The Sun.
London, England, 1850-05-06 00:00:00

I
e,,,2,tatitms• In the middling and inferior kinds ex-
F"'ngly little business h doing. New Mid and East
~.eat rockets, 61 lOs to 101 8s ; new Weald of
° 31
4eat ditto, 61 to 81; new Sussex ditto 51 5s to
61
RI 105 ; new Farnhams, 121 to 131; yearling lientF,
litto
41 5s ; yearling Sussex, 21 8s to 3/ 2s; old Hops,
Os per cwt.

ROLLS' COURT.—(THIS DAY.)
(Before the MASTER of the ROLLS.)
The • d . OWEN V. HOMAN.
lu gment in this case was, that the plaintiff was
tsatitled to a receiver, unless the 'defendant
tlieurity for the amount, which might be recovered by
gave proper
e Plaintiff in the suit. The motion was adjourned
Untilto the first day of next term, to enable the defendant
'? provide such security, she undertaking that nothing
thebe done to alter the conditions of the property in
tue meantime.

QUEEN'S BENCH.—(THIS DAY.)
(Sintings in 13anco, before Lord Chief Justice CAMPBELL,
and Justices PATTESON, WIGHTMAN, and ERLE.)
IN RI THE ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH COMPANY.
Sir p,
age tion
ruIeTHESIGER said he had to show cause against
the obtained by the Attori ey-6 eseral, on behalr ut
Electric Telegraph Company, for a criminal infor-
agaiust Messrs. E. Wilmer and David Smith,
newspapers
mid correspondents, at Liverpool, for various
Published
in Liverpool, and also for a newspaper
whioted in America, in consequence of a letter
was published in the Morning Herald by
On the 11th October last. This question was one
vuLen Undoubtedly would be found to be one of great
but not only to the public press of this country,
°t also to the public at large; and considering the ctn.
_a!_instances which would aps ear in the affidavits filed in
to boldness
to this application, he was dispostd to adinire
tut_ boldness and prudence of the Electric Telegraph
trPany in calling the attention of the public to the
the powers with which they were entrusted, and
Powers;
great danger which arose froth the abuse of those
understood anything at all of the
"itaroieedirossl;cersainpodtnihwni fhtiochha the Court interposed in cases of
grant criminal informations, he had
doubtithuaieaii
ththee result of this inquiry would be that this
,te',e would be discharged. They might not only super-
:private news-agents, but they might have
eonforetatrP.oul:Aic press of this country completely under their
and it.was impossible to imagine any power more
the !dable than that which was entrusted to the comany
lid incorporated for those purposes, when the Courts oo-
" ell3d that the power which was invested in them would
to enable them to influence the springs of commerce, and even
command the sources of intelligence which might be of
hPirance to the tranquillity of the kingdom. Letters
lip were sent through the Post.office were kept
e eref, but messages sent by the Electric Telegraph
4 °°,,,,411)%nY were necessarily sent open. There might be
'lans devised of a cypher, tor the purpose of pre-
titan th. g the communications which were made through
he electric telegraph transpiring to the company, but
jugenuity of people might and would be excited to
eorver the secret of that cypher, so that secresy could
euensiob
pt Oserved. The Court would fin thos a
ns were not without foundation,d andthat ep-
that in a
Xisty of •
Xi instances, which he was about to detail, the
bad Telegraph Company bad made a most unfair
Improper use of the power which the Legislature
tb` unguardedly entrusted to it, and that in those parti-
cases a variety of instances would be found in which
trt, company had misconducted itself with regard to those
to n.ssetions in such a way as wholly to disentitle them
Smith consideration of the Court. Messrs. Willmer and
%;',tll had been established for a great number of years
hl'slverpool as news-agents, and were in the habit of
lied
intelligence which arrived by the American
lieu Other foreign packets for insertion in the London
*Bl3%Pers, and they were also in the habit of receiving
Thep
of the London news to send to America by
ekets which started periodically from Liverpool.
tzeY had also entered into a contract to supply the
s °lenges at Manchester and Liverpool with intern-
rune for an annual payment. They had Ia 1 occasion to
I:4lPlain of various blunders made by the Electric Te-
t4lpPlt Company in the transmission of their messages,
th of most unwarrantable delays with regard to
e delivery of them. They had also telt sa-
-4,6 that there was an intention on the
't of the company to drive them out of the field by
-seats
be, of various contrivances. At last, on the 11 th
tuber, 1849, they found it necessary, for the protection
p`o,their interests and the vindication of their character. to
ulish the following letter in the Morning Herald, which
„Int the subject of the present inquiry :
41LEcen MIaiCONDUCT OF THE ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH
COMPANY.
Sir
THE EDITOR OF THE MORNING HERALD.
°lr,—Perceiving that the Electric Telegraph Com-
nr-1 have addressed you on the subject of their late in-
ruption to the transmission of our dispatches for your
lotr* may we beg the favour of your inserting the fol-
. „"g statement :
th The matter is one in which not only ourselves but
de!„l3,ress of Great Britain and the public generally are
ley interested.
IDs 1• It behoves the country to know if this company
of ‘, g e their affairs as they are bound to do by an Act
~rarliament, and
2
, • Whether the whole is not a monopoly.
I,
3. Favouritism the most glaring.
4. Blunders the most monstrous and unpardonable.
3. Delays the most monstrous and unpardonable.
this 6. And charges the most exorbitant ever heard of in
or any other country.
s
huti each of these points we hope to establish a case
,h the most sceptical cannot deny.
7. Commencing first with Mr. Fourdrinier's letter.
1,1 reporter, who took the message in question to the
