Star.
London, England, 1824-04-23 00:00:00

MELANCHOLY CATASTROPHE.

Yesterday evening Inquisitions were taken before Mr.
UNWIND the Coroner, on view of the bodies of Mary
Threader, William Eynan, Elizabeth Mitchel, Robert
Scisson, and Elizabeth Scisson, his daughter, aged three
years and a half. The first Inquest was held at the
Horse and Groom, White Horse-street, Ratcliff, on
Mary Threader ; and the Inquest on the other unfortu-
nate deceased persons was held at the Plough, Kidney
Stairs, Limehouse.
The following evidence was adduced on both Inquests:
Mr. W. Thomas sworn... Witness is a ship-owner, re-
siding in Narrow-street, Itatcliff; Monday last, about
eight o'clock in theevening, he was standing at his back
door, which commanded a view of the river; the
tide was going down at the time ; he saw a boat on the
north side of the river, opposite his premises ; four
barges were hanging to a chain, on Mr. Kean, the coal-
merchant's premises, one outside the piles, and the other
three hanging to her; a long loaded barge was at this
time dropping down head to tide;' he can't tell to
whom the barge belonged, although he and others called
out to ascertain the fact; the long barge was going to
.4 bring up" to Mr. Kean's barges; the boatman was
pulling a-head, but finding he could not, he dropped
back ss ith a view to go outside the loaded barge, but
from the weight of his boat, he could not accomplish
his project, and his boat struck against one of Mr.
Kean's barges, which stopped him. In the meantime
the loaded barge kept dropping down, and the ruddeis
struck the boat, drove her under one of Mr. Kean's
barges, and all the passengers were washed over board.
When witness found that the accident had men:led, he
cried out " sculler," and several w•atermen and part of
a ship's crew put out to the assistance of the di owning
persons, and picked up the waterman, All elderly man,
an infant, and Mary Tin eader, all living, and who sur-
vived the shock, N ith the exception of the latter, who
died shortly after she was brought ashoi e. It is witness's
opinion, that if Mr. Kean's barges had not been moored
time, the disaster would not have occurred. There were
four women, four men (including the vraterman), and
two female children, in the boat at the time.
John Threader, an old man, deposed, he was hus-
band to the deceased of that name; they went together
to Greenwich on Llonday last, not to the fair, but to
via a particular friend of his at the College, and were
returning home in the boat alluded to. Witness cannot
recollect under what circumstances either he or any of
the others were saved, he WAS in such a state of con-
, fusion at the time.

William Hewett works occasionally for Mr. Thomas,
the first witness, and was in his warehouse, and saw the
accident occur as described by his master; he heard
two children screaming bitterly, and ran to the whirl
with' a good ladder, which he phiced in the water, in
order to save some of the pei sous, but he had no suc-
cess; he saw Mrs. Thre...ler taken ashore ; she was then
alive; and he went to call the assistance of two neigh-
bouring surgeons.
The Jury were all of one opinion, that the situation of
these barges sva, Janet ons and illegal, and wished to
hear of the Coroner how the evil could be remedied.

The ConnNER said, the matter might be either re-
presented at tlr• Crown (Mice, or the nuisance indicted
at the Sessions,
After some further comments, the Jury returned a
verdict of—Accidental Death, in each case.
The waterman received a most excellent character
from some respectable inhabitants in the neighbourhood

