The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-16 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 16, 1344.

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.
NORTHERN CIRCUIT.--York, Dec. 13.
(Before Mr. Justice COLERIDGE.)
His LORDSHIP this morning at the sitting of the Court
passed sentence upon several prisoners whose cases had
stood over, avd amongst them was Joseph Steadman
Maddison, His Lordship said,—Josedh Steadman Mad-
dison, you have been convicted of the crime of embez-
zlement—always a serious offence in its character, be-
cause it involves a breach of duty between the master
and the servant, the employer and the employed. We
must, as well as we can, as we pass through this
world, protect ourselves against the violence and fraud
of strangers ; but no person can effectually protect him-
self against fraud from a clerk or servant whom he em-
ploys. I have, therefore, always been in the habit when
I meet with a case of this description of awarding a se-
vere punishment to the offender. You had alleged in
your favour a good character, but that, in cases of this
sort, I do not consider a very mitigatory circumstance,
because no person would be placed in a situation of trust
unless he had maintained a pretty fair appearance in
the world. It appears, however, that there was a good
deal of negligence on the part of the gentleman who
employed you, in not calling upon you oftener to
make up your accounts, and this perhaps may have
herd out an improper temptation to you to com-
mit the offence of which you have been convicted. This
circumstance, and this alone, induces me to abstain from
sending you abroad, as I should otherwise have done. I
am not quite sure that I do right now in inflicting upon
you a milder punishment ; and I trust that you will not
abuse the clemency that has been extended to you, but
that you will endeavour, by future good conduct, to make
amends to society for the injury you have dote it. The
sentence of the Court is, that you be imprisoned for 18
calendar months, and during that time be kept to hard
labour.

(Before Mr. Justice Ceasswitu..)
John M'Cann, Thomas Rogan, John O'Brien, Daniel
Donovan, William Quinn, and Daniel Pourer, the last five
of whom were convicted at the last assizes, and the first
at the present assizes, of the manslaughter of Benjamin
Gott, at Bradford, were this morning placed at the bar
to receive sentence.

The case will no doubt be fresh in the recollection of
our readers, as we recapitulated the details of it upon the
occasion of M'Cann's trial in the course of the present
assizes. The prisoners are all Irishmen, and the de-
ceased was a mueician belonging to the Idle and Cal-
verley band. In July last there was an Orange proces-
sion, which was attended by the band referred to, and
in the course of their march they played the " Boyne
Water," " Croppies lie down," and other airs offensive
to the Irish population of the neighbourhood, who sub-
sequently set upon them, and so violently attacked the
deceased that his death resulted. The prisoners had all
been found guilty of manslaughter, but in consequence of
some legal objection being taken by the prisoners'
counsel, Judgment was arrested till the opinion of the
Judges could be ascertained upon the point in dispute.
His LORDSHIP this morning, in passing sentence, ob-
served that the jurl had taken a most merciful view of
their case The line which divided their crime from that
of murder was exceedingly narrow, and bad they been
found guilty of that offence, the manner in which the
deceased's death was compassed was such that he should
have deemed it his duty to leave them all for execution.
At an early part of the day they had allowed themselves
to be influenced by passion, and there was evidence from
which it might reasonably be concluded that they had
assembled together before the deceased returned to
Bradford, and had fixed a time for the perpetration of
those acts which had resulted in his violent death. He
repeated, that the most merciful construction must have
been put by the jury upon every circumstance connected
with the case, or they would have been unable to distin-
guish it from the more heinous crime of murder. As it
was, this was a manslaughter of the most grievous de-
scription, calling for the heaviest punishment that the
law awarded for that offence. Their punishment had
been postponed, however, since conviction, in con-
sequence of a doubt entertained, not as to their guilt,
but as to a technical form in which the crime imputed to
them was required to be preferred. As far as he (Mr.
Justice Cresswell) was concerned, having tried five of the
prisoners, he felt it to be his duty at that time to decide
the point without further deliberation, and to pro-
nounce sentence against them, that justice might not
fail by the lapse of an . interval from one assizes
to another. If, on farther consideration, any doubt
should be raised as to the propriety of their conviction,
there was no question but the Secretary of State
would prevent them from harm ; but at present he
must overrule the objection, and proceed, as his duty de-
manded of him, to secure their removal for ever from
this country. They were wholly unfit to move in society
in this country—wholly unfit to enjoy the liberty they
once possessed. In the land to which they were going
they would live in a condition little better than one of
slavery ; but he trusted that they might live there long
enough to repent having caused the death of a fellow
creature. The sentence of the Court was, that they,be
transported beyond the seas for the term of their natural
lives.

James Gill was indicted for corrupt and wilful perjury.
At the last Summer Assizes, tried before the Lord Chief
Baron, a labourer, named Bailey, brought an action
against Mr. John Wilson, a manufacturer at Keighley,
to recover damages for having, as he alleged, kicked him
on the leg, and thereby fractured the bone. The
prisoner Gill was a witness for the plaintiff, and he
deposed at the time that he was present, and that he saw
Mr. Wilson run at Bailey, and give him •a kick which
lamed him. The evidence given by Gill on that occa-
sion was proved this morning by Mr. William Green-
halgh, a shorthand writer, and the reporter to the
Yorkshireman newspaper, who was present at the trial,
and was engaged to take a note of the proceedings.
Evidence also was adduced to prove that the prisoner
was not present at all when the kick was said to have
been given, and that Bailey, instead of being lamed by a
kick, was drunk, and had received his injury from falling
over a form. This was the case for the prosecution,
conducted by Mr. Hall and Mr. Ingham, and attempted
in vain to be contravened by Mr. Blanshard, on behalf
of the prisoner.
The jury found the prisoner Guilty, and
His LORDSHIP sentenced him to be imprisoned for two
years in the House of Correction, with hard labour.

