The Sun.
London, England, 1847-08-31 00:00:00

LAMBETH.

CHARGE OF MURDER.—Yesterday Thomas Olds,
a bricklayer, was placed at the bar, before Mr. Elliott,
on a charge of causing the death of his wife, by in-
flicting severe injuries upon her person.
Inspector Shaw, of the P division of police, stated,
that on the night of Saturday week the son of the
prisoner came to the station-house, in Lock's-fields,
and requested the as..istance of a constable, stating
that his father was murdering his mother. He (Mr.
Shaw) instantly sent a constable with him, and on
reaching the house of the prisoner, in John-court,
East-lane, Walworth, the officer found that the pri-
soner had been ill-using his wife in a very serious
manner, hut she, notwithstanding, refused to give
him into custody. 'Witnesses were in attendance
who heard the cries of murder issue from the pri-
soner's room ; on the Saturday night and the fo-
lowing day his wife complained of having been seri-
ously injured, exhibiting marks upon her throat, and
said her husband had attempted to strangle her and
knelt upon her body ; and one of the witnesses saw
ber vomit a quantity of blood on the Sunday. She
lingered in great pain until the Thursday following,
when she expired. Since that time a post mortem
examination had been performed ; and from informa-
tion conveyed to him, he (Mr. Shaw) felt it to be his
duty to take the prisoner into custody.
Three witnesses were examined, who corroborated
the inspector's statement, and the prisoner was re-
manded to a future day.
INDECENT ASSAULT UPON A MARRIED FEMALE.—
Mr. William Fraish, a stout, middle-aged man, who
had carried on the business of a brewer at Clapham
for some years, and who it was said is a man of some
property, was brought up in custody on a warrant,
charged with committing an indecent assault upon the
person of Mrs. Sarah Ann Rea Eldridge, the wife of
a grocer in Park-street, Old Kent-road.

The complainant, a fashionably-dressed, handsome
young woman, and who gave her evidence with con-
siderable modesty, deposed that on Friday afternoon
last, the prisoner, who she had seen hut once or
twice before, came to her shop, and asked to see her
husband. She replied that he was not within, hut
told the prisoner when he might see him, and added
that she expected him in in a short time. The pri-
soner then sat down on a cask in the shop, and asked
her to meet him at the Bank some evening, and take
wine with him, or if she would permit him to call on
some evening while her husband was out. She at
once refused to comply with his extraordinary
requests, and told him she was very much
astonished that he should use such language
to her. In a few moments after, she had occasion
to go into the parlour, when the prisoner, without
her perceiving him, seized her round the waist,
twisted her round so as to place her on his left arm,
and held her so while he kissed her, and with his right
hand assaulted her in an exceedingly indelicate man-
ner. She with some difficulty got from his grasp, but
in doing so had received an internal iajary, from the
effect of which she was still suffering. On getting
away from the prisoner she went to the shop door,
and waited there until the arrival of her husband, and
the prisoner remained in the shop. She felt so
affected that she could not tell her husband at once
what had happened, but called him into the parlour for
the purpose, and while doing so the prisoner ran
away. The witness, in reply to questions of the
magistrate, and in as modest a manner as she could,
described the nature of the outrage committed upon
her.

Mr. Eldridge, a respectable-looking young man,
said that after what had been communicated to him
by his wife, he went in search of the prisoner, and,
upon remonstrating with him upon his gross conduct,
he denied the accusation, called his wife the most im-
proper names, said it was a mere attempt to extort
money, and offered him a sovereign to bring an action
for crim. con. against him.
A disinterested witness deposed to the violent and
improper conduct of the prisoner towards the husband
of the complainant.
The prisoner, in defence, said that on going to the
house of the complainant and asking for her husband,
her reply was, that her husband was out with some
of his fancy ladies, and that she did not see why she
should not go out with some fancy gentlemen. lie
(the prisoner) then said something about the garden,
upon which Mrs. Eldridge invited him into the par-
lour to see it, and, while there, he would admit that
he had kissed the lady. He denied having committed
the slightest indecency towards the complainant, arid
said that, having a large family of his own, he should
be the last to do so.

