The Sun.
London, England, 1850-06-13 00:00:00

and carried before Alderman Gibbs at the Mansion- TORNADO IN THE BA.HAMAS.
louse. He was there accused of having been ceneerned The fello wing is an extract from a letter dated
la a burglary committed ;in the dwelling-aeuse of Mr. Nes— u, New Providence, Bahamas :—" Since the
John Barley, of New Bond street, but the Alderman '"
date of my last letter we have been visited by a most
having no jurisdiction in the matter, he directed that the
On the 30th of March, about noon,
Prisoner should be taken to the Marlborough-Art et Police-
awful
Court. This was done, and the sitting magistrate, after a heavy fall of rain, with much thunder and very
hearing the evidence of several witnesses, remanded the vivid lightning, passed over the bland, the wind
Prisoner for a week ; this was on the 25th of April. rapidly veering from one point of the compass to
On the 4th of May the prisoner was again taken to the another. Suddenly there appeared in the south-
Marlboronh-street office and locked up in a cell shortly west a densely black cloud, the intervening atm°•
before tea o'clock in the morning, preparatory to his sphere assuming a very remarkable appearance, alter-
undergoiee• a second examination on the charge of bur nately green and livid: There was then a momen-
glary. There were four other persons secured in the tary calm, succeeded by a mighty rushing of the
cell with him, but about a quarter past ten the keeper, elements, as if set in motion from every quarter at
li:.policeman named Leicester, went to see that all was the same moment. These were, however, but the
right and was surprised to find that the prisoner and
'precursor., of the tornado itself, which burst with such
COO of the other parties had escaped. The officer had a = '
distinct recollection of having locked and bolted them tremendous fury over the adjacent villages of Grants
in, and how they got out could never be ascertained, and Baines Town that it carried thence into the sea
The prisoner was not heard of afterwards till the Derby everything in its way—houses, trees, stone walls, &c.
had
the 29th of May, when Storey, the policeman who Within a very few minutes 150 dwellings, or orchards,
nod first arrested the prisoner, fancying that some of his or gardens were wholly or partly laid waste by it;
companions, who were also implicated in felonious trans- eight persons were killed on the spot, and many in-
actions, would not resist the temptation of the races, he jured. One singular feature is, that the damage was
stationed himself on the City side of London- bridge confined to a space of about 50 yards in width and a
about nine o'clock in the morning and kept a close watAi mile and a half in length. These villages were cm-
upon every suspicious-looking vehicle that pissed. The copied either by liberated Africans or country-born
result proved that the officer was not mistaken in his an-
tie roes. Some of the wooden houses of the poor
tieipations, for he had not been on the alert long before - "
be saw a horse and cart coming down King William-street were literally taken up from the ground on which
driven by a man in whom he immediately recognised they stood with their inmates (who, in sonic cases,
one of the prisoner's companions. Besides the driver escaped wholly uninjured) and moved for some d!s-
there was a worn in in the cart, who was visible to people tance—others were dashed in pieces, and swept away
in the streets, but there was something in their manner to distant parts of the island. In fact, the roof of
which induced the officer to think that a third party one house was found on an island thirty miles
was with them. Accordingly he ran up to the cart and off. One poor African woman lost her husband
called upon the man who was driving to stop, when the and all her children, house, clothing—in fact, all
prisoner, who had been lying at the bottom of the cart she had on earth to lose, save her own life. Poor
Under some sacks, looked up to see what was the matter, woman ! I have never seen the silent anguish of deep
and no sooner caught sight of the officer than he sprang
afflict.ion. snore strongly depicted than on her calm
• from the cart and took to his heels. The officer pursued
subplis.sive. countenance. Anything so sudden or so
and overtook him near to the steps leading from the
awful in its effects I have never before seen. Sub-
bridge into Thames-street, where she prisoner suddenly
Produced a life-preserver and made a desperate assault scriptions have been set on foot, and the Legislature
on the constable, whom he beat terribly over the head have voted 7001. This is a very poor colony, how•
and forehead, and inflicted very severe injuries upon ever, end we look anxiously to England to extend
him. Ultimately he tripped the officer up, and once her munificent kindness to our suffering po-
more ran off in the direction of King Widism's statue, pulation. It is little that we can do among our-
, but in the mean time the officer recovered, and conti- selves to repair the effect of so serious a visitation.
sued the pursuit, crying out, " Stop thief; stop thief!" Poor as we are, however, I may mention, that
These cries attracted the attention of the passers-by and this colony, sympathising with their suffering
eventually the prisoner, after making attempts to corn-
alit other assaults, was recaptured just as he was escaping brethren in Ireland, exerted themselves to the
into Lower Thames-street. The officer was then con- utmost and sent 5001. to the fund for their
, ducted to a surgeon, who dressed his wounds, while the relief during the famine there. Directions are
Prisoner once more found himself before the sitting given for an accou it to be opened at Messrs. Barnett,
Alderman at the Mansion-house, who committed him on Hoare, and Co.'s, Lombard-street, where money may
the present charge. The injuries the officer received be paid to the account of 'W. H. Hall, Esq., for the
'''lave ever since rendered him unfit for duty, and he Bahama Relief Fund ;'—he is the cashier of our public
Still remains under the care of a medical gentleman. bank here. "We earnestly look to the mother country
Mr. PAYNE addressed the jury for the prisoner, con- for succour in our extremity, and pray that we may
,tending that the evidence failed to establish any felonious not he disappointed."
, Intent upon the part of the prisoner, aud he ought, th,re-
fore, to be convicted of a common assault only. With
regard to the prisoner having used the life-preserver
With so much desperation, the Learned Counsel endea-
'loured to explain that away by observing that at the
etime the officer—as was admitted in cross-examination—
bad the prisoner tightly round the necprevent hik, and the prisoner
i recourse to the weapon, not to s lawful
llPPrehension, but to save his own life.
Mr. Baron ROLFE summed up, and the jury after a
Short consultation found the prisoner Guilty of the larger
offence of assaulting the constable to prevent his lawful
apprehension, or to do some grievous bodily harm.
The COURT sentenced him to be transported for 15
Years.

130W-STREET.—(THIS DAY.)
John Williams, a desperate-looking character, was
Pead at the bar before Mr. Hall, charged witla- the,l2l-
- robbery:— •
Police-constable 68 F deposed that he was on duty
this morning about nine o'clock in Covent-garden-
tarket, when he noticed the prisoner running away
• with a valuable great coat on his arm. He followed
'it; and the prisoner dropped the coat, and then ran off
•• *a fast as he could. Witness picked up the coat, and
;.succeeded in overtaking the prisoner, whom he removed
,!o the station house. When the coat was searched a
letter was found in it addressed to the prosecutor, offer-
. 4ng to return the coat for a certain sum.
• The prosecutor stated that ho kept a shop in Covent-
garden-market, and th4t he must have been robbed
"'about
eight o'clock, as up to that hour from two in the
tllorninihe had been sitting in it. The letter was con-
sequently written about ten minutes after it was stolen,
:Rid there was no doubt the prisoner was going to leave
• •4 at the shop of the prosecutor when he was taken into
tist°dY•
The
prisoner, who denied all knowledge of the coat,
'la fully committed to take his trial.