The Sun.
London, England, 1851-08-11 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON,'

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.
LONDON AND NORTH-WESTERN.

It appears from the half-yearly statement of this com-
pany that the amount of joint-stock capital upon which
dividend is payable is 22,467,2811., of which 19,276,1961.
is credited to the 30th of June, 160,672/. consists of
calls in course of payment, and 2,558,1241. which may
be called up. The capital account to the 30th of June
shows that 29,291,814/. had been expended, of which
22,183,0171. had been expended on the main line and
branches, 2,097,539/. on carrying stock, 251,083/.
on lands and buildings yielding rent, 4,105,5141. on
lines open in which the company have an interest, and
654,6601. on lines not completed in which the company
have an interest. The receipts amounted to 29,105,1761.
including 19,276,156/. received on stock and shares,
194,419/. calls paid in advance, and 9,634,5611. by loans
on debentures, leaving a balance against the company
of 186,6381. The amount received on capital account
during the half-year was 187,4391., and expended
251,1431., of which 124,6381. was on the main
line and branches, and 71,3561. on carrying
stock, 18,0001. on lines not completed in which
the company have an interest, and 53,7421.
OR lines open in which the company have an in-
terest. The debenture account shows that 3,138,021/. is
borrowed at 5 per cent., 317,9001. at 44 per cent.,4,824,9901.
at 4 per cent., 116,4001. at 31 per cent., 1,141,5501. at 34
per cent., and 95,7001. at 3 per cent; together, 9,634,5611.
During the half-year 1,857,5751. was paid off or trans-
ferred; of which 1,218,5751. was formerly borrowed at
5 per cent. The amount borrowed or renewed was
1,927,7054 of which 1,666,080/ was borrowed at
4 per cent., 114,4001. at 3i per cent., and 147,225/.
at 34 per cent. Of the sum raised on debentures,
4,874,386/. was for the main line and branches; and
4,760,1741. for lines opened and lines not completed ha
which the company have an interest. It is stated that
interest or dividend on the whole of the 29,291,814/.
expended is charged to revenue. The number of miles
of railway worked by the company is 8631, and the
average cosr of working stock is stated to be 2,4301.
per mile. The mileage worked on the 30th of June.
1850, was 7944. On the 31st of December, 1850, 374
miles in addition thereto were worked, viz.—Bucking-
hamshire, 18i; Coventry and Nuneaton, 10; and East
and West India Dock line, 9/ miles. On the 30th June,
1851, 311 miles were added to the mileage, viz.—Buck-
inghamshire, 24 ; Rugby and Stamford, 134; and
Rugby and Leamington, 15 miles; making together
at the latter date 8631 miles worked by the company.
The return of working stock shows that it consisted
' of 563 engines, 562 tenders, 1 state carriage, 555 first-
class, mail, and composite carriages, 489 second-class,
345 third-class, 24 travelling post-offices and tenders,
259 horse-boxes, 243 carriage-trucks, 208 guards' break
and parcel-vans, 41 parcel carts and trucks, 8,052 wag-
goes, 203 sheep-vans, 14 trucks, 1,115 crib-rails,
5,150 sheets, and 162 horses. The increase in the num-
ber of engines during the half-year was 10, in the ten-
ders 9, in the first-class, mails, and composite carriages
61, in the second-cars carriages 69, in the third-class 3,
lin the waggons 667, and in the sheep-vans 71. The cost
of additions to the working stock was in the half-year
ending the 31st December, 1850, 36,2851., and for the
half-year ending the 30th June last, 100,6571., together,
136,943/.; of which 41,481/. was debited to revenue. On
the estimates sanctioned by the proprietors on the 22d
of February, 1850, for the completion of the main line,
branches, &c., amounting to 1,570,035/, the sum of
1,132,031/. had been expended, leaving 469,7281. unex-
pended ; on the estimates sanctioned on the 16th of
August, 1850, for waggons and sheds, amounting to
95,000/, 90,0351. had been expended, leaving 5,2281.
unexpended. Of the estimated assets, amounting to
550,125/. for surplus land and advances repayable by
other companies, 160,784/. had been realizad, leaving
389,3401. to be realized.
The revenue account for the half-year ending the 30th
of June shows that 1,236,358/. had been received, of
which 732,8621. was for passenger traffic, and 453,7171.
for merchandise, coal, and live stock. The ex-
penditure amounted to 463,3974 including 24894/
for rates and taxes, and 26,082/. for duty on
passenger-traffic, leaving a balance of 772,9614 otut of
which 210,9261. is deducted for interest on loans, 4„4961.
chief rents, 2,006/. expenses of Peterborough station;
6,6691. loss on North Union guarantee; 4,5001. loss
on Preston and Wyre guarantee; 13,3591. on Shropsihire
Union deficiency, and 10,914/. estimated dividend to the
Stour Valley proprietors ; leaving a balance of 520,0931.
From this sum is deducted 18,9921. for renewal of s ails,
works, and stock, leaving 501,1011. To this sum is added
151,2914 the balance from the last account, making to-
gether a disposable balance of 652,392/, out of which it is
proposed to deduct 528,315/ for dividend, leaving 124,077/.
to be carried to next account. The dividend on the conso-

