The Sun.
London, England, 1850-08-17 00:00:00

BRADLEY V. STAGG.

This was an action to recover damages for false
imprisonment upon a charge of felony. The defendant
pleaded that the plaintiff actually committed the
felony he was charged with.
Mr. E. James, Q.C., and Mr. Lush were for the
plaintiff; Sergeant Shee, Mr. Chambers, Q.C., Mr.
Bailantine, and Mr. Wordsworth for the defendant.
The circumstances under which this action was
brought have already appeared in our report of the
proceedings at the Central Criminal Court, and at the
Marlborough-street police-office. The plaintiff was
engaged as an assistant to Messrs. Stagg and Mare-le,
silk-mercers, in Leicester-square, and on the 24th of
December the defendant gave him into custody for
stealing some silk and velvet. The charge was in-
vestigated by: Mr. Hardwick, the magistrate, and
after hearing the evidence produced by the plaintiff,
he dismissed it. It appeared that after thin the de-
fendant went before the grand jury at the Central
Criminal Court, and preferred a bill of indictment
against the plaintiff for the same•offence, and upon
the cx parte evidence that was tendered by him they
returned a true bill, and the plaintiff was subse-
quently tried and acquitted, The present action
was then brought to recover damages for the wrong-
ful imprisonment which it was contended the plaintiff
had suffered.

When the case had proceeded some length,
Sergeant SHEa, after consulting with his client,
said he felt he ought not to carry the case any fur-
ther, and he would at once withdraw the plea that
had been placed upon the record, and admit that there
was no foundation for the charge that had been made
against the plaintiff. The defendant, in his position
as master of a large establishment, where a great
many young men were employed, had felt it to ha his
duty to act as he had done in the first instance ; but
he was now satisfied that there was no foundation for
the suspicion he had entertained.
Mr. JAMES said the plaintiff would be perfectly sa-
tisfied with this. His only object was to vindicate his
character, and he would be, therefore, quite content
with a nominal verdict.

Sergeant SHEE said it would be understood, of
course, that the defendant would pay all costs.
The CHIEF BARON than observed that if anything
were wanting to make the character of the plaintiff
quite perfect, it appeared to him to be his giving his
consent to accept of only nominal damages, and he
considered it the most honourable course that could
have been adopted.
A verdict was then entered for the plaintiff, with
nominal damages, 51., to carry all costs.
The case of " Nash v. Carman," which was an ac-

tion for the infringement of a patent, was then called
on, but neither party being ready to proceed, the re-
cord was withdrawn. The only remaining case, of
" Sievewright v. Archibald," was next called, but it
appeared that the witnesses were not in attendance.
They were called upon their subpoenas, but none of
them answering, this record was also withdrawn, and
thus terminated rather ,abruptly the business f the
Home Circuit.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
GUILDHALL.

Sir PETER LAURIE said he had received a commu-
nication from a Mr. Alwortb, a butcher, complaining
that an attempt was being made to establish the prac-
tice of selling cattle on Wednesdays in Smithfield,
instead of the regular market days, which, if it suc-
ceeded, would tend very much to the detriment of
those who observed the rules and regulations laid
down by the authorities for the due preservation of
order in that market. He had been given to under-
stand that Mr. Shank, the clerk of the market, had
given his sanction to the introduction of foreign
cattle into the market on Wednesdays to be exposed.
for sale, instead of waiting till the following market
day (Friday), whereby the expense of putting the
cattle in the layers as soon as they arrived in London
to await the market was avoided, and the sales effected
on the Friday rendered excessively dull in conse-
quence of the market being forestalled. If any pre-
ference of that description was shown by Mr. Shank
to foreign cattle, he thought the sooner it was put a
stop to the better. Mr. Alworth complained that he
saw Mr. Shank give permission to effect a sale of
some cattle on last Wednesday in the above market.
Mr. Shank, who was present, said that it was
quite true that what Mr. Alworth had stated did
take place. That gentleman came to him on Tues-
day last to ask if he intended to allow cattle to be
sold in the market on the following day, to which he
(Mr. Shank) replied that his permission had been
sought, but that he had expressed his intention of ap-
plying to the sitting magistrate of Guildhall, before
giving any definite answer, to know if he could give
permission to break through a rule that had only
been established by custom, and not by law. If any
sales had taken place in his absence, they were
effected without his knowledge or concurrence.
Sergeant White said be recollected that a Mr.
Brewster, a Dutch salesman, had sold a lot of sheep
in the market on Wednesday week last, and on in-
forming the clerk of the market of the transaction
1
he said he would take care that steps should be taken
to prevent the recurrence of it. He attended the
market on Wednesday last, but no attempt was made
to sell any cattle.
Alderman COPELAAD said it appeared to him