The Sun.
London, England, 1835-03-23 00:00:00

OXFORD CIRCUIT.—SrapF•oRn, MARC!! 20.

Jonathan Motham was indicted for the wilful murder of his
wife, Sarah Motham, in September last, in the parish of
littoxeter.

On being desired to plead the prisoner said, " What of ?"
and being told that he was charged with the murder of his
wife cried out " Not that I know."

The Jury were then empanelled to try the prisoner's sanity.
Mr. Hughes, the surgeon of Stafford Gaol, stated that the
prisoner was suffering from a tumour in the eye, and that he
had no doubt the tumour, by pressing on his brain, affected
his mind.

The prisoner here cried out—" D—n your eyes."
The Jury found him insane, and he was removed from
the bar.

Mary Craddock was indicted for the wilful murder of her
infant female child, in August last, in the parish of Cannock.
Mary Handley, examined by Mr. LEE—I am the prisoner's
'mother. My daughter is married, but has not been living
with her husband during the last two years. In June last;
she came to live with her father and me. On Wednesday, the'
27th of August, she was confined of a girl. The prisoner
remained in my house only forty-eight hours after the birth of
the child. Her father ordered her out of doors, and said his
house was no fit place for her. This was only two days after
the birth of the child. She took the child with her. She
She was in a very weak state. She said she had a nurse to
take the child to. The prisoner returned in about two hours,
and did not bring the child with her, and said she had left it
with Jane Brooks, who is mother to Thomas Picken. Next
day, I said, " I wondered how the lovely babe was ?" She
said it was well off, she wished she was so well.

William Barnes, a wheelwright, found the body of a new-
born female child in a ditch in Norton Ley's Wood covered
with grass and tern, and put the child in a basket.
Mr. Holland, surgeon at Cannock. The child had a hand-
kerchief round its neck tied in a fast knot. The bAy bore no
marks of violence. The handkerchief was so tied as partially
to impede respiration. My opinion is that the child died partly
from suffocation, partly from cold.
By the JUDGE—The death of the infant might have been
produced by the mother fainting upon it.
The prisoner, upon being called on for her defence, gave in
a paper, stating that she had been turned out of doors by her
father two days after her confinement. That she took the way
to Cannock. That having got as far as Norton Ley's Wood,
she grew weary and fainted. When she recovered she found
herself lying on her infant. It died in two or three minutes.
She tied a handkerchief round its neck, put it in the drain,
and pulled a quantity of fern to cover it.
Mr. Justice COLERIDGE summed up to the effect that the
probabilities were strongly in favour of the prisoner's story.
Verdict—Not Guilty.
Henry Carter, Lewis Spilsbury, James IVoolridge, and
William Farrell were indicted for the wilful murder of Joseph
Johnson, a respectable farmer, on the 27th of December last,
at Weston-bank, in this county.
After some witnesses had been examined, the Jury returned
a verdict of Not Guilty.

NORFOLK CIRCUIT.-CAMBRID GE, MOWN 20,

HENSLOW, CLERK, V. CANHAM.
This was an action to recover the penalty of 500!., for bri-
bery committed at the late election for the borough of Cam-
bridge : the defendant pleaded that he " did not corrupt " the
voter, as the declaration alleged.
The defendant is, or lately was, clerk to Mr. Alderman
Stevenson, a bookseller in this town, and took an active part
on the Tory side in the recent election. He called at
the house of a voter of the name of William Thompson,
a cabinet-maker, in the week preceding the election, and
after a few general observations told the latter that he
wished him to go and have a glass of ale, and that he
wanted him about something particular. The witness,
who had known the defendant for thirty years, accom-
panied him to the Pickerell Inn, and in their way thither,
asked him " how he meant to vote? " to which Thomp-
son answered that he should vote for whom he thought proper.
They had each a glass of ale, and the defendant then left
him, saying he would call again soon. On the day of nomi-
nation accordingly he called again, and Thompson's apprentice
being in the shop at the time, the defendant threw down 6d.,
and desired him to go and get a pot of beer, which he did.
During his absence the defendant asked the voter if he had a
pen and ink, adding, " Now I'm going to do something good
for you." There was no ink in the shop, and Thompson went
and borrowed some of a neighbour, Mr. Linley, and upon his
return the defendant tore a leaf out of his pocket-book, and
wrote something upon it, which he gave to the defendant ;
it was a note of hand in the following form :—" I 0 U
seven guineas. For R. C. No. 569." This he gave to
the voter, at the same time telling him that "it was an
order for seven guineas." Thompson then asked him,
" What is it for ?" to which the defendant replied,
" It's to vote for Knight ; to give Knight a plumper."
Thompson inquired what was the reason the defendant wished
him to vote for Knight in particular ? and the defendant made
no reply to that, but said " I may depend on your voting for
Knight ?" The defendant promised to call or send for Thomp.
son on the following day, and observed to him, " You'll go
down to the poll with the man that will come for you, and
when he secs the number on the order, he'll pay you the seven
guineas." The witness took the I 0 Uto Mr. Rice's com-
mittee-room, and went on the following morning and voted for
that gentleman and Mr. Pryme.
The Jury found for the plaintiff—Damages, 500!.
The Grand Jury have returned a true bill against Robert
Canham, the defendant in the foregoing action, for several
distinct misdemeanors, in attempting to bribe electors of this
borough to vote for Mr. Knight at the recent election, and
Mr. Gunning moved fora Bench warrant for his apprehension.