- One other case concluded the business of the York
assizes. Their Lordships got through the whole of the
business by six o'clock this afternoon.
Mr. Justice Coleridge proceeds in the morning to
Durham to open the commission there, and Mr. Justice
Cresswell returns, we believe, to London.
Durham, Saturday, Dec. 14.
Mr. Justice Coleridge arrived here this morning by the
half-past nine o'clock train from York, and in the even-
ing opened the commission with the usual ceremony.
The Court will sit on Monday for the trial of prisoners.
The calendar is rather lighter than usual, which is to
be accounted for by the fact that special general quarter
sessions have been held within these few days, in order
to clear :from it as many unimportant cases as possible,
that his Lordship might not be delayed longer here than
is absolutely necessary. There are at present but 26
prisoners in the list, of whom 1 is charged with the
murder of her new-born child ; 1 with manslaughter ;
1 with cutting and wounding with intent to kill ; 7 with
assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm ; 3 with
rape ; 5 with forgery ; several with burglary ; whilst
minor offences complete the number.

MIDLAND ClRCUlT.—Nottingham, Dec. 14.
THE LATE RAILWAY ACCIDENT.
The commissions of assize for the borough and county
of Nottingham were opened before Mr. Justice Patteson
this morning. The chief cases of interest for trial were
of course those of Robert Lightfoot and Jonathan Raven,
charged with manslaughter on the occasion of the late
fatal accident on the Midland Counties Railway. In
conseque ace of these trials being expected to last at
least two or three days, Mr. Justice Patteson, as will
be seen from his charge, determined to commence busi-
ness this day, otherwise Monday was understood to be
the first day of the assize. The Borough Court, in
which the first trial of Mr. Lightfoot was to take place,
was crowded by railway directors and others to hear the
charge to the grand jury.
Mr. Justice PATTESON, in proceeding to charge the
grand jury, commenced by observing, that he was aware
that the grind jury of the borough (Saturday being a
very busy day in Nottingham) were assembled on that
occasion at great personal inconvenience ; and he wished,
therefore, st the commencement to say a few words in
explanation. When he appointed the various commis-
sion-days sit Warwick, Coventry, Leicester, and Derby,
the business at Nottingham was apparently so light that
ho had every reason to suppose that the business of that
borough arid county would conclude so early as to allow
him to finish and arrive at Lincoln at least at an early
hour on Wednesday. In consequence, however, of an
unfortunate occurrence on the railway, which happened
after these :appointments were made, it appeared to him
(Mr. Justice Patteson) very :possible that it might be
necessary to commence at an early hour that day (Sa-
turday), in. order that they might complete the business
of the asiiizes by the time fixed for their being holden
at Lincoln. It was under these circumstances that he
had conversed them at the inconvenient time at which
they were then assembled. The calendar presented no
cases of diiinculty with the exception of that to which
he hadallakled. He would, therefore, not detain them
with any observations upon other cases, but would
direct their attention in a few words to that of the un-
fortunate rio2ideut which happened on the neighbouring
railway. With respect to the charge against Robert
Lightfoot for the manslaughter of John Dean, he might
be allowed to say that that charge could not come
before theist, as the violence took place in the county
of Nottinglutm, as also did the death of the deceased. In
that case, therefore, the borough grand jury had no
jurisdiction at all. The Learned Judge proceeded to
remark that: it was to be regretted that the two inquests
had not been held within the same jurisdiction, as then
the cases wot dd have been one and the same, and tried
before one cot trt. He would not say that the inquests
had not been properly held, but in the case of Mr. Dean
the grand jury of the town had no jurisdiction.—[lt ap-
peared that in, the case of Mr. Dean the deceased died on
wayh
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bhuist on
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tinrifiarlmoafry wlsrl.iicLh is sat
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charge against Mr. Lightfoot and Mr. Raven, jointly for
the manslaughter of Mr. Bolestridge, the death took
place within thlsi borough. In that case the indictment
might be preferred either in the county where the
violence took place, or in the town, where death ensued.
It was, therefore, extremely probable that in this case a
bill would be preferred before the grand jury for this
borough, and .ass uming that would be the case, be wished
to make a few ob servatioas. He (Mr. Justice Pattison)
had not seen The evidence given in this last case, but a
verdict of ma.nsi'aughter had, he perceived, been re-
turned by the coroner's jury against Jonathan Raven
and Robert Lightfoot. As he had before observed,
he had not hrbd an opportunity of seeing the evidence

