The Sun.
London, England, 1841-01-18 00:00:00

hIARYLEBONE VESTRY.

On Saturday the Vestry assembled at the Court-
house, for the despatch of business.

THE REVISING BARRISTER'S CHARGE.
Upon the motion for the confirmation of the minute
that the sum of 661. 9s. 9d. be paid to Mr. T. W. Nel-
son, the late Revising Barrister of the borough,
Mr. KENSETT moved its non confirmation. He said
that since the year 1836 they had had two unprofessional
and unlearned men to revise the list of voters of the
borough, and two learned and professional men, and
that it would appear that the charges made by the lat-
ter much exceeded those made by the former. In the
year 1836 there were 5,149 voters collected in the hook,
and the charge for that year was 41/. 18s, 10.1. In
the year 1837 there were 5,766 voters, and the charge
for that year was 471, 14s 9d.—these being the ex-
penses of the two unlearned men. Then in the next
year, when the professional gentleman undertook the
office, they found that his expenses amounted to
631 125., while there were 100 voters less than the
previous year ; and in the following year (that to which
he objected), although the number of voters had de-
creased another 100, the expenses had increased to
66/. 9s. 9d. Last year they objected to pay the charge,
when the Revising Barrister consented to accept 501.
Ho objected to pay the present demand, without
vouchers to show the different items. The Board
ought to make a stand against such expenses. He
should therefore move the non-confirmation, until such
time as they had vouchers.
Mr. TABRUM seconded the motion.
Mr. GOSIME observed that the former expenses had
been allowed unanimously by the Board. That was,
therefore, not the time to complain, when the charges
had been acknowledged.
Mr. Bacsita,,v said that in the borough which he
had once the honour to represent, the office of Revising
Barrister was considered an honorary appointment.
But if expenses were incurred, it was but proper that
they should have vouchers of the charges made.
Mr. SODEN requested the vestry-clerk to read the
charges in the account which had been sent by the Re-
vising Barrister.
Mr. FLOOD, vestry-clerk, read them seriatim.
Mr. SKINNER remarked that there were evidently
expenses incurred on account of business that the Re-
vising Barrister must have employed persons to perform.
The CHAIRMAN then said, that the vestry could post-
pone the confirmation of the minutes for a fortnight.
Mr. BAnstraw moved an amendment to that effect,
which was seconded by Mr. Gomm., and, after a reply
from Mr. Kensett, was adopted.

THE LONDON AND WESTMINSTER WATER COMPANY.
The minute being read that a pet Con be presented
to Parliament in favour of that Company,
Mr. KENSETT rose, he said, in consequence of a
statement having appeared in the daily journals, with
the signature of Mr. Knight, the Secretary to the Mid-
dlesex Water Company, purporting that for the last 20
years the rates for the supply of water in their district
had never been raised, and he stated that he had docu-
ments to show that such was not the case. There was
one of the largest rate-payers in the parish, Messrs. Wil-
liams and Sowerby, who had two houses in Oxford-
street and two in Wells-street, adjoining, and which was
rebuilt about three years ago. Previous to being re-
built they paid to the Company 71. 18s. a year ; but
subsequently their rate was raised to 15/.10i., exclusive
of high service, which made it about 23/. Now this
could not arise from any increase of supply, as before
the houses were re-built, they had 98 persons in the es-
tablishment, while afterwards they bad but 48 persons.
Application was in consequence made to the Board of
Directors of the Company, but where he could obtain
no redress, and they would give no explanation whether
they had any principle to go by in rating houses. Ha
could offer other instances.

Some of die vestry remarked that they had been dou-
bled in their rates.

Mr. GLASIER said, that he could bear his testimony
to the statement of Mr. Kensett, and he could also
state that a poor womsn, one of his tenants, had her
rate doubled.

CHmamAN—Does any ono move the non-confirma-
tion of the minutes?

No reply having been offered, the minutes were con-
firmed.

SCOTT, THE DINER.

