The Sun.
London, England, 1847-08-24 00:00:00

-CONTINENTAL TRAVELLING.
IMPORTANT TO PASSENGERS FROM THE

CONTINENT.
A complaint has ing been made to the Board of
Customs, by a passenger arriving from the Continent,
that when .e was about to land an' officer of the re-
venue laid his hands on the pockets of his great coat,
which was on his person, for the purpose of ascertain-
ing whether he had any articles in his pocket
to duty ; the Commissioners have directed the prin-
cipals of departments at the various packet ports,
having passenger traffic with the Continental States,
to be acquainted, for the information and guidance
of themselves, and the officers under their survey,
that it is illegal to sear -11 the clothes of passengers
when on their person, or to feel the outside of their
pockets at the time they are landing from any ship or
vessel, although the officers may suspect that goods,
liable to duty, are concealed therein ; and have further
directed them to caution the officers stationed on
board vessels with passengers, or superintending the
landing of such persons, to be careful not to give
offence by so doing. They have farther been in-
structed that the course which officers of Customs
ought to pursue, in this matter is as follows :—lst
case they observe any package in the packets of a
passenger, or have any reason to suspect that he
has any articles concealed about his person, the.
usual question is to be put as to the party hav-
ingthe being
event t the
0f same
mdeen time
yin g
any goods in his possession subject to duty, be
respectfully informed that, in
having goods liable to duty
in his possession, and of such goods being subse-
quently found by the officer wao is by law authorised
to ascertain the truth of the statement, the goods
would become forfeited, and the party be liable to a
penalty of treble the value thereof; and should the
answer of the passenger be in the affirmative, be
should be requested by the officer to produce the
goods. If, however, the passenger insists on denying
that he has such goCds on his person, and the officer'
still have good ground for suspicion, the party is then
to be informed that the officer deems it necessary'
that his person should be searched, under the provi-
sions of the law' but that he (the party) previously to
being searched, is at liberty to require to be taken
before a magistrate, or a superior officer of customs,
who will determine whether there is reasonable
grounds of suspicion or otherwise ; and should the
party not claim to be taken before a magistrate or
superior officer of customs, but still refuse to be
searched, the officer is authorised by law to make SUCII
search, and to detain the party for that purpose, at all
times giving him the option of being taken before a
magistrate. Should a party who has claimed to be
taken before a magistrate afterwards refuse to go, he
may be detained by the officer and taken betbre
magistrate. The 56th section of the Act 8 and 9
Vic. cap. 87, makes a person liable to a penalty of
100/. for obstructing an officer of the revenue in the
execution of that portion of his duty.