in that case, because the inquest had been held so re-
cently that it was almost impossible that he could have
had the depositions placed before him ; he had, how-
ever, read the evidence in the case of Mr. Dean, and, as
a matter of course, the unfortunate occurrence arising
out of the same circumstances, the evidence at the
second inquest must be principally the same as at the
first. Of course it would be so. Now, there was a great
deal of the evidence given before the coroner not admis-
sible as to the charge of manslaughter against any par-
ticular person, and some of it was not legal at all.
Other parts of the evidence were not at all applicable to
the case. He (Mr. Justice Patteson) did not say this
with a view to find fault with the coroner ; not at all.
The inquiry before a coroner's jury extended over a
much wider field than an inquiry before a court similar
to that in which they were then assembled. The in-
quiry before them was, whether a particular person had
been guilty of a particular crime, whereas the inquiry
before the coroner was how the body, then lying before
him, came to its death. That being so, they would not
have brought before them the whole of the evidence
taken before the coroner. Now, the law upon the sub
ject was perfectly clear, but the difficulty was how to
apply the law to the facts. It was perfectly clear that no
man could be indicted for manslaughter for a mere mis-
take or error in judgment. If he acted to the best of
his judgment or ability, in the discharge of his duty, he
was not criminally responsible or liable for a mere mis-
take; but if, on the contrary, a person placed in a situa-
tion of great responsibility, duty, and trust, conducted
himself with gross negligence and inattention, then, in
case of death, he was unquestionably guilty of the crime
of manslaughter. Therefore, it was always difficult to
apply facts in such a case as the present. The law
was the same, whether applied to a man driving a
waggon or carriage on the highway, managing a vessel
on the seas, or conducting an engine on a railway ; if
he did not display due care and caution he was liable to
the charge of manslaughter. But if a person so em-
ployed got into a difficulty, and, however untoward the
result, if he acted to the best of his judgment, if he acted
as he thought best under the circumstances, however un-
fortunate his judgment might be, he was not to be made
to suffer for his error. It was very easy for persons to
say, after a disastrous occurrence had taken place, that
another course would have been better, but it was often-
times very hard to judge of a man by particular circum-
stances—by events which happened afterwards. Per-
sons too often said, " But he should hive acted so and
so ;" but let such persons place themselves in a case of
sudden difficulty, and then say whether he was fairly
answerable for thetconsequences which followed. Now,
the particular facts of this case were very plain and
clear indeed. It seemed that Mr. Lightfoot was the sta-
tion-master at Nottingham, and that he had voluntarily
put himself in a situation in which he had no right to be
—that was, he went by a " down-train," the " up train"
being blocked up by the overturn of a tender. His ob-
ject in thus going appeared to be to direct the engine-
driver to drive slowly and properly. He (Mr. Jus-
tice Patteson) thought Mr. Lightfoot wrong, and
that hi committed an error in leaving the Not-
tingham station at all, but ,for that he was
not to be indicted for manslaughter. It was clear that
when he went all was safe ; there was no mischief as to
that train, and it was plain and clear Mr. Lightfoot had
taken up the notion when he went up the line that the
tender would be shortly removed, the line speedily
cleared, and the next up-train from Nottingham proceed
upon its proper line. that was the opinion which he
appeared to strongly entertain, and upon which he most
unquestionably acted. Then they found Mr. Lightfoot
proceeding back to Nottingham on his proper line in the
'front of the engine, himself in the most hazardous and
dangerous position about the engine. He was apparently
confident that when the train came up from Nottingham
it would be upon its proper line. It turned out, how-
ever, unfortunately otherwise. A collision unhappily
took place, and Mr. Lightfoot was committed upon a
charge of manslaughter. That being so, another death
ensued, and Mr. Raven, the station-master at Beeston,
was next committed by another coroner's jury for the
same offence, but for what reason he (Mr. Justice Patti-
son) could not divine. He supposed it was for not stop-
ping the train when at Beeston. It did appear to him
(Mr. Justice Patteson) that the charge of manslaughter
against Raven was perfectly preposterous. In the con-
sideration of this case no one seemed to him to have
sufficiently considered the rate at which the up- train was
coming from Nottingham, and the circumstance that no
person, in obedience to the Company's code of regula-
tions, had preceded it to see that the line was clear. It
was in evidence before the" coroner, that the up-train
was going upon its wrong line at the rate of between
twenty and thirty miles an hour, while that upon which
Mr. Lightfoot was travelling was going slowly. Then,
again, as he had before intimated, no one, in obedience
to the Company's laws, had preceded the train. They
were told that a man was always understood to precede
a train 800 yards, when danger was apprehended ; but,
on this occasion, no person preceded it. Much had
been said about the Company not having sufficient force
for the proper and careful management of their business
at the Nottingham station. If that were the case, then,
most certainly such a fact was decidedly in favour of the
accused—blame rested upon a higher party. He (Mr.
Justice Patteson) did not see that that charge was
made out against the Company, but if it were it could
not be used as au argument against, but rather in favour
of the prisoners. They would have all the evidence
before them, and say whether they thought such a case
was made out as would justify them in placing either
one or both of the accused upon their trial for the crime
of manslaughter ; whether they had been guilty of gross
and palpable negligence, or merely committed an error of
judgment.
At the conclusion of the charge, the Learned Judge
proceeded to the County-hall, and opened the commis-
sion of assize for the county. At twelve o'clock he
returned to the Borough Court, sad commenced the
trial of prisoners. There was not one case of the
slightest public interest.
During the afternoon public speculation was afloat as
to the probability or improbability of the borough
grand jury finding bills against Mr. Lightfoot and Mr.
Raven. The Judge having concluded the trial of pri-
soners at four o'clock, returned to his lodgings; but at
half-past seven o'clock Mr. Collinson, the clerk of the
arraigns, was summoned to the court to hear the decision
of the grand jury.
The Foreman announced that they found no true bills
against Robert Lightfoot and Jonathan Raven for man-
slaughter. The result was generally expected.
On Monday another bill against Mr. Lightfoot for
the manslaughter of Mr. Dean will be presented to the
county grand jury, when it is thought there can be
little doubt a similar result will follow. It is not in-
tended to offer any evidence in support of the coroner's
inquisition.
In the case of Mr. Raven there was a singular instance
of speedy justice. His committal took place on Thurs-
day, the indictment, not less than two yards long, was
drawn by Mr. Lewis, the clerk of indictments, on Fri-
day, and it was ignored by the grand jury on Saturday.