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.

lidated stock of the company, at the rate of 5i per cent. per
annum, will amount to 408,405/, and the dividends on
the other shares will amount to 119,9101. The auditors
Messrs. Peyton and Crosfield, state in their report that
the accounts have undergone a very searching examina-
tion on the part of Mr. Coleman, who has maintained
a continuous audit, entirely distinct from that carried
on by the officers of the company. They state that the
revenue account is only charged with the loss oa the
Shropshire Union liability up to the 31st of December
last, as the result of the past half-year cannot
yet be ascertained ; they are, however, satis-
fied that this liability is fully met by the
dividend due to the company on the Chester and 13oly
head preference shares, which, in the accounts, is only
credited up to the 30th of June, 1850. The determina-
tion of the proprietors to close the capital account, and
to provide out of revenue the additional works and stock
required to meet the eonstantly enlarging business of the
company, has increased the charge on the works, s tock,
and estate account to 68,558/, one-tenth part of which, it
will be observed, has been debited to the revenue account
of the past half-year. By this arrangement the actual
value of the stock of the company is becoming yearly
enhanced-at the cost of revenue.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.
VICE-CHANCERY COURT, Aug. 9.
(Before Sir J. K. BRUCE )

. .
EX PARTE FEARGUS O'CONNOR, IN THE MATTER OF THE
NATIONAL LAND COMPANY, AND OF AN ACT TO DIS-
SOLVE THE SAME, AND IN THE MATTER OF THE
WINDING-UP ACTS.

This was the petition of Mr. Feargus O'Connor, late
of Notting-hill-terrace, but now of No. 16, Great
Windmill- street, stating that, in 1845, the Chartist Co-
operative Land Society was projected, and was provi-
sionally registered in 1846, under the statute 7th and Bth
of her Majesty's reign, under the title of " the National
Land Company;" that by the deed of settlement of the
company, the object was declared to be the purchasing
of laud in various parts of the United Kingdom, and
erecting thereon dwellings to be allotted to the members,
and the raising of a fund out of which sums of money
should be paid to the members, being allottees of land,
the capital of the company; that the capital should be
130,0001, in 100,000 shares of 11. 6s. each, which was
afterwards expressed to be 195,0001., in 150,000 shares
of the above amount each; that by the Act which re-
ceived the Royal assent on Thursday last, the 7th of
August inst., the company was absolutely dissolved; and
it was thereby enacted that the Court of Chancery should
on the petition of Mr. Feargus O'Connor, his heirs, exe-
cutors, or administrators, or of any subscriber to the
company, or any claimant against its assets, make an
order absolute referring it to one of the Masters of the
Court to wind up the affairs of the company; that no
advertisement but one similar to the one required by the
Winding-up Acts should ho necessary. The petition
then stated that Mr. O'Connor was desirous that. the
affairs of the company should be wound up, and prayed
the same accordingly.
Mr. W. H. BENNETT supported the petition, and re-
quested that the reference might be sent to the vacation
Master. _

NISI PRIUS COUNT.
In this court there was nothing of great interest.

HUSBAND AND ANOTHER V. HOLT.

His HONOUR made the order.
The sitting of the Court was in the private room, the
Learned Judge consenting to take all such matters as
were unopposed and of a pressing nature, the delay in
hearing which until after the vacation would have occa-
sioned very great expense and other inconvenience.

