The Sun.
London, England, 1868-03-25 00:00:00

LAW AND POLICE.

FORGERY BY A LAD.—HEAVY SENTENCE.—A lad named
Archibald Brown, 16 years of age, pleaded guilty at the
Kingston Assizes of having forged and uttered cheques fix
the respective amounts of £5O 10s. and 235 53., with intent
to defraud Mr. Shrubsole, a banker. Notwithstanding
the youth of the prisoner, and a strong recommendation to
mercy by the prosecutor, the learned judge (Mr. Justice
Byles) sentenced him to five years' penal servitude.
VIOLENT ROBBERY.-At the same assizes a man named
Karn was indicted for robbery with violence in Southwark.
No counsel were retained to prosecute, and the case was
left to take its chance upon the depositions sent from
the police-court, a course constantly followed in that
county. The senior counsel in court accordingly had
the depositions handed to him by the learned judge
in order that he might coaduct the case, which he did.
The prosecutor, a merchant, was standing at his own
door, just about to enter, when two men attacked
him, one of whom was clearly proved to be the pri-
soner. They closed with him, and he struggled
with them, and one of them fell with him to
the ground, dropping his Cr'). The prosecutor caning
" Police !" and they fled, but w—e pursued by a constable,
who did not lose sight of them, 6. t only one of them was
taken, who was without a cap. The prosecutor found
he had been robbed of his watch, which was dragged
from the chain. The case was clearly preyed, and the
jury convicted the prisoner, who was thcn shown to have
been previously convicted of a similar offc:iace, and to have
been out of gaol only three months. Upon being called
on, the prisoner said to the judge "Pray send me out of
the country." The learned judge : "I am going tc 'lo some-
thing very different, indeed. Your sentence is to undergo
seven years' penal servitude, and to suffer twenty strokes
of the 'cat.' "

OUTRAGE ON A LADY AT BOLTON. - A tea merchant,
named Tomkinson, has been committed for trial by the
Bolton magistrates on a charge of outraging a young lady.
The lady went by train from Huddersfield. to Little
Lever, near Bolton, in the same carriage with the
prisoner. She got out at the Bradley Ford
station, and accepted the prisoner's offer to escort
her to her brother's house, which was a mile and a
quarter from Bradley Fold. On the road she went into a
public-house and had some ale with the prisoner. After
coming from the public-house lie committed the offence
complained of, after which he left the prosecutrix lying in
the road. On getting to her brother's her agitation
betrayed that something was the matter, and on being closely
questioned she disclosed the occurrence.

Mr. Gladstone has consented to preside over the
Statistical Section at the approaching meeting of the
British Association for the Advancement of Science at
Norwich. The meeting takes place in August.

THE PRINCE OF WALES IN IRELAND.—It is
stated that the Corporation of Dublin have, through the
Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, invited the Prince of Wales
to participate in the opening of the new waterworks for
the city, which will occur during his Royal Highness's
visit.

Sir Roderick Murchison has been elected by the
Academy of Sciences in Paris, a foreign member, in place
of the late Professor Faraday. There are only eight such
members, and the honour is regarded by men of science as
the highest which a man of science can receive. As a
matter of form the decision has to be submitted to the
Emperor for his confirmation.
THIEVES.—The number of known thieves to each
1,000 of the population in 1866-7 was : At Cambridge,
4'32 ; at Colchester, 2'82 ; at Coventry, 1.29 ; at Derby,
3'74 ; at Great Yarmouth, 2'37 ; at Ipswich, 2.22 ; at
Lincoln, 1136 ; at Northampton, 2'lo ; at Shrewsbury,
I'6o ; at Walsall, 4'13 ; at Worcester, 3'71 ; at Birming-
ham, 5'46 ; at Leicester, 1.90 ; at Norwich, 3'21 ; at Not-
tingham, 217 ; and at Wolverhampton, 5'67. Thus, of
these sixteen towns the thievish element was found to the
greatest extent at Wolverhampton and to the least extent
at Coventry.

THE LONDON WORKING MEN AND THE IRISH
CHURCH.—The total abolition of the Irish Church Esta-
Eishment, with a reservation for life interests, being one
of the points of the programme of the London Working
Men's Association, that body intend calling a public
meeting of the working men of London on an early day
in the ensuing week, in support of Mr. Gladstone's reso-
lutions now before the House of Commons. Several
members of Parliament and other gentlemen favourable to
the movement have already signified their intention to be
present at the meeting, which it is intended shall be held
in one of the large metropolitan halls.

DREADFUL ATTACK UPON A CHILD BY RATS.—
A child is being attended to at St. Mary's Hospital which
has had but a narrow escape of being eaten alive by rats.
The child, Ellen Drummond, aged only 6 months, was left
in the cradle at 6, Carlisle-mews, last Saturday, by the
parents, who went out for the purpose of earning their live-
lihood. A short time after it had been left, the
brother came home, and heard it screaming violently.
Upon pushing open the room door, a swarm of
excessively large rats leaped from the cradle, and
retreated by holes in the flooring, wainscot, and
back of the fireplace. Upon approaching the child
be found it had been bitten in a dreadful manner. Pieces
had been bitten out of the face, and the fingers were cut
through to the bone, the number of wounds altogether
being eighteen. The rats seemed to have bitten more for
the purpose of drawing and sucking blood, as many of
the wounds were not completely torn open, but skewed
the incisions made by the teeth, from which blood bad
flown freely. The child was taken to a medical man, who,
after attending to it temporarily, ordered it to be conveyed
to the hospital.