NORFOLK CIRCUIT.—Bury St. Edmund's, Dee. 13.
(Before Mr. Justice WILLIAMS.)
MURDER.—Mary Sherring, aged 51, pleaded " Not
guilty" to an indictment charging her with the murder
of John Sherring, by administering to him some arsenic
on the 30th of July last.
Mr. Sanders and Mr. Power conducted the prosecu-
tion ; the prisoner was not defended by counsel.
From the evidence adduced in the progress of this
painful case, it appeared that the prisoner resided at the
village of Martlesham, near Woodbridge, in this county,
with her husband, an honest, hardworking labourer,their
family consisting of a daughter, Elizabeth, aged 14, and
two boys respectively 10 and 3 years ; besides these chil-
dren however, this couple had two other daughters,
Matilda, who lived out at service in the neighbourhood,
and Caroline, who was also in service at Lowestoft. This
latter girl had fallen from the paths of virtue, inso-
much as that she had, about three years ago, given birth
to an illegitimate boy, who had been thrown on her
parents for support and protection. After that unfor-
tunate occurrence his mother again went out into the
world, but not with any very steadfast moral reformation,
for in the course of the last summer she again became
a mother, when she bore another son, whose untimely
death was the subject of the present inquiry. He also,
together with his frail mother, became an inmate of
the prisoner's roof about three weeks after Whitsuntide,
he being then only four or five weeks old. With this
serious addition to their already poverty-stricken esta-
blishment, the grandfather and grandmother had much
to do to provide for themselves and those who were thus
cast upon their hands. The grandfather, however, stea-
dily pursued his daily labour, while his wife and her
daughters endeavoured to help him as much as was
within their power. Soon after the deceased and his
mother came home, the prisoner was frequently heard
to complain of their situation, and of the fact that no
allowance had been made to her by the father of John.
In the course of a conversation with Mrs. Brett, a neigh-
bour, she said one day, about a fortnight before the
death of the child, that "If no allowance was made,
something must be done ; if they got no assistance, to
the union-house they must all go,' appearing, at the
same time, to be in great distress of mind. In about a
week afterwards, at a time when the deceased- was in
perfect health, she went to the village coffin-maker, and
said that "John Sherring was very bad, and that there
would soon be s' job for a coffin ;" and on the evening of
Tuesday, the 30th of July, about eight o'clock, she
went hurriedly to Mrs. Brett, requesting her presence
and aid, as her daughter Caroline was at Woodbridge,
and " her child was overwhelmed with sickness." On
going into the cottage Mrs. Brett found the poor
thing lying in Elizabeth Sherring's lap, retching and
straining violently, his eyes ready to start from
their sockets, and his mouth covered with foam. In
the absence of anything else the neighbour suggested
an emetic, but the prisoner said, " No, that will do him
no good ; he will not be here many hours." "Dear me,"
said Mrs. Brett, " why, what have you been giving
I him ?" when the prisoner answered, " Nothing but
pap." Soon after this conversation the mother came
home, when the prisoner repeated her assertion that she
had given the baby some pap ; and, his sufferings grow-
ing more acute, the distracted parent went to bed with
it. No doctor was sent for, and in the night the sufferer
passed from this world as it had come into it—the inno-
cent victiih and object of vice and passion. On the fol-
lowing day the order was given for the coffin, and the
body was in a few days consigned to the grave in the
burial-ground of a chapel in the adjoining parish.
Although no indecent haste was observed in the funeral,
rumour soon began to busy herself about the cause of
the death, and one day the prisoner went angrily to Mrs.
Brett, and accusing her of talking about the child,
threatened to " make her jump for it" if she repeated
her scandal. In spite of this, however, the neighbours
still talked, and it being about that time ascertained
that the prisoner had bought some arsenic a fortnight
before the death, "to poison rats," as she said (when
she had received a solemn caution as to its use and
danger), it was deternainedeby the authorities that
the body should be exhumed4and subjected to chemi-
cal analysis. This important.tep was accordingly taken
about two mouths after We- burial, and the stomach

and its contents having been intrusted to Mr. Moore, a
skilful practitioner at Woodbridge, that gentleman ap-
plied to them the approved most modern tests, all
of which resulted in the production of arsenic, both in
its original metallic form and substance, and in a state of
solution with the fluids in the stomach. Under this state
of things the accused was consigned to prison on thtis
grievous charge, in support of which, besides the facts
above stated, it was shown that she had actually regis-
tered the death of her grandson long before he died, and
just at the time she bought the arsenic, and had assigned
to the registrar the very causes of death—viz., " convul-
sions and retchings," which did afterwards mark his exit
from life. It also appeared that, when before the coroner,
the prisoner made a long statement, admitting that she
had bought the poison, but adding that she had used
some of it for the rats, and had thrown away the rest
into the dungheap. She also then denied having fed the
baby for more than a week before it was dead ; but to-
day, when called on for her defence, she varied her state-
ment as to the disposition of the arsenic, and evidently
endeavoured to screen herself at the expense of her
daughters Elizabeth and Matilda, one of whom she said
had found, or shown her in a drawer, the paper in which
she had originally put away the arsenic in a shed, while
she insinuated that she had on one occasion missed about
one• third part of the poison soon after she had bought it.
It also further appeared that the child was quite well from
twelve to six o'clock in the evening of the 30th, when
his mother went to Woodbridge, leaving him in his
grandmother's care ; and Mr. Image, an eminent sur-
geon of this town, distinctly deposed that the effects of
arsenic on the child would of necessity develope them-
selves from 10 minutes to three hours after it had been
received in the stomach, and that it must have been ad-
ministed between 6 and 8 o'clock that night.
The Learned JUDGE, at the close of the evidence for
the prosecution, summed it all up most carefully and
luminously to the jury, who, having retired for about 20
minutes, returned into Court with a verdict of Guilty.
Mr. Justice WILLIAMS then, in most solemn anal
suitable terms, proceeded to pass sentence on the pri-
soner. In so doing he expressed his entire concurrence
in the finding of the jury, and after having exhorted her
to occupy the short remnant of her present life in peni-
tent and anxious preparation for that future one into
which she was so soon about to enter, pronounced sen-
tence of death upon her, without holding oat to her the
most distant hope of mercy in this world.
The prisoner, who had preserved an unwonted degree
of composure and self-possession up to the last solemn
moment of her trial, received her awful doom with un-
disturbed serenity of feature, and as calmly descended
from the dock as though she had been an unconcerned
spectator of another's fate.

NORTHERN ClRCUlT.—Liverpool, Dec. 13.
George Evans, a young man, aged 20, was placed at
the bar on a charge of the wilful murder of Jane Millen,
at Manchester, on the 14th of August last. He was
charged with doing it, in the first count, by inflicting a
wound on the forehead with an iron bar ; in the second,
by a blow on the back of the head ; in the third, by
strangulation ; and, in the fourth, by both means—those
of strangulation and the blows.
The case for the prosecution having closed,
Mr. POLLOCK, in addressing the jury for the prisoner,
complained of the more than railway speed at which they
had travelled in the case ; and he would venture to ask
whether, if they had heard cases of murder tried, they
ever witnessed such haste—such rapidity—such more
than railway speed ?
The JUDGE—What do you mean, Sir—what do you
mean by rapidity ?
Mr. PoLLocx—l apply it, my Lord, to the way in
which my Learned Friends have examined the witnesses.
The JUDGE—I cannot allow such observations to be
made ; there has been ample time to take everything
down.