WESTERN CIRCUIT.—EXETER, MARCH 21.
The Commission was opened here on Tuesday last. The
calendar contains seventy-seven names, of which four are
charged with murder, seven with arson, two with unnatural
offences, and one with rape. There are thirty-four cases en-
tered for trial.

CROWN COURT.
Samuel Davey was charged on the Coroner's Inquest with
the wilful murder of his son Henry, aged ten weeks, by with-
holding from him necessary sustenance. The Grand Jury
ignored the bill ; and Mr. Baron Gurney told the Jury that
it was the mother and not the father that should supply suste-
nance to a child of that age, and, consequently, that the pri-
soner should be acquitted. Verdict—Not Guilty.
Samuel Gibbons, aged 18, was indicted for having, on the
4th of November last, maliciously set fire to a rick of wood,
the property of James Daniel.
Verdict—Guilty. Sentence of death recorded.
.2Wary Hamlyn was charged with having on the 16th of
SepteTber set fire to a stack of corn, the property of John
Baill.

The Jury found that she did the act while in a state of mental
insanity. Verdict—Not Guilty.
Samuel Johns was charged with having set fire to a wheaten
raow, the property of John Harris.
Verdict—Not Guilty.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

MANSION-HOUSE.
Saturday Sir PETER LAURIE waited upon the LORD MAYOR
for the purpose of informing his Lordship that he had rea-
son to suppose that although Joseph My is in prison, the old
system is carried on, and the public is still subjected to im-
position by the promise of some pecuniary advantages. A
gentleman named Dixon, of No. 75, St. Paul's Church-
yard, received a few days ago a note, of which the following
is a copy :_...

Old Bailey.
" Sir,—By transmitting the writer the sum of twenty shil-
lings, he will communicate something to your advantage.
" JOSEPH ADY.
" P. S. The best way of transmitting the above small sum
would be to leave it at 17, Sydney-street, Commercial-road."
The LORD MAYOR said it was quite evident that the writ-
ing was not Ady's, and he supposed that a man in Ady's situ-
ation, doing penance in gaol for a serious offence, would
scarcely be capable of an act of the kind. The commuta-
tion of the sentence from seven years' transportation to one
year's imprisonment was an act of mercy to the prisoner, and
it was very improbable that he would call down upon himself
the whole vengeance of the law. Besides, no doubt those
kind persons who interceded for him to the King never con-
templated a repetition of the offence.
Sir PETER LAURIE said that if Ady was not himself con-
cerned in the transaction somebody was doing him great mis-
chief, and under all the circumstances he thought it would be
expedient to put the public on their guard. The writing in
the letter just quoted appeared to be that of Ady's clerk,
upon a comparison with that of several letters in the posses-
sion of Mr. Hobler.
The LORD MAYOR—I trust that if the practice is continued
by any one, those who are addressed will supply all the infor-
mation, and I shall use my exertions to put an effectual
check to it.

HATTON-GARDEN.
On Saturday, a dapper little hair-dresser, residing in Bag-
mgge-wells, was charged with assaulting and beating his wife.
The defendant, it appeared, had a shrewd suspicion that, dur-

ing his absence, an " elderly gentleman" had too much engaged
the attention of his wife, and he therefore determined to make
" assurance double sure" before he proceeded to extremities.
He accordingly pretended to go out, but kept a strict watch
upon the conduct of his " better half," and had "confirmation
strong as proof of holy writ" that she had behaved in the
" most improperest way. For such barbarous conduct he
well lathered her round the room with a thick shoe." These
facts having come out in evidence, the magistrates discharged
discharged the barber without paying the usual fee to the King.

MARYLEBONE.
On Saturday a dirty looking man, one of the old police, was
charged with lurking about for the purpose of appropriating
other people's property to his own use. He was seen by a
policeman between 4 and 6 o'clock, standing beside an area
railing in Charlotte-street, Fitzroy-square, as if on the look-
out, and on going up to him, police constable Moore, 16, E,
found a stick in his hand, with a hook, of sufficient thickness
to carry a large weight, which satisfied him that the prisoner
meditated felony. He therefore took him into custody. The
stick, which was exhibited to the magistrates, was upwards of
ten feet in length, and in every respect fitted for felonious pur-
poses. The prisoner had formerly been committed for one
month for the same offence. He was now sentenced to two
months at the tread-mill.

