The Sun.
London, England, 1850-12-17 00:00:00

AWFUL DEATH OF A FORTUNE TELLER.

An old lady, named Rebecca Swan, the sorceress of
Kidderminster, has met with a fearful death. Many
years ago she was prosecuted f)r obtaining money
under false pretences from a servant girl, and, in re-
revenge, she said that the magistrate who convicted her
would not live till she came out again. This, by one of
those coincidences which cannot be explained, was the
case; and from that time her skill as a " wise woman"
has been unquestioned by those who wished to look into
the future. She would threaten persons that the
earth should open under their feet, and was generally
believed to be on intimate terms with Apollyon him-
self. She had four magic dogs, Liverpool, Pretty, Vic-
toria, and St. John, the latter of which was stolen by some
waggish limbs of the law who once paid her a visit.
Cats of remarkable size also formed part of her estab-
lishment, and were called names of singular import: a
splendid celimanco was the " Queen of Sheba," and a
large black one, "Queen Caroline." The " Princess
Charlotte" died a few years ago. These cats would leap
upon her shoulder, and purr in her ear, and she then
informed her dupes what she chose, pretending to have
received it from the cats, who were, of course, con-
sidered as of somewhat questionable character. Among
other failings the deceased was very fond of gin, and
being well supplied with money by her patrons, would
frequently get drunk and pass the night in a chair by the
tire-side, in conference, as she always afterwards said,
with the invisible world. On the night of her death
this was the case, and in rising from her chair it is sup-
posed she slipped upon the fire, and was unable to put
the blaze out or call for assistance. Her body was
shockingly burnt. On Friday evening an inquest was
held on her remains, and a verdict of " accidental death"
returned. Her neighbours and clients, however,
shake their heads, and consider that she was brewing
some potent spell, and neglecting some usual precau ion,
was caught at an advantage by " Auld Clootie;" in proof
of
this they triumphantly point to the disappearance of
the cats, who have not been aeon since her death, having
probably been scared by the noise and hubbub of the
strangers who flocked to the house.— Worcester Chronicle

THFI ELECTRIC TEL—EGItADri I OII7LYETEA D.—The.
f( !lowing memorial to the
lying on the desk of the Excha'r
elk' Camittee has been
..e Newsroom,th and re-
ceived numfrous signatures :_,',ro
shipowners, brokers, we
members of the Dock
,Committee.
the
undersigned merchants,
others,
having cbserved that a proposal bs,i been m'adeed
wliich, if sub-
stitute,carried in communicating between Holyhead and Liver-
pool, the electric telegraph for the present antiquatedlr
and uncertain method, respectfully urge upon your con-
sideration the propriety of the change,
out, cannot fail to benefit this commercial community,
and the trade of the port in general,"—Liverpool Albion'

