The Sun.
London, England, 1849-12-15 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY

DREADFUL SUICIDE.

On 'Thursday, the 6th instant, a respectable man
named Robert lie,ndall, Letween 50 and GO years of
age, by trade a geld and silver burnisher, residing at
No. 15, Hatton-wall, Hatton-garden, Holborn, com-
mitted self-destruction under the following distressing
circumstances:—lt appears that the deceased (who,
had formerly been in very prosperous circumstances,
and had brought up a Y large family in credit and
respectability), has for some time past been labouring
under an attack of nervous weakness, so much so,
that it was with great difficulty he could perform the
work intrusted to him to do, or with steadiness raise
any food to his lips. This misfortune seemed to
weigh heavily on his mind and spirits, he fearing
that he should ultimately be rendered incapable of
working at a3l, and that his business, which had
lately been very slack, would altogether leave him,
and his wife (who also assisted in his business) and
himself come: to want. There was, however, no
foundation in the impression that those who em-
ployed him would withdraw their business from him,
for at the time, of his unfortunate death his trade was
becoming brisk again. It seems that he has been
within the last few weeks in an exceedingly depressed
and desponding state, which caused greet uneasiness
to his family, though there was no reason to suppose
that he would do himself or others any injury. But
on the afternoon of the day abavestated, the deceased,
while at his worli*top at Hatton-yard, took the op-
portunity, whilst:dais wife'a,lafola was turned towards
him, to drink a qualgity ofTe!kiiil of vitriol; which was
used in his busiaieSOindavo. iia.a:hottle. The
wife hearing a sutNeiskhiiikA447atiffeirned round,
and asked tue detettied whet he hid done. He re
plied, "1 ita,ve drank it (referring to the oil of
vitriol) to kill. myself directly." The deceased's wife
who was h.orror-struck, immediately procured as-
sistance, andl he was conveyed to his re-
sidence, anel medical aid sent for, when
Mr. Gibson, surgeon, of Holborn-hill, promptly
attended, and. did everything that medical skill could
devise to alleviate the intense agony the unfortunate
deceased was suffering from the burning poison, but
all human effo9rts were unavailing to save his life, and
he expired, aaer lingering in great torture about four
hours from the tin e of his committing the rash act.
He was sensible: at intervals, and stated that he took
the poison to 'kill himself, believing he should die
immediately lifter drinking it, but did not think he
should suffer :such dreadful agony, as he was being
burnt to death.

The decease J, it appears, about an hour previous
to his going :to his workshop, made an attempt to
destroy hirivr,ell with a knife, but a son (a young
man who is unfortunately deaf and dumb), who was
present, percas.:ving the cbjcct of his parent, inter-
fered and suemeded in wresting the knife from the
deceased's hen d ; and, to prevent a repetition of the
attempt, immediately hid the knives, &c., from his
father's sight..
The afflicted son, on afterwards being informed by
members of he family, in that silent, but expressive
and intelligilale language peculiar to the deaf and
dumb—by signs—of the fatal act committed by the
deceased, explained also by signs the painful scene
he fr,ld a short time l'efure been a witness of.

An inquest: .was held on the body of the deceased
(who was murb respected) before the Deputy Coro-
ner and a respectable jury, at the Rose Tavern,
Hattun-garden, on Tuesday last, the 11th instant,
when the jury, after viewing the body, and hearing
the evidence of the witnesses, confirming the facts
above detailed; from which it was apparent that the
deceased was labouring under temporary insanity at
the time he committed the dreadful act—returned a
verdict to that effect.

SMITHFIELD CATTLE CLUB.

The annual dinner of the Smithfield Cattle Club
took place yesterday evening, at the Freemasons'
Tavern, Great Queen-street. His Grace the Duke
of Richmond occupied the chair.
To the right and left of the Noble Chairman we
observed the Hon. Captain Dudley Pelham, Colonel
Challoner, Colonel Sibthorp, the Hun. W. Wilson,
Mr. John Villiers Shelley, and other gentlemen well
known in the agricultural world. Among the com-
pany at the other tables were Mr. Fisher Hobbs, Mr.
Sainsbury, of West Lavington, Devizes; Mr. Michie,
Mr. Richard Jones, of Peterborough ; Mr. Fletcher,
of Mansfield; Mr. Peters, of Somerset; Mr. Bowley,
of Cirencester ; and other agriculturists and members
of the club.

