The Sun.
London, England, 1825-03-15 00:00:00

A SINGULAR CHALLENGE.

The following singular challenge is contained

in a letter from Sir WILLIAM IfI;I{BERT, of St.
Julian's, in Monmouthshire, father-in-law to the
famous Lord HERBERT, of Cherbury, to a gentle-
man of the name of MottoAN. The original is in
the British Museum.

" SlR—Peruse this letter in God's name. Be not di,quieted.
I reverence your hoary hair. Although in your s)n Ifi dto
much folly and lewdness, yet in you I oil- ect Lt. any and
wisdom.

" It bath pleased your son, late, at Bristol, to ci liver a chal-
lenge to a man of mine, on the behalf of a ge: tl n an •ai he
said) as good as myself; who he was he nan,ed not, neithe.•
do I know; hut if -he be as good as myself, it mu t either
be for virtue, for birth, for ability, or for calling and di,nit
For virtue I thirk he meant n At, for it is a thing whit' excee 's
his judgment ; if for birth, he must be the heir n a eof n Earl,
the heir in blood of ten Earls; for, in testimony thereof 1 bear
their several coats. Besides, he must be of the bit 01-rdy.il, for by
my grandmother Devereux lam lineally and legitimately de-
scended out of the body of Edwd.V I. If for ability he must have a
thousand pounds a-year in possession, a thousand pounds more
in expectation, and must have sonic thousands in substance
besides. If for calling and dignity, be must be knight, or lord
of several seignories in several kingdoms, a lieutenant of his
county, and a counsellor of a province.
" Now, to lay all circumstances aside, be it known to your
son, or to. any man else, that if there be any one who beareth
the name of Gentleman, and whose words are of reputation in
his county, Olt- cloth say, or dare say, that I have clone unj
spoken an untruth, stained my credit and reputation in this
matter,. or any matter else, wherein your son is 'exasperaed, I
say he lieth in his throat, and my. sword shall maintain my
word upon him, in any place or province, wheresoever he dare,
and where I stand not sworn to observe thel pace. But if they
be such as are within my governance, and over whom I have
authority, I will for their reformation chastise them with jus-
tice, and for their malaport misdemeanour bind them to their
good behaviour. Of this sort I account your son. and nis like ;
against whom I will shortly issue my warrant, if this my warn-
ing loth not reform them. And so I thought fit to adverti,e
you hereof, and leave you to God.—l am, &c.
" NV.:II. HERBERT."

WATERLOO MONUMENT.—The Government of
the Netherlands had lately cast at the Iron
Works of Siraing, near Luttich, the head of the
immense lion that to serve as an ornament to the
grand national monument on the plains of Wa-
terloo. The weight of the head alone is 50001b5.,
or nearly '2,1- tons ; the weight of the entire lion
will he 60,0001b5., or nearly 30 tons, English
weigh f.—(Brursels Paper.)

DEATH OF WM. OWEN, EsQ. R.A.
OCCASIONED BY TAXING WRONG MEDICINE, WHICH WAS

ERRONEOUSLY LABELLED•

On Saturday evening an Inquest, was held before Mr.
inus, and a most 'respectable Jury,at the late residence of
Win. Owen, Esq. No. M, Bruton.street, Berkeley-square,
whose death was occasioned under the following afflicting cir-
cumstances :

