The Sun.
London, England, 1829-01-21 00:00:00

AGGRAVATED CASE OF TRESPASS.

Yesterday a Jury was empannelled at the Three
Tuns, in the Borough, before Mr. 'Smallpieee, for
the purpose of assessing damages against Mr. Mor-
ton Stubbs, an attorney, for a trespass and breach of
the game laws, alleged to have been committed on
the manor-of Sutton, in Surrey. 'The defendant had'
allowed judgment to go by default.
Mr. TIIESSIGER .stated the case against the de-
fendant. A Mr. Wilson was the nominal plaintiff in
this case, and Mr. Hatch is the Lord of the Manor
of Sutton: Belonging to the manor is a piece of
ground, called Benhill, which contains about seventy
acres, and of late years has been -converted into a
preserve, by Mr. Hatch, for the purpose of rearing
game, who alone has the sale and exclusive right of
sporting over it. The defendant (said the Learned
Counsel) has been a wholesale slaughterer of
.genie
-in this preserve ;• and - lamentable indeed. would it
be if lie brought down his clients as fast as he did
the hares, amongst which he had' committed such
havoc that the breed, which was numerous at one
time, were now nearly extinct, from the nnerringairn
of his fowling piece. Since the 29th of September
notice had been served on the defendant not to apo
pear on the ground in question, other Wise he would
be treated-as a trespasser }-notwithstanding --Which
he made his appearance at Benhill on the 7th of
November, with his double-barrelled fowling-piece,
accompanied by four dogs and a man, whom he em-
ployed to beat the bushes for the game. Mr. Hatch's
gamekeeper on seeing the sportsmen, and knowing
they had no right there, desired them to quit the
grounds; adding, that if they did not withciray.,',
he had a right to seize their dogs and gun.—
To this intimation the defendant said, " If you dare
do so, I shall knock you down." The gamekeeper
then went away himself, in order to • look for
Mr: Hatch, and on his return the defendant was still
in the grounds, and by that time had completely
stuffed his bag with. the pheasants he had killed ;
and on being subsequently warned to desist, he ex-
claimed, " I shall not go; lam sent here to try a
right, and see Mr. Hatch -- before I quit."
Had the defendant (said the Learned Counsel), -if
that was his object, killed a few brace, and then
walked away, and afterwards brought an action to
try the validity of the question, and set this up as a
justification, then there would have been some
palliatives in the case; but no, he did not proceed in
this manner; he set all law at defiance, and repeated
his visit again to Benhill. on the 9th, accompanied,
as before, by a man, to beat the bushes, and three
dogs. The gamekeeper, on seeing the defendant,
said, " what, are you come here again ?" " Aye, am
I (replied he), and I mean to kill all the pheasants
on the preserve, and after Wards blow up, the bushes;"
and had scarcely uttered the words, when be shoul-
dered his gun, and being a deadly shot, knocked
down six pheasants; and the man who was with
him, holding up the dead game in the gamekeeper's
face, called out in derision, "You keep-nice phea-
sants, for us—we shall kill the whole of them."
After this, he was again served with a notice not to
trespass on the property of Mr. Hatch, and, on the
11th, was again found in the preserve, with his bag
well filled with game; on the 20th he came . there
again, and declared his determination of killing
every cock and hen pheasant in the preserve.
The 4th of November was the last time the de-
fendant. visited Benhill, and he came there with six
other persons and his usual companions—the dogs
and his.double-barriled gun. The gamekeeper on
this occasion said to him, " Really, Sir, you might
as well bring the whole_ parish along with you."
The defendant paid no attention to the words ad-
dressed to him, but;commenced operations, and be-
fore he quitted the preserve knocked down fourteen
pheasants. In fact, he has annihilated the whole
breed of pheasants that were in the preserve,- and
which had cost so much trouble and expence in the
rearing.
Proof was here given of the notices having been
served on the defendant.
John Baker, the plaintiff's gamekeeper, deposed
to the' facts given in the Counsel's statement of the
case.

Mr. BoDKIN addressed the Jury in mitigation of
damages. The defendant, by letting judgment go
by default, had admitted his error; and had Mr.
Wilson, the nominal plaintiff, sustained any damage
by the acts committed by the defendant ? .Certainly
not. The defendant, at the time of the alleged
trespass, considered he had a right to sport 'over
Benhill, his father being one, of the copyhold
tenants to the Lord of the Manor. With respect
to the general policy of the Game Laws, he (the
Learned Counsel) should not now enter upon it ;
but he would say this, that the manner in which they
were carried into execution gave rise to more crime
and misery than could be well imagined.
The Jury, after a short deliberation, assessed the
damages at 3001.

On Tuesday evening a huissier of the hint's
household contrived to obtain admission to the ball of the
Duchess of Berry, and was dancing with a daughter of a
Marshal of France, very near her Royal Highness, when
he was recognized, and turned out of the room. We are
assured that he has been suspended from exercising his
fuuetions.