Mr. PoLLocx said he was a very young man in the
profession, and he had too much respect for that profes-
sion to degrade it by any observation on the Court, to
which he was bound to pay every respect ; but he was
determined to do his duty to his client, and he did com-
plain of the mode in which his Learned Friends had
conducted the case.

At the conclusion of his address the jury retired, and
after being out of Court a quarter of an hour, returned
and pronounced a verdict of Guilty.
His LORDS/SIP proceeded to pass sentence as follows :
—" Prisoner at the bar, the jury have been compelled,
by the evidence which has been laid before them, to find
you guilty, guilty of a foal, cruel, wicked, and I fear,
deliberate murder. To a man who has discovered such
an utter absence of all feeling, I am afraid that any ad-
monitions of mine would be useless. Lose no time in
applying to God, your maker and your judge, for that
mercy which my duty to the public forbids me to show
to you. The sentence of the Court upon you is, that
you be taken to the place from whence you came, and
from thence to the place of execution ; that there you
be hanged by the neck until you shall be dead, and that
your body be afterwards burled within the precincts of
the prison in which you shall be confined. And may
the Lord have mercy upon your soul l"
The prisoner bowed respectfully to the Bench, and
walked steadily from the dock.
Saturday, Dee. 14.

Richard Leach was indicted for arson in setting fire to
a steer of timber, the property [of Thomas Graham, at
Little Bolton.

Mr. Hulton and Mr. Pellock conducted the prosecu-
tion. The prisoner was defended by Mr. Monk.
It appeared that the prisoner belonged to a sawyers'
union, and had several times, in the absence of Mr. Gra-
ham, forced his way into the yard, and endeavoured to
intimidate the men who were at work in the sawpit. He
had also at various times held out threats of injury to
Mr. Graham. On the evening in question a person who
lived in the neighbourhood saw a sudden blaze of light
in the timber yard, and immediately after two men, who
got over the palings and ran away. One of them had
clogs. Within a few minutes the prisoner was seen in a
public-house near, in company with two other men. An
alarm of fire having been given, the parties belonging to
the yard succeeded in extinguishing it. Close to the
steer or stack of wood in which the fire broke out were
found two ginger-beer bottles, which seemed to have
contained turpentine. One was a good deal smaller than
the other, and they were of different colours. It ap-
peared that a very short time before the fire broke out
the prisoner went into a chemist's shop not far from the
yard with two bottles of similar appearance and got a
gill of turpentine in each.
Mr. MoNx addressed the jury for the defence.
His LORDSHIP summed up, and the jury, after some
consultation, found the prisoner Guilty.
To be transported for fifteen years.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
(SATURDAY.)
MANSION-HOUSE.

Two women, named Maria Allen and Elizabeth
Sutton, were brought up from Bridewell for having
broken the Mansion-house windows about a fortnight
ago. They applied to be passed to their respective fami-
lies some distance from London.

The LORD MAYOR said it was not in his power to
pass them.
Mr. Goodman, the Chief Clerk, said that these
women, with others, had broken upwards of 100 panes
of glass in the house within a short period.
The LORD MAYOR said he could give no encourage-
ment to such offenders, and refused to pass them.
Maria Allen, on leaving the room, said if she had a
stone she would throw it at his Lordship's head. Upon
this, she was brought back, and ordered to find bail
herself in 101., and two sureties in 101. each, to keep
the peace. The prisoner was then removed to prison
till she could find bail.—The other prisoner ran off as
fast as she could..

question were part of the change he received. He
denied all knowledge of the transaction.

He was remanded until Wednesday.
WORSHIP-STREET.

George Baynes, police-constable 51 N, was sum-
moned before Mr. Broughton, to answer a charge of
assaulting George Geaves, and taking him into cus-
tody upon an unfounded accusation of having vio-
lated a young lady, the wife of a clergyman. The
particulars of the alleged violation, and names of the
accusing parties, however, did not transpire.
The complainant, a smart-looking young man,
who described himself as a chronometer-maker,
living in Graham-street, stated that about half-past
ten last Sunday night he was at a public-house,
when the defendant and another policeman entered,
and the defendant addressing him, said, " How do
you do ?" but immediately afterwards caught him by
the collar, and said " I want you ?" He asked what
he wanted him for, and the defendant saying& was
on suspicion of felony, began dragging him out of the
place. He was at the bar at the time, and caught
hold of the beer machine handle, but the defendant
kept hauling him away,and dragged him out of thehouse,
holding him by the throat so as to hurt him. He de-
sired the defendant to let go of his collar, and to hold
him by the wrist as policemen usually do, but the de-
fendant refused, until another constable, 233 N, en-
tered, upon which the defendant relinquished
the hold of his throat and held his wrist.
He was then taken to the station-house, and
there told that he was charged with committing a rape
upon a lady. He was detained altogether about three
hours, and the lady being sent for, attended at the sta-
tion-house, accompanied by a gentleman, who, he was
informed, was a clergyman. The lady, however,
on seeing him, said,," Oh ! no ; that is not the man ;"
and he was then released. He then asked the name
of his accuser, but, instead of receiving any satisfac-
tory answer, was thrust out of the station-house.
When thrust out of the police-station, he waited out-
side until he saw the same lady and gentleman come
out, and he then " politely" begged to be allowed to
speak to the gentleman, who, however, cried out
Police, police," and he was thus prevented from
further inquiry.
The defendant said that a reverend gentleman had
given him information of a rape committed upon a
young lady, and the description given of the offender
was such as left no doubt upon his mind that it was
this complainant, whom he knew as an associate of
thieves. The offence was alleged to have been com-
mitted some days before, and he, upon receiving the
information from the clergyman, went on the night
in question into the public-house where the com-
plainant was, and laid hold of him, telling him at the
same time the nature of the charge.
Mr. BROUGHTON said that whatever might be the
complainant's character in other respects, he had un-
doubtedly sustained an assault, and been illegally
arrested in this instance, and the defendant must find
bail to answer any indictment he might prefer at the
sessions.
The defendant was then held to bail in his own
recognisance of 301., and two sureties in 201. each.
UNION-HALL.

