The Sun.
London, England, 1829-07-02 00:00:00

THAMES-OFFICE.

Yesterday Captain Sampson Bragge underwent
another examination before Mr. BAI4,ANTINE, charged
with the wilful murder of Lewis Sinclair. A num-
ber of respectable persons, friends of the prisoner,
were in attendance, and Mr. Harmer was also pre-
sent as his legal adviser.
Upon the prisoner being placed at the bar, Mr.
BALLANTINE inquired whether the chief mate of the
Francis Watson was in attendance.

Ellis, the officer, who had been engaged the whole
of the previous night in collecting the crew together,
answered in the affirmative.

Mr. BALLANTINE directed him to be placed at the
bar.

Mr. Pete, Miller, the chief mate, was accordingly
placed by the side of Captain Bragge, and the exa-
mination proceeded.
Hugh Murray, the seaman who was examined on
Tuesday, was again sworn to the truth of his depo-
sition on that occasion, to which he added, that
the prisoner allowed each man of his crew a gallon
of water daily, but he positively restricted the
allowance of the deceased to one quart, and his
allowance of biscuit to one per diem. The de-
ceased was several
,days lowered over the lee-side
of the ship to scrape her side from morning till
night, and upon one occasion he was kept out
until twelve o'clock at night. The deceased was for
two months treated in that manner. Upon one
occasion, when the deceased was flogged across the
windlass, the prisoner pulled his shirt off his back,
and immediately after forced him over the ship's side
to scrape, and after he had been flogged another time
drove him up to the main-royal. Some time before
the deceased expired, he became deranged, and re-
peatedly roared out for the doctor. There was no
doctor on board, awl the prisoner said the deceased
was making game of him, and beat him with a cap-
stan-bar on his side, left hip, and breast. The de-
cease:l gradually got worse, and became completely
mad, and continued roaring for the doctor. Witness
recollected one Sunday seeing some of the black
fellows, by direction of Miller the other prisoner,
blowing the fumes of oakum and boiling tar into the
part of the forecastle where the deceased was lying,
and which compelled the unfortunate man to come
upon deck to avoid suffocation. As he was coming
up the forcastle hatchway, the prisoner let fall the
grating upon the coinings, which cut the deceased's
Eris through. I pon several occasions the deceased
—( here the witness described several involuntary
acts of the unfortunate man, after he was beaten,
which were of a nature that we cannot describe.)
A few days before his death, the deceased became
quite mad; and on the day of his death he said,
" Ah ! there is the Doctor ; he is looking down the
forecastle, calling me." He then came upon dcek,
and pointing to something, endeayoured to reach it;

Murray—l never beat him : he was beat often
enough without my beating him.
Charles Bateman knew the deceased to have only
a biscuit allowed him during the 24 hours. He was
repeatedly flogged, and pickle afterwards thrown
over his wounds. He knew the deceased was
treated very badly by the prisoners and the black
fellows. Witness had seen him shivering upon deck
in a state of great distress and misery. He heard
him exclaim, " Oh, my God! 'Oll, Oh !" The
poor fellow used to steal down into the forecastle,
but was driven upon deck whenever the captain
discovered it. He confirmed the evidence of Mur-
ray in every particular. He had also seen the cap-
tain compel the deceased to shoulder a capstan-bar
and act like a soldier. The captaiu had often flogged
him round the deck.

George Courtnay, another seaman in the Francis
Watson, stated that the deceased had been refused
any allowance from the ship.
Thomas Clark was boatswain of the Francis
Watson; he had seen the deceased flogged with a
birch broom and ropes by the captain's orders. The
deceased was no seaman, and skulked below. When
the forecastle was smoked, it was done to ot.lige
the deceased to come upon deck to do his duty.
John Brown, the cabin-boy, smoked the fore-
castle by the captain's orders, to kill the cock-
roaches. He was ordered to bring brine or pickle
for the deceased's back. The captain also ordered
him not to give the deceased any water. He thought
the deceased was smoked by the crew to make him
come upon deck.
Cross-examined by Mr. Harmer.—After the fore-
castle was smoked, the deceased came upon deck.
'This was the whole of the evidence against the
prisoner.

