The Sun.
London, England, 1861-02-15 00:00:00

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It may be remembered that, in October lastizat
account was given of a man named Davin having-
been found murdered at Puteaux, and of a workman
named Bourcois :having been arrested on the charge
of being the murderer. Yesterday this man was
brought to trial before the Court of AsSizes. The
circumstances of the case were very simple :
Davin, who was a married man, with'a large family,
got his living by hawking about watches and
jewellery, and he was accustomed to sell such
things to work-people of Puteaux and the neigh-
bouring villages, to be paid by instalments. At the
beginning of October, Bourcois bought a watch of
him, and on the 6th of that month Davin called at
kis lodgings in that village for a sum on account,
which he had promised. Davin was not again seen
alive ; and the next morning his dead body, with
the skull beaten in, was found at a short distance
from the river. Bourcois was naturally suspected,
and on the police entering his lodgings, they found
that the floor had been recently washed, but that
traces of blood were visible; moreover, on his clothes
were spots of blood. These circumstances left, littli;
moral doubt that the man had committed the murder;
and as to his motive, it was not difficult to be found.
Davin was accustomed to carry in a box about
6,000 f. worth of watches and jewellery, also to have
constantly a considerable sum in his purse ; and
both the box and purse had disappeared, and yet
when he had been seen going to Bourcois' lodg-
ings he had the former in his hand. Bourcois
energetically denied that he had committed the
murder ; but yesterday, on being interrogated, he.
said, " Well ! I will now tell the truth ! lam guilty,
but lam not the sole criminal ! A man whom I
know recommended me to join him in murdering
Davin, in order to rob him. I consented, and we
agreed to commit the crime in my lodgings. Davin .
came there, and we made him drink. I then went
out, and when II returned the person said, ' The,
thing is done, and now we must carry the body to
the river ! You must take his hat and coat, and I will
carry the corpse on my shoulders!' We set out, but
on approaching the river we saw some persons
coming towards us, and so my companion threw
down the body, and we both ran away. My ac-
complice was a man named Fifils," The Presi-
dent remarked that this statement was not only
very improbable, but that the police had ascer-
tained that Fifils was a man of excellent character,
and that he had been absent from Puteaux on the
day of the crime. " Well," cried prisoner, " I con-
fess that what I have just said was not altogether
true. I was present when the murder was committed
and aided in carrying the body, but I did not take
part in the crime, which was accomplished by blows
with a piece of iron." In this version the man per-
sisted in spite of all that was said to him, but it was
explained to the Court that his reason for accusing
Fifils was that he bore animosity against him. The
jury declared the prisoner guilty, and the Court
condemned him to death.

PROSECUTIONS UIVDER_7IIE TWEED

FISHERIES NA C 2.

The Scotsman of yesterday publishes the follow-
ing report of a prosecution under the Tweed
Fisheries Act, which we arc very glad to see, and
we hope that this valuable fish will be rigorously
protected against the depredations of poachers :
In the Bailie Court yesterday, before Bailie
Auchie, Mr. David Moffat, White Hart Inn, Grass-
market, Edinburgh, was charged, at the instance of
Mr. Charles Smurthwaite, superintendent of water
bailiffs on the river Tweed, with having in his
possession, on the 28th of January last, within the
period of close-time, sixty-one salmon, for each of
which fish he was liable to a penalty of 10s. and
not exceeding £2.
Mr. Moffat pleaded not guilty.

