The Sun.
London, England, 1842-07-09 00:00:00

passed the Bill by :acclamation, and in con-
sideration of .the public desire, the House
of LorBs may ratify a measure which can
do no harm, and which will be at Worst but
waste paper ; but if women and infants are indeed
employed in mines, then what reason can there be to
doubt the truth of all that,the 2,000 pages of the Re-
port contain ? Must we not know what must be..the ef-
fect of thd promiscuous association of person s of opposite
sexes in darkness, and free from control—whether they
are or are not generally in an indecent state of ex-
posure ? Must we not know that infants com-
mitted *to the mine from the ages of five and 'six
years, must, grow up without moral education,
and that .such tender infants, committed to
the mercy of persons Who have an interest in
their /abOur, - but no interest in their hap-
piness or welfare, must be overworked and other-
wise treated with extreme cruelty ? Upon the
hypothesis that women and infants are employed
in mines, the presumption is that the wo-
men are corrupted, and the children tortured
and destroyed. No evidence is wanting to con-
firm this presumption, though, alas, it is abund-
antly confirmed by the • Commissioners' report.
It is for those who ueny the inevitable tendencies of
our corrupt nature to rebut the presumption, if they
can. •As well, however, attempt to prove that if
the women and children were thrown into the
Thames-. the majority must not perish—as well call
for a Committee to inquire whether drowning will
cause death. The only fact for the House of Lords,
or for any other body of reasonable men called to
decide upon the subject, to inquire into, is the fact,
whether women and infants are or are not employed
in mines ? If they are so employed,
,the obligation of
a prohibitory law is imperative ; but it is admitted by
the opponents of Lord Ashley's Bill that they are so
employed. What further need the House of Lords
inquire ?

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.
HOME ClRCUlT—Hertford, Friday, July 8.
' CIVIL SIDE.
(Before Lord ABINCER and a Special Jury.)
COOK V. THE AYLESBURY RAILWAY COMPANY.

This was an action to recover the amount of damage
sustained by the plaintiff in consequence of some of his
cows having been run over by a train upon the railway.
Sergeant Shee and Mr. Wordsworth were for the
plaintiff; ; l‘fr, Montagu Chambers, Mr. Peacock, and
Mr. Rose, for the defendants.
The defence set uplwas, that the Directors had done
all the law required them, and that the gate in question
was properly erected, and in good condition at the time
of the accident; and witnesses were called, who swore
positively. that they examined the gate before and after
the accident, and that it was perfectl3 secure, and it was
alleged that the accident must have occurred through
some person opening the gate.
Lord ABINGER said there was no donbt that the Railway
Company were bound in laW not only to erect proper gates
and fences in such situations, but also to take care
afterwards that they were kept, in proper repair.
If the Jury belieVed that, from any circumstance, even
from the ordinary wear and tear of such an article, the
fastenings were defective, and that the gate might have
blown open, and so allowed the cattle to get upon the
line, the defendants were liable, because they were bound
by their Act of Parliament to keep the gates and-fences
in proper repair. If, on the contrary, they believed the
witnesses for the defence, when they declared the gate
to be in a proper and secure state, then they would re-
turn a verdict in their favour.
The Jury returned a verdict for the defendants.
EDWARDS V. LORD LISTOWEL.

The above cause has excited a good deal of interest in
the county, and it was expected that some curious dis-
closures would be made in reference to the proceedings
connected with the recent elections at St. Alban's, be-
tween the plaintiff who was the agent for the Noble Lord
on both these occasions, and the defendant.

The declaration set fbrth, that the plaintiff claimed
from the defendant a certain large sum of money for work
and labour done, and services performed by him for the
defendant.

Mr. Chambers, Mr. Gurney, and Mr. G. Taylor, were
for the plaintiff ; Mr. Sergeant Shee, and Mr. Peacock,
were instructed for the defendant.
Before Mr. CHAMBERS could well enter on his state-
ment he was stopped, and afterwards addressing the jury
said that the present proceedings had led to un under-
standing between the parties, and he had the pleasure to
inform them that they would not be troubled any further,
as it had been agreed that one of the jury should be
withdrawn, and that no verdict should be taken.
A juror was accordingly withdrawn.

SOUTH WALES CIRCUIT—CarcIe July 8.
Muunza.—The Learned Judges opened the Commission
here on Tuesday. The only case of interest—viz., the trial of
Edwards for the matricide at Merthyr, took place yesterday.
Considerable interest was felt for the result of the trial, and the
Court was completely crowded.
Richard Edwards was indicted for the wilful murder of his
mother, Tamar Edwards. The prisoner, who pleaded " Not
guilty," appeared rather flushed, but otherwise did not seem
to feel the awful situation in which he was placed.
Mr. Vaughan Williams, with Mr. Nicholl, appeared for the
prosecution.