JUDGES' CHAMBERS, Aug. 9.
(Before Mr. Justice PaTrEsote.)
SHEPPARD V. SIR GEORGE DE LA PORE BERESFORD, BART.
This was an application for a discharge from the cus-
tody of the Sheriff of Middlesex, upon the ground that
the defendant, Sir George de la Poer Beresford, had been
discharged from the debt for which he had been arrested
by the Insolvent Debtors Act in Ireland.
Mr. LEWIS, of Ely-place, who applied for the dis-
charge, briefly stated the facts. The defendant was a
prisoner in the custody of the Sheriff of Middlesex,
having been arrested upon a ca sa., issuing out of the
Queen's Bench, for a debt of 1,4261. The defendant had
been a prisoner in the gaol of the Four Courts Marshal-
sea, in Ireland, and while there he had filed a petition in
the Insolvent Court, in that country, on the 7th Sept.,
1343, and having been three times before the Court, was
opposed by the present detaining creditor on each occa-
sion, but was finally discharged on the 9ch of May, 1845.
He then came to England, and for the most part since,
and for the last fifteen months had resided in this
country, during which period he was again arrested by
the plaintiff, who believed that the discharge in Ireland
could not protect the insolvent debtor in England from a
judgment obtained in an English court for the same debt.
Mr. GIBBONS, for the plaintiff, referred to the clause
in the Irish Act, which declared that it should not ex-
tend to England or Scotland except where otherwise de-
clared.
Mr. LEWIS said that there were express decisions on
that point.
Mr. Justice PATTESON, after looking into the cases,
observed that the question was whether the Insolvent
Act in Ireland did not discharge the defendant from the
debt. If that Court (the Queen's Bench) did not dis-
charge him, no one else could.
Mr. GIBBONS contended that the Act merely applied
to Irish judgments, and the defendant being a prisoner'
iu Ireland, had been duly discharged from that judg-
ment. But the process under which he was now in cus-
tody was issued from one of the Queen's courts at West-
minster, which the Irish Insolvent Act could not touch,

to get to the train? After a short consultation they 'as its operation was expressly limited to Ireland, ex-
etzr ed to go down the line in s b,,dy and take their cept where wherwiso
rat.,-. in the north train. They did so; but to the Mr. Justice PATIESON, after looking through the
rtiticiation of them all they were noticed by Mr. Mills, Act, observed that it vested the English property of the
eelit a policeman to fetch them all back, and they defendant in the Irish assignees.
were told that unless they took tickets from Derby the Mr. GIBBONS contended that the benefit of the Act to
same as other parties, they would not be allowed to which the insolvent had been declared entitled in Ire-
proceed with the train. The policemen on duty land only applied to the Irish judgment under which he
on the line were also fined ss. each for allowing therm could not be arrested in England. The " benefit of the
on the line without a written order. Mr. Thompson, Act" signified protection from arrest in the country in
superintendent of Derby police, was sent for, and a which the process could be enforced. There was pot a
" row" ensued, but the " force" were obliged to pay the single word that be should be protected from process
Derby fare, and sink the ss. each which they had paid upon an English judgment. The debt was not extin-
for the Leeds tickets. We may state that the reason of guished by the discharge, but merely the operation of
the fare being only ss. from Leeds to London, is in con- the law suspended in Ireland.
sequence of the Midland Company competing with the After considerable discussion,
Great Northern Company for the north through traffic. Mr. Justice PATTESON said that it was clear that the
—Nottingham Journal. Irish Insolvent Debtors Act vested all the defendant's
property in England in the Irish assignees for the
benefit of the creditors, and it would be monstrous to
suppose that when all his English property was taken
away he was not to be protected here. The jest prin-
ciple, as it appeared to him, was that a man should be
protected to the extent to which his property vested;
and if his property in this country vested for the benefit
of all his creditors, he ought certainly to be protected
here. If this Act was permitted to operate upon Irish
property only, then he could understand why he should
not be protected in this country. He (Mr. Justice Pat-
teson) was obliged to act as the statute directed, that if
the insolvent was arrested he should apply to the judge
of the court out of which the process issued. The de-
fendant would therefore be discharged.
The defendant was immediately liberated from the
custody of the Sheriff.

WEST ERN ClRCUlT.—Bridgewater, Aug. 9.
The commission for holding the assize in the county
of Somerset was opened here on Thursday afternoon by
Mr. Justice Coleridge, who immediately afterwards at-
-tended Divine service. Lord Campbell, who had been
detained in Cornwall on the trial for murder, arrived at
a late hour at night by the mail train, The business is
very light, there being only 42 prisoners in the calendar
and 13 causes in the cense list.
CROWN COURT.

