The Sun.
London, England, 1834-02-27 00:00:00

COURT OF EXCHEQUER, FEB. 26.

(Before Lord LYNDHURST and a Special Jury.)
uctiott. U. BURSTALL.
The form of this action was mover for a whale. In
substance it was to recover the sum of 8751., the amount
at which the plaintiff assessed the value of a whale which
it was alleged the crew of the defendant's vessel impro-
perly possessed themselves; the fish having been caugh•
by the crew of the plaintiff's vessel. The disputed owner-
ship was between the captain and crew of the Dorothy
of Dundee, and the captain and crew of the Venerable.
of Hull ; and the occurrence out of which the present ac—
tion arose took place on the 19th of August last in Davis'

Straits.
Mr. F. Pot.LocK stated the plaintiff's case. The
custom of the Greenland whale fishery wag, that a
captured fish belonged to the party which first harpooned
it, provided it did not altogether escape. If the fish got
away from the harpoon after it bad been struck, or was
not kept i❑ hand by the line, then it would be what was
called a " lose fish," and it would be open to others to
pursue and take. If, on the contrary, it were fairly kept
in hand, although it might get away for a time and require
much more to kill it, then it would he what was termed
a " fast fish," and the property of the first harpooner,
whatever friendly assistance might be given by other boats.
Certain admissions on the point of custom had been
entered into between the litigant part es from which the
statement he had made was deduced. In the present case
he should be able to show that there had been a departure
from these rules by the crew of the Venerable, with re-
ference to a fish struck by the crew of the Dorothy, and
claimed by the Venerable, and ultimately forcibly detained.
David Latto, James Hurseburgh, and eight or nine wit-
nesses, being the harpooners and crew of the Dorothy,
were put into the box on the part of the plaintiff, and a
harpoon was also produced and occasionally used by the
witnesses to explain their statements to the Court. The
facts established in evidence by these witnesses were that
seven or eight boats belonging to the Dorothy and Ve•
nerable were on the look-out on the 19th of August last.
That a fish rose, having the appearance of a wounded fish,
its " blast" (the water spouted by whales) being thick and
black. That the first boat of the Dorothy went up to
the fish, and pulled round her, and, Eluding no mark of a
wound upo❑ her, threw their harpoon, which struck in
the back. The first harpoon did not hold well, and a
second Import, which went up to the hilt, was thrown
by the harpooner of another of the Dorothy's boa's. As
soon as the fit st harpoon struck, the harpooner " called a
fall," that is, hoisted a flag, which is always understood to
signify a fish hit. A flag at that time was also seen flying
in one of the boats of the Venerable. . That boat and
other boats of the Venerable afterwards came up,
and, striking a third harpoon into the fish, claimed
it as one they had previously wounded. A dis-
pute ensued, when Captain Mackenzie told Latto to go
for his master, that they might settle the matter be-
tween them, he promising that in the mesnavbile all
things should remain in siatu quo. When Latto came
back with his master they found all the lines cut off the
fish, and the tail of it hauled up on the bow of the Ve-
nerable's boat. Captain Mackenzie told Capt. Davidson
that he would not deliver up the fish, which was his, and
that all the Dundee men were robbers, and that he had
been already robbed of one fish, and would not lose ano-
ther. The fish was " swept" (a line passed under her
whereby any harpoons sticking underneath are discovered),
anti only the lines of the two harpoons of the Dorothy and
one of the Venerable came up.
Nothing occurred in cross-examination to shake this
testimony.
Mr. Wur.t.tais should call the crew of the Venerable
to prove that they had first struck the fish ; that it was
an hour under water, and then rose near the boat of the
Dorothy, anti Latto went up to the fish, and in a very
" unfiskermanlike" and unfair manner poked or " prod
Bled, " as the technical term was, at her, so as to get out
the harpoon of the Venerable, which was then in.
The crew of the Venerable endeavoured to prove that
Latto bad " proddled" the fish ; that he had used the har-
poon underhand instead of dealing an uplifted overhanded
blow. They proved having struck some fish ; but the
identity was nut made out.
After hearing three witnesses in denial of the i:nputed
" proddling" of the fish by Latto, the Jury declared that
they were satisfied the fish in question was a " loose
fish," and gave their verdict, therefore, for the plaintiff
for 3751.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

MANSION-HO USE.

Two journeymen bakers, name.) Culverwell and Berry,
were charged with having committed desperate assaults
upon two city officers.
The defendants were held to bail, and the LORD MAYOR
directed that the City Solicitor should prosecute them.

MARLBORO U GH-S TRE E T.
J. R. Humphreys, rather a respectable looking mid-
dle aged man, was yesterday charged with endeavouring
to obtain money under fals: pretences.
111 r. DYER committed the prisoner for the full period,
three months.