The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-09 00:00:00

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which the prisoners were charged with having blown
up. The indictment was founded on the 7th and Bth
of bee. IV., c.. 30, s. 7, which renders it felony for any
person maliciously to pull down, destroy, or damage
with intent to destroy, any such steam-engine.
Jonathan Habershon was The first witness called. He
deposed that he was under-ground steward at No. 2,
Deeps-pit Colliery, near Sheffield. There was a steam-
engine at the mouth of that pit. The boiler, which
weighed when filled about 8 tons, was detached from the
engine, and was surrounded with brick-work. On the
night of Sunday, the 25th of August, witness, who lived
close to the pit, was awakened by the report of a tre-
mendous explosion, and in about half an hour after-
wards William Prince, who slept in a kind of cabin at
the mouth of the pit, called him up and took him to ex-
amine the boiler. On reaching there he found all the
brick-work blown down and scattered about. The boiler
happened to be filled with: water, but no water had es-
caped. The steam-pipe, however, had broken away
from the steam-chest ; the pipe for the conveyance of
water to the boiler had also been broken, and a small
shed over the boiler had been blown down, so that the
steam-engine was put out of working condition. On re-
moving the debris witness found two caps and a hat very
much damaged, as well as a tin case containing a collier's
cartridge and some loose gunpowder. In the firehole
were found several portions of a barrel, and everything
smelt strongly of gunpowder.
Cross-examined by Mr. GRAINGER—The pit had been
worked- twenty-two years. The boiler was about three
yards from the steam-engine. Wag quite sure that two
caps were found. The cartridge found in the tin case
was such as colliers commonly employed in the opera-
tion of blasting, and gunpowder was occasionally used
for that purpose in some of the pits near Sheffield.
William Prince remembered the 25th of August last.
He was in bed in the cabin at the mouth of the pit, and
shortly after eleven o'clock he saw some men peeping
into the cabin, through a small crevice in the door. In
a few minutes after he heard.in.explosion. He thought
there were about six men altogether.
Cross-examined—The night was dark. Could not see
the faces of the persons who looked in at the door.
Mrs. Ledger deposed that•-Ahe resided about half a
mile from the colliery. The :prisoner Bolton was her
brother, and had dined at her' house on the 25th of
August. About -twelve o'cloitk OR that night she was
awoke from her sleep by A =noise at the door, and she
heard a moan apparently 'proceeding from a man in
great bodily pain. She opened the door, and found her
brother crouched down at the door. He was very much
burnt on his head, face, neck, and hands, and was covered
with black, and his clothes were torn. Witness obtained
assistance, and put him to bed, when Mr. Shaw, a sur-
geon, was immediately sent fiir, whn att.-1d...4 him fm• 14
days whilst he remained confined to bed at her house.
Cross-examined—The prisoner appeared very much
intoxicated when he got to her, house, and he vomited a
quantity of spirits and ale. He was delirious also during
the night, and continued so for several days.
J4hn Shaw, jun., a medical student, who was called in
to see the prisoner, confirmed the last witness's state-
nsent as to his condition at' that time. Witness asked
him bow he had received the injuries about his person,
and he replied by firedamp. A woman present said it
would be best to tell the doctor all they knew about the
matter, and they then said they had heard a great explo-
sion,i and that they suspected the -prisoner had been con-
cerned in blowing up a steam-engine. The woman
begged '
of witness not to mention the circumstance to
any one and the prisoner joined in that request..
John Shaw, surgeon, of Attereliffe, corroborated the
greater part f this testimony: and detailed a statement
made to him by the prisoner wherein he confessed his
praiticipation in the act with which he was charged.
They put some gunpowder in a barrel which they placed
'in the fire-hole, and setting light to a fusee, one end of
which communicated with the powder barrel, they ran
away to await the effects of the explosion ; but as this
did not take place so soon as they had anticipated, they
went to the fusee to blow it up. He had just reached
the spot %here the engine was, when it did happan, how-
ever, and he remembered little or nothing further. The
prisonei Beilton had made :this statement to witness on
several different occasions. - •

