The Sun.
London, England, 1845-03-20 00:00:00

ROLLS' COUR7, March 19.

The Master of the Rolls took petitions and causes to-day.
His Lordship will sit to-morrow to hear a part-heard motion,
after which the Court will adjourn to the 7th of next
month.

VICE-CHANCELLORS' COURTS, March 19.
The VICE-CHANCELLOR of ENGLAND was occupied the
whole morning with motions and causes of no general inte-
rest. This is the last day of his Honour's sitting till the
7th of April, when his Honour will sit again in Lincoln's Inn,
and continue his sittings till the first day of term.
(Before Vice• Chancellor KNIGHT BRUCE.)
His HONOUR took causes to-day, and will sit to-morrow to
hear the bankrupt petition " Ex parte Young in the case of
Noble." The Court will then adjourn to the 7th of next
month, when his Honour takes motions. On the 9th and
the 14th the Court will hear bankrupt petitions; and on
the first day of term, the 15th, it is generally understood his
Honour will sit in the new temporary Court erected for him
in Old Palace-yard.
(Before Vice-Chancellor WiGuAst.)
This is the last day of his Honour's.sitting till the 7th of
April. The Court took causes of ilo general interest. His
Honour will sit in his new Court at Westminster on the
first day of Easter term.

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.
OXFORD ClRCUlT.—Siaiford, March 17.
(Before the LORD CIIIEF BARON.)

HEYWOOD V. GREEN-BREACH OF PROMISE OF MARRIAGE-

DAJLAGES 1,0001.

Mr. Sergeant Talfourd and Mr. Allen were for the plain-
tiff ; Mr. Whateley, Q.C., and Mr. Whitmore represented
the defendant. _

After the pleadings had been opened by Mr. Allen, an in-
timation was given by Mr. Sergeant Talfinird that a com-
promise had been arranged between the parties, and that he
was instructed to accept a verdict for 40s. damages—the cost
to be paid as between attorney and client.
Mr. WHATELEY, Q. C., expressed his willingness to consent
to such a verdict, and to allow that a most unexceptionable
character had been borne by the plaintiff for no less than
sixty years.
Mr. Sergeant TALFOURD stated he felt it impossible for him
to accept a boon of such magnitude, as the plaintiff confessed
only to fifty-four years.
The verdict was then taken by consent for 40s.
(Before Mr. Baron PLATT.)
CHARGE OF HIGHWAY ROBBERY. - William Thompson,
Mirfin, and Thomas Plant were indicted for a highway
robbery.
The prosecutor in this case was Thomas Harrison, a
butcher, residing at Batterton, in this county, who was re-
turning homeward from the market at Leek, with his cart
and horse, late on the night of the Bth of January. He
had about 141. in gold, silver, and "brass" in his possession,
and was accompanied by his dog. As he passed through a
turnpike, he observed three men, without hats, but with
handkerchiefs tied round their faces, who appeared desirous
of escaping his notice. He made some common-place ob-
servation, but receiving no answer, drove on, till he was
obliged by a hill to slacken his pace, when he again saw
the same men, and being somewhat alarmed by their ap-
pearance, looked for his axe, which was in the cart, and
prepared for defence. Upon reaching the top of the hill, he
stopped to breathe his horse, when he found the reins sud-
denly seized by a man, and looking behind him saw two
others, one of whom cried out, " Surrender, sir I" and
added, "Your money, or you're a dead man in a moment."
The prosecutor seeing no pistol in the extended hand of his
opponent, thought he would have a struggle for his pro-
perty, and jumping up, stoutly replied, "1 shan't surren-
der." The two men then threw large stones, which struck
him upon various parts of his body. One of these cut
through his hat, and inflicted a severe wound upon his head,
on feeling which, he sprang from the cart, aud, rushing to
the first speaker, whom he positively stated to be Mirfln,
struck at him with his axe. He missed his aim, however,
and the shaft of the weapon being unfortunately greasy and
ill-constructed for the hand, it flew from his grasp, and one of
the assailants gained possession of it, following up his advan-
tage by striking several blows at the prosecutor, one of which
caused a deep gash upon the cheek bone, and felled him to
the ground. Finding himself incapable of further resistance,
he begged for mercy, and offered to give up his money, all of
which, with the exception of 10%d., was taken from him, and
his watch also, which, however, one of the men returned.
One of them, stated by the prosecutor to have been Plant,
said " D— him, cut his head off with the axe, as he would
have cut off vour's," and struck him on the side with the
back of it. They then left him, and he made the best of his
way to the house of a man named Timothy Underhill, at
Oncott, bleeding profusely. Here he told his story, and de-
clared his conviction that two of the men who attacked hint
were Mirfin and Plant, both of whom he had known for a
considerable time.