•
Captain Bragge, in his defence, said the charge
was false in every particular.
Mr. Harmer had a few observations to make to
the Bench relative to Captain Bragge's case. lie
submitted that nothing had been adduced in the evi-
dence that afforded any thing like a proof that Sin-
clair's death had been occasioned by the ill-treatment
of the Captain. There was not a tittle of evidence
to show that any bones had been broken or any vio-
lent bruises inflicted by any of the floggings he had
received, and there was nothing, he thought, in
any of those floggings that could be considered as
at all likely to produce such consequences. The
punishment which it was thought necessary to in-
flict on the deceased, was merely done with cords,
with a birch, or with a stocking filled with sand.
Now, there was nothing. in those modes of ad•
ministering the punishment at all of a dangerous
character. The deceased was perhaps a dull, stupid,
obstinate person, and the crew fumigated the ship
to drive him out of his skulking place in the fore-
castle. He might have been reduced to such a state
of helplessness or sickness as that described by the
act of God, and in that situation refused to do his
duty in the ship, and have gradually relapsed into a
state of idiotism, which produced his death. As to
the alleged violence, it was, he submitted, nothing
more than the oplinaly and necessary coercion re-
quired for the protection of the vessel, and to keep
the crew to their duty. Under all the circum-
stances, he thought there was nothing to warrant
the committal of Captain Bragge upon the charge of
murder. It was very probable that the man was of
a diseased constitution when he entered the ship.
Mr. BALLANTINE said it had been proved, that
when the man entered the ship he was neither dis-
eased nor sick. He upon the evidence felt it his
duty to send the prisoner before another tribunal.
If the witnesses had spoken the truth, a clear case of
murder had been made out against the prisoners.
Mr. Harmer said, if it were the intention of .the
Magistrates to commit the prisoners, it would be
useless to offer bail.

Mr. BALLANTINE said-the charge was too serious
a nature for him to take hail. They might, if they
pleased, apply to the Court of King's Bench.
Mr. Harmer thought the madness of the deceased
was a proof of some previous disease.
Mr. BALLANTINE said that was unlikely; the un-
fortunate man's constitution gradually sank, and his
mind went in a few hours after, shortly before his
death.

Captain Bragge wished to make some observa-
tions, but was checked by his solicitor, who told
him he had better reserve them for another place.
Mr. BALLANTINE had no 'objection to listen to
any application for bailing the mate.
• Mr. Harmer did not appear for the mate. He,
however, asked him if he had any bail ready.
Miller—l kave not any, but I have a clear con-
science.

Both prisoners were then committed to Newgate,
and the witnesses bound over to prosecute them for
feloniously and maliciously murdering Lewi3 Sin-
clair on the high seas, w;thin the jurisdiction of the
Admiralty of England.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

ROLLS COURT, JULY 1.
SPITALL V. SMITH.

This was a bill filed by the plaintiff, who had
been second mate of a South-sea whaler, against the
defendant, who was the proprietor of the vessel.
The plaintiff charged in his bill that he was entitled
to remuneration in consequence of having performed
the duties of first mate as well as his own, and prayed
that an account of the profits of the voyage might be
taken, and his share of those profits decreed.
The MASTER of the ROLLS thought that the claim
on account of services rendered by the plaintiff as first
mate could not be allowed, but ordered a reference
to the Master to take an account of the profits of the
voyage.

VICE-CHANCELLOR'S COURT, JULY I.
GLASSINGTON V. THWAITES AND OTHERS.

This case came before his Honour on a demurrer.
The plaintiff having amended his bill, made a person
named Ratcliffe a party to it. Ratcliffe demurred,
and the demurrer having been argued,
The Vicli-CHANcil.t.ort was of opinion that the
demurrer should be allowed, but at the same time
gave the plaintiff leave to amend his bill again.

COURT OF KING'S BENCH, JULY 1.
EX-I'ARTE I'ITT.

Mr.. CLARKSON applied for a rule nisi for a writ of
mandamus directed to the proper authorities of the
parish of S;. Paul, Covent-garden,commanding them
to elect a surveyor of the pavements of that parish.—
Rule nisi granted.

THE VAUXHALL-BRIDGE COMPANY V. CHRISTALL AM)

ANOTHER.

This was an action by the proprietors of Vauxhall-
bridge to recover damages for au injury done to the
bridge by a vessel belonging to the defendants, who
were ship-breakers at Battersea.
It appeared by the plaintiff's witnesses, that in
November, 1826, the defendants were bringing the
vessel in question up the river, and that, having ar-
rived near Vauxhall-bridge, as she was making for
the third arch, the tide, which was running strong,
caught her, turned her head round, and carried her
against the bridge, in consequence of which, six or
seven feet of the outer extremity of one of the iron
ribs were broken off, as were also a cross brace, mid
one of the vertical pieces. The railway was also so
shaken, that the joints became opened. It was
stated that at the time in question, the vessel was
being warped up with one kedge and one cable only,
although two was necessary for a vessel so large as
this was, in order to let go one, in case the other gave
way. It was also stated, that there were not a suf-
ficient number of men on board to bring up so large
a vessel; and that there was only one skiff a-head
instead of two, which there ought to have been. It
was the opinion of the witnesses, that if the vessel

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