The Sun.
London, England, 1841-03-25 00:00:00

ASSIZE INTELLIG CF.

OXFORD CIRCUIT—SHREWSBURY, MARCH 22.
The Co:nm7ssion of Ass:ze for the Southern Division of
Lancashire was ol,ened here on Saturday last. The Learned
Judges did not arrive until late last evening. This morning,
after having attended Divine Service, their Lordships proceeded
to the Castle, and took their seats in their respective Courts,
Mr. Baron Rolfe presided en •he Civil Side; and Mr. Justice'
Maule in the Crown Court. The business on the Criminal
Side is light, with the exception of four prisoners charged'with
murder, one with killing and slaying, and one with cutting and
maiming. Twenty-two causes are entered on the Civil Side,
none of which have a Special Jury. The cases disposed of
to-day were of a trifling nature.
TUESDA r, MI NCH 23.
ATTEMPTED MURDER OF MR: staexamt.
CROWN COURT.—Before Mr. Baron GURNEY.

Josiah Mister was indicted for cutting and wounding
William Alißer Mackreth, at Ludlow, on the 20th day of
August last, with intent to murder Lim. There were f,ur
other counts in the indictment, charging the intent to be to
maim, tii,figure, or d.sible, or do some grievous bodily harm
to the said William Aliiler Alackreth. •

Mr. Sergeant Ludlow, Mr. Godson, and Mr. Neale, con-
ducted
the case for the prosecution ; and the prisoner was
defended by Mr. F. V. Lee.
Mr. sergeant Lunnow stated the case to the Jury, and,ar-
ter some iiiirodue+ory remarks, said it seemed that the prisoner
at the bar was at Shrewsbury on the 12th of August. having
ascertained that a person of the name of Ludlow, who was a
( att:e- dealer at Biro-die:ham, would be at Shrewsbury fair.
He not only ascertained that, but he also found out that Mr.
Ludlow pot up at an inn called the Unicorn in that town. He
further ascertained the bed-room in which Mr. Ludlow
u•ually slept, but it happened that the inn being full at the
time, 3.1.. Ludlow slept in a double-bedded room. A person
of the name of Jobson was alto at Shrewsbury in the com-
pany of Mr. Ludlow, and the prisoner having quartered him-
self pretty much on Mr. Ludlow, had an opportunity of hear-
ing a meeting appointed between Mr. Ludlow and Mr. Jolson
at Ludlow-fair. Without going through the details, he should
show tit .t on the 19th of August he was in Ludlow, and that.
he vent down to the bridge to inquire at what time the Red
Rover coach came iii from Birmingham. When the Red
Rover did arrive, the prisoner, who was waiting about,
instantly darted off and followed the coach. Mr. Ludlow
was inside, and on getting out he was instantly joined
by the prisoner, who followed him into the eon,
Inert:jai-1-o nvi at the Angel, and that so closely, that the
people of the inn thought they were companions, and they
had been together, Mr. Ludlow remaking, "You are
the 3oung man 1 saw at Shrewsbury." There was a
person of the name of Maekreth then saying at the
Angel, a traveller for the firm of Christopher, George, and
Co., of Bristol, who was in the commercial-room at the time.
He went out in the course of the evening, and did not return
till ten o'clock. Mr. Ludlow had gone into another room, and
was absent some time. The prisoner went up stairs, lighted
by the chambermaid, to his room in the inn, which was de-
signated by the numb, r 20. Now, it was a curious cir-
cumstance, and how the prisoner acquired his knowledge of
it he did not know, that No. 17 was the bedroom which
for three or four years had been usually occupied by Mr.
Ludlow. On the night in question, however, that bedroom
was occupied by Mr. Mackreth. The prisoner was accom-
panied, as he ciad said, by the chambermaid, who, en leav-
ing him, shut the door. No. 17 was a room on the lop of
the stairs, with a door on the right hand of a person going
up, arid' thi:ie' was a passage leading from that room to the
bedrooni
.beCupied by the pri-oner, No. 20. About half an
htiorucrumaf,ttea:,,.ethwehiechhamwboeuridmaiadppconducted Mr Mackreth to
they would give such effect as
his bedroom, and he locked the door. There was a
to his bedroom eartheiyn
thevniielTehnteefittoan‘dvhienho
more. When the chambermaid conducted the prosecutor
cornrertates
she noticed that the door of the prisoner's
bedroom was not quite closed. lie mentioned it for this
reason, that
_quite clear that the person, whoever it
was that
into his !lis act, was at the time of Mr Mack-
reth's:going
person to bedroomforce
and locking his door, concealed
under the bed. Nsawaireem.7l:s employed to break open the
hwaivnedonwb,taainnde
di t
admin.
door, and to entry
ttohe
im-
possible therefore fora
unless he had concealed himself under
sub-
sequent examination also of the Boor asfssior
the bed. On a
oor of the room there we
clear and palpable marks under the bed of the fi re
person in the dust. This was the gure of a
introductory part of the case
to that which happened don the morning of the 20th. On that
Mr.
morning, about 4 o clock,. . Mackreth was suddenly
awakened, and the situation inis which he then found himself
dreadful to think of. H nee
I was cut throu I,and the
war
wa_ fallen in ; he bad a so a severe gash across the
throat was . ~.rther injuries. As was to be expected,
mouth, and some
'-c' tiusiod of blood. The prosecutor made
there was a great
ed out of bed on the right side, and
a.' exclamation, and j
' umP•k by some one on the left, the pro_
in doing so was pulled back by some one on the left, the pro_
torn in the. stt 142 gle. The person, there.
secutor's shirt being torn i
the left-hand side th be, d
fore, whoever it was, was on
gentlemenof whoe woudldan be
they would hear from the medicali,:llh:ted pros uts drawn from
examined, that the wounds were ,
he ecutor, notwdh-
ihe right-hand towards the
"f.'s
hich he was, and although
standing the awful situation in 1. '
f an instant lost
never or -
he shortly became unable to speak,
r did n
his presenae of mind. The prosecutor
erot pretend to
son who coin-
say that he had any recognitien
ofthePsay whether it
rnitted the act, and the Jury would therefore
was the prisoner or riot, from the circumstances of the case.
The prosecutor, i ,
havino• found himself in the situation
which
rush to the
'he had described, on being puled back, male a ,_ . ,
window and was unable to pull it up, but ho dashed his hand
through' the glass, and called out " file." He did the same
thing a. ageond time, for the purpose of making himself more
--eittedy heaol Afterwards, hearing some person going
u'''.- •••• he treat t 9 4i,c. door of his room and found it un-
down sten _,
and up again, am.
He then;turnin4 to the left, went down
locked and open.
' the stair;; issero ro,fy naturally de-
stairs,.--vesfidets of the landlord ;Tit
Urged with blood. The first im,.. . but beers 'laying
the inmates was, that the prosecutor • • -.1 by theta
,iolent hands on himself, and he was induct... • --it.
to go upstairs into his bed-room. The Learned Serjea...,
after stating the conduct pursued by Mr. Mackreth, on getting
into his bed-room, went on to say that. a person of the name
• of Peach, who lived in the neighbourhood. being attracted to
the house, and his attention excited by the blood ; and having