The Sun.
London, England, 1832-08-04 00:00:00

ASSIZES.-(RECEIVED THIS DAY.)

OXFORD CIRCUIT.—SHREwsnunr, Afro. 4-
Zachariah .Meredith and Richard Jones were indicted
for highway robbery.
Evan Jones, the prosecutor, stated that on the night of
the robbery he was proceeding to Oswestry, between 12
and 1 o'clock, when he was accosted by the two pri-
soners, one of whom collared him, and insisted on having
a shilling. The witness having money to a large amount
in one of his pockets, gave them the shilling to save the
rest, but they insisted on having all that he had, and one
of them seized on his watch, having thrown him down,
crying to his companion, " Give me a knife, and we'll finish
him ;" but neither of them had a knife. They subse-
quently kicked him about the head most unmercifully, and
jumped upon him; and one of them was standing on his
neck, when two men were seen coming up, and alarmed
them, and then they went off.
Other circumstances were detailed by witnesses, and the
Jury found both the prisoners Guilty—Transportation for
life.

Mr. Justice BosaNQuitr, in sentencing the prisoners,
told them that it was only their extreme youth, and some
circumstances which had not appeared sufficiently clear to
him, that induced him to spare their lives.

MIDLAND CIR CUIT.—DEPRY, JULY 3.
Robert M'Cracken, aged 36, was indicted for the
wilful murder of his wife Mary, by administering poison
to her, in the parish of Dronfield.
Elizabeth Smith, wife of Matthew Smith, of Upper
Hceley, near Sheffield, deposed that the prisoner came to
lodge at her house on the 2d of June last. On the rltli
of that month be told her hie wife was coming to visit
him the next day. She came accordingly, and stopped
two days. On the 9th of June, which was Sunday, the
prisoner went out in the morning and returned in the
afternoon. Witness, after his return, observed two bottles,
apparently of ginger pop, in the prisoner's room. They
were not there in the morning. The prisoner and his
wife left the lodgings at a quarter before five o'clock the
next morning, taking with them the two bottles and a
piece of gooseberry pie. Witness heard the deceased sty,
" One bottle of pop would be enough for her." The
prisoner returned alone on the Tuesday night, and said,
" He had had a very bad affair happen, his wife was
dead." She had drank, he said, some pop, and it made
her sick; that he did not wish her to drink any more, but
she would, because she thought it would take the sick-
ness off.

Cross-examined by Mr. WRITEHEIRST.—The deceased
complained of being unwell on the Sunday; she drank a
deal of treacle-beer on that day. The bottles of pop were
not concealed. The prisoner apptared much distressed
when he told her of the loss of his wife.

Mrs. Elizabeth Thorpe keeps the Coach and Horses
public-house at Dronfield, to which the deceased was
brought about nice o'clock in the morning ; she was very
ill. The prisoner arrived about three o'clock in the after-
noon, and entered the room where his wife was lying ; he
asked her if her breasts hurt her, and she said, " No, it
was the ginger-pop ; that it tasted very good, but it made
her sick." The prisoner appeared much affected, and was
very kind to her. The deceased observed, that she was
sure her hus:uand would not put any thing into the pop to
injure her.
Cross-examined by Mr. Wfurzunarr.—Witness sent
for him at the earnest request of his wife. He wept bit-
terly on arriving. During the whole time she never made
any accusation against Lim. He never left her for mote
than five minutes, and she died in his arms.

George Hill—Lives at Plesley. The prisoner came to
lodge at his house in July 1831. He represented himself
to the family as a single man, and paid marked attentions
to witness's daughter Mary Ann. She was an only child.
The prisoner asked witness if he married his daughter
whether he could give any money with her, and he pro-
mised he would do as much as he could for them. In De-
cember he enticed the witness's daughter away, and she
was now pregnant by bim.
Mary A❑n Hill, daughter of the last witness, deposed to
receiving, on the 11th June, through the witness MeHors,
a brooch ar.d a note sent by the prisoner. She gave them
up to Smith, the constable.
Edmund Smith, constable of Dronfield, deposed to
taking the prisoner into custody immediately after the
death of his wife. The prisoner protested his innocence,
and-asked how they could prove that he had given her poi-
son? (The witness produced the letter found on the de-
ceased after her death, and also the letter and broaeh which
he received from Mary Ann Hill.)

The letters were then read. That to the deceased
contained an earnest request for her to come over and
see him, as he was very ill. That to Mary Ann Hill
contained the remarkable expression—. You shall hear
good news soon ?" It was written the day before the
alleged giving of poison to his wife.
Mr. Nicholson, surgeon, of Dronfield, attended the de-
ceased. An examination took place in the presence of
witness at the Sheffield Medical Institution, and the
result was such as to lead him to form an opinion that
she died from the effects of arsenic internally administered.

