The Sun.
London, England, 1870-06-18 00:00:00

LAW AND POLICE.

DR. EDMUNDS' LIBEL CASE.—A rule for a new trial
in the Court of Common Pleas, has been refused, in the
case of " Edmunds v. Eyre," in which Dr. Edmunds com-
plained of the publication of a placard satirising him as
one of the guardians of St. Pancras.
FLIGHT OF A STATION MASTEIL—An application has
heen made at the Police-court, Oldham, for a warrant to
apprehend Alfred Ernest Allen, who for s-bme nine months
has held the post of station-master at Glodwick-road,
Oldham, prior to which he was for three years clerk at
London-road Station, Manchester. Allen had absconded
with £l2O.

THE MONARCH INSURANCE COMPANY.—In the Court of
Queen's Bench, on the motion of Mr. Giffard, Q. C., a rule
for a certiorari has been granted to bring up any
indict-
ment that might be found at the Old Bailey against the
directors of the Monarch Insurance Company, who had
been committed for fraud, with a view to its being tried
in this court.

THE NEW CROSS ACCIDENT.—Another case arising out
of the accident at New Cross last summer, on the occa-
sion of the Licensed Victuallers' fete at the Crystal
Palace, has just been settled. A publican named Shaken,
in the i'dgware-road, sued the railway company in the
Court. cf Common Pleas for injuries sustained. The
compan resisted the claim on the ground that he was
not in t e train at the time of the accident. After hear-
ing his evidence, however, they consented to a verdict for
£lOO.

THE NOMINAtION OF CHURCHWARDENS. —The case of
the " Queen v. Stephens," in which a rule had been ob-
tained respecting the nomination of a churchwarden of
the parish of Dolgelly, has come before, the Court
of Queen's Bench. It appeared that a meeting had
been held in the vestry at Dolgelly, at which the
rector claimed the right, by immemorial usage, to appoint
two churchwardens, which he did. But at the same meet-
ing the parishioners claimed the right to nominate one, and
chose a gentleman whom they declared to be duly elected,
but when he was presented to the Chancellor of the
diocese, he declined to admit him on the ground that the
office was full. The court considered the parishioners
prima fade right to elect one churchwarden ought to be
tried, and made the rule absolute.
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THE BROCOLI CASE.—It may be remembered that
some little time since a man of good character named
Stephens, was convicted at Ramsgate of stealing brocoli.
He was seen cutting it, and on the owner remonstrating
with him, it turned out that he had been sent by his master
to cut it in a neighbouring garden which belonged to him,
and had gone into the wrong garden by mistake. Never-
theless he pleaded guilty, and was convicted of theft. A
rule was afterwards applied for in the Court of Queen's
Bench, and has now been made absolute. The Lord Chief
Justice remarked that when the man explained his mis-
take, which he did after the case was closed, the magis-
trate ought not to have held him to his plea of guilty; but
should have told him to retract it and call evidence.
A COMPROMISE.—In the Court of Exchequer, an action
for £7OO on a bond was heard. The plaintiff's were the
trustees of a society of Foresters, and brought an action
against a publican at Camberwell, under somewhat
singular circumstances. The Secretary of the society had
a deficiency of nearly £2,000 in his accounts which it was
resolved to compromise on the secretary paying £l,OOO
down, and £7OO by a bond. Afterwards eight indict-
ments were pieferred against him at the Old Bailey, and
the defendant disputed his liability on the ground
that he signed the bond on condition that all
prosecutions against the secretary should cease.
The plaintiffs contended that all prosecution did 'cease on
the part of the executive, and the indictments were pre.
pared by some dissentient members of the society. The
verdict of the jury held that the condition was that all
prosecution should be abandoned, and the Lord Chief
Justice confirmed this view, refusing the application.
SCIENCE AND ART GOSSIP.—The case of _Robert Hard-
wicke, the well-known bookseller and publisher of Picca-
dilly, has come before the Court of Bankruptcy. The
liabilities are stated at £30,000. An order was applied for
to direct the registrar to register a resolution passed at a
meeting of creditors. They resolved to wind up the
estate by arrangement, but when the resolution
was presented to the'registrar he refused to receive it, be-
cause some small amounts, chiefly for advertisements in
connection with science and art gossip, amounting to a few
shillings each had been omitted from the debtor's
statement. The Chief Judge said if he made such
an order it would furnish a precedent which might be
used in other cases. There niust be an affidavit that
the whole amount of the debts which were omitted would
not have affected the carrying of the resolution. The
bankrupt's solicitor said that was so, and also that a
trustee was carrying on the business. The Chief Judge
thereupon made the order.
A GRETNA GREEN MARRIAGE.—III the Divorce Court
yesterday, before Lord Penzance, the case of "Yeatman
v. Yeatman and Rummell " was heard. It has several
times been before the court in different shapes, and the
petitioner now prayed for a divorce on the ground of his
wife's adultery with the co-respondent. The petitioner is
a practising barrister, and it appears that the marriage
took place when the parties were young, and before the
marriage law of Scotland was altered. They followed a
plan which was well known in those days--they
went to Gretna Green and declared themselves
in the presence of witnesses to be man and
Wife.' Thigs WaSthen a recognised marriage, and the parties
lived together as man and wife. Some time after Wards
the respondent, who is a Beautiful woman and a German,
went abroad and it is alleged lived in adultery with the
.co-respondeut, who is a German baron. The petitioner
conducted his own case and proved his marriage. The
evidence of adultery was all documentary, it having been
taken by a commission in Germany. His lordship reserved
his judgment until he had read the evidence of au alleged
desertion of the husband prior to the wife going to
Germany.

The French Emperor is now restored to his ustni
health.

The indisposition of Lord Justice G-iffard (remarks
the Law Times) has presented the sort of emergency in
which the fallacy of Gio-vernment economyis made plainly
manifest. He is ill ; the appeal business comes to a
standstill. The truth is that the work was too much for
his lordship. Should the illness of Lord Justice Giffard
prove sufficiently serious to cause his retirement the coun-
try will owe him heavy compensation.

The recently appointed Vicar of Bradford (the late
Bishop of Mauritius) attended for the first time a public
meeting in that town, in connection with the Church
Institute. Speaking briefly on the subject of education,
Dr. Ryan narrated his experience in other parts of the
country, and observed that, to his mind, the idea of
leaving religion out in the instruction of the young was
simply preposterous.
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-
A letter from Constantinople respectinc, the fire at
Pera says the English insurance offices which will suffer
the most are the Royal, Sun, and Imperial ; the estimated
amount of their lossea will exceed 2100,000. The foreign
offices are in for a much smaller sum. It has been
ascertained that more than 1,200 lives were lost, but there
is no reason to believe that that number by any means
express the real fatality.
PETEI?f3 PENCE.—Cardinal Cullen writes from
Rome directing the vicars-general of his diocese to remind
the faithful that the 'period' has come round for their
annual contribution to the Papal treasury. They are
expected to give " another emphatic expression of their
devotion to the Holy rather by generous contributions,"
the " vast and extensive preparations " that had to be
made for the General Council, " and the unbounded hos-
pitality of the Sovereign Pontiff towards the assembled
Fathers," !laying pressed heavily on his already over-
taxed TesourccS; - •