Charles Richart, a Frenchman, enveloped in a large
cloak, and with a sable boa round his neck, was
brought before Mr. Cottingham, charged with steal-
ing a valuable gold watch and a lady's gold neck -
chain, the property of Miss Eliza Williams, of No.
10, Upper Stamford-street, and Fanny Dronsart,
a Frenchwoman, was charged as an accessary after
the fact.
From the complainant's statement, it appeared that
the male prisoner had been lodging in her house for
about two months, and that his bed-room was on the
same floor as hers ; that on Monday morning last
she missed her gold watch and neckchain out of the
drawers of her wardrobe. The prisoner was out at
the time, but when he returned home she mentioned
the circumstance to him, at the same time remarking
that no other persons could have had access to the
room from which the articles were stolen but the
female servant and he, the door being left unlocked.
The prisoner, however, denied knowing anything
about the watch or chain, and hinted at the necessity
of giving the servant girl into custody, and added,
that owing to what had occurred, instead of retaining
his bed-room up stairs, he should sleep in future on
the ground-floor, and requested that his luggage
might be moved down stairs. His directions were
accordingly complied with, and nothing more passed
on the subject of the missing articles until Thursday
morning. When Miss Williams rose she found that
her lodger was gone, and on the table in his bed-
room was found a slip of paper, in which was written,
that, having been disappointed in remittances from
his father in France, he (the writer) had started off
for Paris, to obtain some money, and that he should
return in about twelve days.
The proceedings were here for some time inter-
rupted by the female prisoner being attacked with a
hysterical fit, and she was obliged to be carried out
into the open air. On her recovery, and being
brought into Court again, the inquiry was resumed.
The complainant went on to describe that the
abrupt departure of the male prisoner from her house
had the effect of strengthening the suspicion that he
was the man who robbed her of the watch and chain,
and she accordingly gave information of the circum-
stances to. Sergeant Leighton, of the L division. That
officer, it appeared, at once set about inquiring on the
subject, and ascertained that on Thursday morning,
between four and five o'clock, the female prisoner
hired a cab in Oxford-street, and was driven over to
Stamford-street, where she awaited within a few doors
of Miss Williams's house, while her fellow prisoner
came out by stealth with all his luggage, and, joining
her in the vehicle, they bosh drove to John-street,
Oxford-street, where the female lodged. The latter
prisoner had, on the subsequent day, called at the
complainant's house, and represented herself as
Monsieur Richart's washerwoman, and that she had
come for some soiled linen which he had ordered her
to wash and have in readiness for him on his return
from Paris. The sergeant took the prisoners into
custody on Friday evening, in John-street, Oxford-
street.

A foreigner said he knew the male prisoner as a
honourable man, and not as a thief; that he did not
think he would be guilty of such a crime, his father
being a wealthy burgess in Paris.
The prisoners were remanded until Wednesday, the
Magistrate Paying he would take bail for their appear-
ance in two sureties of 1001. each. The prisoners,
however, being unable to procure that bail, were
committed.

Robert Norton, the driver of cab No. 1,758, was
charged with stealing a carpet bag, containing va-
rious articles of dress, the property of a gentleman
named Gibbs, residing at Northampton.
It appeared Mr. Gibbs arrived on the preceding
evening from Northampton, at the Bell and Crown, in
llolborn, at which inn he was met by a Mr. Stirling,
with whom he got into the prisoner's cab, and having
placed his luggage, and amongst them the carpet
bag produced, in the vehicle, they drove off to Mr. Stir-
ling's residence in the York-road. Some altercation oc-
curred respecting the fare, and the prisoner drove away,
and soon afterwards the bag and its contents were
missed by the complainant,when Mr. Stirling, his friend,
recollected that it was placed on the box of the cab. The
latter gentleman immediately went off in quest of the
driver, and, in passing along Bow-street, he was
hailed by the prisoner, who asked him if he wanted a
cab, and this led to his apprehension. When ques-
tioned on the subject of the carpet bag, the prisoner
denied that he knew anything about it, although told
it was at his side when he drove off from the Bell and
Crown. Mr. Stirling, not satisfied with the mere
denial, proceeded to examine the vehicle, and in the
boot of it, stowed away under horse-cloths and hay,
he found his friend's bag and its contents. Mr. Stir-
ling took possession of the property, and was proceed-
ing to call a policeman, when the prisoner jumped on
the box of his vehicle and drove off, but his number
being known, he was soon afterwards taken into
custody.
Mr. COTTINGITAII said it was evident the prisoner
drove away with the carpet bag and its contents,
either for the purpose of waiting for the reward, or
appropriating it to his own use. Even if the former
was his intention, he was equally guilty of felony,
for the owner's name and address were on the carpet-
bag. The Magistrate added that, for the purpose of
protecting the public against such dishonest persons
as the accused, he should send him before a jury.
The prisoner was accordingly committed.
THAMES POLICE.

