The Sun.
London, England, 1829-09-11 00:00:00

SUMMER ASSIZES.

.NORTHERN CIRCUIT-LANCASTER, SEPT. S.
JONES V. POTTER.

Mr. BROUGHAM stated, that the plaintiff HI this
action was a manufacturer residing at Manchester.
He was the father of a large family, and held by all
who knew him in good repute and estimation. The
defendant was pretty well known to every one who
attended the Lancaster Assizes. In fact, he attended
there every assizes almost as regularly as the crier of
the court, and generally in the character of a defend-
ant. He was a person of considerable substance,
and was the owner of several houses. Among others
he possessed some houses, the rent of which not
being paid, he had sought to levy it by distress, and
upon that occasion a most unjustifiable proceeding
had been resorted to by the tenants. In fact, the
houses had been completely pulled down, and the
doors, windows, and other materials of which they
had been composed, had been strewed upon the
ground. As it seemed there was a dispute to the
title to the property, no one had removed the mate-
rials; but the defendant, hearing that some part of
them were to be found in the plaintiff's possession,
had gone, in the beginning of March, 1828, to the
house of the plaintiff, and requested to search the pre-
mises. At that time the premises had been searched
and nothing belonging to the defendant found there.
One would have thought that with that search
the plaintiff would have been contented; arid
certainly it was not a little hard upon the plain-
tiff, that in April the defendant had again
conic to his house, and, accompanied by a con-
stable, had desired to make a search. No
concealment had been attempted on the part of the
plaintiff. Nothing again bad been found in the
plaintiff's house, but upon some member of the
plaintiff's family saying that there was a beam in the
house of a person of the name of Johnson, a tenant
of the plaintiff's, thither the defendant repaired,
and there he had found a beam which he said had
been taken from one of his dilapidated houses.
With that beam, or the possession of it, the plain-
tiff had nothing to do, but the defendant had again
insisted upon searching plaintiff's premises, and
again plaintiff had assented. It would seem that in
a stable a door had been found which had been for
many years in the plaintiff's possession, but which
defendant had taken away as part of his own
property. The defendant had then again searched
.Johnson's house, and had found some window
frames, which he claimed as his own, although they
had never belonged to him, and which he took
away, together with some • bricks, which had been
purchased and marked by Johnson. Not contented
with all that, the defendant had caused the plaintiff
to be taken into custody, and to be dragged through
the public streets of Manchester to the New Bailey
there; when, upon the defendant making his com-
plaint, the magistrates had dismissed the charge,
without calling upon the plaintiff to say one word
in his defence. Thus a respectable mail had been
groundlessly taken up and exposed as a felon ; and
it was for the Jury to say what damages they would
give to the plaintiff, who, though in more humble
circumstances than the defendant, felt equally
with
him the value of a good name and character. Evi-
dence was adduced which bore out these facts.
After which, the Jury returned a verdict for the
plaintiff—Damages, 301.
Thomas Towers was indicted for feloniously
killing and slaying Isaac Dobson, at Nether Kellett,
on the 23d of July last. The prisoner was also
charged on the Coroner's Inquest with the murder
of the said Isaac Dobson.

Mr. CLARKE stated the case to the Jury.
Thomas Wilkinson stated that he was a miller, at
Donald's Mill, near Kellett. Witness's family went
to bed on the morning of Thursday, the 23d of July,
when they heard crying and scrambling on the road
leading to the Kirby Lonsdale road. Witness went
to the window; it was very dark. He could dis-
tinguish two men, whom he knew to be prisoner
and deceased. Prisoner was talking loudly and an-
grily. He swore very much. Deceased spoke
very little, and that in so low a tone that wit-
ness could not distinguish what he said. Witness
saw them struggle together; one of them fell, but
which witness could not say. Witness called out to
prisoner, and asked him whether he was going to
kill the man. Prisoner made no answer. The men

then went away, and witness could distinguish the
noise of talking and swearing in the direction of pri-
soner's house for some time. Prisoner lived at no
great distance. All then was quiet. Witness after-
wards looked out to see if he could see any thing of
Dobson, but he could not. In about d quarter of
an hour he heard a footstep coming from rrisoner's
house. Then the talking and swearing began again.
1 hey seemed to come to within 16 or 17 yards of
witness's door. Witness left the ►window to put the
children to bed, and did not return again for three
quarters of an hour. In the mean time ►witness
could hear Dobson crying out like a man alarmed;
but witness could not distinguish what was said.—
Witness went to the window, but the men
had gone away, and though he could hear
the loud talking, it did not seem to be in anger. Wit-
ness then saw no more. He get up at four in the
morning, and on going out he saw the prisoner's
coat and deceased's hat lying upon the step of the
door. Near to his house he found the (lead body of
deceased. He was quite dead, and lying near the
mill-door. That door was about twenty-two yards
from the house-door. The body was lying upon
the back, with the right hand across the breast, and
the left upon the road. There was black upon the
eye, and a cut upon the lip, but no blood.
Matthew Gardner lived at Nether Kellett, and
knew the deceased and prisoner. Had been at the
sale with them on the day in question. The morn-
ing after witness met the prisoner, and he told wit-
ness that he and deceased had fallen out, and been
fighting. Prisoner had then neither coat nor neck-
kerchief on.
Verdict, Not Guilty.