The Sun.
London, England, 1845-03-19 00:00:00

THE DUKE•OF NORTIRTMBF.RIAND v. IWOREGOR.

The further arguments in this part-heard Scotch ap-
peal were resumed and concluded to-day.
Their Lordships postponed their judgment.

ROLLS' COURT, Maich 18.

The Master of the Rolls wai occupied the whole day
with the part-heard case of Ambles v. the Lancaster
Railway Company, the arguments on which were not
concluded.

VIOE-CHANCELLORS' COURTS, March 18.
Nothing of any interest occurred in any of the Vice-
ChaEcellors' Courts.

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.
OXFORD ClRCUlT.—Stafford, March 17.
(Before the LORD CHIEF BARON.)
HEYWOOD V. GREEN—BREACH OF prtomiss-. OF MARRIAGE—
DAMAGES 1,0001.
Mr. Sergeant Talfourd and Mr. Allen were fur 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 Talfoutd 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, aLd 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 PLArr.)
CHARGE OF 'HIGHWAY ROBBERY. William Thompson,
Miljin, 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 14/. 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. lie 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 !" 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, " I 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, and, rushing to
the first speaker, whom he positively stated to be Mirtin,
struck at hint 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 front 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 101 Ad., 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 " him, cut his head off with the axe, as he would
have cut off your's " and struck him on the side with the
back of it. They ;hen 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 him
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 policem'ao, 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. Ile 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 Candy 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 bad 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.
tinder these circumstances his Lordshipdirected 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 6th 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-Hutton, 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 doable .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 off with it. The officer then pulled the snare with
which the hare had been caught from Welpter'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 bat 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 CIRCU! T.—Dorchester, March 15.
CROWN COURT.—(Before Mr. Justice ERLE.)
This was the day fixed for trying the two charges of
murder, the bills for which had been %Lind 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 tly.
throat of her new-born infant, and the other by admi'
tering poison to her child, who was about two month,.
Betsy Christopher, a good-looking country gir'
years of age, was charged with the murder
child by cutting its throat.
Mr. C. Saunders conducted the proseeu'
was undefended.

The fellow-servant of the prier•
stated that she and the priso'
CollinP, at Parkstone, near '
in the service of Mrs. Cos''
with witness, who did
person to lead her
in the family."
February, w;'
the side o°
her, ar'
...
',up
r