W RSH IP- S TREE 7'.
On Saturday Jasper Breadmore, a good-looking young
man, pot-boy to Mr. Green, of Vaughan-terrace, City-road,
was charged by Mrs. Margaret Chapman, an independent old
lady, residing in Cross-street, Wenlock-road, with robbing her
of a handsome silver watch and appendages. The prosecutrix,
who is a singular old dame, wearing spectacles, was a widow,
and had been so some time. She knew nothing whatever of
the prisoner, and had never seen him before the preceding
( Friday) evening, when she met him going round with his
beer, and-being very thirsty, she asked him to serve her" with
half-a-pint, which he did, and she paid him a penny for it.
While drinking it, " something struck her that he was a very
fine young man," and they entered into conversation, in the
course of which the prisoner said that he wanted to speak to
his sister, who lived a door or two below, and perhaps she
would accompany him there, and wait for him. " Agreed,"
the prosecutrix immediately retorted ; and they went, as she
thought, to his sister's, and he left his beer-tray outside on
e step of the door. They went up-stairs into a room, and
re together for some minutes ; all at once he made a snatch
at her watch, and the guard round her neck broke in two,
and he ran with it out of the house.
Mr. 13notl0HroN.—What sort of a house was this that you
went into Prosecutrix (hesitating.)—Why, by its appear-
ance, it was a queer one, your worship ; but, believe me, I had
no wrong intentions towards the young man, and I didn't
think he had any to me.
Mr. BROUGHTON.—What do you mean by a queer one ; was
there a bed in the room? Prosecutrix.—l don't like to say,
but I suppose I must. There was, your worship, but I thought
it was his sister's that he took me to.
Mr. BROUGIITON.—IIid anything improper take place be-
tween you? Prosecutrix.—Why, why—Oh, dear ! yes, there
did. He kissed me on the cheek; nothing more, I assure
your worship.
Mr. BROUGHTON.—Why, I suppose you are 60 at least.
Prosecutrix.—Yes, more, your worship ; I am 67.
Mr. BROUGIITON.—Pray, was there anything to pay for the
room ? Prosecutrix.-011, dear ! I would not have brought
him here if I had known all this. When we got into the room
he asked me if I had any money ; I said I had, and gave him
a shilling.

A policeman said the house was a notorious one, in Nel-
son-place, City-road. Witness met the prosecutrix as she
was coming out. She appeared as if she had been drinking,
and complained of having been robbed. She described the
prisoner, and witness went and took him into custody, and
found the watch upon him.
The prisoner denied some points of the prosecutrix's evi-
dence, and stated that it was by her own desire he went into
the house with her. He never represented the place as his
sister's, and she gave him the watch to take care of.
Mr. BROUGHTON said the facts of the case were most ex-
traordinary, and these was no accounting for taste ; bat he
was more inclined to believe that the prisoner went with the
old woman (who must have been minus her senses at the
time) for the purpose of robbing her; for no young man could
be so mad as to take a fancy to an old woman bordering on
seventy.

The prisoner was then remanded for the depositions to be
taken against him, when he will be removed to Newgate for
trial on the capital charge.

LAMBETH. STREET.
Mr. Farrell, proprietor of the Pavilion Theatre, and Messrs.
Conquest and Gomersal, of the Garrick Theatre, attended
before Mr. Walker, who had requested their appearance.
Mr. WALKER said that he had received a letter from the
Bishop of London, stating that a complaint had reached his
Lordship of two pieces, founded on Scriptural subjects, which
had lately been produced at the above theatres. In conse-
quence of this communication he (Mr. Walker) attended at
the Garrick, and watched the progress of the piece with all
possible discrimination in his power, but could not perceive in
it the slightest matter of objection. This he had communi-
cated to his Lordship at an interview with him, and he was
perfectly satisfied with the representation he had made upon
the subject. His Lordship disclaimed all intention to act with
fastidiousness on the occasion, yet still he was obliged to act
as he had done after a complaint had been forwarded to him.
He (Mr Walker) had therefore sent for the proprietors of the
theatres to acquaint them with the feelings of the Bishop of
London, and his decided objection to the principle of the in-
troduction of Scriptural pieces on the stage, feeling assured
that the proprietors would, as they had done on many occa-
sions, act upon the Magistrates's suggestions.
The proprietors of the respective theatres assured his Wor-
ship that nothing was more distant from their wishes than that
of introducing any subject calculated in the slighest degree to
detract from the solemn and proper respect for the sacred Scrip-
tures, and pledged themselves not to incur any displeasure by
deviating from the wishes of the Bishop of London.