Star.
London, England, 1812-10-28 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX SESSION'S, 6CIOI3ER

Thomas Pears.,, lately employed as Office-keeper i
in the office of his Majesty's Quarter-Master-General,
stood indicted for fraudulently altering, in a bill from ,
the coach-office of the George-Inn, Southwark, the
sum of 3s. Id. to 13s. Id. for the carriage and ,
por-
terage of a parcel from Hythe ; and thereby defraud- !
ing his Majesty.
-The prosecution was carried on by order of Go-
vernment;. and it appeared from the evidence, that
the traverser had been many years employed as
officekeeper, and that it was a part of his duty to ,'
receive all parcels addressed for the department of the 1
Quarter-Master-General, to pay for the same, and to I
present his acccounts once a qu irter to the head of
his department. On the 26th of October last year, a
parcel was brought from Hythe to the Office, and
the charge upon the bill for carriage was 2s. id. with
porterage Is. which the inn-porter received from the
traverser, who, in settling his account in January
last, charged for this parcel Us. id. and. in order to
make the voucher tally with the item in his account,
he placed the figure 1 before the 2, and so made it
12s. He received a draft for the balance due to him,
on Messrs. Cox and Greenwood ; which was regu-
:.arly paid. In consequence of some subsequent dis-
coveries,. his vouchers were re-examined, and upon
examining the books at the George-Inn, the fraud
was discovered.—The Juryfound the prisoner Guilty.
He was again tried upon another indictment of t
similar nature, for several charges of 3s. 6d. 4s. and
13s. Bd. alleged, in his account, to have been rald at
the White Horse Cellar, Piccadilly, ou differtnt
dates, for the conveyance of parcels from his office
to Hythe. He was found guilty on this indictment
also; and sentenced to twelve months' imprisonaietit
on each conviction.
Elizaleth Bruce stood indicted for cruelly starving,
unmercifully beating,' and otherwi,e most inhumanly
treating her own son, Robert Bruce, a child under
June
eight years of age, in the month of and July
' last, in Spital fields. The trial (*Copied the Conn. for
several hours, and exhibited a picture truly shocking
to every feeling of humanity.' The circumstances'
were shortly these.
The traverser is a widow with eight.chitdren, and
was pregnant with a ninth at the timethis cruelty was
discovered. In consequence of the indignant rumours
of the inhabitants of the neighbourhood, a publican
named Homewood, Who lived in the vicinity, went
to the apartment where the poor child was confined,
and found.him almost naked, perfectly squalid with
-filth, and emaciated from apparent famine. He in.
terrogaLedr the child, who, from his size, appeared not
mote-than foul years old , en being convinced from
, his answers that Iris own conjectures were well found.
! ed, he brought him to his house-, gave him food, and
! immediately atqueinted the Parish Officers, who
;
1 forthwith.applied to the Magistrates at the next Police
1 Office, and the mother was taken into custody.
Mr. Fox. a surgeon, who examined the child, said,
he found him in the utmost state of misery and de-
-1 jection, emaciated almost to a skeleton from famine. ,
The child had no disease, nor did lie administer any
medicine. But from a change of treatment, cleanli-
ness, and food, his appearance was so much altered
for the better in three or four weeks, that he should
not have known him again if he had not frequentli
! seen him in the interim/ -

Elizabeth Jones, a lodger in the same house with
the mother; Rose Robins, another lodger, and Mary
Hall, occasionally employed to wash for the mother,
who kept an eating-house, also gave evidence of the
cruel treatment of the child, totally different from
that of her seven other children, three of whom were
grown up, and whcm, it was stated, she treated with '
the greatest kindness: It appealed, also, from their
testimony, that the little victim was confined in a
room over the scullery in the yard, and not suffered
to play about with the other children ; that he was
fastened by the leg with a small iron chain to some
post or other immoveable thing in the room ; and that
although he was thus prevented from access, even to
the water-closet, the poor child, for the inevitable
consequences of such a privation, was severely beaten
by his mother.
Maly Hall, in particular, proved, that while she
was washing up dishes in the scullery, the child, by
some means, got down to the yard, where he took
cabbage-stalks out of the hog-wash tub, and conceal-
ed them under his little garments for food; that he
. even took the grease off the candlesticks to eat, and
asked her for water to drink from a dirty pail she was
using; and that the mother bid her take care of the
candle-ends in the candlesticks, as she could not beep
a bit of talrdle for this boy ; that on her representing
to the mother thats
the poor child, site believed, had
not enough to eat, she answered ,6 he had a craving
disposition, and was never satisfied." .
The poor child, himself, was next sworn and en).
mined ; and gave the most prompr and unequivocal
support to the other evidence. He said he was c •
fined in the room over the scullery, and that lie.
4 ,114)
_fastened by the leg with a chain, and lay upon paper•
shavings, while his other brothers and .sisters jay
upon beds in their mother's nom ; that he never eats
hiS meali with them, but got food three times a cla
in) * own room ; a verylittle piece. of bread ea, .
tiie,Vith selitte milk and water, but never enough *
and his mother often beat him with a rod. He cord
nottell wby,; but because his mother said she hated'.
hint, and he never knew for what. He had had good
food ever 'since he was taken from her ; and he did
not' wish to go back to her again, because he viai
itfraid'Oe would kill him.
Oh the-part of the defence, several witnesses were
called to' prove the uniform humanity of the mothei
1, to all her children alike. The first of whom was her,
eldest son, a young man about twenty,.and he swore,
that as of ten as he went to his mother's house, which
was every other Sunday during the months of May,
June, and July, this child always dined, and was along
with all the other children ; he never knew that he
r erasconfined or fed in a separate room. Her second
' son, about 17 ; he; daughter, about 15 ; and her
mother, an aged woman, all swore directly to. the
same effect. '
A shoe-makei of Cheapsitle had known her for
' many years ; her husband died during last summer,
and left her in great distress ; he had known.her for
weeks without any other sustenance than a crust of
bread.
The CHAIIIMAN then summed up the evidence, and
the Jury, after retiring for two hours, retunted their
verdict—Guilty ; but recommended the prisoner to.
mercy, on accounrof her large family. • . •

tibss Eet
•: • '