RAIL WAY INTELLIGENCE.
PROPOSED NEW RAILWAYS.
It appears from the notices of intended applica-
tion to Parliament in the ensuing session that Bills
for several new railways and branches will be ap-
plied for, and judging from the produce of lines and
branches of a similar character already constructed
in various parts of the kingdom, it is very doubtful
whether many of the new schemes, if sanctioned, will
return any dividend for the outlay. Unfortunately,
too many railways and branches which are now in
operation were originally projected more with the
view to profit certain individuals than for public
benefit or to remunerate the shareholders, who were
induced by all sorts of representations, and in many
instances compelled to find the money. The lawyers,
engineers, contractors, directors, landowners, parties
who purchased land on tha speculation of the lines
being made, and thus obtaining three or four times
its value from the company, other parties who have
an interest in letting the contracts for the works
by private agreement, form together an almost ir-
resistible influence to obtain Bills every session for
lines and branches, whether requisite or not.
There can be no doubt that there is plenty of
room for improvement on the present system of rail-
way legislation, and it is believed the appointment of
a Parliamentary Committee to investigate and report
on the effects of past legislation on railways, with a
view to establishing an improved system of legislation
with regard to them, may lead to some practical ad-
vantages, and in some measure tend to protect the
public and railway shareholders from the gross impo-
sitions and severe losses to which they are continually
exposed by the present loose system. In dealing
with the:newßills next session, it is believed that Par-
liament might do a great deal of good to railway
property by adopting some arrangement which should
have the effect of making responsible before some tri-
bunal the engineer in every case for the amount of
his estimate, the contractor that the amount of his
contract should not be exceeded, the directors for
exceeding the powers of the Acts of Parliament, the
lawyers for negligence in drawing up the clauses of
the Bills, and thus place some check on the continual
amendment of acts. The practice of sanctioning,
session after session, the illegal acts of railway di-
rectors, should, if possible, be abolished, and men so of.
fending should in future be held individually respon-
sible for their conduct, in every case where it can be
proved that the Acts of Parliament have been vio-
lated. With respect to one of the companies intend-
ing to make application next session for a new Act,
it has been stated by a committee of inquiry into the
company's affairs that the directors had conducted the
affairs of the company as if the Acts of Parliament
were so much " waste paper." Another of the com-
panies making application raised years ago 700,0001.
without any legal authority, and last session obtained
the sane, ion cf Parliament to rectify that illegal act.
Some simple regulation, which should have for its
object to make all the acting parties in the manage-
ment of railway companies personally liable for
the illegal acts of the company, and the misapplica-
tion of the funds intrusted to their charge, would
pat a stop to a great deal of misconduct in the ma-
nagement of railway prop 'rty. There is a very
strong opinion among respectable railway men that
Parliament should in the ensuing session, be-
fore prcceeding whh any of the new Rail-
way Bills, pass a short Act with regard to
the falsification of railway accounts, the punish-
ment to be fine and imprisonment. It is believed
that until the Legislature declares it by Act of Par-
liemeat to be a crime to falsify railway accounts the
ability to falsify accounts will be regarded by certain
unprincipled rail way speculators as a valuable ac-
quirement, worthy of the highest reward they can
bestow. The passing of an Act declaring the falsifi-
cation of accounts to be illegal and a crime deserving
of severe punishment would tend greatly to enhance
the value of railway property. In one company
alone the public have been defrauded in the price of
the shares to the extent of nearly 2,000,0001. by means
of false accounts, which showed a fictitious net re-
venue in one year of 108,8451. over and above the
actual net revenue of the company; and the total
felsification of the accounts in this company, so far as
could be discovered, amounted to 328,0001. in the
course of four years. Notwithstanding this exposure
certain railway shareholders have lately been endea-
vouring to reinstate the man in power under whose
management, or rather mismanagement, the prices
of the shares were thus raised so much above their
value.

Among the proposed new railways are lines from
the Furness Rail way to the Kendal and Windermere
Railway, from the Furness Railway at Ulverstone to
the Lancaster and Carlisle Rail way at Cornfortb,
from Lowestoft to Halesworth, from Bungay to Hales-
worth, from the Eastern Counties at Forest gate to
Tilbury Fort, from the North Kent Railway at
Strood to Dover, from the Croydo❑ Railway near
New-cress to Dover (the Mid-Kent line), from the
Holyhead Railway at Bangor to Carnarvon, from
Gloucester to Ross and Hereford, from Blackwall to
Tilbury Fort, from the Royston and Hitchin at
Sbepreth to Cambridge, from the South Staffordshire
at Wicknor to Burton-on-Trent, from the Altrincham
Junction Rail way to Warrington. The Stockton and
Dlrlington to make branches to Coundon and
Westerton ; the South Wales, branches to the Forest
of Dean, to Newport, Cardiff, Bute Dock, and to
the Taff Vale Railway; the Sheffield and Goole,
branch to Kimberworth ; the North Staffordshire,
branches to Litchurch and to the Midland Railway ;
the Chester and Holyhead, a branch to Holyhead har-
bour ; the Lancashire and Yorkshire, branch to Mid-
dleton; the Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire,
extension to Salford ; from the Ulster Railway at
Armagh to the canal at Caledon ; Waveney Valley,
branch to Bungay; a line from Buckhurst to the
South-Eastern Railway at Tonbridge-wells ; from
the Glastonbury to the Bristol and Exeter near High-
bridge; the Great Northern Railway, branch to
Miston ; a line from the Birmingham and Oxford to
the London and North-Western Railway at Birming-
ham; a line from the Briton Ferry to the South
Wales Railway ; a line from the Thames to the
North Kent Railway. There are several other Bills
for railway purposes, such as for altering the exist-
ing terms of guarantees and leases, for authorising
companies to run engines and carriages over other
companies' railways, to extend time for the construc-
tion of works, and to amend Acts.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.
VICE-CHANCERY COURT, Dec. 16.
(B€fore Lord CRAN WORTH.)
TROTT V. HUGHES.

