The Sun.
London, England, 1846-10-03 00:00:00

BANKRUPTCY.-(THIS DAY.)
(Before Mr. Commissioner GOULBURN.)
His Honour sat specially to-day for the purpose: of
bearing applications for certificates.
During the proceedings Mr. LAWRENCE, who appeared
for several of the bankrupts, said that the court not
closing for any vacation, great inconvenience arose to the,
profession as well as the court.
The Learned COMMISSIONER said there could be no
doubt that it would be a great convenience to all parties;
he himself had come up to town a great many miles to
preside on the present occasion, rather than preclude
the bankrupts from applying, and it was necessary that
the application should be made to the Commissioner
who had heard the case throughout; this might be
avoided by closing the court for a month or
six weeks, as every other court was during the
vacation, and no injustice would be done to the bank-
rupts. Mr. Commissioner Holroyd laid down a rule,
and it was a good and proper one, that except in very
rare cases, where certificates could with justice and pro-
priety be granted at the earliest period, time should be
given to see what the estates produced, and the conduct
of the bankrupt subsequent to his bankruptcy, before he
was allowed his certificate. The only difficulty would
be, whether some new fiats might not issue, and a loss
arise in great estates by the delay.
Mr. LAWRENCE said one Commissioner might sit to
open fiats and for the choice of assignees.
His HONOUR said, that if Mr. Lawrence would make
application in the proper quarter, and represent the ease,
probably it would have weight with the Lord Chan-
cellor,, and he would order the court to be closed for a
short time during the year.
(Before Mr. Commissioner SHEPHERD.)
This Learned Commissioner was occupied nearly all
the morning in hearing summonses under the Small
Debts Act, and several new points were raised.
Mr. STURGEON contended that it was not necessary
that the plaintiffs should attend personally ; if so, the
greatest inconvenience might arise, as some o the debts,
though small, were due to wholesale houses, and the
principals knew nothing about them.
Mr. iBUCIIANA.N said, in the new Act it was made
peremptory that the plaintiff should appear.
The Learned COMMISSIONER considered the plaintiff
must be present to be examined, if defendant chose.
Mr. BUCHANAN said it would, however, cause con-
siderable loss, and the smaller the debt, and the greater
the rank or the more extensive the business of the plain-
tiff, the more certain the loss to him, for the defendant
might appear by his advocate although the plaintiff was
bound to be present.
The Learned COMMISSIONER said it was clear that
under the Small Debts Act the plaintiff was bound to
attend to be examined, if required.
Mr. STURGEON then urged that a rule should be laid
down that defendant should give notice that he wished
to examine.
The Learned COMMISSIONER said he had no power.
Several eases were therefore dismissed in consequence of
the absence of the plaintiff.

GUILD HALL.—(T HIS DAY.)
The inquiry respecting the Nottingham heirs at•law
case was resumed this morning by Alderman Sir Wil-
liam Magnay, and further evidence was given to com-
plete the proof that there existed no barrister of the
name of Fitzgerald Strachan, under pretence of paying a
fee to whom the prisoner, William Thomas Poyser, had
obtained the sum of 201. from the prosecutrix. After a
long argument between the legal gentlemen on both
sides, the Alderman expressed his belief that the false
pretence was sufficiently made out to warrant him in
committing the prisoner for trial. Leave however was
given to the prisoner to find bail, himself in 100/., and
two sureties in 50/. each.

MARLIIIIO'-STREET.-(THIS DAY.)
Charles Dring, charged on a former occasion with
stealing a brooch, value 151., from the Round Table
Tavern, St. Martin's-court, was brought up again this
Tavern,
Ur. John Carf said the defendant slept on the night
of the 24th ult, in a room on the second floor of his house,
and left next morning about half past nine. He found
latn::',„etlyiatelY afterwards that a diamond brooch had been
alr-t—olfroin his bed-room which he left safe there in ea
his at half-past eight the same morning. The
bed-room was
the prisoner, n, o the same floor with that occupied by
John Gilbert Cox, assistant to Mr. West, pawnbroker,
207, Holborn, said the prisoner came into his em-
ployer's shop between nine and ten o'clock on the
morning of the 25th September, and offered the diamond
brooch now produced. In answer to a question from
'witness, the priscner said he had found it, and the wit-
ness told him he must retain it, and give information to
the
retur pned olice to him. and in case no owner was found it would be
Policeman 128 C said he took the defendant into cus-
to
thdy at the Round Table, and, when cha,-rged with the
eft, he denied all knowledge of it.
The defendant, who declined saying anything, was
committed for trial.

CLERKEN WELL.---(THIS DAY.)
Joseph C/aytor. was charged with using threats of a
very violent aaturo towards Mr. H. Benjamin, and as-
saulting his wife.
From the evidence of Mr. Benjamin it appeared, that
he was the foreman of a jury before which the prisoner
was convicted at the Old Beiley, when he was sentenced
to three months' imprisonment; and since his release he
has been in the habit of using the most ferocious threats
towards Mr. Benjamin ; and a like system of annoyance
has been followed by a number of the prisoner's com-
panions, from the neighbourhood of Field-lane, West-
ccurt, and Saffron-hill. This morning he entered Mr.
Benjamin's shop, when he said to him " You are the
- who gave me three months, but I will have it out
of you," The prosecutor then attempted to call a con-
stable, but the prisoner swore he should not leave the
shop until he gave him 4d. for a pot of beer ; and Mrs.
Benjamin entering the shop at the moment he ran at her
and struck her two or three violent blows on the breast.
A. constable arriving, he was then given into custody.
The evidence of four constables, whose united efforts
were required to tie the prisoner on a stretcher before
they could convey him to the station house, showed that
he had used the most excessive and brutal violence to-
wards them, kicking and biting like a maniac.
Mr. Comm said there were few offences that he
should feel more inclined to punish with severity than
that of attempting to threaten or intimidate a juror.
Ife
should sentence the prisoner to pay a fine 0f54, or in
default be imprisoned with hard labour for two months;
for the assault on the police he should commit him, with-
out line, for one month with hard labour; and at the
expiration of those two terms of imprisonment he must
find bail to be of good behaviour for three months.