Several witnesses were called, who gave the prisoner an
excellent character.

The Jury returned a verdict of—Not Guilty.

NORTHERN CIRCUIT.—NEWCATSLI, Acra.2.
The Assizes commenced here this day. Among the
Grand Jury we observed Lord Ossulston, T. W. Beau-
mont, Esq., M.P., Sir M. W. Ridley, Bart. M.P., W.
Ord, Esq., M.P., Sir F. Haggerston, Bart., Sir C.
Monk, Bart., Sir C. Loraine, Bart., Sir E. Bracket,
Bart., Sir D. W. Smith, Bart., HOD. H. T. Liddell,
&C. &c.

Mr. Baron Bou.Alin in his address said he was happy
to state that the calendar contlined very few prisoners,
and was not disgraced by any of those crimes which had
prevailed in the county of Durham.
The cases tried this morning possessed not the slightest
interest.

At Durham this morning, Mr. Justice PARKS passed
sentence of death on W. Parkin, Elizabeth Parkin,
and Thomas Varty, for as-aulting and wounding Thomas
Thew, a pitman. The Learned Judge did not hold out
the slightest hopes of mercy to the men, and said, that
such was the state of discontent in the county, it was ne-
cessary to make a severe example of some of the offenders.

SPORTING INTELLIGENCE.

BRIGHTON RACES, AUOUST 3.

The Ladies' Plate of 50/. The winner to be sold for 150
soya. &c. Heats, the New Course.
Mr. W. Day's b. h. Hindoo, 6 yrs (Arnull) 1 1
Mr. Shackell's br. c. Pumpkin, 3 yrs 3 2
Mr. Ricardo's b. f. Gretna Green, 3 yrs 2 3

Won cleverly. At the turn, iti coming home, Gretna
Green and Pumpkin bolted, and, bad Hindoo'e jockey been
awake, he could have distanced them, and they could not
have claimed ; but, not being used to plating, he allowed
Pumpkin to save his distance, and claim the winner, who
is considered cheap.

Handicap Plate 501., heats two miles, was won in two
heats by Mr. Dockeray's Donegani, 5 yrs. beating Sketch-
book, 5 yrs. 0 c. by Little John, 3 yrs. ; Harpalice fillly,
4 yrs. ; filly by Whalebone, 4 yrs. ; and b. g. Hop Duty,
6 yrs.
KNUTSFORD RACES, Aua. 2.

A Plate of 60/. was won in three heats by Mr. T.
Stanley's Pedestrian (Templemoan) beating Reform, Nab,
Tom Tit, and Hazard.
Handicap of 5 sovs. each, and 30 sous, added, was won
in three bees by Mr. Palin's Pluralist, 6 yrs. (Lear) beat-
ing Cube, 4 yrs. ; Dusbury, 4 yrs. ; Wedlock, 4 yrs. ;
and Orthodox, aged.

BISHOP'S CASTLE RACES, JULY 30.
The Castle Stakes of 5 sots. each, and 25 amts. added,
was won in two heats by Mr. Charlton's Ragman (Wad-
low) beating Mr. Walker's Merry Legs and another.

The Woodcote Stakes of 3 soya each, and 20 soya.
added, was won in three heats by Mr. George's Acco,4
yrs. beating Merry Legs, Forester Lass, and three others.
JULY 31.—The Stanage Stakes of 5 soya, each, and
20 soya. added, was won in two heats by Mr. Price 't
Miller's Maid, 6 yrs. beating Rolla and a c. by Figaro.
A Sweepstakes of 5 soya. each, and 20 sous. added, was
won in two heats by Aeco beating b. c. Parthenon.
The Forced Handicap was won by Dandina.

PLYMOUTH • AND DEVONP ORT
RACES, AUGUST 1.
The Saltratn Stakes of 25 soya. each, Forty Subs. was
won by Mr. Trelawney's Walter beating Omen and Coronet.
A Plate of 501. was won by Firman beating Fidelity
ind Walter.

SIR WALTER SCOTT.--We regret to learn
that for the last two or three days, Sir WALTER was so
much worse, that scarcely any hope is now entertaind
t,f* his recovery.—Edinburgh Evening Courant.
THE CHOLERA AND THE LIFE INsuR,
ANCE COMPANIES.—At a late meeting of the various Life
Insurance Companies in London, it was stated that, since
the first appearance of cholera in the United Kingdom, up
to Friday, the 27th ult, there had,been hot thirty•six
claims on the score of deaths occasioned by this disease ;
a strong proof that its ravages have been chiefly confined
to the lower orders of societp—Medical Gazette.