Mary Jenkins; eaamined by Mr. NICHOLL-.-I knew old Ta-
mar Edwards when she was alive. I saw her on a Thursday,
about nine days before her body was found. I saw her about
three o'clock in the afternoon. She was taking a jug cf water
by my door to her house. I did not see her go into her house,
but she went in that direction. My house is two doors from
her's. She looked as usual, as if shwas quite well. I was
in the habit of seeing her daily carrying coal or water. I never
saw her alive after that day. I was at home every day from
that day until the body was found, and must have seen her if
she had passed. 1 don't think I saw the prisoner at all after
that time,

David Lloyd, examined by Mr. NlcstoLL—l live at Merthyr
Tydvil, by the lower furnace. 1 remember when the body of
Tamar Edwards was found. On that day I saw the prisoner.
I then asked him where his mother was, as I said I had not
seen her that week. The prisoner said she was gone down to
Llandabon. The prisoner% wife was washing the floor when I
went in.

Mary Traherne gave similar evidence.
Jane Phillips exam►ned by Mr. WILLIAMS—Gave evidence
as to seeing Tamar Edwards and his wife on the Monday after
the body was found, and the prisoner on being asked after his
mother, replied, as in the other cases, that his mother was at
Llandabon.

Mrs. Williamieiamined—l am the wife cf Richard Wil-

hams. On the Monday I remember seeing the prisoner at the
bar. It was the Monday before I heard that his mother's
body was found. I saw him by his mother's house about five
o'clock in the evening. He was looking in through the window
and pressing a little of the hood of the cloak through the
pane. The cloak was across the window a little higher up
than where the pane of glass had been broken. It
was across half of the window. He
cloak so that he might look through the broken
pane into his mother's house. When he looked through
the broken pane be could see the whole of the room and the
bed, towards which he was looking. I came on to meet him.
He had left the house, and was coming to meet me. I asked
bim how he was, and told' him that his wife had been by his
mother's house on the Saturday morning before that, and that
I had told her when she was there that I thought her mother-
in-law was not at home. On the Saturday after I heard of
the finding of the body of the deceased, I asked the prisoner
when he Ind last been at his mother's house. He said he
had seen her on Thursday night. I asked him if he had heard
her talk of her intention of going from home. He said he
had, and that she went away on Friday morning. He asked me
if I knew where Peggy or Margaret (his wife) was. I said I
did not know. The woman next door (Mary Traherne) told him
where his wife was. He then went up the tram-road in the
direction of Caedran. I have been a neighbour of the de-
ceased for two years. She went from home sometimes. She
was a pauper at Llandabon. When :he used to go from home
she used to put a piece of calico or something like that at the
window. I know the cloak which was before the window ;
the deceased used to wear it ; she had another cloak to go
from home in.

Messrs.-Davit and Dyke, surgeons, of Merthyr, deposed to
the post niortens examination of the body of the deceased, who
in their opinion died by stritngulation.
The prisoner having declined saying anything in his defence,
The Learned JUDGE summed up, and the jury returned a
verdict of Guilty.
His Loansurr then put on the black cap, and proceeded to
pass sentence of death upon the prisoner, exhorting him not to
entertain any hopes of mercy in this world.

COMPROMISE COMMITTEES.
BELFAST.
CLOSE OF THE INQUIRY.

:Continued from our Third Edition of Last Night.)

On the admission of strangers at that hour, the Report
was not read ; but we understand the substance of it to
be as follows, and that it will be presented to the House
on Monday night
" That it had been proved that a compromise respect-
ing the late election petition for Belfast had been entered
into, and partly performed by two gentlemen on bailiff
of the petitioners, and the then sitting Members for Bel-
fast ; but it appeared that the then sitting Members and
the petilloners had no hand in such compromise, the two
gentlemen having solely relied on their personal influ-
ence with their respective parties for the carrying out of
such compromise.
" That gross and systematic bribery and corruption-had
prevailed to a great extent on the part of the Conserva-
tives, at the late election for Belfast ; and that the per-
sonation of voters at the poll had also been resorted to,
four men, in fact, having been brought from Monaghan
for that express purpose; but that it did not appear that
the then sitting Members had been in any way concerned
in, or, in truth, cognizant of such practices.
"iThat all parties were agreed in representing that the
registration of voters in Belfast was in a most deplorablb
condition, and required great alteration."

in his muster's field, near
icilftli
yy .1a s t week, a labouring
man
nwwras etmrnDplEoAyTednrickoinige
Ivybridge, when a circumstance took place of a most
awful nature. The atmosphere, which had been sunny,
became cloudy, and a heavy shower of rain fell; the
man, however, continued his work, throwing the hay
from the ground to the top of the rick; hut in a moment
of passion he raised the fork high in the air, and swore
that God Almighty might come and make the hay, for
he would not. At that instant a flash of lightning, at-
tracted by the iron prongs of the fork struck him to the
earth; and on being raised the unhappy man was dead.
—Wiltshire Independent.
GROUND SOLD AT ONE GUINEA PER INCH.--
That part of the street opposite• Messrs. illingworth and Hicks,
booksellers, Wakefield, is extremely narrow compared with the
other parts of the street in the Market-place. Last week, the ,
the ground on which stood
shop recently occupied by Mr. Alderton, situate directly op-
posite the above place, as taken down ; and we understand
thatthferonthe angularCommissioners eoL Wakefield l
purchase, for eighteen guineas, eighteen inches in width (mea-
suringthe most prominent corner of the shop above alluded to. The
oo:eld streets
have agreed to
very tiny bit of ground this purchaled will be a considerable
iinprovement,—Leed3 Times. •• • . ..!,,. ~_