The Sun.
London, England, 1859-07-27 00:00:00

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.

HOME CIRCUIT.—MAIDSTONE, July 26.
CROWN COURT.
(Before Mr. Justice Blackburn.)
Emily Milner, a good-looking young woman,
with a baby in her arms, surrendered to take her
trial upon a charge of wilful and corrupt perjury.
Mr. Ribton and Mr. Francis conducted the prc-
secution ; Mr. Russell defended.
This charge arose out of a case that was tried be-
fore Mr. Baron Bramwell at the summer assizes
last year, when a small farmer, named Stephen
Butcher, was tried for a felonious assault upon the
present defendant, and, being convicted, he was
sentenced by the learned judge to be kept in penal
servitude for 10 years. According to the evidence
adduced upon that occasion, the prosecutrix was a
married woman, and she had been to Maidstone
market on the day the occurrence took place, and,
at the request of the prisoner, she rode home in his
van, and when they arrived near a place called
Deptling, about four miles from Maidstone, where
prosecutrix and her husband resided, the prisoner
induced the prosecutrix to get out of the vehicle,
and he then committed the offence imputed to him,
in spite of her screams and resistance. The defen-
dant, after giving her evidence in chief, was severely
cross-examined by Mr. Ribton, the counsel for the
prisoner, and among other questions that were put
to her with a view to shake her credit, she was
asked whether improper intimacy had not taken
place between her and a man named Payne at a
publichouse in Maidstone on a former occasion, and
she positively swore that nothing of the sort occur-
red. This man Payne was called as a witness for the
prisoner, and he swore to the fact above alluded to,
but the jury, notwithstanding his evidence, found
the prisoner guilty, and he was sentenced to 10
years' ,:penal servitude. The prosecutrix was now
charged with perjury, the allegation on the part of
the prosecution being that she had sworn falsely
when she stated that no improper intimacy ever took
place between her and Payne. This person was the
principal witness for the prosecution, and he swore
as positively as he did on the former occasion to the
fact having occurred, but on cross-examination he
contradicted himself, and did not appear to give his
evidence in a very straightforward manner.
Mr. Russell made an able speech to the jury on
behalf of the defendant, and the learned judge hav-
ing summed up, the jury, after a short deliberation,
returned a verdict of Not Guilty.

WESTERN CIRCUIT.—DORCHESTER, July 26.
CROWN COURT.
(Before Mr. Baron Bramwell.)
George Trowbridge was indicted for shooting at
Edward Matthews, with intent to murder him, on
the 15th February.
Mr. Saunders conducted the prosecution, and
Mr. Stock defended the prisoner.
According to the evidence of the prosecutor, he
and a man named Maidman were returning home
about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, when they heard
a rabbit cry in a wood. They jumped through a
gap in the hedge, and saw a stoat had a rabbit.
They drove the stoat away, and Matthews put his
hand in a rabbit hole and drew out four little suck-
ing rabbits. They heard some one coming, and
they jumped back into the road, and the prisoner
then came up and called upon them to stop, adding
that if they did not he would be d---d if he would
not shoot them. Matthews
.saw him raising the
gun to his shoulder. He moved a step or two and
was then knocked down, as the charge of a gun
had entered his back. He became insensible, and