The Sun.
London, England, 1849-09-21 00:00:00

until they were paid up he felt that they ought not to
isAue any new shares. While he wa. o❑ his legs he
might as well ask if it was true that the seam-packet
company owed this company a large sum of money—
whether a large loan had been made to the steam-packet
company?

The CHAIRMAN replied that the steam-packet com-
pany did o.ve the railway company money.
Mr. CARLISLE-11)W much?
The CHAIRMAN said he had not the ledger with him,
and could nut answer that question.
Mr. GILBERTSON asked for some information upon the
returns from the hotel at Dover.
The CHAIRMAN said the reason that hotel had been
constructed was this:—The Dover Harbour Commis-
sioners, under their original Act, had power to call
upon this company to build an expensive and useless
station at Dover. but they had consented to forego it,
upon the company undertaking to build the hotel referred
to by the Hon. Proprietor. The cost of that hotel was
included in the construction account. He would take
that opportunity of stating that this company held a
large amount of property, of various descriptions,
and he had no objection to have the accounts relating to
it laid b,s!ore the shareholders in their original shape,
but he thought the shareholders would be acting more
judiciously by adopting these accounts, which had been
prepared by public accountants.
The amendment was then put and negatived, after
which the original resolution for the adoption of the re-
port was agreed to.

- The CHAIRMAN then moved the dividend referred to
in his opening address to be payable on the 15th Oct.
next, s income-tax.

A PROPRIETOR wishod to know if they could legally
pay the dividend, since the line from Ashford to Has-
tings had not been completed within the time specified
in the Act.

The CHAIRMAN said, the directors had taken advice
on the subject, and legal authorities were clearly of
opinion, that as no part of the Ashford and Hastings
capital would participate in this dividend, it could be
legally paid.
The resolution was then put and carried.
The CHAIRMAN then moved a resolution authorising
the directors to carry out the latter recommendations in
the report relating to the issue of new shares.
Mr. J. WILSON moved as an amendment that the sub-
ject be postponed.
After some discussion, _

The CHAIRMAN stated that the directors proposed to
issue the shares at par, and they were ready to issue
them in full.

Mr. Silirra wished to ask the Chairman whether he
thought 17,000/. would have to be annually set abide for
a depreciation fund.

Tie CHAIRMAN did not think it would. The rolling
stock, rails, sleepers, and permanent way were constantly
being replaced by the necessity that existed for always
keeping the line and stock in a high state of efficiency.
It was his firm opinion that this hue would ultimately
yield upwards of 4 per cent.
The amendment was then put and lost, and the origi-
nal resolution ultimately carried.
The shareholders then resolved themselves into a
special meeting, and agreed to the recommendation in
the report.

Thanks were then voted to the Chairman, and the
meeting terminated.

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT.

OLD COURT.

TRIAL OF CAROLINE COCK FOR THE WILFUL
MURDER OF HER HUSBAND.

(Continued from our Afternoon Edition of yesterday.)
Mr. Edward J. H. Asbury, surgeon, stated that he was
called in to see the deceased on the afternoon of the Ist
of July. He found the body of a man lying on the floor
of the pantry. He was not dead, but died almost im
mediately after he arrived. He then examined the
body, and found a wound at the region of the
heart, which had penetrated the waistcoat and shirt.
It was about an inch deep. Upon his men-
toeing that the deceased was dead, the prisoner made
an exclamation of surprise, but what the words of it
were he could not remember exactly. He thought it
was " Is he indeed?"
John Collies, a police-constable in the U
stated that on the Ist of July he was called into Mr.
Buller's house, where he found the last witness and
others standing over the deceased. He asked the last
witness if the man was dead, and received a reply in
the affirmative ; the prisoner was sitting near at the
time, and he followed up his first question by asking
how it happened. The last witness said he did
not know. He then said to the prisoner, " How
did this occur ?" She replied, " I don't know."
and appeared to be perfectly cool and collected. He
noticed a butcher's steel lying on the door near to the
deceased, and afterwards found a knife in the sink
in the pantry, which he produced (it was a white-
handled dessert knife), and which at the time was
stained for about three inches with blood.
He then asked the prisoner, "Do you know anything
of this?" She said, " I know nothing of it; I never saw
it before." He then told her that she must consider
herself in his custody, and she replied, " Very well."
She was quite cool and perfectly collected when she
gave that answer. He went out for a few minutes,
and when he returned he told her that she must
come eith him to the station-house. She said " Very
well," and stepping over the deceased she went out
before him and was conveyed to the station-house,
whe re she remained till Monday, when she was taken be-
fore a magistrate.. The station-house was about a mile
from Mr. Butler's house. On the following day she
asked if there had been an inquest on the body. On
being told a verdict of wilful murder had been returned
against her, she said " Is it possible?"
Thomas Holden, police-constable, said he was on duty
it the station-house on the night in question; observed
the prisoner to appear very restless on the following
morning. She said, that at Mr. Buller's house after
dinaer she and her husband had some words; he went
into the pantry, and called her to him, she saw his hand
on his side; he walked to the door and lay down. She
asked it he was ill, and he said, " No, I shall soon be
better." She screamed out for the girls, and one came.
Some days afterwards. whilst with the prisoner, she
said, " If the worst comes to the worst will my child
have the property?"
Jacob Asbury, a surgeon residing in Enfield, av:-.s
called into Mr. Buller's house en the let of July. Ex-
mined the body, and found a wound on the left breast;
maths a careful examination of the wound; it was a deep
wound, and must have been made by a cutting instru-
ment, probably the knife produced. The heart was
slightly wounded. Death was caused by the wound; the
wound could not have been inflicted by the right hand
of the deceased; it •was possible to have been done with
his left, but he must have placed his arms in an unnatural
position ; after the wound had ben inflicted he might
have walked some distance before be fell down; he would
be capable of speaking for from five to ten minutes.
Cross-examined by Mr. COOPER—CouId not have made
such a wound with his right hand, because his muscles
would not act. Had read Beck's jurisprtelence; there
are many cases of suicide by stabbing noticed in it, but
they are of the right side.

