The Sun.
London, England, 1844-03-27 00:00:00

CROWN COURT.

The grand jury having been sworn,
Mr. Baron ALDERSON proceeded to address them,
and he observed that there were only one or two cases
on the calendar that would require any observations to
be made by the Court respecting them. The first he
would allude to was, a charge which they must all ap-
proach with the utmost anxiety, in which a
person was charged with murder, and it appeared
that the offence, whether amounting to murder
or not, arose out of a struggle with per-
sons employed for the preservation of game. He had
always felt it to be his duty in every case where persons
were accused of attacking or resisting gamekeepers, to
make a very broad line between resistance to lawful
authority and a mere act of poaching, and he should feel
that ho hanot done his duty if he did not draw a
great line between such cases, and that the blood of those
who fell in such conflicts would, to a great extent, be
upon his head if he did not punish with the full severity
of the law persons who were clearly convicted of re-
sistance to lawful authority in such cases. In the pre-
sent instance the question for the jury to consider was,
whether the deceased met his death through the resistance
of the party accused to thd lawful authority which he
exercised, and no matter what might have been the
character of the struggle which took place, if the
jury believed that the prisoner caused the death
in resisting the lawful acts of the game-
keeper,
the offence would amount to murder.
If, however, it should appear that the deceased had ex-
ceeded his authority, or that he had used threats towards
the prisoner. which the law would not justify, in that
case the offence would not amount to murder. His
Lordship observed that it appeared by the depositions
that certain threats ha& been made use of, and he said
that it was not competent for persons, in the situation of
game-keepers, to make threats of violence, and to kill
persons whom they might consider guilty of an offence ;
.but if it should appear that these expressions were
merely made use of during the struggle, he was of opi-
nion that the offence would still amount to murder.
His Lordship then said he regretted to see by the calen-
der that a charge of a most disgusting character was at-
tributed to certain inmates of an establishment, where,
above all others, he thought good order ought to be kept,
viz., a union workhouse ; but he felt compelled to say
that, in the present instance, it had been the scene of
the grossest profligacy. Whether this arose. from any
error in the•management of the establishment, of course
he was unable to say, but he could only express his re-

Bret at the result, and he trusted that if any of the gen-
tlemen whom he was addressing were resident in, or
conected with the district in question, that they would
do all. that laid in their power to prevent such disgraceful
proceedings in future. •

Janiesdadsden, 21, a young man of respectable appear •
ante, and described in the calendar as a builder, was in-
dieted- for stealing a mare, chaise, and harness, the pro-
perty of Thomas May.
Mr. Charnock conducted the prosecution.
It appeared from the evidence that the prosecutor is a
livery-stable keeper, in the Southwark-bridge-road, and
in the beginning of the month of February the prisoner
went to the stable of the prosecutor,. and represent-
ing himself to be Mr. North, a builder in the
Cornwall-road, hired the mare, chaise, and har-
ness,' for the purpose, as he said, of going to
Greenwich. He did not return that night, but the
next day he went again to the prosecutor, and
said that the bad weather had prevented him from
coming home as he promised, and he then produced
some plans which, he said, referred to buildings he had
in progress in the Kent-road, and that he wished to hire
the horse and chaise for a month. The prosecutor told
him he would not let it to him unless he gave him some
references, and he then went away, promising to bring
the horse home at seven o'clock the same night. In-
quiries were then made, and it was ascertained that his
story was false from beginning to end; and it was at
length discovered that the horse and chaise had been
placed in pawn with Mr. Jones, an auctioneer, in Leices-
ter•street, who had advanced the prisoner 121. upon it;
and it appeared that he gave Mr. Jones a document,
whereby lie empowered him to sell all the property, un-
less the money was returned to him by a certain day.
The prisoner in his defence declared that it was a
bona-fide transaction, and that he wanted to have the
horse for a month for the purposes of his business.
Mr. Baron ALDERSON said, the only question for the
jury was, whether the prisoner really intended to have
the horse and chaise and return it, or whether the
hiring was merely a device to get it into his possession
in order that he might afterwards convert it to his
own use.