• Cross-examined--The prisoner told him that he had
tnet with two- men before the oecurrence, who would not
let him go. till be had had • a certain quantity of some-
thing to drink. . He did not.say that he was very drunk.
William ..Maybury, a tailor, living is Todd-street,
Manchester, deposed, that he met the prisoner Critch-
low with two. men, .named -Dixon and Stocks, on Tries
day, the 27th of August. The skin was then all if his
face. He said 'that he had the:wet scurvy, which ac-
counted for.that circumatair&.. He met the same per-
sons together soon after in the Coach and Horses public-
hbuse' and he heard Socks ask Critchlow if he had been
to a doctor,. to which Critchlow replied no, he was
frightened to go to a doctor lest he should be found out.
Critchlow then asked Stocks-if he had seen that day's
paper, and if there was anything particular in it. Stocks
answered, that be had seen the paper, and that a cap
had. been found. Critchlow said that that was his cap,
and he then proceeded to detail the circumstances at-
tending the explosion, addini,, that he had before very
large whiskers and a good head of hair, but when the
powder went off it flashed in his face, and scorched it all
off. He was otherwise also a good deal injured.
Cross-examined—Have not got much above tailoring
yet. There was.a rat-den at-Davis's public-house. Wit-
ness did not'provide the rats or the dogs. He assisted
Davis sometimes in keeping-and Obtaining the rats. He
.did pay for his board and lodging at Davis's. Was not
in the habit of attending prizefights. Had never been
at one. Didn't teach boxing.; put the gloves on some-
times, for a little bit of amusement. Had been in trouble
once, about six years ago, for hitting a man in the shop
where he then worked. Had never seen Critchlow pre-
vious to the first interview which he had referred to.
Several other witnesses corroborated the main features
of the evidence already given.
. Mr. GRAINGER addressed a long and ingenious speech
.te the jury on behalf of the prisoners, commenting chiefly
with regard to Critchlow's ease, on the want of all evi-
donee connecting-the prisoners together.
Mr. Justice COLERIDGE summed up, and laid the case
before the jury in the clearetif manner, who retired for a
'few minutes, and then returned with a verdict of Guilty
against Bolton, and of Acquittal as regarded Critchlow.
His LORDSHIP, in passing sentence, observed upon the
magnitude of the crime of which:the prisoner had been
found guilty. It was especially a crime in a county like
that; where property of incalculable value was often in-
treated in engines of the description alluded to, which,
valuable as they.were, were particularly liable to the
attacks of vicious persona.- . In a moral point of view,
thecrime was very great, for, if people chose to leave
their work, and band themselves together, and go out at
night, taking barrels of gunpowder with them for the
purposes mischief—people whO went so far as that
oqurreisevheiry little inducement, he feared, to go
would
require
ef
much prisoner had, however, suffered
alreadyfurther. The
in his person very severely for what he had done,
and it appeared that one of, his unhappy companions on
that night had ,paid a severer penalty still. When he
should recal that to his remembrance, it might prove
to him, perhaps, a more bitter recollection, and give
him a great deal more pain that' he was likely to sutler
at the hands of the law. The sentence of the Court was,
that the prisoner be imprisoned for eighteen calendar
months, with hard labour.
A man named Themes North Slocks was next indicted
for harbouring John Critchlow, well knowing that he
had committed a felony. As • Critchlow had been ac-
quitted, however, by the jury, the charge against Stocks
was, of courser al)andoned.

December 7.
At the hitting of the Court this morning his Lordship
announced that, in consequence of the heavy state of the
calendar, it was deterrnined.tio open another Court on
Tuesday next, to assist in the. trial of the prisoners.
James Taniey was charged with manslaughter, for that
he,,on the 23d of September last, at Halifax, in the West
Riding. feloniously did kill and slay one Daniel Martin,
by stabbing him .with a knife in and upon the left side
of the neck.

Mr. Hall and Mr. Boothby conducted the prosecution,
and Mr. Dearsley defended the prisoner.
Those of our readers who are acquainted with Halifax
well know that there is a quarter of the town called Hat-
teie-yard, and Gardeners -square, which is principally
inhabited by the lower class of Irish—a spot notorious
for the constant recurrence of misdemeanours and as-
saults, and the scene not unfrequently of more serious
affrays, ending sometimes only with the death of ono or
other of the parties concerned. In this quarter resided
the deceased, Daniel Martin, and the prisoner, James
Tansey, both of whom were Irishmen. About mid day
on the 23d of September the deceased, a powerful and at
the same tinisra violent and intemperate man, was seen
in pursuit of a woman, his sister, whom on reaching he
struck with great force, accompanying the blow with
' the remark that" he would teach his sister to be a w—
for any man." The woman rushed for safety into the house
of the prisoner, whither she was pursued by the deceased.
The inisoner at that time was. seated in the kitchen
in his own: house, paring a sheep's head with a
knife. Into this room the deceased entered, and struck at
'his siister, when a man named Rocks interposed, and
him the deceased felled to the ground. Upon this the
prisoner roso from his seat Trail a knife in his hand, and,
saying that he would have no row in his house, attempted
tolurn the deceased out. It appeared that the deceased
however, struck the first blow. A scuffle ensued between
the two, who ultimately made their way into a corner,
and there, by some means or . other, the deceased was
struck under the left ear by the knife in the hand of the
prisoner, and from the wound thus inflicted Martin's
death resulted in a few houri' after. It was contended
for the prosecution, that the priioner deliberately raised
the knife to strike the deceased, and some mention was
made of another knife, a most formidable weapon in ap-
pearance, which it was insinuated had been substituted
by the prisoner for the one with-which he was eating his
dinner. There was no evidence, however, to support
this view of the case, except that a policeman produced
two knives which he had found in the house, and the
blades and hafts of which were both covered with blood.
For the defence it was contended. that the prisoner rose
suddenly from his dinner to turn out an unwelcome in-
truder ; that in the excitement he neglected to lay down
the'knife, and might have been even unconscious that he
had it in his hand, and that in the scuffle that ensued
the blow was accidentally given. Mr. Dearsley explained
to the jury, that where a man- kille&another on a sudden
reneontre in his own defence or id.that of his children,
wife, or servant, that was justifiable homicide. The case
before the jury, he contended, came within that cate-
gory, and the prisoner was therefore entitled to an ac-
quittal. But this view of the ease was somewhat inter-
fered with by the evidence of two apparently respectable
witnesses, one Of - whom deposed, that after the deceased
had been struck with the knifeand whilst the blood was
yet gushing out and bespattering the walls around, the
prisoner raised, his, fist again to strike the deceased, but
was prevented by the witnesa -saying, " Nay, Jemmy,
don't strike the- man again, he's dead." . The other wit-
ness referred too imputed to the prisoner the words, "If
I haven't_killed.hice, I will do it." There were some
slight discrepancies in the minor details, but the above
were the principal facts generally corroborated. •

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