The Sun.
London, England, 1859-12-24 00:00:00

co linll2'lAL of A .ROCHDALE frOOLSZeIP.

FOR PERJURY.

An investigation, extending over several hours,
took place at the City Police-court, Manchester, on
Thursday, into a charge of perjury against Mr.
John Mllnes, a woolstapler, carrying on business at
Rochdale.
Mr. Leresche, on behalf of the prosecution, stated
the case, from which it appeared that in Jan., 1859,
there was a bankruptcy pending in the Manchester
Bankruptcy Court against Messrs. Richard Roth-
well and Son, woolstaplers and flannel manufac-
turers, Rochdale, and on the 12th of that month, at
the meeting. for choice of assignees and proof of
debts, in Mr. Commissioner Jemmett's Court, the
defendant made a proof, in which he said that the
bankrupts were indebted to him before the filing
of the petition in the sum of £126, for goods sold
and delivered to them at their request, for
which
sum he, and no other person on his behalf, had re-
ceived " any security or satisfaction whatsoever.
It was upon this statement that the perjury was
proposed to be assigned, for it would be shown.
2
that no less than five different bills of exchange,
amounting in the aggregate to upwards of £OO,
had been received from the bankrupts by the de-
fendant on account of the debt, and paid away by
him. Mr. Charles Senior, usher at the Manchester
Bankruptcy Court, produced a file of proceedings
in Messrs. Rothwell's bankruptcy. It did not con-
tain the defendant's deposition of the debt due to
him, but in the list of debts this was placed at
£126. It also contained the appointment of the
creditors' assignees, bearing a signature purporting
to be the defendant's. The witness had searched
in every place for the defendant's deposition where
it was possible to find it, but without success. The
depositions of all the other creditors, eight in num-
ber, were on the file.
Mr. John Lamb, Manchester, who had acted as
solicitor to the bankrupts, deposed that he saw the
defendant swear to the proof of the debt before it
was filed, and that on the 13th of March succeed-
ing he (witness) obtained a copy of the deposition
(produced), bearing the seal of the court. Ile also
saw the original deposition on the 17th of May.
A witness was then called to depose that the de-
fendant had obtained permission some time ago to
look over the file at the Bankruptcy Court, with a
view to show that the depositions must have been
abstracted by the defendant ; but, as he could not
remember the precise date of the occurrence, hill

evidence was not taken.
Mr. William James Rothwell, one of the bank-
rupts, who had carried on the business with is
h
father, stated that bills of exchange, at tee fel"
lowing dates, and for the several amounts spfied,
payable three months after date (subsequently
dishonoured) were drawn by the defendant
50 upen
the firm in his own favour:—Sept. 1, for £ 35.;
Sept. 22, for £7O 12s. 6d. ; Oct. 25, for £35 1515*
The first two of these bills the defendant told the
witness that he had paid away, and that the third
was in his possession after their failure. On the
7th Jan., 1859, the bankrupt endorsed two other
bills drawn upon John Charles Rothwell, brother
to the witness, for £34 2s. 6d. each, which the elder,
bankrupt gave to the defendant. At a meeting of
creditors held in Rochdale, about this time, a reso*
lution was passed agreeing to accept a composition
of 10s. in the pound from the bankrupts, who, he's"
ever, were wishful to pay only 6s. Bd. The de:
fendant strenuously opposed the smaller amoun''
and the two bills named were given by the bank-
rupts to guarantee 10s. in the pound to the defen-
dant in preference to the other creditors.
These were the circumstances having
immediate
reference to the charge of perjury, and Mr. Boote
(Boote and Jellicorse), with Mr. Foulkes, who ap-
peared for the defendant, by cross-examination and
in defence, endeavoured to show that the present
proceedings were instituted on account of the part
which the defendant had taken in opposing the,
bankrupts, and that he (defendant) had no interest
in making a false declaration before the bankruptcy
commissioner. If the defendant had erred, it Wee
through ignorance, and not with any corrupt in-
tention.
Mr. Maude asked the meaning of the tens
" corrupt." In this case it meant either that some-
thing had been said which ought not to have beell
for
e'
said, or that something had been kept back i
an improper purpose. What was the effect of the u
fendant's conduct ? It was to give him a direct peel;
niary advantage over the other creditors. It hau
been said that the bills were worthless, but that NO!
not really material to the charge. The defendant
must have received them supposing they were *tort'
something, or why did he take them ? It was not
1,1
matter which could be settled there • but they had
the broad fact before them that the 'defendantllsd
gone and made a false oath in a judicial proceedin.
and he (Mr. Maude) was afraid it was getting tou.,
common not to think as much of an offence of
.tni:
kind as it ought to be thought of. It was
matter the way in which people paltered with the!:
oaths in some of the courts. The defendant had V"'
his hand to a direct falsehood, and he must be cal'
mitted for trial.
On the application of Mr. Boote, Mr. Maude con-
On
sented to admit the defendant to bail, on two suretie
being found in £5O each.

