The Sun.
London, England, 1856-12-18 00:00:00

HOME CIRCUIT—MAIDSTONE, DEO. 17.
(Before Mr. Baron Bramwell.)
Thomas Mansell, 28, soldier, was indicted for the
wilful murder of Alexander M'Burney.
Mr. Ribton and Mr. Bridge conducted the prosecu-
tion ; Mr. Russell appeared for the prisoner by the
request of the court.
When the jury was about to be empannelled the coun-
sel for the prisoner challenged every juryman who was
summoned out of Maidstone to the extent allowed by
law, the avowed object being to obtain a majority of
jurymen from the town of Maidstone, where it was
supposed an opinion adverse to capital punishments
prevailed. 'When the counsel for the prisoner had
exhausted his challenge, Mr. Ribton, as counsel for the
crown, requested, in accordance with the usual form,
that the Maidstone jurymen should " stand by," until
the whole panel, with the exception of a jury who had
retired to consider their verdict, had been gone through,
and only nine jurors had been called into the box. Mr.
Ribton then prepared:to select from the names of those
who had been already called, and ordered to stand by,
some that he considered the least objectionable, to be
upon the jury.
Mr. Russell objected to this course being taken, and
contended that the Crown having exhausted the panel all
that could then be done was to go through the list of
jurors again, and the Crown would have no right then
to object to any juror except for cause shown.
This led to a long 'technical discussion, and at length
Mr. Ribton proceeded to open the case for the prose-
cution. After alluding to what bad taken place with
regard to the selection of the jury, he said he felt satis-
fied they would perform the duty that devolved upon
them fearlessly, aud,tbat they would act according to
the oath they had taken, and return a verdict upon the
evidence that would be laid before them. He then
proceeded to give a brief narrative of the circumstances
under which the charge was preferred against the prisoner,
and the following evidence was adduced :
Edward Brophy examined by Mr. Bridge—l am a
private is the 49th Regiment. The prisoner was also
a private in the same regiment. The deceased was
lance corporal. I remember the morning of the 27th of
August last. The regiment was at that time at Dover
under canvas in the hospital field. I went out of my
tent about half-past 8 o'clock in the morning, and I saw
the deceased come out of his tent, and he kneeled down
and was in the act of cleaning his ramrod. The prisoner
had his firelock in his hand, and he walked a few paces,
and then stopped and put a cap on the nipple ; another
soldier named Parry then came out of the deceased's
tent, and passed between the prisoner and the deceased,
and he kneeled down for some purpose. The prisoner
then walked close up to the deceased, presented his
piece, and fired at him. He held the stock of the gun
to his hip when he discharged the piece. The deceased
immediately got up, put his hand to his- side and said,
" I am shot—l am shot I oh Lord, Mansell has shot
me." The prisiiner then threw his firelock down and
exclaimed, "NOW then," or " There now." A doctor
was immediately sent for, and the deceased was taken
to the hospital. The prisoner walked slowly away to
his own tent, and then he was seized and taken to the
guard-room.
Cross-examined—Witness accompanied the regiment
to the Crimea, and the prisoner and the deceased were
also there with it. A great many other soldiers besides
the deceatied were-engaged at the time in cleaning their
accoutrements. The rifles were all kept stacked up in-
side the tents, but the prisoner came out of his tent
with his rifle in his hand, and I thought he was going
to snap the cap off'. He looked very pale, but,l did not
expect he was going to commit such an act as this.
Re-examined—Each man's rifle is numbered, The
number of the prisoner's was 43, letter F.
John Parry said—Lam also a private in the 49th
Regiment. I remember the morning on which this oc-
currence took place. I came out of my tent about half-
past 8 o'clock, and saw the deceased, in the act of clean-
ing his accoutrements. The prisoner came out of his
tent, and I felt something touch me, and turned round
and saw the ?risoner close to tee. He had his rifle to
his hip, and I heard the report, and saw the flash, and
the deceased immediately exclaimed, "I am shot—l am
shot l" Tue prisoner then threw his firelock down and
walked away, and I followed him and held him until an
escort came up, and the prisoner was taken to the
guard-room. I afterwards examined the rifle the pri•
Boner had thrown down, and found that the cap on the
nipple had just Peen discharged. The number on the
rifle was 43, and the letter F.
Cr es-examined—The prisoner was standing quite close
to me when I turned round, and immediately he had
fired he threw down his piece and walked slowly away.
Peter Moran, another private, gave sin Alar evidence.
He also distinctly saw the prisoner deliberately shoot
the deceased, and after the transaction he dug a rifle
bullet out of the ground, on the other side of the spot
where the deceased was standing at the time he was
shot. The bullet was produced by an officer of the
police, and the witness identified it, and said it was of
the same description as those furnished to the regiment
in the Crimea.
Cross-examined—He had no time to raise an alarm
when he saw the prisoner pointing the gun at the de-
ceased.

Re-examined—The prisoner was so close to M‘Burney
when he fired that the powder burnt his shirt.
Benjamin Taylor, also a private in the regiment, said
that the prisoner lodged in the same tent with him.
About a week before the occurrence he had some con-
versation with him about some boo's he bad got, and he
said that "M`Burney knew something about them, and
he would have it in for him if he lived for a thousand
years." He said he did not know exactly what the pri-
soner nieant, but he ucderstood that it was intended as
a threat against the deceased.
Press-examined—He had heard it rumoured in the
regiment that the prisoner had lost a pair of boots while
he was in the Crimea. The deceased had been sick in
hospital for some time before this occurrence, and. he
never heard of his having had anything to do with the
prisoner's boots.
Richard HOlden, sergeant-major of the regiment,
proved that in July.last they were stationed at Alder.
shott, and the
,prisoner made a complaint to the com-
manding officer relating to a pair of boots be said he bad
lost in the Crimea. Ile said he had packed them up in
a squad bag, and when it. was opened at Aldershott they
were not forthcoming, and he said he was confident that
/11‘Burney knew something about them. • The com-
manding officer made inquiries and decided that the
deeeaseu knew nothing about the prisoner's boots, and
he told the prisoner so, and said he must put up with
the loss. He appeared discontented with the decision,'
but did not make any remark. The prisoner had been
in the regiment about two years. •
Cross-examined—The prisoner served with the regi-
ment
through all the Crimean campaign, and bore a good
conduct stripe. He believed that-the prisoner's sus-
picion against the deceased in relation to the boots was
entirely imaginary. The deceased was a remarkably
quiet, inoffensive man, and he never appeared to bear
any ill-will to the prisoner.
Thomas Finnis Back, a police-constable at Dover, said
that when the prisoner was at the police-station he said
to him "This is a bad job, or a melancholy affair," and
the prisoner replied, "It is done," or "I have done it.
I am sorry for it. I had no intention to do it when I
got up this
,moruing."
The learned judge having summed up, the jury almost
immediately returned a verdict of guilty.
The prisoner was then called upon, in the usual form,
to state whether he had anything to urge wby judgment
of death should nut be passed upon him. He made n
reply. •
n e His
lei rndgsh
himip paatsstehde sg =ntioune
no hope of mercy in this world.
eofthdaeatthheumpeunsttehnetperrtirin-