The Noble CHAIRMAN, in proposing the health of
the Illustrious Lady who ruled over us, adverted in
eloquent terms to the bright example set by her
Majesty to the wives and daughters of her realm, in
all the domestic virtues of life, as well as the fulfil-
ment of the high duties of her exalted position as
Sovereign of the empire. This, he was sure, was
the toast which would be received with three times
three and real good farmers' cheers.
The toast was drunk amidst loud and prolonged
cheering, and " God save the Queen" was played by
the military band in attendance in the galleries.
The Cita LIMAN, in proposing the health of "Prince
Albert and the rest of the Royal Farn:ly in England,"
observed that there could be no one present who did
not feel gratitude to his Royal Highness for the sup-
port he had given to the Smithfield Club.—(Cheers.)
His Royal Highness had been an exhibitor, and had
gained one of the premiums, and would have had
great pleasure in going through the show-yard, ac-
companied, as he (the Chairman) had reason to be-
lieve, by her Majesty the Queen herself, had it not
been for that sad lo: .s which both her Majesty and
the Prince hal so recently had to deplore—the loss of
an illustrious lady who had performed every act of
Christian virtue, and who, while in life, had enjoyed
no greater pleasure than in endeavouring to amelio-
rate the condition of her poorer neighbours.—(Hear,
hear.) That loss every man with an English
heart must long, very long, deplore.—(Hear, hear.)
But under these ciremustances it could not be ex-
pected that her Majesty and his Royal Highness could
have honoured the show with their attendance. But
he ventured in the name of the Smithfield Cattle Club
to express the hope that they would at all times be
honoured by the royal presence, if they did all in
their power to render themselves worthy of the
patronage they had received. He hoped that the
Prince would become—as he also hoped they would
all become—better farmers some day, and that on
another occasion his Royal Highness would be more
successful than at present. But whether he should
be successful or not in showing stock, the society
must feel equally grateful for the patronage his
Royal Highness extended to them.—(Hear, hear.)
They all knew the exertions which his Royal High-
ness had on every possible occasion made to promote
the cause of agricultural improvement in this country,
and therefore lie asked them with thorough emit'.
dence to drink heartily the toast which he had just
proposed.

The toast was drunk with all the honours.

The CHAIRMAN then ruse to propose the toast of
the evening, " SUCCESS to the Smithfield Cattle Club,"
and in doing so, said that, although from circum-
stancas to which it was not for him at that time di-
rectly to al ude, the show made in the room was not
so numerous as he had seen on other occasions, yet
still he felt he could congratulate the Smithfield Cattle
Club on the show which had taken place in the yard
during the past week.—(Cheers.) The company
would agree with him that in many classes of ani-
mals the display had never been better.—(Hear,
hear.) In the cow class and South Downs beaer
animals had never been shown in Smithfield. In
saying this he knew he was open to attack, and that
it might be said of him that he thought the show of
South Downs was good because he ha-1 himself
gained two premiums in that class. For all that, he
said, it was a good show, and he thought his own
sheep very good ones too ; and, as he could not win it
himself, he was truly glad the gold medal had been
taken from him by a tenant-farmer of the county of
Sussex. He had a great deal of provincial feeling,
and he thought the people of that county ought
always to gain the South Down prize; and again he
said, that as he had not been able to win it himself,
he was glad it had been attained by so good and
straightforward a fellow as his friend Mr. Rigden.—
(Hear, hear.) The Smithfield Club had been of the
highest utility, not only by the show they had held
in the bazaar, but they also took credit for themselves
that by the establishment of their association they
had induced the intelligent farmers of the country to
turn their attention to the superior breeds of cattle,
and their motto was—if good cattle would not pay,
b►►d ones certainly cannot.—(Cheers.) If he went
into any of the markets of the country he felt jasti-
tified —by the examples set by that society, and by
the exertions of local associations, to which all could
not but feel greatly indebted—in saying that the
breeds of cattle in this country were far
better than they were twenty years ago.—(Cheers.)
It was of great importance to the farmers of this
country, and of no less importance to the consumers,
that specimens of these breeds should be exhibited in
the yard ; not that the farmers were to be expected
to rear all their stock as those which were for show,
but that they might see by those which were ex-
hibited what was the right sort of stock and breed.—
(Hear, hear.) And he felt, also, that the proceedings
of the society were of the greatest importance when
he observed the number of young farmers—of the
sons of farmers who intended to follow that which he
feared was not now a very profitable professson—
coming to see these exhibitions, and thus having the
opportunity of forming a comparative judgment be-
tween a good animal and a bad one, which might be
in the next stall.—(clear.) Another great advantage
resulting from the Smithfield Cattle Club was, that
it afforded every opportunity of bringing together the
occupiers of the land and the owners of land, under
circumstances equally beneficial to both.—(Hear,
hear.) He should be glad, however, to see the
annual dinners better supported by landowners, who
had a deep interest in the improvement of agriculture.
He was not about to sound his own praises, but he
would speak it as his opinion—and he had put it in
practice ever since his return from the war—that it
was good to take every opportunity of meeting the
farmers; and he would only ask those landowners
who had not taken the trouble to attend on that
occasion, just to come to one meeting only, when he
assured them their reception would be such as to
induce them to attend many more.—(Hear, hear.)
He believed the Smithfield Cattle Club to be an in-
stitution of great national importance, and called
confidently upon the company to drink its prosperity
with three times three.