Lord CAMPBELL took his seat in this court on Friday
morning. In delivering his charge to the grand jury his
Lordship observed that it was with very great regret he
found so few of the magistrates answering to their names
in this great and wealthy county. Farmers and other
persons who perhaps could ill afford it thought it right
to do their duty and to take their share in the adminis-
tration of justice; the richer classes, however, had not
considered it necessary to attend to their duties. He
wished they would follow the example set them by their
Lord-Lieutenant. (Lord Portman was sitting by his
Lordship).
John Chivers, alias King, was indicted far a burglary
in the house of Thomas Clark, of Bridgewater, on the
4th of May, 1850.
Mr. H. T. Cole and Mr. Reed were counsel for the
prosecution, and Mr. Edwards for the prisoner.
From the evidence of an accomplice it appeared that
on the 4th of May, 1850, the prisoner and a man named
Collins were drinking together at different beer-shops at
Bridgewater. At twelve o'clock at night they left the
Horse and Jockey and went to the house of Mr. Clark,
which is situate in the parish of Bridgewater, but about
half a mile from the town. When they got there they
took off their shoes and walked round the house to make
an inspection. They then took a pane of glass out of
the drawing-room window and made an entry into the
drawing-room. They went into different rooms, and
took off a quantity of plate, a jar of gin, and other
articles. They then left the house, tied all the articles
up in their smock frocks and made them into bags, and
carried them some distance until they got into a lane,
and there they laid the things in a dung heap. They
then returned to Bridgewater. In consequence of some
suspicion Collins was apprehended and taken before the
magistrate, who committed him for trial. After his
commitment he gave information of the place where
the property had been concealed. The constable
went to the dung heap and found various articles, but
the bulk of the property. had been removed. Search
was then made for the prisoner, and it was discovered
that he had absconded. Collins was indicted at the
assizes in 1850, and he was convicted and sentenced to
15 years' transportation. Subsequently information
being obtained that the prisoner was at Cardiff, Stock-
dale, the head of the police in that town, accompanied
by a constable, went in search of him, and discovered
him working in a brickfield. The moment the prisoner
saw them coming near him he started off at full speed
across the moors, followed by Stockdale and the con-
stable; a most exciting chase then took place. The
moors were intersected with streams and deep ditches,
therefore the prisoner was compelled to leap them and
alter his course. The constables still pursued him until
they had accomplished upwards of seven miles. He was
then pressed hard, and was approaching a tidal river,
which, from the nature of its banks, was very danger.
ous. The prisoner then commenced taking his clothes
off as he ran, till he had divested himself of every article
of clothing, and when he came up to the river he
plunged in and swam across. The officers got across by
a railway bridge and headed him. He laid down for a
short time, got up again, and surrended. Stockdale took
him into custody, and having procured a sheet, wrapped
him up in it, and took him back to Cardiff, and ulti-
mately brought him to Bridgewater.
The jury found the prisoner Guilty, and he was sen-
tenced to be transported for 15 years.
Samuel Gadd and Shadraeh Wedlock, were indicted
for robbing Bartolomeo Xuerebe of several articles on
the 3d of August last, and Jonathan Gadd, for receiving
the same, knowing them to have been stolen.
Mr. Allen prosecuted, and Mr. Stone defended the
Gadds.
The prosecutor, who is a Maltese, was returning from
Bristol to Chew Magna between 7 and 8 on the evening
of the 3d of August. When he was walking along the
Dundry-hill he was attacked by a man, who made a
snatch at his seals. The prosecutor knocked him down,
and, then, as he stated, not knowing the mode of English
fighting, he adopted the Maltese practice, and picked
him up and threw him over his head. Another man
then came up and struck at the prosecutor with a long
stick, but misted him. The two men then took away his
seals and chain, and then ran away. The next morning
the prosecutor went with the postmaster to a public-
house in Chew Magna. The post-master went into
a room where Samuel Gadd was sitting, and
they began to talk of the robbery, when Gadd said
he knew all about it, and would tell if they would give
him some money. The postmaster told him to go into
the other room, and the moment he did so the prosecutor
charged him with being the man who had robbed him,
and spoke particularly to his boots, which he took par-
ticular notice of when he threw the man over his head.
Wedlock was afterwards taken up, and the prosecutor
swore he was the other man who had robbed him. Jona.
than Gadd was apprehended on account of some of the
silk of the prosecutor's umbrella being found in his pos-
session. The seals were found thrust into the letter-box
of the Chew Magna post-office.
Several witnesses were called, who swore the parties
were elsewhere on the night in question.
Lord CAMPBELL having summed up,
The jury Acquitted Jonathan Gadd, and found the
other two Guilty, and they were transported for 10 years.