Sergeant Waller, acting inspector at the Poplar
Police-station, applied to Mr. Ballantine, requesting
to know how he should act under the following cir-
cumstances :—The sergeant stated that about a
quarter past six o'clock that morning, a person came
to the station-house and reported that the inhabitants
in the neighbourhood of the Union Chapel, Bow-lane,
had been disturbed and alarmed from a late hour in
the night by dreadful groans, and, notwithstanding
the most careful inquiry, no one could tell from
whence they proceeded. The sergeant at once dis-
patched Plowright, 106 K, to endeavour to discover
the cause of alarm. Notwithstanding the seeming
improbability, he felt assured that they isued from the
:Union Chapel, and having procured the keys from
one of the trustees, he proceeded at once to search the
place. Tracing the sounds, which had now become
very weak, he found that they issued from the chim-
ney
in the vestry-room, and, on demanding who was
there, the voice of an apparently much exhausted and
gasping-for-breath person exclaimed, " Oh, for God's
sake, take me out !" As the person appeared to have
stuck half way in the flue, this was no easy
task, and, on proceeding to extricate him, it
was found that the pot of the chimney iu
which the man was transfixed had been re-
moved and placed cap-wise upon an adjoining one. At
length it was found necessary to dig away at the spot,
and after some time, a man, named Smith, who had
several aliases, and is well known to the police, was
rescued from his perilous position in a state of great
exhaustion from cold and want of air. lie wa* at i

once conveyed to the station-house, where, being
placed before the fire, and the attendance of a sur'
geon procured, he was so far recovered as to be con-
veyed to the London Hospital, where he as present
lies under the surveillance of a constable. The ser-
geant's object in applying to his Worship was to knot"
how he shou!d act with respect to this man ?
Mr. BALLANIINE—You must take him into CO'
tody as soon as he is able to be removed. Has Of
property been missed from this chapel before ?—The
sergeant replied that he understood property had been
missed from the place on a former occasion, but tlB
amount was not stated, nor did he know of what it
consisted. Plowright, on bringing the man to the
station,.charged him with being on the premises for
an improper purpose. Under these circumstances:
would it be proper to leave a constable in charge at
the hospital ?
Mr. BALLANTINE—That's a police regulation, Wall
which I have nothing to do.
Sergeant Waller—But I suppose your Worship will
look to me to produce him here ?
Mr. BALLANTINE—Most certainly; as he has been
charged in the sheet, it will be your duty to produce
him.
The sergeant then left to take further measures for
Smith's safe custody.

GALSTON-CESSN OCK IRON
WORKS.

The whole estate of the late Cessnock Iron Com-
pany, sequestrated by his Grace the Duke of Ilor't-
land, was brought under the auctioneer's hammer 00
Monday last. As an evids.nce of the flourishing staff
of trade, much higher rates were got for many of the
lots than anti ipated; in most cases double the
amount of their estimated value was the result.
Messrs. Finnie, of Kilmarnock, and Howie, Hurl-
ford, were among the most extensive purchasers. The
Cessnock Iron Company were among those unfor-
tunate enterprising persons who speculated largely
shortly before the late trade stagnation. In the year
1838 they procured a lease of the minerals in Gess;
nock estate, from his Grace the Duke of Portlanoi
and ground whereon to erect works. Abundance
minerals were considered to be on the estate, butafter working part a deficiency was feared. 1,1
black-band ironstone could be found. Abundance.
clay ironstone of superior quality was found in Deus
of from four inches to fourteen inches in thickness'
running through the estate. Little of it, however'
could be wrought open cast, and mining, of course'
was the result, which was carried on at an incredlbl
expense. The coal-fields were extensive, and
superior quality for smelting iron, but the limesr""
was inferior ; and the limestone used in smeltut
which was excellent in quality, was brought ft°ll'
the estate of the Marquis of Hastings. It was er.
parent to all, from the large amount of capital
pended in the erection of the works, and from roan)
parts, after being built superficially-, requiring to •
w"
taken down and built more substantially, that '
speculation was not likely to be conducted to success:.
After a great many seemingly unsurmountable or
stacles had been overcome, small quantities of (1
ficient iron were produced, which, from its Dli",
nature, did not suit the Scottish market, and was s°l
cordingly regularly exported to Liverpool, where
market was found—but at a low figure, not eve
commensurate with the expense incurred in its krs
duction. Of course, this could not last a lengtu,
time. Two furnaces were kept constantly smelt.l%
iron, producing, on an average, twenty tons of
.104
every twenty- four hours, at a loss of twenty shill,r
per ton, or twenty pounds sterling, daily. 'nv
Company became involved in debt, and bankrurZ
followed. Part of the estate was sequestrated by
Commissioners of his Grace the Duke of Porthor'i
and sold as above, and the remainder was sold
,c:t
behoof of the other creditors, whose claims '
to about 18,000/.—Kilmarnoch Herald.

