The Sun.
London, England, 1851-08-14 00:00:00

you villain," and the prisoner didise. Syers in the
meantime returned to the room and secured Browns
expressing his determination to hold him until the
police came, and, hearing one of the other two priso-
ners, who were also present, privately exclaim to his
companions, " We are three to one ; let us kill the
--." I hurried out of the room during the struggle
which ensued between them, and running in my fright
into the bedroom of the witness Collins, concealed
myself there in my nightclothes under the bed until
the police had effected an entrance and secured the
soldiers. The witness added, that she had no conver-
sation whatever with either of the prisoners previous
to the commission of the outrage, and the only time
she had been nigh them was once when she handed
them some beer at the request of the servant, who vies
otherwise engaged.
Mr. William Syers deposed—l am the landlord of
the house in question, where the prisoners last night
engaged some beds ; they all returned together about
a quarter to one this morning to sleep, and I showed
them their beds, which were in one of the attics.
About flee minutes afterwards one of them came to
my room door to ask for a light, which I gave him,
and after that saw all three in their room, partially
undressed. In a few minutes subsequently I heard
loud shrieks in a woman's voice, and on opening 1111
door I saw one of the prisoners go into his own room,
with nothing on but his shirt, and cautiously close
the door after him. This I can positively state was
not the prisoner Brown, but one of the other two
men. I then ran into the last witness's bed-rooms
from which the screams appeared to me to have pro-
ceeded, and found her in great terror, sitting on the
side of her bed in her night-dress. On being made
acquainted by her with the prisoner's infamous
conduct, I hastened out of the house for a police-
man, and, on returning, almost directly after, saW
my wife pulling Brown out of the closet by the
legs. He had nothing on, also, but his nightshirt
but I laid hold of him, and a violent contest ensued
between us, in the course of which both
my wife and I were thrown down. I was flung upon
the bed by Brown, and held there by the throat
until the entrance of the two other prisoners, will
likewise caught me by the throat, which they bald
with such force as to leave the marks of their fingers
upon my neck. (The witness here exhibited his neck
to the magistrate, and displayed the marks he referred
to.) The witness added that in the course of the
struggle between them his night-dress was completely'
torn into ribands, and the bedstead and other articles
of furniture were broken to pieces, the men conduct',
ing themselves with great determination, and one or
them uttering the exclamation about killing him, as
they were three to one, before referred to. The men
then forcibly dragged him from that bedroom into the
one occupied by the witness Collins, where they were
at length secured by the police, and where he saw the
first witness, Miss Harrison, concealed in great terra
beneath the bed.

Mr. Henry Collins, the next witness, said—l re•
side at Birmingham, but am at present staying at the
last witness's house, where I slept last night. I wept
to bed at twenty minutes past twelve, and was awoke
some time after by loud cries of " Murder,"
female voice, in a room opposite mine. I got up t°
learn the cause of it, and the instant I opened WI
door the first witness, Miss Harrison, rushed in le
great terror, and tried to conceal herself. I after'
wards saw the three prisoners drag Mr. Syers with
great violence out of Miss Harrison's room into mine,
where they flung him upon the bed, but the police
fortunately came in at the moment and took all three
into custody.
Stringer, a constable of the City force, deposed to
having, with the assistance of two other officers, take°
the prisoners into custody, and that upon finding Wel
in the room of the last witness, Collins, they were ell
three more or less undressed.

When called upon for their defence the prisoners
severally expressed the utmost possible contrition for
their gross misconduct, which they attributed to the
effects of partial intoxication, and entreated the 151 a•
gistrate to deal leniently with them.
Mr. D'EYNCOURT, however, told them that be c 0.11,:
sidered even the fullest summary powers with which
he was invested were wholly incommensurate to del,:
adequately with such an outrage, and he therefore felt
it his duty to commit the whole of them for trial.
The depositions were thereupon taken by Mr.
Hurlstone, the second clerk, but, upon his proceeding
to read them over, the prisoners (one of whom'
Brown, a well-made and handsome-looking fell"
had been crying convulsively ever since he 0,51
placed at the bar, and appeared to be complete!):
abashed by his degrading position) earnestly entreats
c:
the Magistrate not to send them for trial, as it must
be the inevitable ruin of them, and this appeal being
seconded by an equally earnest one from Ar. Syer
and the prosecutrix, Miss Harrison, who seernea
scarcely less affected than Brown himself, and el•
pressed great repugnance to being subjected to a se'
cond public examination,
Mr. D'EYNCOURT at length said, that in cons!"
quence of such an earnest appeal from the prosecutrl%
herself, seconded by the other person most interests
dt
Mr. Byers, and also in consideration of the two prin-
cipal witnesses residing at such distances as Birnung.:
ham and Norfolk, he felt bound to accede to the cour",,
suggested; but in doing so he should mark his set?:
of the prisoners' conduct by inflicting upon them
highest amount of penalty he could impose. I' •
should therefore order the prisoner Brown to pay
Le
penalty of 51. for the aggravated assault upon, !".
young lady, or in default to undergo two months 111 61/
prisonment in the House of Correction ; a second ;
for his attack upon Mr. Syers, or two months more, a
,/
commence at the expiration of the first term ; 0
each of the other prisoners to pay the full penalty vo
Si. each, or in default to stand committed for ts'l
months respectively to the House of Correction.