HOME CIRCUIT.—Croydon, August 9.
(Before Lord Chief Justice JERYIS and a Common Jury

This was an action to recover the amount of a lawyer's
bill. The defendant pleaded that he had paid the
bill and that he was not indebted.
Mr. M. Chambers, Q.C., and Mr. Bovill were for the
plaintiff; Mr. E. James, Q.C., and Mr. Hawkins ap-
peared for the defendant.
Mr. CHAMBERS said, that the plaintiff in this action,
Mr. Husband, sought to recover the amount of his
Bill for professional services rendered to the defendant
in 1843. At that period Mr. Husband was in partner-
ship with a gentleman named Wyatt, and although
that partnership had since been dissolved, inasmuch as
all the partnership debts had been made over to the
plaintiff, it was necessary on the present occasion
that the action should bm brought in the name
of the firm. It appeared that at the period he had men-
tioned Mr. Holt was the proprietor of the Age news-
paper, and he was indicted for a libel, and it was for
defending him against this proceeding that the costs in
question were incurred. The bill was originally of a
much larger amount, but upon a taxation by an officer
of the court, owing to the absence of vouchers which Mr.
Husband could not obtain possession of, the amount was
reduced to 321. 7s. ld., which was the amount that was
now sought to be recovered.
Mr. G. Benbon, clerk to the plaintiff, proved that he
was in the service of Messrs. Husband and Wyatt from
the commencement of their partnership in 1844, until
it was dissolved in 1850. They were concerned for the
defendant in th© indictment against him for libel, and he
knew that all the business charged in the bill had been
performed.
By Mr. JAMES—The defendant saw Mr. Husband oc-
casionally, but his business was chiefly conducted by
Mr. Wyatt. The endorsementof the cheque for 401., now
produced, was in Mr. Husband's handwriting.
Mr. Traill, an attorney, proved that he received the
sum of 301. from Mr. Husband on account of Mr. Holt.

This was the plaintiff's case.
Mr. JAMES, for the defendant, said he felt satisfied
that when the jury had heard this ease to a conclusion
they would be of opinion that Mr. Husband had done
himself little credit by bringing it into court. In the
first place, he would beg to call their attention to the
fact that the plaintiff now sought, in 1851, to recover a
bill for professional services rendered in 1843. The ori-
ginal amount of this bill was 1331. 13s. ld., but it had
been redaced by taxation to 411., and according to the
rule of court regulating such matters, where more than
one-sixth was struck off such a claim, the party claim-
ing had to pay the costs of taxation, and this
reduced the amount to the sum now sought to be re-
covered. Mr. Holt declared that the whole of the claim
the plaintiff had upon him had been discharged; and if
he proved this he thought the jury would agree with
him that Mr. Husband had disgraced hiinselt by bring •
ing such a case into court. The circumstances under
which the claim arose were these:—lt would be in the
rtre:odllbeyctiaonspcial
of the jury that some years ago Lord W.
Paget brought an action against the Earl of Cardigan
for criminal conversation with his wife. The case was
jury at Guildhall, and after a careful
inquiry the jury gave a verdict for the defendant. The
facts connected with the trial appeared in the Age news-
peper, of which at that time Mr. Holt was the proprie•
tor, and he was indicted by Lord W. Paget for a libel
for the publication of those facts. At this period the
Act of Parliament which enabled a defendant to plead
a justification in such cases bad not passed the Legis-
lature, and as the defendant was therefore unable to jus.
tit), the publication he was convicted. It was for the
costs of the defence incurred In this proceeding that the

MONDAY EVENING, AUGUST D., lB5l.