The first witness called was
Charles Smurthwaite, who deposed—l am the
superintendent of water-bailiffs for the Tweed Com-
missioners, and it is my duty to prosecute offences
under that act. I had reason to believe that there
had been an enormous deal of illegal fishing in
January last. I had occasion to believe that a
large quantity were coming from Peebles. I
ascertained that a quantity of fish had been sent
from Peebles on Saturday, Jan. 26, addressed to a
person of the name of Robertson, in Edinburgh. I
immediately left Peebles, and arrived in Edinburgh
before the goods train. I took two detectives
and a bailiff to the goods-sheds. Watson, the
bailiff, had been sent by my orders to Edinburgh
I saw three barrels containing salmon at the
station There was an immense quantity of salmon
scales on the casks. These casks were addressed to
Mr. Robertson, Edinburgh. I put a private mark
upon them. I left the goods station, thinking I
would be known, and the detectives remained on
the watch. No one came that day for them. By
the afternoon train a chest came, containing 12
salmon. I could not tell from the outside of that
box that there were salmon in it. It was also
addressed to John Robertson, joiner, Castle-wynd,
Grassmarket. That was on Saturday. I ascertained
that there were salmon in the chest by lifting the
lid and smelling its contents. We watched
again on the Monday, and Stewart, a railway carter,
took them to the Grassmarket to try and find out
Mr. Robertson. I assisted in putting the box on the
cart. The carter was told to try and deliver the
casks and chests first at the address on the chest.
He went away with the cart. I followed it with
the other bailiff. The detective also set out for
the Grassmarket. The cart stopped at two or three
different places, but nothing was delivered till they
went to the White Hart. I saw the cart come out
of the yard of the White Hart, and that the barrels
and box had been taken off. I then went into the
White Hart in company with Gollan, the detgctive.
I saw Jardine, the ostler. I asked him how he came
to have these salmon, and stated that I had fol-
lowed them from Peebles. He hesitated, but after-
' wards said he knew nothing about them. I next
11 asked for Mr. Moffat. The casks had been first
' put down in the yard, and I afterwards found them
secreted in a stable of Mr. Moffat's. The box was
in an office. I unheeded two empty barrels, and
found salmon scale and ova in them. The door of
the stable was shut when I went up to see Mr.
Moffat. Watson, the bailiff, went into a recess and
remained there all the time I was up stairs, and I
left him there. When I spoke to Mr. Moffat he
said, " You may do your worst ; I don't care. I have
nothing to do with them." I then went down stairs
and seized the casks and box, and sent them off to
the station.
Other evidence having been adduced,
Bailie Auchie said he did not think the case so
clearly proven against Moffat as to warrant a ver-
dict against him, and he therefore gave him the
benefit of the doubt, and found him not guilty.
Joseph Jardine, ostler at the White Hart Inn,
was then placed at the bar on a similar indictment,
namely, of having in his possession 61 salmon dur-
ing close-time.
He at first pleaded guilty, but was allowed to
withdraw the plea, when he pleaded guilty to
having 50 in his possession.
This plea was accepted, and he was fined in the
mitigated penalty of 10s. per fish (£25) with costs,
or to suffer two months' imprisonment.

THE MAILS.

MAILS DUE.

Australia, Ceylon, and Mauritius (via South-
b. 18.
ampton) .. .. .. . • .. .. Fe 12.
Do. (via Marseilles) Feb.ar: 6.
Brazil and Cape Verds .. • •
Buenos Ayres, Monte Video, &O. ... Feb. —.
. . Feb. 28
Cuba and Mexico .. .. .. • . :. Feb. 13.
Feb.
Canada, &c. (via L'derry) • • • • .. March 1.
Cape of Good Hope &c. • • • •v,.a s:;lnpton) Feb. 18.
China, Penang, and Singapore (.
Do 01,1 Marseilles) Feb. 12.
.. •. Feb. 18.
Gibraltar (via Southampton)
(via Southampton) Feb. 18.
India (Calcutta), Ceylon, &e.
(via Marseilles) Feb. 12.
Do.
(via Southampton) .. .. Feb. 25.
India (Bombay), owes) • . .. Feb. 20.
Do. (via Mar°
.• • • • • • • Overdue.
Lisbon • . d Aden (via Southampton) .. Feb. 18.
Malta, EgYEt.
o, . ail (via Marseilles) .. Feb. 12.
D
and °port° .. •• •• •• •• Overdue.
tyViiiig°ted States, California, &c. .. .. • . Feb. 14.
Western Coast of Atrica, Madeira, Teneriffe .. Overdue.
West Indies and Pacific, Carthagena, Cuba, &c. Feb. 13.

THE MEDICAL PROFESSION.—A London eorro.
spondent of the Dublin Evening Mail says :—" The execu-
tive committee of the general medical council have declined
to register the licentiates of the King and Queen's College
of Physicians in Ireland as doctors of medicine. Their
legal advisers in this matter are understood to be Sir Hugh
Cairns and Mr. Hobhouse, who have expressed the opinion
that the licentiates of the Irish College of Physicians are
not, as such, doctors of medicine, and that, oven if they
were, they could not be registered under the Medical Act,
as the title is not mentioned in schedule A. These same
lawyers, on a former occasion, advised the executive com-
mittee to register the licentiates in midwifery of the Irish
College of Surgeons and Physicians, on the express ground
that these licenses were included in schedule A."
[ADVIMTISEMENT.] Pills and medicine invariably ag.
t,,lavate and perpetuate diseases; their annoyance, dis-
appointment, and expense may be avoided by persons
in indifferent health sending only their address to E.
S. Barry, Esq., 77, Regent-street, W., London, and they
Will receive gratis and free by post the "INVALIDS' OWN
UMIDE," or Natural Restorer, without medicine or ex •
pnise, of perfect digestion, strong nerves, sound lungs, and
refreshing sleep, to the most enfeebled, insuring the removal
of indigestion (dyspepsia), constipation, liver complaf_not:,
nausea, epilepsy, paralysis, debility, nervousness,
cough, asthma, consumption, dropsy, fiatulenor.
_12,7,7?
dysentery, biliousness, fevers, sore throats, c.lestarrenr4rionwZ
noises in the ears, rheumatism, gout, imPuriPaddity,
hysteria, neuralgia, irritability, sieePiessuestm„, spasms.
tation, heartburn, headache, despond c 7,
t7i;
li:tavola
simring, fits, bronchltie.—."Uttguesti""4
A to health.'_'