The Noble DUKE then read the award of the prizes
by the judges to the successful competitors. Those
who were present in person came up to the cross table
to receive the prizes ; while in other cases agents
attended on their behalf. The Chairman addressed
some words of compliment to each, and we may men-
tion that when the agent of the Marquis of Exeter
appeared to receive the prize won by that Noble Lord,
the Chairman said to him in a good-humoured tone,
" Tell Lord Exeter that the only complaint I have
against him is, that he did not come and dine with
us." The remark was received with cheers. In the
case of the Earl of Leicester, the Noble Duke made
a similar observation.

In proposing the health of the successful competi-
tors, coupled with the name of Mr. Robert Jones,
who had won the greatest honour, the gold medal, the
Noble Chairman, after complimenting them, observed
that they must not relax in those efforts because they
had been victorious, or they would stand a good
chance of being beaten this year. The whole of the
classes having been read by the Noble Duke, and the
prizes severally presented, and the health of the suc-
cessful competitors drunk with the usual honours,
The Hon. Captain DUDLEY PELHAM, in proposing
the health of the Chairman, expressed his conviction
that every day that passed and every year in which
the society met in that room, must have convinced
them that the vacancy in the presidency, caused by
the death of Earl Spencer, could not have been more
worthily filled than by the Noble Duke who now
occupied the chair.— (Loud and continued cheering.)
The club would acknowledge—and he hoped the
whole country was beginning to acknowledge—that
both to the late President of the society and to the
Noble Duke they were greatly indebted for the
example they had set, m exhibiting stock to the
farmers and landowners.--(Hear.) The President
now in the chair had done as the late President had
done, and had raised up formidable competitors to
himself by the stock he had shown. The health of
the Noble Chairman was then drank with the
loudest acclamation.

The Duke of RICHMOND, in acknowledging the
compliment, said that if his humble services as
president, and his long attendance at annual meetings
of the club, entitled him to their thanks, he assured
them that, by the expression of cordiality with which
they had received him, they had made him far more
their debtor. What had he done ? lle had but received
the honour of being elected president by having
associated himself with a body of the practical farmers
of the country, not for the promotion of worldly
interests but with a view to the benefit of the com-
munity at large. He had ever felt that this club was
of great importance to the country, and he had ex-
hibited, he believed, on every occasion. He had often
been beaten, but he had, on coming up into that room,
invariably expressed his conviction that he had been
fairly beaten ; and as he never minded being faialy
beaten, he had gone on from year to year, and had
won also. One beating would not do. He might be
beaten this year, but as long as he could he would
compete in the Smithfield Cattle Club, for he thought
it truly a national concern.—(Hear, hear.) What-
ever attacks had been made upon him, there was one
fault which the British Carmen yiell knew could not