The Sun.
London, England, 1868-07-06 00:00:00

damages.

rIZOSECUTIONS FOR DRIBERT.-At the Bristol Police-
court Charles Stephens was charged with having at the
late Bristol e!ection unlawfully and corruptly offered a
bribe to Albert Hawkins, Edward Bennett, and Aaron
Stiles, in order to induce them to vote. Albert Hawkins
stated that he was going to the poll to vote for Morley,
when Stephens alighted from a cab and asked him where
he was going. He said, " To vote for Morley," whereupon
the accused said, "Don't be a fool ; vote for Mr.
Miles, and I will pay your expenses and give you
10s." Edward Bennett said that the defendant offered
him two days' work and " gold "to vote for Miles. Aaron
Stiles gave corroborative evidence, the words used to the
witness being identical with the language made use of by
the defendant when addressing the preceding witness. For
the defence it was contended that the accused was very
j drunk, that he talked a lot of inflated nonsense, wanted to
! become member for Bristol himself, and that his offers to
bribe were mere idle words spoken while under the influence
of liquor. Witnesses having been called for the accused,
the magistrate sent the case for trial.

ACTION BY AN AUTHORESS.—An action of a rather
novel character has been tried in the Westminster County
Court. The real plaintiff was Mrs. Whitcombe, wife of a
solicitor, who sued Mr. Adams, of the firm of Saunders,
Otley, and Co., publishers, to recover a sum of £5O alleged
to have been agreed upon ss the amount to be paid for a
work entitled "Folklore of England." A sum of £3 had
been paid on account ; but the contract was afterwards
repudiated, on the ground that the work was not original.
His Honour decided against the plaintiff, inasmuch as no
written acceptation of the MS. had been given, and no
verbal contract could be entertained.

TIIE ELCHO CHALLENGE SIIIELD.—A corre-
spondent of the Times sends to that journal [the result of
the competition for admission into the " English Eight,"
which took place at Epsom last week. Twenty-one
among the best shots in England had been selected to com-
pete, and the highest scores made were as follows:
Metford, 330 ; Paget, 313 ; Norsworthy, 311; Martin
Smith, 310 ; Ileaton, 309 ; Radcliffe, 309 ; Fenton, 307 ;
Pixley, 303 ; and rumbas, 302.

THE RECENT MELANCHOLY ACCIDENT AT THE
DEVONFORT RIFLE RANGE.—The two young gentlemen
accidentally shot on Thurs lay at a rifle match at Devon-
port have since died at the Royal Albert Hospital, Devon-
port. The medical officers of the estal;lishment having
decided on the necessity of amputation in both cases,
on Fi iday afternoon Mr. Norman's leg was taken cff
ab.mt midway between the knee and hip-joint, and that
of Mr. Gard just beneath the hip. Roth operations were
very skilfully performed, and all appeared to be going
well until midnight ; but at a.m. of Saturday 111 r.
Norman succumbed to the shock. At ten o'clock his
fellow-sufferer, Mr. Gard, Vrai found to be in a sinking
state, and died the same day. The evidence given at the
inquest sheaved that the ball did not ricochet, as stated by
some journals. Great excitement has been caused by the
occurrence, and much sympathy is evinced for the friends
of the two young men. Mr. Keast, who was the cause of
Ile accident, is retort :d to be Nli d wjth grief,—Western
Morning YelVe.