NARROW ESCAPE OF LABOURERS IN THE CITY.—
Yesterday morning, as several men were employed in
making alterations in the warehouses lately in the pos-
session of Messrs. John Lart and Son, hosiers, 116,
Wood-street, City, an accident occurred by which feur
of them were more or less injured, others were partially
buried, and all of them narrowly escaped being crushed
to death. From inquiries instituted on the spot shortly
after the occurrence, it appears that about ten o'clock in
the morning .a labourer, named John Sheridan, with
others, were employed in the lower part of the building,
a portion of which had been removed, in clearing away
the rubbish in the cellar. Sheridan was especially en-
gaged in excavating near to a part of the foundation in
the centre of the building, upon which rested two iron
pillars, which upheld a cross beam of fir of great thick-
ness and considerable weight, which had been intended
by the builders to sustain the upper floors when filled
with merchandise. It is supposed that by clearing away
the rubbish the foundation had received a shock which
rendered the position of the pillars insecure, for suddenly,
indeed it appears without a moment's warning, the iron
supporters slipped away, and the beam and all the super-
incumbent materials in the two floors fell with a tre-
mendous crash. For some little time it was thought,
that the men in the cellar were crushed to death, but
upon the dust having cleared off it was discovered that
though partially buried, none of them had suffered more
than a few slight contusions, except Sheridan, who was
considerably injured about the face and head; happily
he, however, had no bones broken. As soon as the men
were taken out their bruises were bound up, and their
contusions dressed by a neighbouring surgeon, and for-
tunately, in no case, though the men are much shaken, is
any...further danger apprehended.
HORRIBLE ATTEMPT TO MURDER Two MEN, AND
SELF-MUTILATION BY A MADMAN.—On Thursday after-
noon the following appalling occurrence took place in
the Holbeck workhouse:—lt appears that an inmate of
the house, named Joseph Robinson, had lately shown
symptoms of mental aberration, but be was never consi-
dered a dangerous person until last Monday, when his
conduct became so strange that he was placed under the
core of the medical Iran belonging to the workhouse.
Atter the lapse of a few days his symptoms improved.
and he was again considered to be perfectly harmless,.
but during yesterday afternoon, whilst sitting in one of
the wards with four men—one insane, another an idiot,
the third old and blind, and the fourth a very infirm
person-- he suddenly seized a large coal shovel, with
which he made a most desperate attempt to murder the
t.ao eldest men, by striLing them with all his might upon
their heads. The ids stir paupc r, on seeing this, ran out
Hof the ward, and, as well as he was able, gave an alarm,
hut before any assistance arrived Rotnnstm had inflicted
souse severe scalp wounds on the poor (.1d blind man,
whose name is Them 8 Cooper, uud who is 77 years of
age. One ot the poor fellow's fingers was also completely
smashed, this having apparently been the result of his
attempting to prteect his head from the blows. The
usher man, Samuel Gibs, n, who is 54 years ot age, was
also most severely injured, his face being laid bare with
he edge of the shovel. As soon as the alarm was given
Robinson threw down the shovel and secreted himself in
the water-closet, and, on his being discovered, it was
found that he had cut his threat and stabbed himself
several dusts in the abdomen, besides dreadfully mud-
lating other portions of his person. The knife with
which he had inflicted these injuries on himself was one
hich he had borrowed from the old man Cooper. to cut
hie flesh with, as he termed eating his meat. He had
also cut his shoes acd destroyed his trousers with the
same weapon. Ile was scored, and, with the two men
he had s . frightfully iijured, was taken to the general
at L
Robinson
edee: I'Vr
s,'
aen sitxhs account
piecttdt a
o diase
hourly,
;o London, ,chand
the other two rutnnined in a very precarious state.
THE CONVICT BARBER.—THE WILLS FORGE/Ulf
CASE.—The trietals of Berber. who, it will be ITCOt.
lected, was some time since tried and convicted at the
Old Bailey in the wills lergety case, and who is now
undergoing his sentence of transportation for life at
Norfolk island, intend convening a public, ineeting
with a view ot laying before the public the various ste
te-
ments and documents that they have succeeded n Is
inno-
cence of Barber in any guilty ct.ohnefideenntit
genies. Several Frei-winery meetings have already been
lareaiiontgsul:hs'aebustlfiretlf;a:lLt(ein"d'hiteohptehoev);
knowledge of the fo7-
rlYe
ge antdhe in-
fluencene
e
l
held, which have been numerously attended by his per-
sonal friends, and gentlemen ofllighhasyteanfdoirtmi
d
thiCit-ginitalPterelif furessiihines wh
purpose of ends avouring
to
in
into
atnnaitia free pardon ; a sub-committee has also been
svoebst
appointed for the purpose of preparing a memorial to
Sir George Grey, the Secretary of State for the Home
Department, embodying the whole of the evidence and
facts that the committee are in possession of. This
memorial is to be submitted to a general meeting for
their approval, and in the meantime an application
will be made to Sir George Grey to recive a deputa-
tion to present the memorial, and be beard in support
of the prayer. The most sanguine hopes are Mar-
tamed by the committee of not only succeeding in otlt
taining an unconditional pardon for Barber, but in as
tts-
factorily establishing his entire innocence.
three o'clock, the house of Mr.
b
DARING ROBBERT.--011 Sundad
was broken into, and
ge3,
or 40L carried oft:
plate and jewele to the amount of 0/ y
'anindoeml:nainn,l4 Naob.°l46,
Anchor-terrace, Southwark.bri
gateway, and proceeding along a narrow passage sepa-
rating(Barclay, Perkins, and Co.'s)
from the terrace, which belongs
the Anchor Brewery
to the firm, and by
the thieves had effected an entrance by getting over a
climbing up a water-spout entered at the back window
of No. 7, but being disappointed in finding
any portable
property of value in that house, they then found their
wa tothefront windows ot.No. 6, which they entered,
and proceeded to ransack a cheffoneer of the property in
question. Fortunately an alarm was given before the
robbers had time to arrive at property of greater value.
One of the thieves left his hat and shoes behind him in
Mr. Sandeman's drawitz-room, aed getting again
through the Louse No. 7, leaped into the back passage of
the terrace, where there was no place of exit; here, how-
ever, he dexterously succeeded in misleading the police
who were in search; for by scaling another water-spout
he effected an entrance through the window to No. 12.
the house ot the Rev. Mr. Mungeam, where he contrived
to get hold of and equip himself in the bat and boots ot
the Reverend Gentleman, and then quietly unlocked the
tront door, walked out, and effected his escape.
THE WESTMINSTER REFORM SOCIETY.--LaSt
evening a numerous meeting of the Registration Com-
mittee of the Westminster Reform Society
the York Hotel, Upper Wellington-street, strand; re
was held at
the purpose of entering into arrangements to p
the ohs*.
Reform interest at the ensuing Revising I.Barrister's
Court. Mr. Bremner having beets called to
meeting Of
Mr. Huggett (the secretary) observed that a f
the committee had not
previously convened, in
and which bad not
g d ina definite form. It was intended
present
been
as
yet
arranged
of all reformers at the Revising
consequence of the largebnefenoaruiiivaaisiso,n which he had re-
ceived during the
to support the c
•
Barrister's Court, without regard to the votes that may
have been given. Mr. Prout moved the following ma-
lution:—" That the Secretary be instructed to use his
best elides; ours me heretofore, to place arid maintain on
the register of voters for the city of Westminster all
Reesene rs, without reference in the smallest degree to
theirelection:'—(Hear, hear.) He
"snit
that 1e votes at g
rs
.at pleasures els
in t
would prove that the society was actuated by liberal
spirit, and that its sole object was to maintain the 'elm-
t the la
tive franchise for the furtherance of *form tench:4W
_(Herr,. hear.) Mr. G. Pouncy seconded t e resolu•
tion, which was supported by other members, and ag :g
to unanimously. Thanks were then voted to the
man, and the meeting separated. . -' •
THE Poznan TRIAL& —The trial of the Polish VII,
Boner; at Berlin is going Ou rapidly; 03004 tlia *RS