The Sun.
London, England, 1858-09-20 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE--(This Day.)

SHERIFFS' COURT.
THE TIPPLING ACT.

In reference to a case bearing this head, reported in this
journal on Friday, a morning paper having passed some
severe strictures upon the judge for his decision, our re-
porter has been requested to point out that his honour had
no alternative, but was bound by the act to strike out the
items prohibited, as represented in our report. Now the
writer of the article has displayed a lamentable ignorance
of the law; for the Act 24 Geo. 2nd, chap. 40, sec. 12, dis-
tinctly and imperatively lays down that " that no person
shall sue or recover a debt due for spirituous liquors sup-
plied in less quantities than 20s. at one time." Nay, the
act even goes further, and says that "a bill of exchange
given for spirits, or a portion of which relates to spirits
supplied in less quantities than 205., shall be void, or such
portions deducted." Our reporter has been requested to
state this as the condemnatory article is calculated to lead
publicans and others astray.

CRIMINAL COURT.-(THIS DAY.)

OLD COURT.

The September sessions of the Central Criminal Court
commenced this morning before the Right Hon. the Lord
Mayor (Sir R. W. Carden), Aldermen Gabriel, Lawrence,
and Salomons, and the Sheriffs.

The calender contains the names of about 160 persons,
and the offences with which they are charged are of the
ordinary description.

During the swearing of the grand jury a gentleman of
the Hebrew religion rose and took up the Bible, next to
him stood a gentleman of the Protestant faith, and upon
the chief usher repeating the words of the oath he, at its
conclusion, altered the termination only in the usual man-
ner by saying "So help you Jehovah," upon which the
Jewish gentleman kissed the book.

The Lord Mayor—l think that a very improper way to
administer the oath, it is disrespectful to both parties. The
oath ought to be repeated separately.
The Usher—lt is the way it has always been done, my
lord.

The Lord Mayor—That does not alter the matter. I
think the whole of the words ought to be repeated, and not
merely the last sentence, " So help you Jehovah."
Alderman Salomons—The oath as it stands needs no
alteration. It is equally binding one way as the other.
The Lord Mayor, addressing the juror—Do you consider
the usual form of the oath as binding as the alteration just
made ?
The juror—Yes, certainly, my lord.

The Lord Mayor—Then, for the future, I see no reason
why the form of the oath should be altered.

The remainder of the jurors having been sworn,
The Recorder then addressed the grand jury. He said,
that although a great many cases appeared in the calendar,
trey were not calculated to call for any special remark on
his part, or to occasion any great trouble to them in the
discharge of their duty. It was, however, a very serious
circumstance to find that above one-fourth of the persons
mentioned were charged with uttering counterfeit coin,
and he noticed this circumstance in order that public
attention might be drawn to the fact. It was a
curious thing that persons to whom the counterfeit
coin was tendered never tested the spurious money in the
presence of the' customer, but immediately after the person
had left the shop and got into the street the coin was tested
and discovered to be bad, and great difficulty was after-
wards occasioned in securing the offender. If, when there
was a doubt about the genuinenesss of any money it was
submitted to a test in the presence of the party great loss-
amongst the poorer shopkeepers, who were generally those
upon whom the fraud was perpetrated, would be prevented,
and this course would, he felt assured, put down, or to a.l
certain extent greatly mitigate, the evil which had no-
arrived at so great a height. The only case to whicl.‘ he
need call attention was one of manslaughter. Henry %Jamb
stood charged with that offence, and the grand jur— would
have to ascertain whether death had bee- a caused
by his negligence. It appeared that the prisoner
was a pointsman on a railway, and it was his
duty to see that the points were properl-s arranged, so
that two different sets of engines might 'Ass on their re-
spective journeys in safety. On the occasion of the acci-
dent it appeared that the points w, oe open instead of
locked, and the consequence was t'nat the train ran on a
wrong line of rails, and the carria des came into collision
with some luggage vans, and the '-.teath of the engine-driver
of the train was thereby occasi med. The only duty that
devolved upon the grand jurY, was to ascertain whether the
death of the man was oe'zasioned by the collision, and
whether that collision w'.ts caused through the prisoner's
negligence. It appeared. that there was a white mark
upon certain of the engines, to indicate to which line of rails
the trains were to be transferred, and this mark, it was said,
could be seen by the pointsman 400 yards off; but as there
was some differen.ce about the state of the weather, which,
it was said, rendered the mark very indistinct, the jury_
could return a true bill if they thought there was sufficient
evidence, and thereby give the prisoner an opportunity of
showing that the death of the man was not owing to his
neglect. There was one charge of murder, but it appeared
that the depositions had not been returned, and therefore it
called for no remark. If any unforeseen difficulty should
arise to any gentleman on the jury the presiding judge
would give them every assistance.
The grand jury then retired to their room.