The prisoner's wife, a well-dressed female, who
had been in Court all the time, here said she had been
married to her husband nearly twenty years, bore him
fifteen children, and she had never known him to
have been guilty of the slig: test indecency towards
females.
The prisoner was remanded to a future day, but
bail was accepted for his appearance.

REGIMENTAL MESSES.— " The cankers of a calm
world aed a long peace" have done material injury to
mess society. Regimental messes were originally formed
to give the officers a respectable dining-place, and cheap;
the furniture and utensils were all of the plainest and
most substantial kind, suited to the consumption of
spoon and solid meat, with plain table glass, just enough
for the party and any guest or two that might add to the
number. " What a change!" The tables are covered
with the finest damask linen, cut glass, plated dish
covers, and lighted by splendid candelabra, filled with
wax lights; the sideboard groans; and well it may, for
it is general rickety with the weight of ponder )us chased
silver, much of which is of no use—all this to gratify the
vanity of some commanding officer, or to please the
fancy of moneyed dandies who come into the army to
pass a few years, and like to h lye gut ats at the mess by
way of " astonishing the natives." All this is very fine,
but it is at variance with the principle of making the
terss economical to suit the tastes or means of the pro-
vident or the poor. You can dine cheaper at a London
ciub than at any moss in the army. Why is this? Not,
surely, from the annual subscription. To keep up the
mese every subaltern in the army contributes more than
he subscription of the clubbist, and he is obliged to pay
his daily dinner whether he eats or not. The man of the
club pays not when he eats not, and has further privilege
in the way of feeding; if he wishes to go to the theatre,
or has an engagement for the whole evtning, he can have,
before 4 o'clock, as much cold meat, bread, and beer as
he pleases for 6,1.; if economy is his object, he can dine
there most frugally. Now the officer has no advantage
of this kind; if he goes to the mess to eat luncheon, he
pays more for it than at the club, and is obliged al .o to
pay for his dinner, although he may be 20 miles off, and
he has no means of dining cheap. Leaves of absence
are now so short, that going home to friends, if he has
any, will do no good to his finances, as the travelling
takes away the saving. From what has been said, it
will appear that regimental messes are not like the
" American Soothing Syrup," a blessing to mothers, nor
to fathers either. Their value has been altogether oven
rated; they might be dispensed with, and no loss occur
to any one. There is a set of patent phrases about
messes—" the honour of the service," "the respectability
of the corps," " the comfort of the officers," &c. In the
French service they know nothing about regimental
messes, and 99 out of 100 of the officers live on their
pay; yet they are pretty good in their way, as we have
found now and then to our cost. The Foot Guards have
ro mess; yet, are they less respected than the officers of
other corps!—United Service Magazine.
TIIE ARRIVAL OF TUE HEAD QUARTERS OF THE
63a—ClIATHAJI, Auc. 30.—0 n Saturday the head
quarters of this regiment (West Suffolk) arrived at this
garrison, after an absence of twenty years. It consists
,if the grenadiers and No. 6 and No. 9 company, with
part of the light company, and numbers 14 sergeants and
'32 rank and file, with S women and 16 children, under
the command of Colonel A. Cunliffe Pole. The troops
ombarked at Madras on Gth April last, on board the ship
I.arkins, Captain Santry, arrived at Gravesend on the
27th, after a passage of 137 days. Previous to the ship
arriving et the Cape, she encountered some severe
weather, and Sergeant Goble was washed overboard and
frowned, and about 100 miles from the e
Cape, Captain
liver tom-
W. J. Darling, who was afflicted with the
plaint, expired. They also lost by deaths, during the
eitssage, one sergeant, twelve men, oae woman and two
children.
The dates from Port Philip are to the 25th of March,
but the papers advise little of interest. Labour was
Kill in request among the farmer§ sod 49clewitiOn.