STATE OF TRADE.—Adverse winds continuo o 0
ft
keep out many ships, and consequently the stoc:o4,,
produce are now suffering some reduction, wito reet
however, improving prices. There has been s
business in cotton, about fifty thousand bales have
ben sold since our last publication ; speculators
been freely in the market, and have taken Po° '
one-third the quantity. The great supply °n
has prevented any advance, and importers are ge. s,
rally willing sellers. Even at our present low quo
to
tions many of the next imports will return a pron..
the shippers, and thus there will not be the come
inducement to withhold them from the market. is
Manchester trade is not so brisk ; it rarely is, so isros
the year, when a great proportion of our export busr,,
is stopped ; still manufacturers of all sorts are do 7
a good and highly lucrative business. Money efiti
nues cheap, and apparently very plentiful r thus strek,
and shares of all sorts, which usually feel the first pin
are yet as buoyant as ever. Opinion is much divide° 0
to the ultimate fate of the multitudinous schemes 0.10
the office of the Board of trade, but we think wetlr;e4
the ideas of a large portion of the community wbel3,
state that they ought to pass through a very stile>,
deal; very great interests are at stake—the publio dr
venience, the public purse, and the national welter/soy
mand the utmost investigation before such a Vt.sillw4
and such evident injury to existing interests arse nerll3„l- at,
As the time approaches for the meeting oi Parlis'lds
we hear on all sides of energetic endeavours being 'of
by differently interested parties to obtain reductirweL
the existing duties on many of the leading srlic:Sta
c.Anmerce. Thus we find cotton, tobacco, and tea groei
very prominently forward, and with a very di' 0.
ground-work for the application, as at present cottlgo,
subject to a duty of about 71 per cent. on the /1 00
tobacco 900 per cent.; and tea probably 150 per cejin °
the average; whilst the sorts in greatest consume ris.
the poor pay fully 200 per cent. on their value. .1%0,
cise regulations, too, seem likely to promise some e to•
pation for the next session ; this is a department ca ay
revenue which has always been collected with 1214/re..ooo'
noyance to individuals than any other branch; it '„ o
a very great expenditure on the country, and it wil_l_et
matter for serious consideration whether the cost 07n bo„,or
be diminished, and the revenue protected, whilst Sw'er.
facturers are allowed greater license than they OW
;oy.—Liverpool Mercury.
DEATH OF THE OLDEST PREACHER IN ScoTl4ol9lo*
—The Rev. Thomas Jolly, minister of Dunnet,
county of Caithness, died in the manse there, on 720170,
the 2d instant, at the patriarchal age of ninett,or
Mr. Jolly was undoubtedly the oldest preae;ner in no
land, having been upwards of sixty-five years in 95'.
pulpit at Dunnet, as assistant to his predecessor' lS
Train, and minister of the parish. gs was ordain, togl
August, 1784. He retained his fioulties to the las,reatlir,
preached regularly till within a few weeks of big "osts-
with all the vigour and clearness of his earlylsoor
When the disruption in the Church of Scotlasa
place, the venerable minister addressed a letter Ww O
Chalmers on the subject, which was sicknowledle.tate
one of the ablest of the vast mass of letters an°, "fork
merits which that unfortunate secession ca11e5,46.0
Mr. Jolly was a native of the Mearns, and stuLtir
Aberdeen and Glasgow Colleges, where he will :iles!
guished for his acquirements in metaphysics asal,;,ies°
philosophy. He was also an accomplished ands
scholar, and cultivated to the last his taste for 00
elegant studies, as well as for the exact science‘a hi/
benevolence and charity were truly unbourtaed, 100
memory will be long 'revered in Caithriess.---1/1
Courier.
01°.

THE IVEkrunt.—The winter has set 10."
dlO
severely, with an intense ground-frost, and the s'.l, cio
Egst. The navigation of the rivers between this 14
and Yarmouth, and from that port to Beccles, 12,110 tie
and Aylsham, has been stopped by the ice. boat' L
mosphere has been very thick for several days, filf.4
cuing snow, but none has fallen, except a veil `—‘,o,of
descent on Sunday evening. A covering of the;
able clothing for the ground would be very acceL
In some parts of the country snow has fallen, thong
to any considerable extent.—Norfolk Chrsnick.
FELLOWSHIP OF THE COLLEGE OF SURGICIg ft
We regret to say that no list, that can claim cr(PN •0410
correctness, can yet be published of the gentler4e°
have passed their examinations for this new gr.hde..dell/i
fate of several of the candidates is yet under collobe
tion ; and the notices of names that have be en pub
are entirely inaccurate.—Medical Times.
BIRTHS. Ir
On the 12th inst., at Houghton Hall, near Carlill"
,
lady of Peter James Dixon, Esq., of a son. f
On the 13th inst., at Hedgerley-park, the law
bv
Jo
Clayton, Esq., M.P., of a son.
On the 13th inst., at Greenwich Elospital, Lady j ta11044
Hope, of a daughter.
On the 13th inst., at Calver, Derbyshire, 311'4'
1/#
Crompton Bentley, of a son. f °
On the 13th inst., at Wolford Vicarage, the lady
Rev. G. Domvile Wheeler, of a daughter, still-born' .10
On the 14th inst., at St. John's-hill, Battersea, 1117
the Rev. J. M. Seule, of a son.
~.10111$.
On the 14th inst., at Hyde-park-place West, n
'
Sykes, of a son. peg
On the 14th inst., at Eaton-square, the wife ,JfT
Esq., of a son.

M.AR.RIE

.D.
_rt. Oro*
On the 12th inst., . at Aldbrough, Char)es Stood-1.1-4,
son of Joseph Stubbs, Esq., of Mecklenbuigh-scluall-bnuf,%l
to Jane, eldest daughter of W. Hirst, Esq_., of Borougj.
On the 12th inst., at Preston-notxt-Favershsno,v'epsb,fo
Venables, Esq., son of the Venerable Archdeacon 'of Gfr
of Lysdinan Hall. Breconshire, to Sophia, daughtul're.ot•
Hilton, Esq., of Preston House, near l'avershain----

T Siceffs'
broOOthnetritiloeite,lllth inst., at DLleEantgton, waiter
younngest son of Major-General T. Stewart.
~,„/
the Earl
Einasrtl.,onfevaraßrtimcbmtoind, the H570.n.
At Frith-street, Soho, Loonudoin,agllelrs. Clamed'
tlhVeallniiaedrr,aKs eNnatt,hweidlonwfanotfryt.he late Major Jam:
s C'Jew
tphoeOdin,natngheeerdBT6tsehm. inst in Brunswick-place, Regent's-"--"tri4
L
On the 11thpilnes:ta.,gaetdT2o6r.quay, A. Burnett Saar—
„e far"'
Qn the 1 lth inst., at Dunfermline, Fifeshire, 1
daughter of the late Alexander Robertson, Estl' irenr9 Fr--
('u the 11th inst., Louisa Ann, the wife of Mr.
ford, of Calthorpe-street. of Adirll'
On the llth inst. at ChieTely, at the residence
_A filt.
Sir Ilugh Pigot, K.C.H., Mrs. Mary Barbara Hill, sS"'
On the Iha inst., at Bath, Mrs. Emma _ ..,
On the 12th inst., at Tottenham, Samuel Stalew•ZZ,
On the 12th inst., at Brighton, E. E. Mich°
New
On City.
the lath inst., at Peckham, Harriet M. A d...._01,_,,51:4"
London: Printed and Published by MIIRDO I so. )1„i
No. 112, Striool. Printer, at The. Sun Officelconti
ia the Precinct of the 13svey, in tl2'
ifonday, December 16,1844•