On Saturday, at the Westminster Medical Society,
Dr. Chowne, one of the physicians of the Charing-cross
Hospital, stated that Scott was thirteen minutes bang-
ing, ten minutes on the pavement, where an attempt
was made to restore animation, and from ten to fifteen
minutes elapsed in bringing hirs from the bridge to the
hospital, making in the aggregate thirty-three minutes
before he was subject to the process of resuscitation.
Owing to this circumstance, there was but little chance
of restoring him to life. Notwithstanding this, every
attempt was made to effect that desirable object. The
lungs were inflated, brandy was administered, and the
body was exposed to the galvanic influence. His
head and lungs were carefully examined after death.
The vessels at the posterior part of the brain were very
turgid, in other respects the brain was natural. A
great accumulation of blood was tound in the lungs ; in
tact, there was clear evidence that the circu-
lation in this organ had been completely stopped,
and that asphyxia was the proximate cause of
death. Dr. Chowne stated that Scott's usual mode of
performing the trick was by placing the rope imme-
diately underneath the lower jaw-bone, and by adjust-
ing the rope in this manner he might hang for some
time without respiration being suspended. It is be-
lieved that the rope slipped from under the jaw and
produced strangulation. It was Scott's usual custom
‘%hen hanging to stretch out his arms, but in the last
fatal experiment he did not do so. Alluding to this
circumstance, Scott's wife observed to Dr. Chowne,
What fools they must have been not to have seen
that he did not make his ordinary motions, and that all
was not right." Oa the morning of the fatal accident
he was in good spirits, and observed to his wife that the
result of th..t day would relieve them front their pe-
cuniary difficulties.

Mr. F. Winslow observed that he had been told by
a person who was immediately under Scott while he
was hanging, that he appeared depressed in spirits, and
that from this circumstance some supposed that his
death might have been premeditated ; but Mr. W.
thought the history of the case did not warrant any
such conclusion. From the absence of all struggling,
Mr. Winslow said the dea.h must have been instan-
toneous.

HORRIBLE DISCOVE RY.—A young man, of
the commune of Renil, was out shooting a few days ago,
when his attention was attracted by a large flock
of ravens, who were all standing together near
the side of a brook, and apparently disputing the
possession of the ground. On his advancing to.
wards the spot the ravens took flight ; but, curious
to see what had attracted them, he proceeded to an
examination of the ground. Seing a little hillock covered
with snow, he kicked against in order to ascertain what it
was, when to his surprise be discovered that he had, by the
stroked his foot, exposed to view the head of a man. He was
so alarmed at this discovery that 's:e instantly ran
home, and told what ho had seen. Some friends re•
turned with him to the place, but what was their
horror, on removing the body from the position in
which it had first lain shrouded in snow, to see a
quantity of rats and mice make a precipitate retreat from the
inside of the dead man They seemed to have forsaken the
brook and made a nest in the body,which they had entered by
eating a hole in the throat. NI. Bouchard hastened totho spot
as soon as informed of the circumstance, but could not dis.
cover anything to indicate the name of the deceased, whose
death he knew not whether to ascribe to the hand of
the murderer or the inclemency of the weather.
The deceased was well dressed, and is supposed to
have bean the mate of a ship. The body, which was at
first hard and frozen, was in a shocking state when the
" autopsy" took place, from a thaw hosing in the mean
time taken place.— Gazette des 7ribunaux.
MORALITY OF AGRICULTURAL DISTRICTS.
—The Report read at the Hants Quarter Sessions con.
tains the following significant statement :—" From the
earliest records of county expenditure, kept in the CI. rk
of the Peace's office, and from which the Report was
drawn up, it appeared that in the year 1792, the amount of
sums paid to prosecutors and witnesses was 1,0081., and in
1840 it amounted to 4,0351. ; and as the increase of popu-
lation during that period did not tally with this enormous
increase, it must have arisen front some other reason. One
of those reasons was the great increase of crime, in propor-
tion to the increase of population." The Chairman of the
Berks Sessions " was sorry to perceive so large a calen-
dar ;" and the Chairman of the Hereford Sessions " re..
gretted to say that the number of prisoners was nearly
as large as he had ever remembered sinco he had
had the honour of presiding at these sessions, and
some of the offences were of a heavy nature."
But perhaps the most convincing proof of the
state of crime in the country districts is furnished
in the cJse of this very county of Wilts. From the report
of the Chief Constable it appears that since January, 1840,
the number of offences which have come under the cogni-
zance of the rural police, exclusive altogether of those
under the charge of the police of the various towns, stands
thus : "In the April quarter there were 269 charges; in
June, 368; in October, 501 ; and in January, 300, making
a total of 1438." In his charge to the Grand Jury the
Chairman of our Sessions, the Tory Member for Bath,
said, " The result of the present calendar tended to con-
firm the opinion he had long since entertained, that by far
the larger portion of crime in this counts was committed
in the rural aed agricultural districts ; of the 84 felonies,
60 at least had been committed in those districts, and but
24 in the towns.— Wiltshire Independent.
DOVER, JAN. 15.—The report just received by
the French mail is, that the English mail bees were lost at
Boulogne, by the French pilot-boat capsiaing on the bar,
and some of the crew drowned,