Thomas Cock, brother of the deceased, stated
the deceased was not left-handed; he and his wife did
not live very comfortably.
Cross examined by Mr. COOPER—Had the use of both
his hands. Knew many married people who do not live
comfortably.
Elizabeth Warner had apartments with the prisoner
during the summer and autumn] of 1845. Deceased lived
with her, they frequently quarrelled.
Elizabeth Barker said, in 1846 prisoner lived with her
in the City-road. Often had conversations with her about
her husband; he did not live with her.

Mrs. Cundell lived, in the early part of the present
year, with prisoner, in Napier-street, Hoxton; she was
always very jealous of her husband. On one
occaiion, about four or five weeks before the murder,
prisoner told her that on the night before she had asked
the price of a pair of pistols, and she would hear of
something before very long. Witness replied that she
did not think much of what jealous people said; but it
she thought she meant her ,husband should write to
deceased.

A number of letters which were found by the police-
sergeant i❑ the butler's pantry were next put in and read,
which showed the prisoner to be labouring under strong
feelings of jealousy and revenge for some supposed
injury.
Mr. COOPER then proceeded to address the jury on
behalf of the prisoner. Hi remarked that the charge
was of murder with malice aforethought, and commented
strongly upon idle tales of years past being raked up by
the prosecution to prove the manner in which they lived;
he then spoke of the manner of the woman throughout
the affair, and put it to the jury whether
it was the conduct of a woman who was fond of
her husband and meditated murdering him. The prose-
cution had called a clergyman to prove the pious con-
duet of deceased, but many of the most religious persons
have been known to commit suicide ; the fear of losing
his situation by his wife being there, when he knew she
was ordered never to enter the house, might-induce
him to commit suicide ; the surgeon had said that the
deceased could not have done it with his right hand ;
but, on cross-examination, he allowed it might have been
done with his left. With a few more remarks upon the
evidence, he called upon the jury not to convict the
prisoner upon such slight and circumstantial testimony.;
Mr. Baron PLATT having summed up at considerable
length,
The jury retired to consider their verdict at four
o'clock.

In about ten minutes the jury re-entered the court
and returned a verdict of Not Guilty.

NEW COURT.
(Before the RECORDER.)
John Pearson, 24, labourer, was indicted for haying
on the Bth of September, feloniously stabbed and
wounded Balfour Lamb, with intent to kill and slay him.
The prosecutor, a labouring man, stated that on the
day named in the indictment he was at the Green Man
public-house, Whetstone. where the prisoner was, and a
quarrel ensued abut a fiddler that was there. Prosecu-
tor left the house, followed by the prisons, who drew a,
knife and stabbed him •in the side, inflicting a wound
that would have cost him his life, had it not been for
the intervention of one of his ribs, ai'ainst which it
glanced, and only inflicted a flash wound about an inch
in lengt%
The jury found the prisoner guilty of the whole
charge.
The RECORDER, in passing sentence, deprecated the
cowardly and dangerous system of carrying knives and
usin.,); them in the manner the prisoner had.

The prisoner was sentenced to be transported for ten
years.
Elizabeth Griffith, 39, married, was indicted for lar-
ceny.

Mr. Robinson prosecuted, and gr. O'Brien defended.
It appfared from the evidence that the prisoner is one
of a gang of sv‘indiers, numbers of whom have already'
been eonviettd, and that the plan adopted by her to ob-