The Sun.
London, England, 1869-05-12 00:00:00

EVIDENCE DY THE PAILTIES TO A SU IT.

The Central Criminal Court has occupied a large
ippveahiiiitethiorfy
w. i
at ssTthidneekei
daterhdo
si sessionsebyJames
i nn
ehse hearingll\o,e- chargesdsroamweil
tc a
si
time
eof
o su tr
since. A Dr. Godrich sued to be divorced
from his wife, and presented evidence which
(supposing it to be true) undeniably proved adultery.
Mrs. Godrich brought a recriminatory charge,
and sheaved unmistakably that the petitioner had
done that which disentitled him to the benefit of the
law. Sir James refused to make any decree. Then
Dr. Godrich instituted proceedings for perjury
against the chief witness against him. He proved
that he had been grievously wronged, and the jury,
agreeing with him, found the prisoner guilty, and he
was sentenced to twelvemonths imprisonment. Now
Mrs. Godrich hastaken the same means of freeingher-
self from the charges cast upon her. She has in her
turn shewn that the evidence against her was false,
in some respects at least; and another witness has
been accommodated with lodgings in gaol for a while.
Is there no way of lessening the chances of the
recurrence of trials such as this—real in nothing
but their effects upon innocent' persons ? The
Daily News says " Yes." Had it not been for the
rule which seals the mouths alike of the accuser and
the accused, the first jury might not have believed
in the guilt of Dr. and Mrs. Godrich, nor might these
witnesses have been tempted to perjure themselves.
If such a change were made in the law as would
enable the several parties to give upon oath their
version of their stories, and to withstand the
searching examination which would test their
veracity, the facts would in many cases be
sifted with a thoroughness which is now impos-
sible. Such a change has been provided for in a
bill which is under the consideration of the House of
Commons. That bill, as introduced by Mr. Denman,
was calculated to remedy a crying evil. It has been
mutilated by rendering its provisions inapplicable to
such a case as that of Dr. Godrich and his wife. Yet
it is in cases like these that the salutary effects of
the reform would be the most marked. There is yet
time to make its operation general.

THE SUCCESS OF THE BURGLAR.
Pnnel some time back gave an amusing prophetic
sketch of the strife between nations to obtain the
best armaments. A ship being invented calculated
to cssist the gun of to-day would be rendered prac-
tically useless by the discovery of a machine which
.would totally destroy any vessel within a few miles
of it. Very much the same thing seems to be taking
place in the fight between society and the burglar.
The burglar opened the door and walked in very un-
ceremoniously. We put bolts and locks. Ho
despised our bolts and manipulated our locks.
Better locks were invented. These were found in-
sufficient. W e obtained sAfes which could not
be b ittered opt n, and had sack elaborate
machinery for opening and shutting that it
required a mechanic to understand it at all.
But now an instrument has been invented in Paris
by which safes can be noiselessly opened. 'lt will be
no use locking them ; to do so will be like trying to
keep a bird in a room by shutting the door while
the window is open. The safe man must try his
hand again.