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

BOW-STIMET. •

Goon Flimsy Ssmors.—One Sanuni Gardiner was brought be-
fore Sir Menage' Mamie yesterday, on an assault warrant, charg-
ing him with having assaulted and beaten William It shad.
It appeared by the evidence of Roxhall, a decent4ooking elderly
man, that he and " many other gel:lle:nen" amused themselves last
Good Friday with a match of ingein shouting, at Chalk-farm. The
defe:datit, Samuel Gardiner, was one of the party ; and, in the
midst of the vort he canto up to Roxhall, with the blood stream-
. ing front his mouth, and said, " you rascal !—what do you mean
by shooting me in, the mouth ?" Roxitall replied, that he had nut
'shot him, either in the mouth or anywhere else; and to convince
him that he had nut, he showed him his gun, which had not been
dischaiged ; whereupon Gardiner collared " another Gentleman,"
and repeated the same demand—" you rascal! what did you mean
by shooting me itt the mouth ?" The Gentleman denied that he had
shut him. IVhile they were disputing, the witness went up to the
defendant, and merely tapping hint on the shoulder, assured hint
he had got hold of the wrong man, upon which the latter turned
about and knocked him down. He got up, and the defendant not
only knocked hint down again, but kicked him ; and then, in his
own defence, he certainly did use his guts, and knocked the defen- I
dant down. This was Roxitall's account of the matter, and it was
confirm .4.1 by one of the " Gentlemen" present at the time; but he
admitted, in his cross-examination, that he was at least .20 yards of.
Gardiner and his witnesses, however, declared that there was
scarcely one word of real truth in the whole story. According to
the:e account it appeared, that when Gardiner was shot in the mouth
—fur shot in the mouth be certainly was, though not dangerously—
he accused Roxhall with having done it; but Roxball instantly con-
vinced him he was mistaken, and then Gardiner accused a son of
Roxhall, who was standing hy. Young Ilexhall positively denied
that he had fired at all, though his gun was still smoking from the
discharge ; upon which Gardiner told him he was a liar, and seized
him by the collar ; and at that moment old Roxhall went behind
Gardiner and struck him on the head with the butt end of his gun
so violently that the gun-stock was broken in two pieces, and Gar-
diner was carried home in a state of insensibility.
Drummond, the patrol produced the gun, which was brok en asun-
der at the lock.

Jr.s lisLis examined the gun, which is a very stout one, and ob-
served, that either that must be very defective, or Mr. Gardiner's
bead particularly. strong.
Mr. Gardiner said, that nothing but the breaking of the gun pre-
vented the blow from being fatal.
A witness corroborated the defendant's statement, and said that
the blow felled him as though be had been shot through the bead.
Sir IL BIRNIX said, that he had seldom met with a more impu-
dent attempt to turn the.proper course of justice. The defendant
had been shot in the mouth, and very naturally seized upon the
person who in his judgment, was the offender; and for doing so,
the complainant had almost fractured his skull, and now had the
face to proceed against him by law for an assault.
It
,'appeared, in the course of further inquiry, that the person
who actually shot Mr. Gardiner, and whom the Litter seized, was
Rbithall's son.

The result was, that the oriLdnal warrant was discharged, and Mr.
Gardiner bring sworn as a witness, Roxhall was ordend to give no-
tice of bail for the assault. He in the meantime was locked up.
Sir R. MANIC strongly censured the practice of assembling to•
gether for such sports as pigeon-shooting en a Good Friday—a day
held tacred•by the law of the land, and said he had a huge mind to
have the whole party indicted.
BaNSION-HOUSR.
Yesterday the Lena Matron' agsiin 'adverted to the streets, and
stated that be had received communications from a number of citi-
zens, confirming his observations as to the extent of the nuisances,
and the injury done to the trade of the City, by the stoppages and
obstructions that were created in the public thoroughfares. One
tratesntan complained of theinjaty he had *attained in consequence
of rueiglibour's caravans continually standing before the door. He
had taken what he considered to be an effectual course to rid him-
self of the nuisances, by sending them continually to the Green-
yard; but it had no ;Att. On eramination he discovered that the
Aber wlurvres ditetted to' impound. the carts released them im-
mediately, and thus encouraged the owners with impunity. His
Lordship said he should investigate this circumstance; and, con-
vinced as he was of the extensive mischief that was done to the
trade of the City by the obstruetlette, be *ar determined to pro-
ceed visotontly•ibt dab-removal. He cliroctied, that all the street-
.

keepers and cdric;ets, vilinte duty i& *la lo.preentrf order in the
sweets, should be summoned before him on a particular day, to le.
ceive his directions. Regulations must be made for the pteserva.
tion of order and enforcing the Street Act throughout the while
line of the thoroughfares from one end of the City to the other. Ile
had been applied to by professed informers for his sanction to their
proceeding under the Street Act. He should sanction nothing n:
the hind; but whenever an offence was proved to have been cow-
nutted under the Act, he should certainly inflict the penalty directed.
It was observed in the Office that it was highly desirable tit
those Authorities who bad the regulation of the Strand should fc.l.
low his Lordship's example, and keep the streets clear of those nb.
struetions which took place hourly in the Crowded and narrrw
parts. Foot passengers in nrany places were greatly annoyed by the
fellows with bills, and stationary applicants for custom, in various
ways. In Holywell-street, for instance, it was astonishing that the
practice of the Jews, standing outside their doors with their wares,
should be permitted. In many instances they Were so klaring as to
seize persons, and drag them into their shops ; and the must respect.
able persons could not pass without annoyance.
11.1170 N-G A It HEN.

