The Sun.
London, England, 1860-05-01 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE.-(THIS DAY.)

COURT OF EXCHEQUER.

(Before tho Lord Chief Baron, and Barons Martin and

Bramwell.)
BEATSON V. SKENE.

Mr. Bovill, Q.C., this morning showed cause against the
rule which had been obtained in this case by Mr. Edwin
James, Q.C., on the part of General Beatson, calling upon
the defendant to show cause why there should not be a new
trial, on the ground that the verdict which had been given
when the trial took place before Mr. Baron Bramwell was
against the evidence. It will be recollected that it was an
action brought by General Beatson, who for some time held
the command of the Bashi Bazouks during the war in the
Crimea, against the defendant for slander. The learned
gentleman entered at length into the whole of the case, and
argued strongly against the verdict being disturbed.
Mr. Edwin James has yet to be heard in support of the
rule, so it is expected that the decision of the bench will not
be given before to-morrow.

SHERIFFS' COURT.
ISAICS.-ALIEGED FRAUD UPON THE IN.

COHEN V.

SOLVENT DEBTORS' COURT.-SINGULAR DISCLOSURES.
This was a claim for wages, £5 Bs., and had been ad-
journed, at defendant's request, in consequence of the ab-
sence of a material witness, till to-day.
On the first occasion Mr. Buchanan, for the plaintiff,
stated that defendant having gone through the Insolvent
Debtors' Court, had applied to plaintiff to open a shop in
plaintiff's name, for the sale of some goods which defendant
had hidden from his creditors. There were clothes, watches,
rings, and china, the jewellery being of a very massive and
costly description, and the total value of the articles being
£4OO. Plaintiff opened the shop, but very little was sold,
and he now sought to recover his wages.
Plaintiff was called and said he had worked 14 years for
Messrs. Nicolls. Defendant informed witness that hav-
ing gone through the Court he did not wish to " show,"
and that he would furnish a drop if witness would carry it
on at a salary of £1 per week. Witness agreed, and the
goods were fetched from chests in which they had been
packed. The watches, rings, and chains were very good
and heavy, and, speaking as a man of experience, witness
should think they were worth £4OO.
_ _ _

Mr. Beard, for defendant, interrupted the witness and
said there was not one word of truth in what plaintiff was
swearing. This was a most malicious case, and plaintiff
was a partner with defendant. If plaintiff, as a partner,
knew of this fraud, and was a partner to it, he could not re-
cover.

Some discussion ensued about the rent .book, and Mr.
Beard applied for an adjournment under the circumstances
stated above ; the money being paid into court.
To-day Mr. Buchanan stated that he did not think de-
fendant would show up. In fact he had tried to square the
matter with plaintiff.
His Honour thought he should not hear much more of
the case. People found it very uncomfortable to have their
insolvency affairs re-examined.

Upon the question of costs, his Honour found that Mr.
Buchanan was entitled to his fee, and witnesses, and the
money was ordered forthwith, as plaintiff stated that de-
fendant had shut up his shop. The money paid into court
was simply defendant's fees.
NON-LIABILITY OF PACKERS.-EATON V. GANDELL.
This was an action to recover for four dresses alleged to
have been supplied as samples to defendant. Mr. George
(George and Downing) for defendant elicited that a person
named Peacock had ordered the goods, and remarked that
defendant was simply a packer, and had nothing to do with
the goods.

His Honour said—lf Peacock had ordered the goods
without defendant's authority, defendant was not liable.
Plaintiff must sue Peacock.

Verdict for defendant, with costs.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE—(This Day.)

MARLBOROUGH-STREET.

MURDEROUS ASSAULT AND ATTEMPTED SUICIDE.—
Joseph Birdseyo Carter, 47, a brushmaker, was charged
before Mr. Bingham with assaulting, with intent to do bodily
harm, Sarah Heddington, at 8, Little Portland-street; and
also with attempting to commit suicide by stabbing himself
in Margaret-street.

Two certificates, as follows, were handed in by Inspector
Garforth, of the E division :

" Middlesex Hospital, May 1.
" This is to certify that Sarah Heddington was admitted
into this hospital, at 12.15 a.in., in consequence of having
received a deep punctured wound of the left side.
" F. S. WORTHINGTON, House-surgeon."
" 4, High-streot, Bloomsbury.
" I heroby certify that Joseph Carter has received three
small punctured wounds in his left side, inflicted by some
blunt instrument.