plaintiff had a claim against Mr. Holt, and he shnnld
, ...•

the bill had been already paid. It eppearod that Lord
Cardigan thought it right under the c:rcumstances to
come forward assist Mr. Holt in his da2nce, and his
solicitor, Mr. Powell, handed over it olicque fo: 401. to
Mr. Husband on account of Mr. Holt, and it was clear
that Mr. Husband had received that amount, as it wail
now produced, and was proved to have his endorsement
upon it. An attempt had been made to show that 30/.
of this sum had been paid to Mr. Traill. Mr. Husband
knew perfectly well that this sum was paid from a totally
different source. The Learned Counsel then read a letter
from Mr. Wyatt, the plaintiff's partner, dated August 1,
1845, and addressed to Mr. Holt, in which he stated
that he was no party to the action, and referred to cer-
tain sums of money that had been received on behalf of
Mr. Holt, and also the sum of 301. from himself (the de-
fendant), which had been handed over to Mr. Traill;
and the letter concluded by stating that Mr. Holt had
paid all that was due from him on account of the de-
fence to that indictment, and that if the accounts were
strictly looked into it would be found that there was a
balance of 251. due to him. The Learned Counsel con-
cluded by declaring that the present action was a most
disreputable one, and said that it was such proceedings
as these on the part of the attorneys which gave people
grounds for saying that the law was only another name
for spoliation and chicane. The Learned Counsel
then put in the letter and the cheque, which was read.
Mr. CHAMBERS, in his reply to the defendant's case,
said that he was extremely sorry to see that his Learned
Friend had thought fit to introduce matters into the
present inquiry which ought long since to have been for-
gotten, and to have ceased to offend the public ear.
Whether Lord W. Paget or the Earl of Cardigan was
in the right had nothing whatever to do with the pre-
sent inquiry, and clearly ought not to have been intro-
duced into it. The real facts were that the defendant
had been convicted of libel, and the plaintiff, Mr. Hus-
band, now sought to recover the costs of the de-
fence to that indictment. What object there could
be in mixing up other matters with these
facts he could not possibly understand, except that
it was to divert the attention of the jury from the real
question in the cause; and he could not refrain from
publicly denouncing such a course as most unjustifiable
and improper. He then proceeded to comment upon
the conduct of Mr. Wyatt, who, he said, was evidently
on friendly terms with the defendant, and urged that it
was a most unjustifiable proceeding on his part to assist
the defendant in defeating the claim of his partner. He
called upon the jury not to give effect to the letter of
Mr. Wyatt that had been produced, on the ground that
it was not a genuine document, but had been written
solely for the purposes of the present action, and he said
that the appearance of the document confirmed this view
of it. The paper, it was true, born the watermark of
1845, but instead of being an ordinary sheet of paper it
had evidently been torn from some old account
book, as a portion of the ruled lines still remained upon
it. The Learned Counsel concluded by reminding the
jury that it had been clearly proved that every atom of
the work charged for had been performed, and he said
that the evidence in support of the plea of. payment was
such as no jury ought to give effect to, to defeat a just
claim.

Lord Chief Justice JERVIS, on summing up, said,
that undoubtedly, if the jury should be of opinion
that the letter written by the plaintiff's partner, Mr.
'Wyatt, was a genuine document, it established pretty
clearly that the bill had been paid. It was con-
tended on hehalf of the plaintiff that this letter was
not genuine, and that it was not written at the time it
bore date, and the character of the paper and other
circumstances had been mentioned in support of this
position. He must say, however, that they should not
forget that Mr. Wyatt was an attorney and a man of
experience in the affairs of the world, and if he really
intended to commit such a dishonest act as that which
was imputed to him, it was not very likely that he would
do it in such a clumsy manner that the very first person
who looked at the document could immediately detect
the imposition. The Learned Judge then called the at-
tention of the jury to the other facts in the case, wad left
it to them to say which of the parties they thought en-
titled to a verdict.
The jury almost immediately returned a verdict for
the defendant.

OXFORD ClRCUlT.—Monmouth, Aug. 8.
(Before Mr. Justice ERLE.)
. - _

John Murphy and John Keefe stood charged with the
wilful murder of Thomas Dowd at the parish of Wool-
los, NewpoO. Keefe was also charged with aiding and
abetting in the murder, and both prisoners were fur-
ther charged with manslaughter.
Mr. Huddlestone and Mr. Vaughan Richards were
counsel for the prosecution, and Mr. Smythies for the
prisoners.
. _

The trial occupied the greater part of the day, and
arose out of the following circumstances:—The pri-
soners and the deceased's brother, John, were at the
Wiltshire house Tavern, on the 21st April, when a
quarrel arose between them in consequence of one of
the prisoners' party striking a woman named Welsh.
On John Dowd remonstrating with the Irishmen for
striking a woman, they set upon him, beat him, and
scalded him with boiling water, which they poured down
his face. He has been deaf ever since from the effects
of the injuries which he then received. Murphy then
ran out into the back yard of the inn, where ho was seen
to pull out a knife from his pocket, and rushing back
to the! house, he exclaimed, " D—n the —, I'll stick
'em all." He then made an attack upon John Dowd,
whom he cut slightly on the hands and head, and
he became senseless. Just at that time Thomas Dowd,
the deceased came into the room, and seeing his
brother ill-used, called out, "For God's sake don't let
them kill my brother; try and save him;" and he made
towards Murphy, who immediately turned upon him,
and after Keefe had struck him, he (Murphy) stabbed
him in the bowels. In his dying statement, which was
read in court, Thomas Dowd said, " I saw Murphy take
his knife out of his pocket about a minute before, at the
back door. I saw him open the knife; it had a big
blade, and the handle was of a dark brown colour.
Murphy was standing close at my left side when he
whipped the knife into me. I saw him make the stab,
and said you have stabbed me to the heart. You have
taken away my life."
The man lived for six weeks after the stab, but the
evidence of Dr. Slack sufficiently proved that the stab
was the cause of death.
Mr. SMYTHIEs, for the defence, suggested that Mur-
phy's object in going into the yard was to escape, but
that finding he could not do so, he became exasperated,
aad hence what followed.
The jury found Murphy Guilty of " Manslaughter of
the worst character:" they also found Keefe Guilty.
The Learned JUDGE, in passing sentence, said, the
case more closely approximated to that of murder than
any he had ever remembered. Murphy's conduct had
been marked by a murderous ferocity quite unexampled
during the whole of the years he had known those courts;
and it might be justly said of him, that he had been so
regardless of the lives of others, that he could not com-
plain if his life also had been taken away. As to Keefe,
his hand had been against every man, though he had not
armed himself with a deadly weapon. His Lordship then
sentenced Murphy to transportation for life and Keefe for
fourteen years.

FRIGHTFUL COLLIERY ACCIDENT.
BRISTOL, AUG. 9.—This morning at an early hour
another terrible colliery accident occurred at the Ma-
lago Vale Coal Works, the property of Messrs Rey-
nolds and Co., at Bedminster, nearthis city, attended,
we regret to say, with great loss of life, six persons
having been suddenly hurried into eternity. The
lives of eight others were also placed in great jeo-
pardy. Subjoined are correct details of this most dis-
tressing event.
It appears that twenty minutes past three o'clock
this morning, four men, named Robert Moffatt, Tho-
mas Pike, William Smith, and Philip Pring, and a
lad named William Webster, entered the cart or
bucket of the Malago Vale Pit, situated immediately
behind the Red Cow, Bedminster, for the purpose of
descending the lower vein, which lies at the depth of
240 fathoms from the surface, a turn of men having
just come out at their usual time. They were
lowered in the usual way by the steam-engine be-
longing to the works till they had arrived within a
few feet of the bottom, when the flat rope attached to
the bucket broke at the top, thereby precipitating the
poor fellows to the bottom ' • and as the place where
the rope broke was about half way
.from the " shiver
wheel" to the mouth of the pit, the whole of the rope,
which is six inches and a half by two inches in thick-
ness, fell down the shaft, as also the " bonnet," or iron
shield, on the top of the unfortunate men, completely
crushing two of them. In its fall it injured one of
the trunks, but did no damage to the sides of the
shaft. At the time of the accident the cart was de-
scending at its usual rate, and the rope is stated not
to have been in work more than a twelvemonth,
whereas ropes of this description are usually calcu-
lated to last three or four years. We are informed that
it was examined the night before, and that no flaw
was discovered in it. It had been spliced, but not at
the part where it broke. There were still twenty-five
fathoms of rope attached to the wheel, so that blame is
not attributable to the engineer. The weight of the
rope that thus fell on the poor fellows is estimated at
not less than three tons.
Intelligence of the frightful catastrophe was quickly
spread in the vicinity, and the pit was speedily sur-
rounded by the relatives and friends of the men
below. A scene of the most heartrending descrip-
tion ensued, terminating, indeed, fatally in the case of
one poor man named Tnomas Parsons, whose son was
one of the men engaged in the vein below. He be-
came so excited that while he was at the top of the
shaft, anxiously awaiting tidings of the fate of his
son, he suddenly dropped down, and before assistance
could be rendered him he expired, thus making the
sixth death. Besides the unfortunate men thus
precipitated to the bottom great fears were enter-
tained for the safety of eight men who had pre-
viously descended the shaft, and who were pro-
ceeding to their work at the time the accident occurred,
as it was considered by those in charge of the works
that they might be in peril feom the water, and the
engine was at once set to work pumping, white under
the superintendence of Mr. Stewart, the manager of
the works, assisted by Mr. Goulstone, one of the pro-
prietors of the North side pit, measures ware imme-
diately taken to recover the bodies. Men were first
sent down the pit with timber to repair the trunk,
while those in the mine were directed if possible to
pull the broken rope into the level, so a to enable
the cart to be raised to the surface. Owing to the
great depth of the shaft this was a work which oc-

eunipil much firm. 9TO nl'cw.rl nnn nr .7,7 rt, fl;ffirvrtlf.

A dal, rupo or 150 lALliuttiS has borrowed irom the
North-side pit, but this proved not to be long enough,
aad the length was made out by splicing to it a 100
fathom rope of the ordinary round twist, and by the
time this work was completed, And ii was adjusted to
the drum, it was ten minutes to eight o'clock. In-
telligence of the accident having been forwarded to
the police-station, some of the force attended with a
view of keeping order among the large crowd col-
lected. First o all, in order to test the working of
the machinery, a bucket with lights, bat with no one
in it, was lowered down the shaft near to the bottom,
and drawn up again, and as the arrangements
now appeared to be complete two men, named
John Reynolds and Henry Lovell, entered
the cart and descended. The excitement
among those now collected at the mouth of
the pit was most intense. All was breathless at-
tention, and much anxiety was evinced from the fact
that during the descent there were several stoppages
which seemed to show that there was something
amiss. When the cart had descended to somewhere
about three-fourths of the extreme depth, the signal
was given for hauling up, and the men were drawn to
the surface. They stated that owing to the twisting
of the round rope it would be impossible for them to
descend to the vein in safety, but they brought the
melancholy intelligence that they had been enabled
to converse with the men in the vein, by whom they
had been informed that the five poor fellows were all
dead. Men were then set to work splicing a second
flat rope which was lent from the Dean-lane Colliery,
it being impossible to work with the round rope, and
a length of time elapsed before the dead bodies were
got out, or the other parties below could be rescued
from their perilous position.
It may be right here to mention that the colliers
engaged at the Malago Vale coal works have not been
in any manner connected with the recent strike at
Bedminster, they being paid by the ton, and an exa-
mination of the rope shows that the accident clearly
resulted from a flaw in it. The engineer states that
he observed the defect as the rope passed the wheel,
but that before he could stop the engine the rupture
took place. A piece of the rope with the broken end
has been cut off and impounded by the coroner, whe
deposited it with Mr. Alexander, inspector of police.
At four o'clock this afternoon the whole of the
bodies were brought up, and the scene at this time
was most distressing. The wives and children of the
unfortunate deceased were almost frantic, and it was
with the greatest difficulty that they could be induced
to leave the yard for the purpose of instituting an
inquiry into the cause of the accident, the coroner
being on the spot awaiting the bringing up of the
bodies. The two first brought up were Richard
Moffatt and nap Pring. The bodies exhibited
marks of violence, as if they had been struck on the
head with the iron bonnet. One of them had his
throat partially divided, and both the front and back
of his head were injured. Two of the women present
were so affected that they were seized with violent
fainting fits, and had to be carried from the yard.
The Coroner, at two o'clock, held an inquest on
the body of the aged man Parsons, when a portion of
the above details were adduced in evidence, and at the
termination of the inquiry the jury returned a verdict
' that the deceased died from excessive fear and grief
caused by the supposed, death of his son. The Coroner
also commenced an investigation on the bodies of the
five men killed in the pit, but as a recent Act of Par-
liament requires that notice shall be given to the
Secretary of State, he did not take any evidence be-
yond that of identifying the bodies.
Great excitement, in consequence of this lament-
able accident, prevails throughout the district of Bed-
minster, and it is the intention of some of the
principal inhabitants to call a meeting with a view of
adopting a resolution requesting the Secretary of
State to send down a Government inspector to assist
at the Coroner's investigation. We regret to state
that the deceased man Moffatt has left behind him a
wife and seven children to mourn their untimely be-
, reavement. Thomas Pike has left a widow and two
children. William Smith was unmarried. Philip
Pring was married, and had one child. The boy
Webster was about 14 years of age. The depth of
this pit is greater than that of any other in the parish,
' being about 240 fathoms.

Y MARKETS.
iVe have had a very quiet
•e as follow:

d. I. d.
Do.Dleal, perl96lb 15 0 to 16 0
Barley, English, pr
imperial quarter 2G 0— 28 0
'lrish, Scotch, and
Alanx,per 601 b.. 3 8 3 10
Foreign, grinding 3 4 3 8
eye, per 601 b .. 3 6 3 9
Beans, English, pr
imperial quartr 32 0 —34 0
Irish and Scotch,
per 4801 b.. .. 30 0— 31 0
,Dutch .. .. 30 0— 31 3

(Egyptian .. 25 9 26 3
,Peas, English, per
imperial quartr 31 0 —33 0
Foreign .• .. 31 0— 32 0
Oats, per 451 b :
English, Scotch,
and Welsh, old

3 3 - 3 6

Irish, ne— . , est
mealing .. 3 2—3 21
Do., feeding .. 3 0 3 1
Do., foreign .. 3 0 3 4
Oatmeal, English,
& Seotch,pr24olb 26 0 2e 6
Irish, new .. 25 0 26 0
Do., old . 26 0 26 6