The Sun.
London, England, 1866-08-22 00:00:00

WESTMINSTER.

ATTACK UPON A FEMALE REFORMATORY BY BOYS.—
Edwin Grove and Owen Flaxman, two boys of about 12
years of age, were charged under the following circum-
stances:—

Mrs. Mary Harvey, of the Stone-house Reformatory for
Females, Commorcial-road, Pimlico, said that yesterday
evening the defendants, and a number of other boys, made
an attack upon the house, and did damage. They con-
ducted themselves altogether in a most disgraceful way,
and threw stones through the parlour-window. There
were three ladies in the room, who were placed in immi-
nent danger by the attack.
Mr. Dayman asked if dhe could identify either of the
accused, as having been engaged in doing damage ?
Witness said she saw Grove foremost amongst the boys
in the disturbance, but could not say that he threw any
stones.

Rebecca Clark said she was having tea when the attack
was made. In consequence of stones being thrown they
were obliged to leave their table: Grove was the fore-
most in impudence and daring, but she could not say ho
threw a stone.

Elizabeth Halford believed Grove to have thrown a
stone, but could not be positive.
A man came forward and said the ladies were mistaken
in the identity of the boys.

Mr. Dayman—Who wore they ?
Witness—l know.
Mr. Dayman—Givo the police their names. If these
are not the right boys, let us punish those who are.

Summonses were issued against the boys named, the
witnesses ordered to attend, and defendants given over to
their friends.

THAMES.

THE MODERN JEREMY DIDDLER —EXTRAORDINARY AND
IMPUDENT BEGGING ..IMPOSTOR.—JOIIp Hugh, a tall, well-
dressed man, aged 29 years, was brought up on remand
before Mr. Partridge, charged with obtaining money under
false pretences from Mr. John Knight, jun., deputy sur-
veyor to the vestry of Mile-end Old Town, and of Mr.
Samuel Ludbrook, a brickmakor, and one of the vestrymen
of Mile-end.

A few nights since the prisoner called at the vestry-hall
in the Bancroft-road, and inquired for Mr. John Knight,
jun., who was called from the vestry-room in which he was
then engaged. The prisoner said to Mr. Knight, " I
have been recommended to call on you by Mr.
Druith, a friend of yours. I have endured
great and manifold privations through being out
of a situation, no one has stuck harder than I have to ob-
tain one, and at length, through the kindness of a Mr.
Taylor, I have obtained one at Oxford, the duties of which
I can enter upon to-morrow, but I have not enough to pay
my railway fare by 2s. id. My business with you, kind
sir, is to request the loan of that stall sum." Mr. Knight
asked the prisoner some questions relating to the business
and name of the person at Oxford who bad engaged him,
to which he made evasive answers. Mr. Knight was satis-
fied the prisoner was an impostor, and called to Mr. Lud-
brook, a vestryman who was in the vestry hall, "Lud-
brook, your Welch friend is outside." -
Mr. Partridge—Then you knew him before.
_ _

Mr. Knight—Yes, sir, he obtained a shilling of mo some
time ago, and he then said he had a situation to go to in
Denbighshire, and ho wanted a shilling to complete his
railway fare, which I lent him.

Mr. Ludbrook was called out of the Vestry-hall by Mr.
Knight, and at once recognised the prisoner. He told him
he should give him into custody for obtaining ss. 6d. of
him on the 23d of December last by false pretences. On
that day the prisoner called upon him and said he was the
son of a brush maker employing 70 hands—that he had
lost a situation a long time ago, and had been endeavour-
ing to get another situation, and that the minister of a
Welch chapel had at length obtained him a situa-
tion in Wales. The prisoner, after some further state-
ments in relation to the good prospects before him, said he
expected a remittance to enable him to proceed to Wales,
and it had not arrived, and if Mr. Ludbrook would kindly
lend him 3s. to relieve his necessities until the money ar-
rived he should be greatly obliged to him. He gave the
prisoner 3s. and told him to call upon him again. The
prisoner did so, and produced 255. or about that sum, and
said it was tho remittance he had been promised, but it
was not sufficient by 2s. Gd. to take him to Wales. He was
completely taken off his guard by the plausible manners of
the prisoner and the tale he related, and lent him a half-
crown, which the prisoner said he would return
in a abort time. After he had given the prisoner
a half-crown ho wont in-doors and mentioned
what he had done, and his son-in-law said
he has imposed upon me and obtained 2s. or 3s. of me by
similar representations.
A police-constable named James Stroud, No.- 656 A
reserve, said the prisoner had obtained various sums of 20
other persons by similar false pretences, and that he could
not find out where he lived.

Inspector Griffin, of tho K division, said 50 complaints
had been made of the tall man, as the prisoner was called
since ho had been in custody; and that he was an arrant
impostor.

Mr. Samuel Ludbrook—The prisoner called upon a
tallow chandler, a neighbour of mine, and said he bad
obtained a situation with a tallow chandler in the country,
and obtained money of him.
Mr. Partridge —There is no occasion for any more
charges. I will hear what the prisoner has to say.

The prisoner said he had tried to obtain employment in
every shape, and was unable to do so, and that distress
caused him to act as he had done.

Mr. Partridge said the prisoner must be severely
punished for this, and that people of his class did an im-
mense deal of harm, for they steeled the hearts of the cha-
ritable against doing good to the really deserving, The
prisoner had imposed on many respectable men by a tissue
of lies and misrepresentations. He convicted the prisoner
as a rogue and vagabond, and sentenced him to three
months' imprisonment and hard labour.

KILLED BY illAcniwEnY.---A frightful accident
occurred at the paper mills of Mr. Smith, near Durham, on
Monday last. Ellen Dunning, aged 15 years, who worked
at the mill, went into what is known as the dusting-room
for the purpose of showing a companion some of the ma-
chinery which had recently been put into tin mill. She
was warned to be careful, but she laughed at the warning,
and almost immediately a portion of her dress was caught
by the machine she had gone to point out, and she was
drawn into it and literally cut to pieces. As soon as pos-
sible the machinery was stopped, and thd members of her
body, for her head and arms were cut from her trunk,
were gathered together. Her body was fearfully mangled,
and could scarcely be recognised as that of a human
being.

'THE DEAD SEA.—M. Terrell, who accompanied
the Duc de Luynes to Palestine in 1865, has ad-
' 'dressed a paper to the Academy on the chemical composi-
tion of the waters of the Dead Sea. The inland lake has
'generally been considered untenanted by living creatures,
but M. Terrell states that near Sodom he distinctly saw a
number of small fish that seemed to thrive very well. His
Other observations may be summed up as follows : —l. Tho
density of the waters of the Dead Sea increases with their
depth. 2. Their composition is not everywhere the same ;
thus the samples taken at a distance of five miles east of
Wady-Mrabba contain four times more calcium than those
taken live miles east of Ras Teshkah, which contain twice
as much sodium as the former. 3. Their concentration is
likewise variable. 4. The samples taken north of Sodom,
in that part which forms a lagoon, contain more chloride of
sodium than chloride of magnesium; this explains why
small fish will live in it. 5. Of all the salts contained in
the Dead Sea, the bromides alone seem to be much more
concentrated at the bottom, in those strata the depth of
which exceeds 300 metres. 6. The waters of the Dead
Sea contain no iodine, nor are there any traces of phosphoric
acid. '7. Their residue after evaporation does not by tho
spectroscope reveal the presence either of lithine, or ox-
sium, or rubidium. They contain little sulphuric acid.—
Galignani's Atissenger.