" JOHN WEEKEs, Divisional Surgeon."
John Clifford, 9, said—Last night, about twelve o'clock,
I received information that a woman had been stabbed at a
coffeehouse in Little Portland-street, and on going there
found the woman had been removed in a cab to the Middle-
sex Hospital. I followed the cab, and found the woman
there, and that she had received a wound in the left breast.
I received a certificate (given above).
A female, named Sayers, said she saw the prisoner go up
to the female and strike her on the breast, but could not say
whether the prisoner had anything in his hand. The pri-
soner ran away, and the female was taken to the hospital.
William Henry Allen, a hackney carriage attendant—A
few minutes after 12 o'clock, I was on duty in Portland-
street, and the keeper of the coffee-house, a female, told me
the prisoner had stabbed a female. I followed him till he
was taken into custody. I saw something in his hand, but
cannot say that it was a knife. I asked him to come back,
bnt he refused to do so, and said he should go no further,
and that he had been revenged. The instrument I saw
afterwards, and it is the shaft of an Italian-iron, pointed.
Sergeant Sinamonds, 20 5, said—l assisted in taking
prisoner into custody, and on the way I asked whether the
female was his wife. He said she was not, but a common
prostitute, and had ruined him. I found on the way to
the station the instrument pr oduced sticking in his side
about three inches below the region of the heart, and on
afterwards examining him at the station found three punc-
tured wounds.

The prisoner reserved his defence till the attendance of
lie injured woman, who is said not to be out of danger.

THAMES.

EXTRAORDINARY CHARGE Or LIBEL.-Mr. William
Giles, a physician and surgeon in extensive practice, and
residing at No. 1, Canton-place, East India-road, Lime •
house, applied to Mr. Yardley for a summons against a
person named Richard Talbot, calling himself " Dr.
Talbot," living at the corner of the Stainsby-road, exactly
opposite Mr. Giles's surgery, for a series of foul libels upon
him.

Mr. Giles, who was accompanied by several members of
the faculty, made an apology for interrupting the magis •
trate in the middle of the night charges, and said the claims
of his patients must be his excuse. The magistrate having
directed Mr. Giles to proceed, ho stated that his worship
would no doubt recollect that he applied on Thursday, the
19th of April, for a summons against Richard Talbot for
acting as a medical practitioner without being qualified and
without being registered under the Medical Act. The case
was heard before Mr. Selfe, on Thursday, and that gentle-
man heard all the evidence for the prosecution and defence,
and decided that the case was clearly made out. The defen-
dant was fined £lO, and he came before the magistrate on
Friday and said he was a ruined man, that he was sorry he
had acted upon bad advice, and asked for a month's time
to enable him to raise the money to pay the fine. The
request was granted. He was not sorry that the magistrate
had extended some indulgence towards the man, but what
he had now to complain of was, that, notwithstanding
Talbers seeming regret and penitence,he had published most
infamous and scurrilous libels concerning him (Mr. Giles),
calculated to bring him into contempt, to seriously injure
him in his profession, and to render him unworthy to mix
in respectable society if he did not immediately contradict
the insinuations conveyed in the atrocious libels in question,
and put the law in motion. He had been attacked in a
vile manner by a person who was formerly a schoolmaster,
afterwards a Wesleyan preacher, a quack professing to cure
toothache, tic doloureux, and other diseases, by a touch of
galvanism, and, lastly, he is found practising medicine
and surgery,as Dr. Talbot, although he has no legal qualifi-
cation, and possesses only a German diploma conferring
upon him the degree of doctor of philosophy.
Mr. Yardley—Let me see the alleged libels.

Mr. Giles handed to the magistrate a copy of a halfpenny
newspaper, published on Saturday last in Poplar, and a
printed bill decorated with the Royal Arms, and at the top
the motto, " God Defend the Right." This bill had an
unmistakeable Seven Dials style about it, and in composi-
tion and printing was Catnach-ish. After imputing to
Mr. Giles that he had been guilty of an indictable offence,
and that he was liable to fine and imprisonment, it went on
to commend the abilities of " Dr. Talbot, the poor man's
friend," enumerated several cures effected by him, and ter-
minated as follows :—" Neighbours, here's health and long
life to Dr. Talbot, and may God bless him." The last
three words were printed in large capitals.
Mr. Yardley—And you believe you are the William
Giles referred to in this bill ?

Mr. Giles—l am sure of it, sir.
Mr. Yardley then read some doggrel rhyme in the half-
penny newspaper grossly libelling Mr. Giles ; who said, in
reply to the magistrate, that the " horrible disclosures" re-
ferred to him, and particularly to his character.
Mr. Yardley—And the words "illiterate, unqualified,
and utterly contemptible," you say, apply to you 1'
Mr. Giles—l do, sir. Perhaps I may be allowed to draw
your attention to two lines of the ribaldry in the newspaper
applying to me :
" I've seen Miss Barton's ghost, a fearful sight,
And Gooseling's, too, the baker's pregnant wife."
I will explain how this nonsense applies to me.
Mr. Yardley—Never mind, Mr. Giles ; you have said
enough. How do you prove the publication of these libels 1'
Mr. Giles—Talbot gave out the printed bills himself, and
took the copy of the libels in the newspaper to the printer
and asked him to publish it in the shape of an advertise-
ment.
• Mr. Yardley—'You have stated quite sufficient, Mr. Giles.
You may have a summons against Talbot for the publica-
tion of the alleged libels.
It is but right to state that Mr. Giles is named in the
" Official Medical Register," published by the Gemmel
Council of Medical Education and Registration, as a mem-
ber of the Royal College of Surgeons in England, 1852,
and licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians, Edin-
burgh, 1859.