The Sun.
London, England, 1850-02-12 00:00:00

ence to a summons obtained against him by the police
for " knowingly permitting common prostitutes to
meet and remain in his house." It was proved that
there was neither drunkenness nor disorderly conduct
visible in the Saloon at the time.
Mr. BleGuArkt said the defendant, a free vintner,
who keeps a house of public resort, in which re-
freshments are sold, has been summoned to this
court, under the statue 2 and 3 Vic , c. 47, s. 44, for
knowingly permitting prostitutes to meet together
and remain in his house. On the occasion in
-question, at one o'clock in the morning,
about sixty women and eighty men were
assembled in the defendant's house ; they were
occupied in taking refreshments, and the conduct
of all of them was orderly. An inspector of police
who entered the house, accompanied by other con-
stables, believed, from what he and the other consta-
bles had observed in the streets, that the whole of the
women were prostitutes. lie informed the person
who was conducting the business that ho could }Ant
out at least forty of the women as prostitutes, and that
the defendant would be liable to a' penalty if he suf-
fered them to remain after. that notice. The defen-
dant again refused to act on that notice, alleging that
he had no means of knowing who were prostitutes,
except from their conduct in his presence, and that
he had seen nothing amiss The greater part of the
assembly continued in the house for more than an
hour after the inspector had spoken. The first ques-
tion is, whether the defendant, under these circum-
stances, can be said knowingly to have permitted
prostitutes to meet together and remain ; and if so,
secondly, whether he is liable to a penalty notwith-
standing the meetingwas in allrespects orderly.' Upon
the first head it appears to me that, after the informs-
tion. given by the officere of the police, whose duties
necessarily make them acquainted with the faces of the
streetwalkers and prostitutes of the district, the defen-
dant must be taken " knowingly" to have permitted
prostitutes to remain ; and during their stay every
minute of continuance after the notice is in point of
law afresh meeting. If such information, from persons
officially qualified to give it, be not esteemed suffi-
cient notice to charge the defendant with knowing
the character of his guests, the enactment is alto-
gether nugatory for it is not to be assumed that any
man is of such reprobate habits as to be himself per-
sonally acquainted with a multitude of prostitutes or
persons of notoriously bad character. And it may
be observed that the defendant has adduced no evi-
dence to show that so much as one of the women
present was a person of reputation. Then, is the de-
fendant liable to a penalty notwithstanding the con-
duct of the prostitutes in his house was in all respects
orderly ? I should be departing widely from the
province of a magistrate if I were to express any
opinion on the policy or impolicy of an Act of Par-
liament, or the expediency or inexpediency of carry-
ing its provisions into effect. My duty is confined
to the exposition of the law as it is to be collected
from the language used by the Legislature; and
in this case it seems clear to me that the Legis-
lature has made the act of knowingly permitting
prostitutes to meet together, and remain in a house
of public resort, of itself a species of disorder, to be
repressed by the infliction of a penalty. The 44th
section, after reciting that it is expedient that the
provisions made by law for preventing disorderly con-
duct in the houses of licensed victuallers should be
extended to other houses of public resort, inflicts a
penalty on every keeper of such house, who shall—
!. Knowingly permit drunkenness therein ; 2. Know-
ingly suffer gaming therein ; 3. Knowingly permit
prostitutes, or persons of notoriously bad character,
to meet together, and remain therein—meaning, as
it seems to me, that each of these acts shall be es-
teemed of itself a species of disorder to be discoun-
tenanced and repressed in the same way as other dis-
orderly conduct in the houses of licensed victuallers.
As the defendant, acting under advice, has taken a
different view of the law, and contends that the
merely permitting known prostitutes to meet together
and remain in his house for the purpose of refresh-
ment, does not subject him to a penalty, unless his
guests are guilty of the disorderly conduct theLegis,
lature has sought to repress in the houses of licensed
victuallers, it will be sufficient on this occasion to
impose only such a penalty as will enable the defend-
ant to appeal to a higher tribunal.
The fine of 31., and ls. nominal fine, was then in-
flicted

Notice of appeal was immediately announced.
CLERKENWELL.

Thomas O'Brien, a smart-looking boy, 14 rears of
age, son of respectable parents, residing in Hennes-
street, Pentonville, was charged with having at-
tempted to commit suicide, by throwing himself into
the New River.

Airs. Harriet O'Brien, the prisoner's mother, said
,he prisoner had a comfortable home, and she could

assign no cause for such a rash attempt upon his life,
with the exception that on the same morning he quar-
relled with his brother, who boxed his ears.

Mr. TYRWHITT remonstrated feelingly with the
prisoner, and asked him what he could hope for when
he became a man if he was guilty of such wicked
conduct at so young an age. The prisoner looked
down and made no reply.
He was suffered to depart under the protection of
his mother, who was much affected.

IRELAND.
SYMPTOMS OF COMMERCIAL PROSPERITY.
DTJBLIN, MONDAY MORNING.—An inquiry, con-
ducted by Captain Washington, R.N., acting under
the orders of the Lords of the Admiralty, has been
held at Cork on the subject of the wet docks proposed
to be erected in the port, and to bear the arguments
and evidence of the promoters of the project. Major
Beamish, on the part of the Harbour Commissioners,
the sponsors of the Bill, established a very conclusive
case in its favour, by clearly showing the vast im-
provement which had taken place in the shipping in-
terest between the years 1844 and 1849. At the
former period, he said, trade—at least foreign trade
—was comparatively trifling compared to what it
now is, when recent legislation had opened their ports
to the commerce of the world—in some particulars it
had increased 100 per cent.; and, in order to fortify
this assertion, Major Beamish read the following
statement respecting the increase of tonnage
:
"During the five years beginningin August,lB44, and
ending August, 1849, the foreign tonnage had increased
from 53,736 to 107,539; the general tonnage from
97,150 to 113,195; colliers from 96,876 to 97,791; Irish
coasters from 25,854 to 33 592, and vessels calling at
Cove for orders from 125,316 to 281,691. Thus the
foreign tonnage, and the tonnage of vessels calling at
Cove, had increased in the' five yt ars over 100 plant."

RAILWAY SHARE MARKETS.
BRISTOL, Fan. 11.
STOCK EXCHANGE.—Tho market still continues inani-
mate, and little business has been transacted. but the
only alterations in prices was—Great Western, Quarters,
153/4.