This was a motion for an iniunciion to restrain the
directors of a building society in the borough of South-
vv:lrlt from parting with a fund in their hands except
under the order of this Court. The building society
was established in 1847, and the rules and regulations
were certified by the barrister appointed for that per-
pose. A rule was subsequently introduced by amend-
ment that any member might withdraw, and receive the
amount of his subscription by giving a month's notice.
By another provision it was directed that in case of any
dispute upon the rules, arbitrators were to be appointed,
and in the event of the arbitrators not being appointed,
the question was to be decided by two justices. It ap-
peared that the plaintiff, Mr. Pearce, wished to with-
draw from the company, and gave the month's notice
required by the rule. At that period there was a sum
of between 4001. and 5001. in the hands of the directors,
and the plaintiff, as well as certain other members who
had given notice, contended that their subscription must
be first repaid before-any other claims. It was thought,
on the other hand, that the subscriptions were
not payable out of the capital, but only out
of the interest and fines. The plaintiff wrote to the di-
rectors, urging his claim, and the directors, in reply,
promised to consider and decide the matter according to
their best judgment at the next meeting. The plaintiff,
however, filed a bill in this court for an injunction,
charging the directors with an intention to lend out the
funds in hand, so as to defeat the plaintiff's title, the
money so lent being repaid by ten instalments.
Mr. Matins and Mr. Cotton appeared for the motion;
Mr. Teed and Mr. Beavan contra.

MS LORDSHIP having stated the facts of the case, said
that he thought he should be doing a vast deal of mis-
chief if he were to grant the motion. There was a dis-
pute about the construction of the rules, and the directors
would have had to put a construction on them, it might
be right or it might be wrong, at the next meeting; but
the plaintiff did not give them time to do so. They had
not had an opportunity of meeting since the notice. But
even if the directors were wrong, he did not think the
parties ought to come to this court. The statutable law
on this subject—viz., the rules—which were, moreover,
the voice of the Legislature—enacted that in case of dis-
pute arbitrators were to be appointed, or the matter was
to be disposed of by two justices. He did not think the
plaintiff had any right to come at once to the Court of
Chancery to determine the construction of the rules. He
should, therefore, refuse the motion, with costs.

COURT OF COMMON PLEAS, Dec. 16.
TEMPEST V. HOWARD.
This was an action brought to recover damages for a
libel contained in a letter written by the defendant, who
is a medical student, in which the plaintiff was charged
with being addicted to unnatural praciices.
Mr. Bramwell appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr.
Sergeant Shee for the defendant.
The defence was a plea of justification, and witnesses
were called, and depositions of persons now abroad
were read in support of it, but the facts as disclosed by
the evidence were too gross for publication.
The LORD CHIEF JUSTICE stopped the case in dis-
gust. He said there was a certain verge of decency to
be observed in a court of justice, even when they were
obliged to examine into such cases as these. He thought
no man of common feelings would be able to restrain his
indignation at the facts now before them.
Mr. BRAMWELL said if that were his Lordship's opi-
nion, he would consent that his client should be non-
suited.
The plaintiff was then ordered to be nonsuited.
The plaintiff, who was present in court difring the
trial, was followed on leaving it by a crowd of persons,
who saluted him with groans and hisses of execration,
and showed some disposition to execute summary justice
upon him.

WLLLs, 13.—The schooner Albion, of Louth for
London, is on shore.

CENTRAL CRIMINAL (COURT.
OLD COURT.

Sarah Simons, 19, was indicted for s '.eal'ing a purse,
containing some silver, the property of Di ari % Byron.
Mr. Woollett was for the defence.

It appeared that the prosecutrix, who. is an actress,
was riding in an omnibus on the day name d in the in-
dictment, when the prisoner took her seat, by her, and
soon afterwards she felt her hand in her pocket. She
was too much frightened at the moment to gii ye any alarm,
but when she recovered herself she gave tk ,e prisoner in
charge to the conductor, and the purse was found upon
the floor of the omnibus close to the prisoner.
The jury retured a verdict of Guilty; but as it ap-
peared that the prisoner was not known as the associate
of thieves, and had never before been in. custody, she
was only sentenced to be kept to hard la‘bour fin- four
months, the Learned Recorder at the same. time inform-
ing her, however, that if she ever appeared there again
upon a charge of felony she would certainly be trans-
ported.
Mr. Ballantine, who was instructed for the prosecution
in an indictment preferred by the Baron. Von Stentz
against William Sobieski Kildahl for perjury, ap-
plied to the Court to postpone the trial to the next
session. The application was founded upon affidavits
stating that the Baron and his Lady, who we re both ma-
terial witnesses, were seriously ill, and in quite an unfit
state to attend andsive their evidence. Mc dical certi-
ficates to the same effect were also put in.
Mr. CLARKSON, who appeared for the defendant, said,
he was not in a condition to resist such an application,
but before the postponement was finally drcided upon
he should be glad to have an opportunity kw some in-
quiries to be made.
The RECORDER thought that this was a. reasonable
suggestion, and he therefore directed that the trial
should at present only stand over till Wednesday.

