The Sun.
London, England, 1847-03-01 00:00:00

COMMISSION OF LUNACY.

On Friday, in pursuance of a:commission de lunatic° in-
quirendo from the Lord Chancellor, Mr. Winslow, a Master
in Lacy d a jury, assembled at The Jack Straw's Castle
Tav stead-heath, to inquire into the state of mind
of Major R and Toulmin North, a gentleman residing with
Mr. J. M. Crooke, a surgeon at Hendon.
Mr. Cockburn and Mr. Tennant were counsel for the peti-
tioner, and Mr. C. Roupell for Major North.
It was given in evidence that alajor North was formerly
an officer in the C ddstream Guards, and more recently in
the Lancashire itliiitia. He is 63 years of age, and was
never married. lie r ossesses large estates in Yorkshire.
Lancashire, and Ireland, which, though encumbered to a
large extent by mortgages, yield him an income of nearly
3,000/. His family residence is at Tnurland Castle, near I
Kirby Lonsdele; though of late years he has only resided
occasionally there. having travelled much on the Continent.
The petitioner is Mr. -loon Burton, of Andover lodge, Chel-
tenham, formerly of the medical staff of the Madras army,
who married a niece of Major North's, and whose children
are the next of kin of the latter. The characteristics of the
unfortunate gentleman's insanity were of the most extra
ordinary kind. It appeared from the evidence given on
the inquisition that from the early part of January,
1827, down to the present time, he has not in a
sane state of mind. Certain charges of a painful kind
having been circulated respecting him in 1826, the officers
of his regiment refused to associate with him, and that cir-
cumstance is supposed to have led to his insanity, he having
been previously a very clever man: In the spring of 1827
his insanity became so marked and notorious, that his tenants
refused to pay their rents to him until they obtained a bond
tarosusgihttinthge
Mr.
hesuld'rdaenncliys
sPearson.,tartedu ph
aistidsodlasicihtoedr,
was
indemnity from a Mr. Noel, a friend of his. On one
o
i
iceie‘ch.aitisossiiltoc odendi7,
IPan
,rr'.heyn-,
hu Pearsonriana shea w
Castle,
tlea,scdoema andg
through
that shethe frequently.
window of the apartment. Though his mother was alive then,
;
On another occasion he deliberately set fire to the curtains
of his bed with a candle, and he said that he did that to
make his escape from the castle. He used to aseert that Jane
Ward, his housekeeper, was a witch, and once asked tier to
take the broom and convey him from Underley Park to
Thurland Castle, stating his object to be to make a funeral
pile of it. In 1829 he went abroad, and for a long
time his friends heard nothing of him. Whilst at Lou.
vain he made a will, by which he bequeathed 10,0001.
to a clerk in a diligence-office, a mere casual se-
' quaintance which he made. At Brunswick, where he
was known by the name of " the mad Englishman," he was
found living with a stable-boy, a discharged servant of the
Duke of Brunswick, in unseemly familiarity, whom he called
his brother. He bad given his watches to some common
soldiers, had parted with his clothes, and was found at Bruns-
wick possessed only of the clothes which he wore. The
authorities in that place had excluded him from that town
for having demoralised the soldiery. He told one of the wit-
nesses, who met him there, that he had an idea of buying an
old castle between Wolfenbuttel and Brunswick, which was
situated on the edge of a forest and in ruins, for the purpose
of giving grand parties in it; and he said that he inherited it
from Queen Caroline, who was a relation of his. He desired
the witness to invite the Duke of Brunswick and his suite to
dine with him there. lie talked also of being about to purchase
the whole dukedom of Brunswick. While at this place he in-
vited five or six soldiers ao dine with him, whom he made
drunk, and afterwards threw bottles of champagne over them.
At Wolfenbilttel, he gave a ball at the hotel where he was
staying, and stationed several men with paper lanterns at the
door, to invite every one that passed to join in the dance. A
witness saw him dancing on that occasion with prostitutes,
and people of the lowest order of the population, and on re-
monstrating with him, he said he meant shortly to have a
grand illumination in honour of his coming into possession of
his dukedom. At a public saloon in Harnburgh, the same
witness saw him dancing with prostitutes, and after leaving
the saloon take out handfuls of sovereigns from his pocket
and throw them right and left among the crowd in the
garden of the saloon. At Stockholm he was found fishing in
a small muddy stream, and told the witness who saw him
that he had caught five large salmon, which he had just
given away. Other witnesses spoke to a great number of
extravagant acts committed by the unfortunate gentleman.
Mr Roupell having briefly addressed the Court on behalf of
his client, and the Learned Commissioner having shortly
summed up the case, the jury, without consultation, unani-
mously returned a verdict that Major North had been insane
from the 31st of December, 1827, and from that period down
to the present he had been incapable, and still is incapable
of managing himself and his property.

We hear that there is a very good attendance of
Nimrods at Melton Mowbray this year, and since the opening
of the railroad the journey from London can be performed in
a very short time ; and Mr. Hudson has made an arrange-
ment which enables Noble Lords and M.P.'s to hunt all the
morning in Leicestershire, and to be in their places in Parlia-
ment the same evening.
ROYAL VISIT TO TSB ISLE Or WIGHT...—. Great
exertions are making to forward the work at Osborne. Some
of the finest shrubs have been sent there from the different
gentlemen's grounds in the neighbourhood, several waggon-
loads from Northwood Park alone. The Royal family are
expected to arrive on Wednesday next.
Tus CONDE MONTEMOLIN.—The Conde Monte-
molin visited on Thusday the department of Somerset House
containing the ship models, and minutely inspected its cu-
rious and interesting contents. In the evening the illustrious
Prince honoured with his presence the performances at her
Majesty's Theatre for the benefit of the suffering Irish and
Scotch. The Prince was attended by the Marquis of Villa-
franca, General Montenegro, Colonel Merry, and Colonel
Gariemartin. On FiklAy the Conde, attended by the Marquis
of Villafranca, accompanied the Earl of Lonsdale to Triug,
where they enjoyed the sport of hunting with his Lordship's
harriers.
The Conde de Montemolin has signified his inten-
tention of visiting the Lyceum Theatre to-night.
ROBBERY OF 80!. BY A PAUPER.—Thursday the
police received information that a pauper, named George, an
inmate of. Clerkenwell workhouse, had committed
bery of 801. It appears that George had often a rob-
been entrusted
with small sums to pay tradesmen, and on Wednesday he
was sent with a cheque of the above sum to settle some
accounts, none of which have been liquidated, Nothing had
been heard of him up to last night. George was formerly a
tradesman in the parish, and hence the confidence placed in
him on various occasions.

ROME.—Mr. Freeborn gave a dinner on the 3d to
Mr. Cobden, and in the evening a Conversazione, attended by
his Excellency the Governor of Rome, the Governor of the
Bank, many of the Roman authorities, several English artists
and other gentlemen, invited to meet the above-named dia•
tingttiehed person.—Roman Advertiser.