The Sun.
London, England, 1846-07-13 00:00:00

P.OBERT SHOPPER.

BURGLARY.—I/EMARRABLE PRESENCE or MlNl).—This
indictment charged the defendants with having burglariously
entered the dwelling-house of Richard Weatherby, at her,
and with having stolen therefrom a watch, a pistol, a gat],
and a snuff-box, on the night of the 3d of May last-

From the evidence it appeared that the prosecutor, who
lives at the Parsonage Farm at Iver, retired to rest on the
night already named about ten o'clock, and placed on the
table in his room the keys of a chest standing near his bed-
side, in which he had locked a canvas bag that contained the
sum of 1901. At that time all the doors and windows were
safely locked and bolted. About two o'clock he was awakened
and found four men in the room, one of whom stood over
him with a stick while the others ransacked the place. On
the keys being found the chest was opened, and the men be-
gan to rummage it. The prosecutor, who was now aban-
doned by the person who had stood over him, perceived that
they overlooked the canvas bag. Hetwaised himself in his
bed—stretched his arm to it—conveyed it rapidly under the
bed-clothes, and then began to call aloud for his servants.
The call was answered and the meu made off—one of
them rushing to the head of the bed, and snatching away
the prosecutor's watch as he went. The prosecutor,
though nearly seventy years of age, got up at once—
stumbled over a large stick, which he seized—ran down
stairs, attacked the thieves in the passage, and dealt to one a
tremendous blow on the face. As soon as the house was
cleared, an examination of the premises took place. It ap-
peared that the house had been entered by means of a panel
broken in the back door, in the path leading to which the
footmarks of four men were to be seen ; in the passage of the
house, and also in the family room, the floor was deeply in-
dented with the impressions of a man's boot; and a strange
hat was discovered in the passage. The prisoners, who had
been seen in company near Iver, both on the night before
and the morning after the burglary, were soon afterwards
taken into custody. Hughes was identified as the man who
had stood over the prosecutor. The boot of Pearce corre-
sponded exactly with that of which the impression had been
left on the floor. Shoppee exhibited on his face the marks
of a blow recently inflicted with a stick; and the hat was
found to be that of Hughes.
- Mr. Saunders and Mr. Wells conducted the prosecution ;
Mr. Tozer addressed the jury for Hughes and Pearce.
Mr. Baron ALDERSON having left it to the jury to say
whether the evidence of' identity was satisfactory to them, a
verdict of. Guilty was returned against all the prisoners.
Shoppee, who had been previously convicted of felony, was
sentenced to transportation fur life, and the other two to
transportation for 20 years.
CIVIL SlDE.—(Before Mr. Justice WILLIAMS and a Com-
mon Jury.)

GLADDEY V. STITCHBERRY..--TilE FUNCTIONS OF CONSTABLE.

The plaintiff, who is a labourer, and one of the choristers
of the church of Brill, in this county, thought proper, on
the evening of Saturday, the 14th of March last, to go to
a house in that place, called the Rose and Crown. Notwith-
standing that the plaintiff is now in very humble cir-
cumstances, he was formerly well ' off, and he chose to
enter the parlour of the public-house, where the baker and
other magnates of Brill were assembled. After some time
he volunteered to entertain the company with the old song
of " Tom Bowling ;" and, whether it was that the song
was obnoxious to the personages present, or that the com-
pany of the singer was disagreeable, at the conclusion of the
second verse his face was blackened with saot and candle
grease, his hat was thrown on to the fire, and on the
defendant Stuchberry, who is the constable of Brill, coming
into the room, the plaintiff was given in charge for
disorderliness. Stuchberry inquired whether the per-
sons giving the plaintiff in charge were in earnest, and
on receiving an answer in the affirmative, immediately
attempted to 'take him, into custody. A scuffle ensued,
and the two fell, Stuchberry, who is a powerful man, being
uppermost, One of the bones of the plaintiff's leg was
slightly fractured. He was led home, inflammation ensued,
and he was confined to his room in great pain for some
weeks. On his getting well he brought this action for the
recovery of damages against Stuchberry and the other per-
sons concerned in the assault. The defence was that Stuch-
berry was justified in attempting to take the plaintiff into
custody, the injury to the leg accidental, and the whole
quarrel one of a series of public-house brawls, of which the
plaintiff bad been the hero. It appeared also that blacken-
ing the face with soot and grease is a punishment inflicted
according to the unwritten law of this county on those who
offend against the rules of decorum to be observed at meet-
ings such as that at which the cause of this action arose.
Mr. Sergeant Byles and Mr_ O'Malley were counsel for the
plaintiff, who is a pauper; Mr. Prendergast and Mr. Power
represented the defendants.
Mr. Justice WILLIAMS told the jury that a constable had
no right to apprehend except on a charge of felony, on his
own suspicion of felony, or for an assault committed in his
own view, and left it to them to say to what damages, in the
event of the witnesses being deemed worthy of credit, the
plaintiff was entitled.
The jury consulted for a short time, and returned a verdict
for the plaintiff—Damages, 51.

HOME ClRCUlT.—Hertford, July 10.
CIVIL SlDE.—(Before ➢Zr. Baron PAnKE and a Special Jury.)

BLAGO V. START.