NEW COURT.
(Before the COMMON SERGEANT.)►
Patrick Reedie. aged 29, tailor, was indicted for a
burglary committed in June, 1849, and stealing pro-
perty of the value of 1201.
Mr. Cooper prosecuted, and Mr. O'Brien defended.
The facts of the case were these :—On the morning of
the sth of June the premises of Mr. Weare, a Fenendraper
in the London-road, were broken into, and a quantity of
broadcloth, silk handkerchiefs, and linen were stolen.
On the same evening four men were seen driving
a cab in the vicinity of the prosecutor's
house, and who, upon seeing the police, made off,
the prisoner escaping altogether for the time. Upon
the police opening the cab OD y found the- whole of the
property.
Police-constable Barry, 455 A, proved apprehending
the prisoner a short time hack at Salford, near Manches-
ter, where it appeared he had been living for a long time,
working at his trade as a tailor.
The jury found the prisoner Guilty.
Police-constable Rovogue, of the L division, proved a
former conviction against the prisoner in April, 1848,
when he had twelve months' imprisonment for a street
robbery.
The COMMON-SERGEANT sentenced him to ten years'
transportation.
A few other cases disposed of [Hiring the clay were of
a wholly unimportant charaeter.7'

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
GUILDHALL.
Yesterday John Doherty, who was remanded from
last Thursday, was again brought up fur further exa-
mination before Sir Peter Lauriatcharged with utterinet
forged cheque for 721. purporting
.to be signed by "
Harrison, one of the Commissioners of Inland Revenue,
with intent to defraud Messrs. Gosling and Sharpe, ban-
kers, Fleet-street.
Mr. Muilens, of the firm of Bush and Mullens, solici-
tors to the Society fur the Protection of Bankers, Mer
chants, and others from fraud:and forgery, attended for the
prosecution, and stated that he had made inquiries as to
the truth of the statement first made by the prisoner on
being taken into custody, and found them perfectly cor-
rect, even in the most minute particular. Under these
circumstances, and believing that prisoner was only a
tool of a third party, he attended fur the purpose of re-
questing the prisoner's discharge.
Sir P. LAURIE said that before discharging the pri-
soner he should like to have some evidence to justify
him in coming to that conclusion.
Mr. Charles Augustus Hall, of St. John's-wood, was
then called, and stated that he had known the prisoner
for some considerable time, and had always found him
a very trustworthy person. Prisoner had been in the
employ of witness's brother, who was an auctioneer and
kept a register for servants, in Upper George-street,
Portman-square, up to the timelhe was taken into custody.
On that day he showed the cheque to witness, who ad-
vised him to give information at the police-station which
he accordingly did; but circumstances afterwards in-
duced him to present it for payment.
Sir PETER LAURIE said he was satisfied that prisoner
had been placed in his present position in consequence
of his too readily crediting a stranger's tale. Taking
everything into consideration, he would therefore dis-
charge him.
The prisoner was then discharged.
Alfred Johnson was charged with being disorderly in
the East London Union.
James Clint, one of the officers of that establishment,
said that the prisoner was a constant applicant for relief,
and that although be had been in the house belonging
to the union several days, he had refused to do the
work allotted to him. lie became so violent that it was
deemed requisite to send for an officer, but in the mean-
time he assaulted witness and every one who attempted
to interfere with his amusements.
Sir PETER LAURIE thought then must be some mis-
management in the union to give rise t) such conduct.
It teemed strange to him that there should be so many
complaints from the City unions every time he occupied
the bench at this court, while in Marylobone parish,
where they had about 1,400 paupers in the house, they
seldom had a complaint of any kind.
The Chief Clerk here inforased the Alderman that the
unions in the City were literally besieged by shoals of
the most violent and desperate Irish, who had located
themselves in various parts of the City.
Sir P. LAURIE said he would give the prisoner an op-
poramity of trying a new punishment, and send him for
one month to the House of Correction, with bard labour
at the crank.
CAUTION TO PUBLISHERS.—James Gilbert, bookseller
and publisher, of 49, Paternoster-row, was summoned
before the sitting alderman of this court to answer an
information laid against him by Antonio Panizzi, Esq.,
on behalf of the trustees of the British Museum, " for
that he on the 25th of October in the present year did
publish, or caused to be published, a certain map called
' Gilbert's New Map of the World,' and that although
more than one calendar month had elapsed since the
publication of the said map, he (James Gilbert) had un-
lawfully neglected to deliver a printed copy of the said
map at the British Museum, whereby he had rendered
himself liable to a fine of 5/."
Mr. Hodges appeared in the absence of Mr. Bodkin,
who was originally instructed, to prosecute.
The Learned COUNSEL, in opening the case, said, as
he was instructed, the case was one of some public im-
portance. By an Act passed in the sth and 6th Viet.,
entitled, " An Act to Amend the Laws of Copyright,"
it was provided that a copy of every new publication
should be sent to the trustees of the British Museum,
and in the event of non-compliance with this provision
of the Act, the defaulter should be subject to a penalty
of not more than 51. in addition to the price of the pub-
lication' and all costs attending the recovery of the
same. He was not, however, instructed to press for the
full penalty in this particular case, but in consequence
of the great difficulty experienced by the trustees of the
British Museum in getting many publishers to comply
with that part of the Act referred to in the information,
they had found it necessary to make an example, and the
present proceedings were accordingly instituted against
the defendant.
on at Mr. Gilberea, Pater-
of
that he particularly
onfoAsatecwrofirtyon
weos,fs t wha
neadsmtahfpue
rni
tnhcalled, who proved the purchase
asked for " Gilbert's New Map of the World." The
copy he produced was given to him, and he paid 3s. for
it, that being the publishing price marked on it.
Mr. John Collier Knight said he held an appoint-
ment in the print room, under the trustees of the British
Museum. He regularly kept a register of all the books
and publications which were forwarded by publishers to
the print room. He always gave a receipt in return,
and if defendant had sent a copy of the map he (de-
fendant) would be able to produce a receipt for the same.
There was no entry in the register of any such copy
having been delivered at the Museum. If it had been
sent the books would have shown it.

