The Sun.
London, England, 1847-04-12 00:00:00

FERREBEE 7). PONTING

Mr. Godson and Mr. Greaves were counsel f,r the
plaintiff ; Mr. Sergeant Allen and Mr. Gray for the de-
fendant.

The action was for an assault. The defendant pleaded
only that he committed the assault in his own defence.
The plaintiff is an ironmonger at Stroud, in this county,
and the defendant a butcher.

Verdict for the plaintiff—Damages, 40s.
CROWN COURT.—(Before Mr. Sergeant GAZELEE
Josiah Gregory arid Edward Bynes were put to the
bar to answer to an indictment, which charged that a
certain die with the impression of a lion passant being
used by the Company of Goldsmiths of the city of
Exeter, for the purpose of stamping and marking silver
wares, they had, at the parish of St. Andrew, in the city
of Bristol, feloniously counterfeited the said die, and had
in their possession divers silver spoons stamped with
such counterfeit die.

Mr. Sergeant Talfourd, Jr. Whateley, and Mr. Gor
don, appeared for the prosecution ; and Mr. Greaves
and Mr. Ings for Gregory, Bynes being and Mended.
It appeared that the prisoner Gregory, who was
about fifty years of age, had carried on business for
nearly fifteen years in Bristol as a respectable silver.
smith, and that Bynes, who was an old man
about seventy, had been his foreman and shopman.
The motive imputed to them for the forgery in question
was, a wish to avoid the payment of the small duty
payable on having their silver wares properly marked
with the die of the Goldsmiths' Company, within whose
jurisdiction they were. A policeman, who went to
arrest the prisoners, found in Gregory's house a box
containing a punch, a piece of brass, and various other
implements of forgery, and some silver spoons. Some
of the spoons were marked with the counterfeit die, and
the mark on those which had the genuine stamp was
slightly defaced, or, as it was called, guttered. A young
man, who had been formerly an apprentice to Gregory,
and who appeared to-day to be in the last stage of con-
sumption, swore that he had been in the habit of seeing
for years silver spoons, and other silver ware stamped
by the prisoner with the die used by the Company of
Goldsmiths of the city of Exeter. It appeared that the
impression was taken off a genuineiy-stamped spoon, and
transferred to the spoons sold by Gregory, in somewhat
the same manner as the Post-office authorities were said
to have taken the impressions off the seals of letters, and
so made Lew seals to reproduce the same impressions.
The apprentice swore that Gregory was in the habit of
carrying the box found by the policeman up stairs every
night, and of bringing it down every morning, and that
it usually contained nearly the same articles that were
found in it by the policeman. This witness admitted, on
cross-examination, that he had been discharged by Gre-
gory. It appeared iu evidence that the die used by the
Exeter Company of Goldsmiths had, besides the lion
passant, three other mysterious symbols. At the close
of the case for the prosecution,
Mr. GREATER submitted that there was a variance
between the allegations in the indictment and the evi-
dence, inasmuch as the indictment described the die as
bearing only a hots passant, whereas the die proved in
evidence had three other marks in addition to the lion.
Mr. WHATELY had no objection to the point, if there
was anything in it, being reserved.
His LORDSHIP reserved it.
Mr. GREAVES then addressed the jury for Gregory,
contending that they could not rely on the evidence of
the apprentice, who was an accomplice at the least, even
according to his own statement, and was altogether un-
corroborated, and was, moreover, hostile to Gregory for
having dismissed him.
Several witnesses spoke highly of the good characters
formerly borne by both prisoners.
Mr. WHATELEY having replied for the Crown, and his
LORDSHIP having summed up,
The jury, after five minutes' deliberation, found both
prisoners Guilty, but recommended them to mercy.
On the prisoners being called on in the usual manner
to say why the Court should not pass sentence upon
them according to law,
Bynes said that he had been already very severely
punished, having been frost-bitten in his hands and feet
during the severe weather of the last winter, from the
coldness of the cell in which he was confined at Bristol.
His LORDSHIP, after severely animadverting on the
cruelty of such treatment to a prisoner, sentenced Gre-
gory,
to eighteen and Bynes to twelve calendar months'
imprisonment, with hard labour.
There are still 13 Crown and 12 Nisi Prius cases un-
tried, and it is probable that the business will not be
over before Wednesday. The Nisi Prius Court cannot
sit beyond that day, as the distringases are returnable
on Thursday, the first day of term.

The Belleiile Transport, with the 16th Regiment,
arrived at Corfu, on the 24th of March.
The mortality amongst lambs in this county during
the present season has
been of serious consequence. We
have heard of one farmer losing as many as 100, and
another 90. It is remarkable that whilst this has been
going on in liert,fordshire, in the southern counties of
England the lambing season has been particularly
favourable, healthy, and prolifie.--lierciord Journal.