Martha Evans sworn—l was cook to the late deceased gen-
tleman, and had been in his service two years and a half. He
was so unwell all the time that he kept his room, having lost
the use of his limbs. My master had been in the constant
habit of taking medicine (luring that period, and very early in
the morning. About three o'clock on Friday morning the de-
ceased called me. I went immediately, and inquired if he
\mild take. tea ? Ile said no, but he would take his draught at
four. I then took a bottle from the table where the medicine
was always placed. Only one bottle was there ; Mrs. Owen
had put it there between eleven and twelve the preceding night,
and told me it was a draught for my master to take when he
wished to have it. This bottle I showed to the deceased at
four o'clock, as he was particular in reading- the label, and he
said, "It is very right.'' I cannot read writing myself. I
shook the bottle, and poured the liquid into a glass. Ile swal-
lowed the medicine, and immediately observed that it had a dif-
ferent taste from his former physic. lie looked at it several
times, and repeated it was " the draught." Ile added that I
was to take care of the bottle, and give it to his son, Mr. W.
Owen, for hint to take to the chemists, saying that perhaps they
had varied the medicine. I slept in the same apartment as de.
ceased. He desired me to go to bed, and begged I would not
disturb him. I did so, and awoke about five. The deceased
then snored very loud, and I considered be was going into a fit
(being subject to them). 1 went to him, when he told me he
was going to sleep. At six o'clock I again heard him snore,
which being very unusual, I eaquired of hint if he was ill, and
whether the medicine had disagreed with him ? The deceased
said that his head ached, and he wanted sleep. About half an
hour afterwards I rang the bell for our boy, and soon after the
deceased appeared very sleepy, but would speak, and desired me
not to be alarmed, as he was only sleepy. I sent the boy to call
my master's son, to whom I said there was a great alteration in
his father for the worse, and that I considered a wrong medicine
had been administered; I instantly brought the deceased some
tea, but he could not swallow it. The deceased gentleman was
between 50 and 60 years of age.
Mr. William Owen said, my father, now deceased, was in
the habit of taking an opening draught, prescribed by Sir An-
thony Carlisle, and he daily took a preparation of opium, call-
ed
Battley's Drops. lie invariably took thirty drops on going
to bed. The two phials I now produce were brought home
by one of our servants on Wednesday last. On one is a
label, containing these words—" The draught as before, for
W. Owen :" the other phial is now full, and has written on
it'" Battley's Drops." This I have no doubt contains the
draught that ought to have been taken by my father—the cas-
tor oil of it is quite visible. As soon as I discovered the unfor-
tunate mistake, I sent for medical assistance. After my father's
death, I went to the chemist's shop, where the mistake was ac-
knowledged to have occurred, and that it was accidentally done
by one of the young men.
Mr. Robert flicks, of Conduit-street, surgeon, said, I was
sent for on Friday, between seven and eight o'clock, to attend
the deceased ; I went instantly, but in consequence of some
mistake in the message, I repaired first to the Haymarket in-
stead of Bruton-street, conceiving the melancholy occurrence
had taken place there. I arrived at the latter place soon
after eight, where I saw the deceased gentleman, who was in
a state of stupor. I administered ati emetic, and repeated
it—he brought up much matter from his stomach. I after-
wards sent to Sir. Weiss, instrument-manufacturer, in the
Strand, for some instruments, with which I injected liquid
and extracted a great portion of matter. The deceased, how-
ever, gradually got worse, and lingered till near four o'clock
the same afternoon, and then expired. I have to add, that I
was informed that the deceased gentleman had taken a quantity
of poisonous matter. Battley's Drops is (a nostrum) a prepar-
ation of opium.
Joseph .Jenkins, a servant of the deceased, said, on Wed-
nesday evening I went to the chemist's shop in the Haymarket,
I asked for a draught—( I have procured such a draught there
forty or fifty times before for my master); and also, fora bottle
of Battley's Drops. I left the order and called again in an
hour, when the two bottles were given to me, which I brought
home, and took into the deceased's room.
This being the whele of the evidence, the .Jury most deeply
lamented the unfortunate mistake that had occurred, and after
a long,
consultation,
dtur.etioirwneetilii
Esq. died front taking a
the following verdict:—
large quantity of Battley's Drops, the bottle containing that
liquid having been negligently.and incautiously labelled the
person who prepared the medicine as an opening draught, suck
as the said Sir. Owen had been in the habit of taking."

1‘ EST INDIA DOCKS.

STOCK. ACCOUNT for the Week ending Saturday, the 12th

of March, 11;25.