Defendant contended that the map produced was not
a new publication, but only a re-issue, as the map had
been published about 18 years ago, and was then his
property; but that since that period he had sold his in-
terest in it to the engraver, and he was only publishing
it for a third party. In the first instance a copy WU sent
to the British Museum.

Mr. Alderman Hustpumw said that the defence set
did not refute the charge, as the very insertion of that
small word " new" rendered the reissue a
i new publi-
cation, and he would therefore convict him n the miti-
gated penalty of 108. and costs, together with es., the
price paid in the first instance for the map.
The money was immediately paid into court.
Mr. Alderman HumPHEav begged to acknowledge the
receipt of the following letter and donation, addressed to
him :—" I inclo9e you a draft for five guineas, to be em-
ployed in purchasing clothes and comforts for the ill-
used Jane Wilbred. (Signed) JOHN COLLETT, late M.P.
for Athlone." He had also received 2s. 6d. from A. 8.,
to be applied to the same purpose.
BOW-STREET.

ROBBERY BY A PosTmAN.—Yesterday John Stevens,
a letter-carrier employed at the post office of Woodford,
in Elsex, was brought before Mr. Hall, charged with
stealing a letter containing one half sovereign, a shil-
ling, and a sixpence, the property of the Postmaster-
General.

Mr. Peacock, jun., attended to prosecute.
It appeared from the evidence, that in consequence of
numerous complaints being made of money letters not
arriving at their destination in the neighbourhood of
Woodford, Mr. Sculthorpe, one of the presidents of tho
London district office, received instructions to take such
steps as would test the honesty of the persons employed
there, and for that purpose inclosed, on the 13th, the
coins in question, which ho had previously marked, in a
letter addressed to Mr. Lewis Ford, to be left at the
Bald-faced Stag, Loughton-road, Essex, until called
for, and delivered it to Mr. Cole, an inspector of letter-
carriers, by whom it was posted. On Saturday last they
proceeded with Peak, the constable, to the post-office of
Woodford, where the prisoner admitted having assisted
in sorting the letters, but denied having seen the missing
letter, although the direction was in his delivery; and
upon being searched the marked money was found upon
him, concealed in a tobacco-pouch, which he said he had
picked up three days before on going his rounds. The
prisoner had filled the same situation, for seven years;

but, owing to the complaints recently made, suspicions
of his dishonesty were excited against him.
The prisoner declined saying anything in his defence,
and he was fully committed to Newgate for trial.