The Sun.
London, England, 1870-01-20 00:00:00

LAW AND POLICE.

A CASE OF DOMESTIC INTEREST.—The Court of Queen's
Bench on Wednesday affi rrned the doctrine that magistrates
can compel a husband to maintain his wife, notwithstand-
ing that she refuses to return b his house, if she has been
driven from it by his illtreatment. The question was raised
in the ease of the guardians of Newton Abbott v. Thomas.
The defendant appealed against the decision of the jus-
tices, making him liable to support his wife. She refused
to return to him, though he promised not to ill-treat her.
The court decided that the justices' decision was quite
right, and affirmed it.
THE Bommi ELucwrloN.—ln the Bail Court, on Wednes-
day, the action Dimond v. Wyld was concluded before Mr.
Justice Blackburn and a common jury. The plaintiff was
a colour-sergeant in the Cornwall Rangers, and the de-
fendant was the well-known mapseller in the
Strand, forme-Ay M.P. for Bodmin. The action, which was
originally brought in the County Court of Bodmin, and
removed into this court by defendant, was to recover the
expenses of collecting evidence for a petition against Mr.
Gower, who was returned, on the ground of treating.—The
jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff, and assessed the
damages at £25.

A FIGHT rom A House.—A curious case has been heard
at the Worship-street Police-court, where three men were
tried for conspiring to enter a house at Ilomton, and to
deprive Mr. Canton, a gentleman of Highbury, of the
benefits of the same. The defendants had taken out cross
summonses against a house agent and several other
persons on a similar charge. Ir. Canton held a forty years
lease of the house in question, with other premises con-
tiguous, from the year 1845. It was untenanted last
October, and soon after it was found that
one of the defendants had possession of it, and let it
to the other. A dispute arose, and another man
claimed to be the owner of the property. Pearce, the
agent, succeeded in ejecting the intruders, but they after-
wards got in again, and refused to give up possession.
Both parties were committed for trial, on the charges of
forcibly entering a house, bail being accepted.

ASSAULT BY GUARDSKE,N.—At the Petty Sessions at
Slough, three privates in the 3rd Battalion Grenadier
Guards were charged with wounding George Warner, a
groom at Eton, on Sunday. They got into a dispute at a
public-house, and the soldiers attacked the groom and
injured him. The prisoners were committed for trial.
A Sines CREW SENT TO PB.lSON.—Fifteen out of six-
teen seamen belonging to the Lord Canning have been
sent to prison by the Stonehouse magistrates for refusing
to do duty on board the ship. The Lord Canningis bound
to Calcutta, and on her way down Channel, from London,
she had to put into Plymouth from stress of weather, and
then the able seamen in a body refused to work. The
men stated that the captain had not been sober, and had
abused them. The magistrates thought the men had no
sufficient excuse, and as they refused to go to sea wit',
Captain Bennison, they were sent to prison.

Tull OFFICIAL INQUIRY AT EDINBURGH.—The
commissioners who were making inquiry into the working
of the Scotch boards have now left Edinburgh. No doubt,
says the Scotsman, is entertained, or ever could have been
entertained by any man knowing anything of the real
state of matters, that the result of the inquiry will be to
establish the facts that the accusers of our Scotch institu-
tions spoke in mere spite without knowledge, and that,
almost without exception, the Scotch public offices are
more economically paid and harder worked than such offices,
or indeed any offices, elsewhere.

MORE RIOTING- IN THE NORTH OF IRELAND.—
The Northern. Whip reports a renewal of party rioting in
Lurgan on Saturday night. An Orange drumming party en-
tered the town from one of the rural districts around, and
after staying for some time in the Orange hall and the usual
places of refreshment, proceeded homewards through the Ro-
man Catholic quarter, despite of earnest remonstrances. The
result was a collision. They were attacked with stones,
and returned the assault. Windows were smashed, heads
broken, and one of the combatants had his eye literally
knocked out on his cheek by the blow of a stone. The
police with great difficulty interfered and arrested some of
the rioters.

THE COUNTESS OF DERWENTWATER'S CLAIMS.
—The ..Vorthern Daily Express says the inhabitants of
the Derwent Valley are still in considerable excitement
consequent on the extraordinary proceedings during the
past few days of the "Countess of Derwentwater " and her
agents. The homestead of Newlands South Farm is still
occupied by a number of policemen, who are apparently
determined to permit no further seizures. The cash was
to be paid to the Countess on Wednesday, and at the same
time the future action of her ladyship and her bailff will
be decided on.

NOTTINGHAM POLITICS.—A memorial has peen
signed by the friends of Colonel Wright to induce the
hon, gentleman to retain his seat as M.P. for Nottingham,
It has all along been understood that Colonel Wright pro-
mised to resign at no distant period after his return at the
last general election, provided the petition against
hip
return should be abandoned. In the event of his doing
so, the Liberal party will, it is said, bring forward Mr. It,
B. Osborne ; the Independents probably Mr. Digby
Seymour.