ALARMING FlRE.—YeSter ________
____
the seat of Viscount Gapy Milling, Tirle Place,
na da
l escaped b
pletely destr.yed. At ahoutrrow y four o'clock theein ing matcom-
es
were alarmed by a cry of " Fire !" which, by the most
strenuous efroils, they succeeded, after a few hours, in
extinguishing, with only the loss of two or three rooms.
The exertions of the sons of the Noble Viscount (who
was himself absent), were beyond all praise, and they
were greatly assisted by the villagers, servants, and ladies
of the family, who carried buckets of water in the most
indefatigable manner, and displayed the utmost courage
and presence of mind. The fire originated (by what
means no nne is ably to discover) in the Viscountess
Gagf2s bedroom.
DREADFUL MURDER AND SurcinE.—A dreadful
murder of ~,, woman and child, with the suicide of the
perpetrator of the deed, took place on WeduesdP.,y morn-
ing,
?.t Eltham, Kent. The coroner los:, no time in
issuing his warrant for summoning :a 'jury, and early in
the afternoon the inquiry was Pzme into, by which it
*appeared that Sharruck Ruda Bragg, a bricklayer, had
murdered his wife and child, by beating them over the
temples with a hammer, and afterwards cut his own
throat. When the deed became known the man was
dead, but the woman and child, though totally senseless,
still breathed. The child, aged five years, died about
two hours after the discovery was made; but the woman
lingered till about ten o'clock, when death put a period
to her existence. When discovered, an infant, aged
ifour months, was found by the side of the woman, un-
exnjured. Fist on the rom the evidence adduced, no doubt could
question as to the man at the time being
insane, and verdicis to that effect were accordingly re-
turned.
AWFULLY SUDDEN DEATH.—Yesterday morning
Mr. 11. ' arlocke a watch and clock-maker, carrying on bu-
einas at 35, Strutton-ground, Westminster,
went into
the Elephant and Castle public-house, Peter-street, and
"es drinking a glass of rum, when he fell down a corpse.
Medical assistance was soon at hand, but the vital spark
had fled. On Thursday night Mr. llarlocke was very
much intoxicated, and had a quarrel, which caused him
to be greatly excited, and it is supposed that
awaits an that he was
seized with, a fit of apoplexy. b The
in rest,
a pump-maker named
'EARFUL SITUATION.—As s filling a
Bradford, at Kingston, Herefordshire,
bucket at the bottom of a well, a depth of twenty-eight
feet, the sides gave way and engulphed
d sort of
him;
_baut in the
falling of the mass, three large stones forme
triangular arch over the poor fellow's head,
d thus the ineans of saving his life. Six hours elapse
and were
be-
fore 1,„ was got out.—Lincolnshire Advertiser.
dUDDEN DEATH Or A PAUPER LUNATIC.--Yester-
day Mr. Carter held an inquest at the Surrey County
Lunatic Asylum on the body of John M‘littnnist!zir,
aged 55, an inmate of the above institution. The._de.
ceased was deaf and dumb, idiotic, and subject to epilep-
tic fibs. He had been in the asylum five years on
Michaelmas day, when he dropped down dead whilst
returning from his work, which had been that of
God .'
sorting potatoes. Verdict, " Died by the visitation of

EXPERIMENTS IN THE ROYAL ARSENAL, WOOL-
wicn.—The experiments with three 42-pounder guns,
one on Mr. Monk's principle, one on the Admiralty prin •
ciple, and one on Lieut.-Colonel Dundas's principle,
were completed to-day by the bursting of Lieut.-Colonel
Dundas's gun. Mr. Monk's gun burst at the eighteenth
round, fired with two shot, and lob lbs. of powder each
charge. The Admiralty gun stood forty rounds, with
two shot and a charge of 10i lbs. of powder each charge,
and ten rounds with three shot, and 10i lbs. of powder
each charge, and burst at the 51st round with three shot
and 12 lbs. of powder. Lieut.-Colonel Dundas's gun
stood forty rounds with two shot and 10} lbs. of powder,
ion rounds with three shot and 10i lbs. of powder, and
five rounds with three shot and 12 lbs. of powder; at
the last of which it burst into numerous pieces, having
exceeded the Admiralty gun in strength, by sustaining
four additional very heavy charges.
NArricAL FACTS.—A writer in the New Quar-
terly Review states that the average number of wrecks
of British merchant ships a year is 600 ! The average
sum lost above two millions and a half sterling 1 The
average of lives lost, the lamentable number of 1,560;
but the wrecks of fifteen out of every twenty are attri-
buted to some incompetency or other on the part of the
auk,