Enmhttnon, OCTOBER Monday lash the
barometer at Edinburgh was lower than has Willi
known for many years ; on that day, the mercury
was under 27 inches during the forenoon.
The tide rose at Leith to a g,reater height on )Wed-,
nesday morning, than it has for some years past, by:
which several houses at the foot of the Sheriff- brae,
were inundated, and receised some darnagei ;—the
Ballast Quay was also overflowed, and, on the re-
ceding of the water, a part of the street sunk about
a foot. At high water, there were seventeen feet
and a half on the bar, and 20 feet in the harbour, being
a rise -of about four feet higher than the ordinary
spring tides.
The tide at Eyensouth, on Wednesday morning,
rose to a most extraordinary height, higher indeed
than has happened in the memory of the oldest inha-
bitant of the place. The banks for protecting, the
houses near the 'shore Were:coiriPleiely deitroyed, rind
the water rushing in, did considerable darnagetd die
salt ir. the cellars, and the-road along the iamb is
neatly wailed away.
.rWliat is rather retnarkable,ca
ling of a pretty large sire was found alive in a boat-
builder's shop, into which it had been forced by, die
Viotence of the tide.
No less than five vessels, one of theist 'the. North
Star, Moont, from America, a ship Of 110 tonsre-
Asters ate now discharging at Ike head of the Dock,
Dumfries, This novel and pleasing sight, which affords
so convincing a ptOof of the aetivay. and zeal display-
ed by the Commissioners 'uncle'r.the Navigation Act ;
and of the enlightened-1)611cl, by which their opera-
tions have 'been guided; otiMunday attracted the at ten-
tendon of Admiral Hors, together with the Marquis
of Qt zErtsasany, the Vice-Lieutenant, and other
Gentlemen of the county, assembled for the purpose
of re-electing the gallant Admiral as their Represen-
tative, who, on leaving the Court-house after the Elec-
tion, went down in a body to the river, and visited
the iittle ikd The procession was Received with a
WWI kora the North Star, the yards of all the yes-
being-manned, and colours Thing. The party
afterwards went on-board that ship, and.were received
by the Owners, who treated them with a refrashment.
—At five o'clock,- upwards of 100 gentlemen, who
had been previously invited, sat down to an elegant
dinner with the Admiral, in the George Ball-room,
which CIS &MCI up for the purpose, M. SHAMES, of
Hoddum, acting as croupier, in which situation that
gentleman
.has long presided with singular ability.—
The Marquis of QUEJOISISERRY honoured the company
with his presence. Many loyal 7aud constitutional
toats were drank, and, after spending the evening in
the most convivial manner, the company parttd at a
late hour, highly delighted' with their respectable en-
tertainer. Tuesday evening the Admiral gave a
splendid' ball and supper; at which all the'• beauty
and fashion of Dumfries and the neighbotirhood %tact
present.

WHITLHAVEN, OCTOllit 20.--The weather for
some days past has been very unsettled in this part
of tie country;—but, it is hoped, not sots to affect
the latter harvest, in any cnusiderable degree. It
blew a heavy gab: from the S.S.W.'on Sunday-night,
and much •am fell. Yesterday foreaoon we had a
,eery high tide. •
NEWCASTLE, OCTOBER 20.—The late change in the
temperature of the air hasnot only been obs.A.ved here,
but remarked in a pat ticular manner in the western
districts of the county. On the Gth inst. the change'
was more sudden than we ever remember to have
experienced, except after a violent thunder storm,
and very rarely in that case. During the three pre-
ceding days, the 'weather was warm, considering the
season, and thethermometer stood at 60 degrees, at
one o'clock each day, in the shade ; on that day the
thermometer was at 58 degrees, and fell to 45 de-
grecs about six in the evening,.which was a variation
of 14 degrees in five hours ; the wind, in the mean-
time, changed from S. to N.E. which WAS followed
by some slight showers ; the clouds gathered thickly
around, and the darkness was very unusual, and eve' y
appearance indicated a thunder storm at no great
distance. The following morning was cold, and the
thermometer cell to 4.0 degrees, which is lower than
it has been observed, at the same :ime of the day,
during the autumn. Yesterday (the 19;1) the ba-
rometer was lower than it has been obset ved here f
more than 20 years; the mercury stood at '28.2 inches.

HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE TO-MORROW.
...... 48 minutis if er 9
Afternoon. l7 :nittutes alter 10

BIRTHS.
•
At Edinburgh, the 20th instant, the Lady of Lieutenant-Colo-
nel Cosmo Gordon, of a son.
At his house at Charlton, on the 25th instant, the Lady of
Mn Alderman Atkins, of a daughter.

The 18th instant, at Guernsey, the Lady of Major Young, of
the 97'h, or Queen's Own Regtment, of a son.
Tuesday se/tiniest, at the Priory, