The Sun.
London, England, 1851-02-07 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX COUNTY COURT, Feb. 4

THE LEARNED TAILOR AND ♦ CASE ( F CABBAGE,
—John henry Brown, whose keen eye and intellectual
contour might be taken as a living portrait of Scarron,
the French satirist was summoned for the value of a
remnant of broad cloth, entrusted to his care. The
amount claimed was but 35., but as the defendant, a very
solemn " lehabod Crane" looking worthy, observed—
"He detested cabbage on principle." It was not so
much the value of the thing, but cabbage, to his mind,
was unbearable.—(Laughter.)
The particulars of the case having been gone into,
Mr. Brown humorously entered upon his defence.
It was true, he admitted, that from time immemorial,
tailoring mid cabbage had been associated, and remnents
of broad cloth, the " droits of the operative." The in-
trinsic value of cabbage was little knowu.—(Laughter.)
He meant real bona fide cabbage, and
" Pray, sir," said the Learned Judge, " confine your-
self to the subject."
My Lord, continued Mr. Brown, I will cabbage as
little time as possible—(Mr. Brown was evidently " three
sheets in the wind")—but permit me, Sir, permit me to
to—prove to you, Sir, that cabbage is a great, a (hiccup)
a very great moral teacher.—(Roars of laughter.) You
may laugh, but (hic) I can tell you when I was at col-
lege I found the benefit of cabbage.—(Laughter.) My
Lord, the Egyptians, according to AtheHaeus—
The Learned JUDGE—Do you owe this money? Mr.
Brown—l'll come to that (hic) presently. "It was an
established rule with the Egyptians to eat boiled cab-
bage, before any other food, to prepare themselves fog
hard drinking; many (says Athenaeus) for the same
purpose swallowed the seeds of the cabbage."—(Laugh-
ter.) What does the Geek poet Alexis say?—
" Yesterday
You drunk too much, and what the consequence?
A heavy head to-day,—this must be cured—
By a strict fast; and let some friend provide
A store of well-boil'd cabbage."
And then, my Lord, what dues Eubulus, another poet
say ?T-

Wife, bring the cabbage; that I think will cure
This heaviness, which so affects my head,
If the good proverb holds."
The JUDGE.—My good man, do stop this torrent, and
come to the point.—(Loughter.) You have already—
Dofendant—l will, my Lord. Its cabbage altogether.
The very celebrated Rhodian poet, Anaxandrides, who
flourished in the second year of the 101st Olympiad,
and who is cited by Aristotle in his " Rhetoric and
Ethics," says (hic),
" If first you bathe, then make a hearty meal
Of cabbage, you will easo the heavy weight,
And dissipate the clouds that so obscure
Your aching brain."
And now, my Lord, said the defendant, in a serio-
comic tone, having proved the antiquity of cabbage, I
trust I have done a public good—(hero the defendant's
elbow upset a huge plated inkstand, the ebony contents
of which were very freely dispersed). I think, sir,
(hic)—

Tile Learned Judge—And so do I think, sir. Pay
the amount claimed in a month. You had the goods,
and you must take the consequence.
Mr. Brawn was somewhat staggered by this imme-
diate decision, but philosophically broke forth from the
Athenian poet Amphis:—
•' Nothing so soon will dissipate the fumes
Of inebriety, and clear the aching head,
As some immediate, unforeseen disaster;
This drives at once all fancies from the brain
With wonderful effect, and better far
Than cabbage can produce."
And, so consoling himself, Mr. Brown adjourned.

SEABORNE MAILS.
[N signifies that the mails are sent from the General rest-office
by the night—and M by the morning—dispatch.]