Yesterday, a stout-looking smith, named Green, was brotglit
upon a charge of violently assaulting his wife and children.
His wife proceeded to state many cases of gross assault, mid r b-
served (we suppose in compliment to his trade) that the itstruno.77•.
which he used were pokers, tongs, shovels, &c. nay, on one occ .-
sion, he pulled the grate out, and flung it at one of his children.
When called upon for big defence, he said, that as to his chit-
dren, in flinging those implements he did not mean to strike them:
he only meant to make them " look sharp." As to his wife, she
gave bins provocation to use not only pokers, but sledge haniliwrr,
•••••14 an aggravating tongue."
" Aye," exclaimed Alts. Green, " and you attempted to care it
by actually proceeding, the other day, to thrust a poker down nw
throat.”—a-The Magistrate, though he was scnsib:e that there _le
many diseases attached to a woman's tongue which NA.: huina,
skill, yet, not exactly approving of the smith's summary mole of
cure, ordered hint to find bail for his appearance elsewhere, to give
a more satisfactory account of this novel experiment.
UNION HALL.

A respectable elderly woman, who gave her name Jane Butc;...,
was charged under the following singular circionstancesi—lt at.
geared, that un the previous night the prisoner came to the slue, of
Air. Brand, a brush-maker, it: Great Stainlk-street, and requested
to look out a variety of articles in their line, consisting of reticule,
baskets, fire-screens, brushes, egg-cups, &c. 181. worth of which
she selected, and desired that they might be into packed
up in an earthenware crate, with directions to be seat to the Fa-
versham hoy, end forwarded by the vessel to that ne•glibourhood,
where she said she rented a large farm. She was then about to
leave the shop without hinting at payment fur the articles, whet:
Mr. Brand, sen. expressed a wish fur immediate settlement, or rc-
ferences as to her respectability. The defendant seemed surprised,
and said—" Oh, Sir, you need nut he afraid of your money ; seed ;his
things, and I will call in the morning, and settle the accueet arse t
you." She then retired hastily from the shop, but was peree7eve
by Mr. Brand's son, who kept his eye upon her, to take up a rt.:-
cule basket from the counter, with which she withdrew. 'lle
young man followed quickly-after, and observed her walk into ti
shop of Mr. Jacobs, a fishmonger, at a short distance. He watched
for some time, and saw Mr. Jacobs busily engaged in skinning
while his wife was preparing codfish and oysters. Ile then waikr.l
into the shop, and requested to speak a word to the 6;11111ot:re:,
who begged nut to be interrupted, as that Lady (pointit:g to the
prisoner) was giving a large order, and she mustbe attended to. Mr.
Brand, however, mentionedwhat had occurred at his father's 61:(11),
and upon Mr. Jacobs demanding the money for the fish, wind'
amounted to 11. 164. the defendant replied, that she could not FiF
bins then, and added, that if the order was sent to her sister's house,
close by, he would have his money. Mr. Jacobs immediately sent
for a constable, and gave her into custody.
Mr. A um; desired her to give some explanation of this extraor-
dinary conduct.
The Defendant—What the young man has stated is correct, so
far as concerns the order which I gave at his father's shop ; but
respect to carrying off the basket in a clandestine manner,
deny it. It was one of the ankles included in my order, and I
conceived there was no impropriety in taking with me the ankle
which I intended to pay for.
Mr. ALLEN asked her if she was now willing to pay Mr. Jacoh.
for the damage he had sustained in preparing the soles, &c. for het
• The defendant said, that she had no money at present about her,
but would make all right if site was permitted to go and borrow it.
The fishmonger stated, that the amount of his damage in skinning
soles, crimping cod, and opening oysters for the defendant, was 14s.
Ile added, that while he was engaged in preparing the order for
the defendant, she asked hint to send out for a pint of porter, de-
siting him to put it down in the bill.
The Magistrate said, unless the defendant paid the 14s. to the
fishmonger, she should certainly be sent to the House of Conti,
tion. The defendant here requested paper, pen, and ink, which
she was supplied with, and sent off a letter to a tradesman, who
came forward, paid the damage, and the defend .nt was permitted
to leave the office, after having restored the basket she had takin
off Mr. Brand.* counter.