Underhill being called, confirmed this statement of the
prosecutor with relation to the mentioning these names, as
did Joseph Allen, an old shoemaker, who was present. This
last witness, however, in answer to some questions put by
the Learned Judge, begged to be allowed to make "a candid
statement," when he informed the Court that, having lost his
consort, and his children being scattered over the world, he
felt very unhappy in his mind, and would honestly confess
that, on the night in question, he had been sacrificing to the
spirit of John Barleycorn, and that Morpheus, in whose arms
he had been reposing, was only frightened away by the ar-
rival of the prosecutor.
A policeman, who was on duty at Leek on the Bth, proved
the departure of the prosecutor from that town, and said that
he was then sober. He also took the prisoners into custody.
This was the close of the case for the prosecution.
For the defence, it was contended that this was a case of
mistaken identity, and a host of witnesses were called to prove
that the prisoners were at home, and in bed, at the time the
robbery was committed. It appeared that three other men,
of the names of Cundy and Johnson, had been taken into
custody on the present charge, and that the bill against them
had been ignored by the grand jury. They had not, how-
ever, been discharged, and by order of the Learned Judge
were now placed by the side of the accused in the dock, when
a considerable resemblance was observed in their features.
Under these circumstances his Lordship directed an acquittal,
observing, on discharging the prisoners, that they left the
dock without the least stain upon their characters.

NORTHERN CIRCUIT.—York, March 16.
(Before Mr. Justice WIGHTMAN.)
William Jackson was indicted for having, on the Gth of
the present month, feloniously assaulted George Wardle, one
of :the rural police, and wounded him with intent to do
grievous bodily harm.
Mr. Wilkins prosecuted, and Mr. Bliss appeared for the
defence.

The facts proved involved also the charge of poaching, for
it appeared from the evidence of the officer, that he had, on
the day named, been asked by William Swan, gamekeeper
to Mr. Thompson, of Sheriff-Ilutton, to lend assistance,
and thereupon Wardle went into some land where he was
directed to go, and there saw the prisoner, and another
young man named Webster, in the act of pursuing hares
and trespassing. The prisoner is the son of a farmer who
has about 150 acres of land. The other, Webster, who is
also a very young man, is the son of a person now holding
some land, who is a dog-breaker, and was formerly a game-
keeper. As stated for the prosecution, these two having
crossed a portion of the land occupied by the prisoner's fa-
ther, went on to the other ground, where the prisoner was
seen to shoot a hare and put it in his pocket. Webster had a
single-barrelled gun, and the prisoner a double•barrelled one.
They then went on, and in another field the prisoner took
another hare out of a snare, and put it into Webster's
pocket. After that both shot at a hare in another field,
which they missed. On this the officer went up to them
and :asked them about the snared hare. Webster said he
might look, but the prisoner said he'd be - if he should,
and struck him in the mouth, cocked his double-barrelled
gun, presented the muzzle, which touched Wardle's cheek,
and said if he did not leave, he (the prisoner) would blow
his brains out. A scuffle then ensued between the prisoner
and Wardle, who both came to the ground, when the pri-
soner called for aid upon Webster, who, raising his gun, told
Wardle if he did not let Jackson go he would knock his
head oil' with it. The officer then pulled the snare with
which the hare had been caught from Webster's pocket ; and
the prisoner struck him with the single gun, which he had
taken from Webster. By this blow a wound was made on
the back part of his head, and from the effects of the blow he
was so stunned as to lie on the ground, for about half an
hour, in a state of insensibility. The officer stated further,
that he again saw the same two men after he had recovered
himself going away with a pony that had been ridden to the
place by a boy of the name of Bean, and the prisoner then
said to him that if he followed them any further he would
give him some pellets.
After a very energetic speech from the prisoner's counsel,
in which it was contended that the officer had exceeded
his duty, and that the story for the prosecution was alto-
gether most unlikely to be true, and quite undeserving of
credit, witnesses were called to show that the real case was
one very different, and that the prisoner had acted but in
self-defence.