opjletrsph office in Liverpool, has at our request drawn
% statement of the real facts. He says:—
. dor I entered the Telegraph office with your message,
j iligned and ready for transmission, about midnight.
*s°,tuld there the correspondent of the Times and
-rk, Mr. France. The latter told me that I
Ise," not be in any hurry, as the wires were
;;,a' then out of order. At this time the corre-
rldent of . the Times had not received his files of
r:Pera from the steamer. I instantly handed in the
th"84.3.e I had brought from her. The message was
t‘erefore in the hands of, and counted by, the clerk be-
tuare the correspondent of the Times had any materials
1144 up his message. It would not have occupied
til°r h •t id
ten minutes in transmission. Mr. France, the
dirk said it could be sent in five. Thus you will see
Isel',Pourdrineir's statement is not borne out by the facts.
:14UPS, it may be well to add that in leaving the office
to4tlnired when the message could be forwarded.; I was
erfi by another clerk, who had just then entered the
ert
ive !g that the correspondent of the Times had prepared
• in troductionof some four or five lines before he re-
eg d i toi his papers from the steamer, which were then
so,„lig on, but that after that I was the first in, and my
sio-3age should be then sent. This you will se is
gadmission that the message which I took to the Tele-
raph-office had, according to the company's regula-
fer-s' the piority, and should have been, were there no
Nunritism, sent on to Loudon without the least delay.
j00.131Y return to Church-street I overtook two of our
th lor clerks, sums suspecting, from previous experience,
htsttot foul play ght be practised, I sent one of them
for with instructions to remain there until he was in-
poll that the message which I had left was in Lon-
; and Qn no account to allow any other party to get
5-638i°11 of the wires before us, as we were first in.
" C. J. Ross.'
` The lietpclerk so left remained at the Telegraph-office
after one o'clock, when he was informed the rues-
le, had not then commenced, but that its transmission
llo`ud he guaranteed before half-past two, fully two
krtit,,a and a half after it was handed in. On hearing this,
!Ito' "Rimer went to the Telegraphic-office, taking Mr.
savas with him. Mr. Willmer demanded why the mes-
hie was not sent, and urged its instant transmission,
Soir.wfts told it could not go until what was then on the
,(tt dispatch for the Company 'a news-rooms at
ter ster) had been completed. He remonstrated in
op-isY strong language with Mr. Ansell, the clerk in
by ire, against the injustice which was then practised
pia e outrageous attempt which had been made to injure
t00,16...rm in their business as correspondents for
.the
je;d'uu Press. Mr. Ansell replied that as the Tunes
the htlirga sum for their intelligence, they were to have
tie r"edence; that when in Newcastle he had received
• setturder from the company's office in London to that
%nd that it never was rescinded. Mr. Ross thee
,
Cot
Ansell's attention to the 51st section of the
con, constituting and forming the Electric Telegraph
lietir,PanY, which attaches a penalty of 201. on the con-
do %„"!1, 01 any officer who shall wilfully or negligently
e
tit 1.-/ matter or thing whereby the transmission or de-
sltirbe
any message or signal shall not take place, or
esilti tie delayed or prevented, or shall wilfully or negli-
hy re'Y omit to do or perform any act, matter, or thing,
he tt Ilson whereof any message or signal shall not
tisto linriiitted or delivered, or shall be delayed in its
4,641185i0n or delivery. On reading this section,
matltAnsell admitted that in point of law he had no
itutho,!.o delay otir message, but took his stand on the
wow . r
or theirmpny orders, remarking that he
Mots° Observe instructions, regardless of the pron-
eet:le.:l:h; Act. Mr. Willmer waited at the telegraph-
It w., until he ascertained the message was in London.
prol'itttthee half-past two. Had he not remained, the
is that the message might have been burked;
the p events. kept back until it was too late to answer
tak:LPeae for which it was sent. Mr. Fourdrinier's
tittle fur the
the message being in London in
thin or the first edition of the morning papers, has no-
be,,tgbto do with the charge of wilful delay, and is at
tnreesti;t a Puny effort to bolster up an illegal act. The
ttore,:°,4 being the facts of this case, we refrain from
deeidsvau!lng oil the impropriety of such conduct.. Its
PUteio' illegality, and the great inconvenience which the
• imed, must suffer if such a system be any longer tole-
-111111,47 so plain, that they suggest themselves even to
s. 4teg taieds.
to ° Another case, equally glaring, we now proceed.
ice.otsets° On the 20th March last, the steam ship
tur4,l4_nrrived here, bringing President Taylor's inau-
eo,„ress, We had a message, containing that do-
di.spauteth'
°handed in to the telegraph-office the instant our
with h a. were landed. It was taken and prcceeded
half-way tne clerk at the instrument.' When aboutTondo°
throneh the message, an order came from the
Beans ,rlea to step Willmer's message, and send Mr.
oho lip the correspondent of the Times). This was
' our message wilfully kept back from 30 to 40
ntes,
`I our Own" e are prepared to prove this delay, not only
reporter, but also by some of the company's
officers wh
Rust, „, have sines, left the service in complete dis-
thia stet set at rest any cavil that may be made to
'afileoernent., we append the following communication
ii Charge h
received from Mr. Spalding, late clerk
Of the Liverpool station :-
4,,
tleseen " Liverpool, 10th Octsber, 1849.
,—ln reference to inquiry respecting the
eottpan° the transmission by the Electric Telegraph
tbo list your summary of the President's Message
'reassest,t 01
from •
March last, I beg to state that during
its
Liverpecl te Laden, I retested