR. CORBETT.
The COURT declined to accede to the motion of
Mrs. Cobbett for a habeas corpus to bring up her
husband, on the ground that he had been repeatedly
brought up on the same grounds, and urged the same
arguments, which had been satisfactorily disposed of.

ADMIRALTY COURT, Nov. 23,
(Before Dr. LUSHINGTON.)
THE ROB ROT.-COLLISION.
This was a suit promoted by the owners of the late
steam vessel Unicorn against the steam• vessel Rob
Roy, to recover the loss consequent on a collision
between them in the North Seas, about fifty miles
from the Ne warp light, on the evening of the 21st
January last. The action was entered at the sum of
26,0001., but on its being ascertained that the value of
the Rob Roy was only 12,0001., bail was taken for
that amount, because, according to maritime law, a
larger sum could not be recovered. The Unicorn,
of the burden of 289 tons, with engines of 150-horse
power, laden with goods and passengers, was bound
from Kingston-on-Hull to Antwerp. She was
proceeding, as she alleged; at seven and a half knots
in hour, the wind blowing south7west by west,
accompanied by a heavy sea, when a bright light
was seen from the starboard bow. The helm of the
Unicorn was then starboarded a little, by which her
course was altered one point. A few minutes
afterwards a green light became apparent, from
which it was inferred a steam vessel was passing
to the starboard. The helm was then put well to
starboard, and kept steady, but almost immediately
after adopting that measure the vessels came into
contact, and so violent was the blow that the Unicorn
was cut down to the water's edge, and sank in a
short time, the crew and passengers having first got
on board the Rob Roy. The accident was attributed
to the want of a good look out by the Rob Roy,
which, it was said, did not discern the Unicorn until
it was too late to avoid the collision. The Rob Roy,
of the burden of 354 tons, with two engines of 80
horse power each, and also laden with a general cargo,
was prosecuting her voyage from Antwerp to Hull,
proceeding, as she stated, at about nine knots an hour,
the wind being south-west. On discovering a bright
light right ahead her helm was ported, and she paid
off. On the light approaching nearer to her the helm
was put and kept hard a port; and on finding that she
was nearing a steamer, her engines were stopped and
reversed, but without effect. She attributed the
collision to neglect on board the Unicorn in not ex-
hibiting proper light, it being admitted that her green
light had been extinguished prior to the accident, and
in starboarding instead of porting her helm when she
first descried the Rob Roy.
Dr. Addams, Dr. R. Phillimore, and. Dr. Twiis
having been heard on behalf of the Unicorn,
The Learned JUDGE, accompanied by the gentle-
men of the Trinity Corporation, retired for a few
min utes, and on their return,
Dr. LUSUINGTON said they were of opinion, that it
was unnecessary to trouble the counsel for the defence.
Had there existed the slightest degree of doubt in
the minds of either of his assessors or of his own, then
unquestionably he should have been s olicitous to re-
ceive the benefit of counsel's argument. They were,
however, clearly of opinion that. the plaintiff had not
made out his case. According to the instructions
issued by the Trinity Board of Hull, under, as was
said, the sanction of an Act of Parliament, the Uni-
corn was bound to have her green light burning,
whereas it, had been accidentally extinguished. Pros.
bably the captain of that
.vessel was not aware of it,
but, it not being visible, the Rob Roy was justified in
porting her helm.
The ELDER BRETHREN having expressed their
concurrence with the observations made by the
Learned Judge,
, Dr. LUSHINGTON dismissed the claim of the Unicorn
with costs.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
MANSION-HOUSE.
Charles Laughne was brought before Alderman
Carden for final examination upon various charges of
forgery and robbery.
The warehouseman of Messrs. Devas and Co., of
Lawrence-lane, said Messrs. Hewitt and Co , of
Albion-street, Holborn, are customers of ours. On
the 8:h inst. the prisoner presented to me an order for
silk and linen, and we supplied him with the articles
upon the representation that they were for Messrs.
Hewitt and Co.
A pawnbroker produced the greater part of the silk
and linen, and stated that they had been pledged by
the prisoner.
It was proved that Messrs. Hewitt and Co. knew
nothing at all of the prisoner or the order.
Russell and Finnis, the officers, apprehended the
prisoner at his lodgings.. He produced part of the
silk, which he admitted he had pledged, and several
duplicates.
Mr. Dawson, in the employment of Messrs. Beving-
ton and Co., of No. 67, King William-street, said, the
prisoner on the 22,1 of September delivered to me an
order, purporting to be signed by one of the firm of
Hatton' Ritchie, and Co., silk mercers, in Regent-
circus, for some boas, from which they were to select
two or three, and to send back the rest. The boas
were never returned.
Mr. D. Ritchie, of the house of Hatton, Ritchie,
and Co , said this order is not in my handwriting, nor
in that of any one authorised by the house.
Mr. W. F. Graham, of No. 31, Spital-square, silk
manufacturer, said, I received an order from the pri-
soner, on the 7th of August, purporting to be signed
by Messrs. Sherland, Pigeon, and Co., for a piece of
good black satin. I found that it was not genuine.
Mr. James S. Brookes—l manage business for my
brother Thomas Brookes, at No. sk, Wood-street,
silk manufacturer. The prisoner came to me with an
order, purporting to be signed by Mr. Jay, for
Messrs. Howell, of Gracechurch-street, on the 25th
of July. We knew the house in the trade, and gave
to the prisoner ninety-five yards of black silk, value
151. 16s, Bd.
A pawnbroker produced the silk.
Mr. Jay, assistant to Messrs. Howell, said the
prisoner came and inquired about a piece of dress in
the window. He asked me to let him have patterns,
and said he wanted to make a present, and wished to
consult his sister about it. I gave him patterns on
the 25th of July. I put the prices in pencil, and
pasted the patterns on one of our bill-heads, thinking
that would be sufficient. This is the same bill-head,
and these are the same patterns I gave him. My
initials are on it in pencil.
Under the bill-head of the house of Howell and
Co., produced, was written the forged order.
Mr. James Shuter Black, of No. 8, Lawrence-
lane, manager of the business of Messrs. Crawford
and Lindsay, Irish linen manufacturers, of Banbridge,
in Ireland, said the prisoner came to me on the 12th
and 13th of June, and obtained a quantity of linen.
On the 12th he came about two o'clock in the after-
noon, and said he wanted some very soft linen for
Messrs. Churton and Son, of Oxford-street. He said
our traveller bad been calling on them recently, and
he thought they could now do some business with
us. I said to him, " Are you young Mr. Churton ?"
He said " Yes." I. went on to say I was aware
his Louse did business with Wilkes in our trade,
to which he replied " Ye.." That knowledge inti-
mated to me the description of goods he was likely
to , want. He was then particularly well dressed;
and from his appsarance, and from what he said, I
believed him to be the person he said he was, and I
supplied him with three pieces of linen, value 121.
13s. 41. He then told me the linen was for Sir
Henry Peyton. Next morning at ten o'clock the
prisoner came again, and said that he saw Sir Henry
Peyton, who told him to bring him some linen that
was softer and thinner. He then selected four pieces
more, two of one sort and two of another, value 221.
is 24. I beard no more about him till I sent in the
bill in July. Mr. Churton then came and said he was
not the party, and that the business was in the hands
of the police.