The jury returned a verdict of Guilty.
Henry Stevens, 22, and Henry Grenville, 19, were
charged with a burglary in the dwelling-house of
Thomas Mickells, and stealing some silver spoons, and
articles of wearing apparel, his property.
Mr. Banbury prosecuted, and Mr. Ballantine appeared
for the prisoners.
It appeared from the evidence, that the prosecutor is
a watchmaker at Reigate, and on the night of the rob-
bery, he went to bed about eleven o'clock, having previ-
ously ascertained that all the doors were properly secured.
He was awoke in the night by hearing a noise in the house,
and he went down stairs, but finding the street-door
safe, he again went up to bed. In a short time he saw
a light shine up the staircase, and heard the footsteps
of men on the stairs, but upon his calling out " Who's
there ?" the light was extinguished, and he heard the
men make off. On going down stairs he found the
lower part of the house had been ransacked, and a good
deal of property taken away; and it appeared that the
thieves had left a hat behind, and also part of a centre-
bit. The prosecutor gave an alarm immediately, and
proceeded, in company with a constable, named
Wickman, in pursuit of the thieves. Upon ar-
riving at the Black Horse, on Reigate-hill, they
came up with the prisoners, one of whom was
without a hat, and had a black silk-handkerchief tied
round his head, and also carrying a bundle. Upon the
constable and the prosecutor coming up both prisoners
darted off, at the same time throwing down a bundle,
which was found to contain a coat that had been stolen
from the prosecutor's house. They were pursued, and
both of them eventually secured, one of them in a wood,
lying upon his face. When before the Magistrates at
Reigate one of the prisoners said he knew nothing
about the robbery ; and the other said that as they
were walking along the road they met two strange men,
one of whom borrowed a hat of him, and gave him the
property, which turned out to be stolen, in exchange.
The jury found both prisoners Guilty.

MIDLAND ClRCUlT.—Leicester, March 25.
(Before Lord Chief Justice TINDAL.)
Joseph Lakin, aged 16, was indicted for having maliciously
and feloniously, on the 21st of February last, at Sheepshead,
in this county, set fire to a stack of wheat straw, the pro-
perty of John Harriman.
It appeared that a very few minutes before the stack was,
by several persons, seen to be in a blaze, three witnesses saw
a boy whom they believed to be the prisoner go to the gate
of the stable-yard, and open it and walk through, and then
proceed in a cautious and fearful manner to open an inch or
so at a time the door whick led immediately to where the
stack was, and go through. They presently saw the blaze
above all the houses, and hastened to the spot, and saw the
same boy running away. The defence was, that the prisoner
had never been in the yard at all, and the only question was,
whether or not the witnesses might be mistaken in the iden-
tity. None of them spoke with any very great degree of
positiveness or certainty, though they appeared to be them-
selves convinced.

The jury gave the prisoner the benefit of the doubt to which
he had referred, and returned a verdict of Not Guilty.
His LORDSHIP then told him that he had had a very nar-
row escape. He would not allow the belief that he was
guilty, when the jury had said that he was not, but they had
taken a very merciful view of the evidence, and he advised
the prisoner to be very careful for the future not to be again
placed in such imminent danger. Had the jury found a dif-
ferent verdict, which he thought the evidence would well
have justified them in doing, he should have felt it his duty
to have transported him for very many years.
(Before Mr. Baron GURNEY.)
William Beckworth, aged 28, and Reuben Waldrom, aged 20,
were charged with being out on the 29th of February, about
the hour of eleven at night, entering with divers persons un-
known into a close in the occupation of Benjamin Hill, to
take game. •
Richard May, a gamekeeper to Mr. Flood, of Bardon-
park, proved he was on duty on the morning of the Ist of
March. Observed some men go by his house late at night
and, suspecting. they were poachers, he got up, calling other
men to his asslstance. Got into a field, called the Town-
close, when they saw six men, who appeared to be about to
set nets.; As he advanced, the poachers began to throw stones.
The prisoner Beckworth:threw one that hit the prosecutor on
the breast. He had a stick also, with which he struck May
a fearful blow on the head. Another witness identified Wal-
drom as:being one of the party who assisted in beating the
prosecutor. Beckworth was taken on the spot. Waldrom
escaped, but was afterwards taken. A previous summary
conviction by the magistrates was'proved against Beckworth,
who was sentenced to fifteen months' imprisonment and hard
labour, 'and Waldrom was'sentenced to twelve month's im-
prisonment and hard labour. •
Thomas Kirby, aged 35 ; Thomas Rodwell, aged 23 ; Joseph
Rnobvell, aged 22 ; and John Porter, aged 33, were charged
--with having, on the 25th of November last, assaulted John
Laxton and James Farley, with..intent to do them grievous
bodily harm.
Mr. Macaulay prosecuted, and Mr. White defended.
Laxfon, one of, the ivateliers.on
,Mr. Hartoffe's estate, at
Burton Lazors, proved. being out with Jomes Farley on the
morning in question, between six and seven. They saw five
men and two dogs, one being a very light one, and what
they 'call a snap dog. One of the men had a bag on his
shoulder, which Laxton touched, thinking it contained game
or nets. - An assault was immediately commenced upon him,
and he was beaten about the head until he became insen-
sible, and was smothered with blood from the head to the
feet. TWo of the prisoners were positively sworn to as
being of the party of five on the morning in question. The
other two men were seen,. in company with Kirby and one
of the Rodwells, .comi,ng. in a. direction from the spot in
question. ..
Mr. WHITE admitted their identity, but contended the as-
sault would not have taken place had not Laxton, in the first
instance, touChed the bag on Kirby's shoulders.
They -were found guilty,, and sentenced to twelve months'
imprisonment each, and hard labour.