Bean, above-mentioned, was the principal witness ; but
Webster was also called ; and in their testimony it was
positively denied that the latter had any gun at all upon
the occasion, and asserted that the blow given to the
officer was inflicted with a stick which he himself had carried
to the spot. The boy said the officer threatened Jackson to
handcuff him, and actually took handcuffs from his pocket
after so threatening. This was denied on the other side. For
the defence it was stated that there had been but one shot
altogether, and that was at a duck.

Sir John Simpson was called to give the prisoner a cha-
racter, who said he had known the prisoner's family long,
and that they were most respectable.
Verdict—Guilty of a common assault.—To be imprisoned
for ten days.

WESTERN CI RC U T.—Dorchester, March 15.
CROWN COURT.—(Before Mr. Justice Ent.E.)
This was the day fixed for trying the two charges of
murder, the bills fur which had been ft, und yesterday. These
cases have excited great interest in the county, more espe-
cially in this neighbourhood, and, as a consequence, the
Court was most densely crowded, every place being filled
directly the Court was opened. Both prisoners were charged
with the murder of their children—the one by cutting the
throat of her new• born infant, and the other by adminis-
tering poison to her child, who was about two months old.
Betsy Christopher, a good-looking country girl, eighteen
years of age, was charged with the murder of her infant
child by cutting its throat.
Mr. C. Saunders conducted the prosecution. The prisoner
was undefended. _ _

The fellow-servant of the prisoner was first called. She
stated that she and the prisoner had lived with a Mrs.
Collins, at Parkstone, near Poole. The prisoner had been
in the service of Mrs. Collins about a fortnight. She slept
with witness, who did notremark anything particular in her
person to lead her to the supposition that the prisoner was
in the family-way. About half-past live on the 11th of
February, witness awoke and found the prisoner standing by
the side of the bed. She inquired what was the matter with
her, and prisoner replied " Nothing." It was quite dark at
the time, and consequently witness could not see anything.
Shortly after the prisoner got into bed, and witness went to
sleep till about six o'clock. She then awoke, and both she
and the prisoner got up and dressed themselves. They then
went :down stairs, the prisoner into the kitchen, and the
witness into the nursery to attend to the children, she being
the nursery maid. Nothing more took place till about eight
o'cbck, when the prisoner came up to witness and com-
plained that she telt very ill, and in a great deal
of pain. Nothing remarkable was said, and no suspicion
was awakened in witness's mind, who advised the prisoner
to go to bed. The prisoner said she would, and
went. About nine o'clock witness went up to the prisoner
and inquired how she felt, and was told that she was
worse. She was on the bed. About ten o'clock the witness
again went up to see the prisoner, and again inquired how
she felt. 'Witness then observed blood on the floor,
aid inquiring what was the matter, was told nothing. She
stood sonic little time, and then went down stairs. Shortly
after the prisoner followed her into the kitchen. She had
changed the gown which she had put on when they got up
at six o'clock. Her arms were folded, and within them she
carried something covered over with her apron. She went