MINES.—The Mining Share Market has been
rather languid this week and shows evident signs of the
near approach of the Christmas holidays. In a few mines
a fair business has been done, and in one, East Russell, a
large amount of speculation has been going on. I
neat,
during some days, it was difficult to deal in anything s;
nearly every day telegrams have been received at the office,
and every change in the lode is duly ndtified by the agent,
who seems to be determined never to be blamed again
for withholding information ! We believe it has been,
and is, the nature of the Great Devon Consols lode, as
well as other rich lodes, to be at one place remarkably
rich, and at another comparatively poor; and if every
change were reported as it occurred in Great DeVOllB Con-
sols, and were used for market purposes, what would be the
effect upon these shares, solid and indifferent as they ere
now to the market altogether ? There is one fact, however,
in connection with East Russell, that does away, in a great
measure, with the effect of these sudden changes, and which
is, that at the 88 cast, 15 fms. have been driven through a
course of ore which, though subject to sudden changes' is
worth, on an average, £6oper fin. ; and shareholdera
will do well in future to be p
ar in mind that it is the
nature of the lode to be bunchy, and that these changes
from rich to poor, and from poverty to ch.*
ri
should not alarm or influence them ; and we have
some general principle, which we may expect to bring forth
an equally satisfactory result in the case of the new cora-
panics. We are satisfied, from long observation of the
working of Irish mining, that the latter is the true hYP('''
thesis ; that the mines of that country are surely and in
trinsically valuable, and be capable of becoming an ia3°"
taut source of wealth to their proprietors and tho counts,
at large, if carried out in the same spirit, and under silt
far circumstances, as mining is prosecuted in the pforrospethe
rest'r's"
districts of Great Britain. These we believe,
sons we shall give, can at present, as a general rule, (3111 Y
be arrived at in the case of associations with a prepondera'
ting local interest or local management ; and to such cense.
quently, we predict a career of general prosperity, simili mar
to that of the successful local enterprises we have referral?"'
Every one familiar with English mining
.knows the vanle,
of local co-operation. Without it, experience ehows this
generally successful mining is, as a rule, only attainable by
the larger mining firms, possessing the confidence of a con:
siderable body o capitaists. The wide-spread on ant
mining, such asf we see in Cornwall, is not possible without
the aid of local interests. And, on a little consideration s
the reason for this is obvious. Success in mining, like °S.
cess in any other pursuit, we know is only attainable-es"
cept in a few rare and accidental cases—ya steady persever;
anee in a judicious course of operations; and the confidenF_
necessary to induce this reasonable perseverance is onlY rf
be got by local knowledge of circumstances and charact!r.
Such instances of judicious perseverance as we continutig
see crowned with great ultimate success in Cornwan__
for instance, the recent case of Wheal Clifford—would, 7!
venture to say, be impossible, and indeed unreason: 0)A in
the case of a company not fortified by that conviction only
to be had by an intimate local knowledge, or sit let
_...., _
the concurrent testimony of those who possess it. In.rift
mining district in whose prosperity some p, tad,
r a 8.1,01..
in, or connected with, the locality are not interesteatoXi
mines may be said to be "in it, but not of it." Thane od
neighbours of a mine know nothing of its proceed.oll
the wholesome influence of public opinion, so know'
and sphere, is entirely absent. When difficulties aknow•
and when do they not P—the shareholders have a°
ledge except at secondhand, and that either from
oa
geno.
necessarily interested, or from the generally
vrtgoll against
ralities of casual inspectors. That confidence, r wader
all difficulties, derived from the knowledge of to
e c
iirenders a
of the different agents, and which in Corrora" 2
a tousaue.
few dry words of half-praise from one man of
rts froth
times more value than a volume of exciting reP° nig.
another, is entirely wanting. The abuse of confidence !
_A
placed in a bad man—an error which no person of 10r4;
knowledge of character would have fallen into—destlYod
gents,
confidence in a really good man ; both are confoun
together in indiscriminate confidence or mistrust.
these causes we continually see in such districts a
Wien,.
errors in two opposite directions ; on the one side
wen"
terlY
a reckless and improper expenditure of schemes nt
__.„,
unworthy, and on the other an equally reckless and it:
accountable abandonment of mines just at the raoraeav
when their vigorous prosecution presented tho most his
ful chances of success. Consequently, except in thos
cases where a lucky hit pats a mine at once i arch cosec
übstan:
tial position, and repairs all errors, mining in_
ties is rarely successful except, as before stated, .1
the hands of the larger firms, whose position deans
‘_'•
well-known character commands that confiden
which in other cases can only be reasonably
the
)_r_
safely given after some intimate knowledge of
character of the concern and of the parties—a knowledge
only to be had from locally instructed opinion. Such bell
the experience of English mining, can we be surprised tll
_t_
the results, both in success and 'failure, have been sine
in Ireland ; and that while local enterprise has been
been
cesaful in the highest degree, that of distant parties has t
generally unfortunate. It is what we might have expetc.en_
and the remedy for the latter is the course now being
rlf_.°:.`
—the greater infusion of local capital and interest into I ,r,.::
mining. Not that we would desire to exclude 13n_`:
capitalists from adventuring in the sister country, butlial_7..
should prefer seeing them going into those concernessisa 11,
gurated by native interests, satisfied that they noec ro
i for
present superior prospects of success to those
English origin. The aptitude of Irishmen of
_be_
vnglish
conducting to a successful issue matters in
.wyi bt , ,
d to raming.--X ids,
management has failed is not confine
Journal. f 1 and P_Ale'
NEWSTEAD ABBEY.—This beauti.u_
aboue
turesque residence, with thinniense, formerly the,
the boo
of Lord Byron, and recently. the occupation of
u ht t°
formed, shortly be ;roll g _
Col. Wildman, will, we are in London solar
the hammer. The sale will take place in
time in May or Juno nest.—,Stamford ilfercury,
usfinpsusrely