This was an action for libel. The declaration charged the
defendant with having published a letter accusing the plain-
tiff of having, in his capacity of clerk to the justices of St.
Alban's, corruptly conspired and procured the release of a
prisoner charged with embezzlement, and also with sharing
the money he had embezzled with him. The defendant put
several pleas upon the record, but their effect was a justifica-
tion of the statement. w
Sergeant Shee, with Mr. Hawkins and Mr. Grunston, ap-
peared for the plaintiff; Mr. Martyn Chambers, Mr. Ryland,
and Mr. Peacock, for the defendant.
Sergeant SHEE stated the case, and said that the plaintiff
was a professional gentleman, residing at St. Alban's, where
he filled the office of town-clerk, and also clerk to the
borough justices, and who he believed was generally well
known and respected throughout the whole county, and he
appeared before them that day to complain of a most foul
and malicious attack that had been made upon him by the
defendant, and which was calculated to destroy for ever his
professional prospects and also his position in society. The
Learned Sergeant then proceeded to state that in the borough
of St. Alban's there were two separate jurisdictions of ma-
gistrates, one for the borough and another for the liberty,
both of them being entirely distinct and independent of each
other. The plaintiff; Mr. Blagg, acted as clerk to the
borough magistrates, and of course, in his capacity of attor-
ney, he was called upon occasionally to appear before the other
bench of magistrates, either as attorney for the prosecution
or to defend a prisoner, and inasmuch as it was an entirely
independent jurisdiction, and had nothing whatever to do
with the borough justices, it appeared to be clear that there
could be no objection to this course of proceeding on his
part. In the month of April in the present year, Mr. Kin-
der, a brewer at St. Alban's, made a charge of embezzle-
ment against one of his clerks, named Gutteridge, and he
was taken before the liberty justices, and Mr. Blagg attended
as his solicitor. Every proceeding was taken in a perfectly
regular manner, and the result of the inquiry was that *the
prisoner was committed for trial. Shortly after this a per-
son named Hutson, the uncle of Gutteridge, who had also
been in Mr. Kinder's employ, was taken into custody on the
charge of embezzlement, and he was taken before the borough
magistrates. A solicitor attended on his behalf, Mr. Blagg
took the depositions, and the magistrates committed the ac-
cused for trial, but consented to take bail, himself entering
into a recognisance of 8001., and finding four sureties in
2001. each. Everything during these proceedings had been
conducted in the most regular manner, and the plaintiff
was, therefore, astonished to find that the defendant had
taken upon himself to write a letter to Sir James Graham,
the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in which
he made statements of such a character as were calculated
to have been his utter ruin, if he had not had an opportu-
nity of contradicting them. Sir James Graham, upon seeing
the contents of this letter, however, very properly sent a
copy of it to the magistrates; and upon the plaintiff be-
coming acquainted, through them, with the contents, he im-
mediately commenced legal proceedings against the defendant.
The Learned Counsel then read the letter which formed the
subject of the present action. It was addressed to the Secre-
tary of State, and the following is a copy :
" St. Alban's and Herts Bank, April 23 1846.

" Honourable Sir,—Deeming the due administration of
justice of paramount importance, and that those who ad-
minister it should be not only pure, but above suspicion, I
beg to call your attention to the following facts, showing the
anomalous position of a certain functionary in this borough.
At this time there are two persons fully committed for trial
for felony, one by the liberty magistrates, and the other by
the borough magistrates. The parties are related, being
uncle and nephew, and lately clerks to a brewer, whom
they are charged with having robbed for a number of years.
The nephew was taken into custody first, and was com-
mitted by the liberty magistrates, and is now in our gaol,
bail having been refused. This prisoner is defended by the
town-clerk of this borough. The uncle was committed by
the borough magistrates, the town .clerk taking the evidence,
and acting as the legal adviser of the magistrates, a friend of
his acting as legal adviser to the prisoner. The most close
intimacy has existed for years between the town-clerk and
the two prisoners, and when the nephew's papers were yes-
terday examined, an enormous amount of accommodation
bill transactions, and legal proceedings arising therefrom,
amounting to many thousands, were discovered, the said
town-clerk and others with whom he is closely associated
being the parties thereto, thus clearing up the mystery_ as to
the uses to which the plunder has beer: appropriated. Deem-
ing this a state of things demanding a remedy, I respectfully
call your prompt attention to the same, feeling assured that
you will institute the necessary inquiry, and take such steps
-as the justice of the case and the crying evils pointwi
out
demand. " I have the hpour

G. .STURT."
The e S
Learned
. • - proceeded to state that this letter
clearly Contained the insinuations charged in the declara-
tion and when the jury recollected that it was written by a
banker, and a person consequently of station and respecta-
bility, they could not but feel that it was calculated en-
tirely to destroy the plaintiff, and when he had satisfied
him, as he had no doubt he should do, that there was not
the slightest foundation for such charges, he called upon
them to give such exemplary damages as would effectually
re-establish the character of the plaintiff in the minds of his
fellow-townsmen and the county with which he had been so
long connected.
The Hon. Arthur Dillon was then sworn—He deposed that
he held an office in the Home Secretary's department, and he
had attended with the letter addressed to Sir James Graham
on the 23d of April, 1846, but before he produced it he begged
to be allowed to state that Sir James considered it a confi-
dential communication, and had instructed him not to deliver
it up unless his Lordship ordered him to do so.
Mr. Baron PARKE—Do you decline altogether to deliver it
up, or will you abide by my decision respecting the point?
Witness—l shall do as your Lordship directs.
Baron l'AlWZ—Then I think you ought to let us see it.
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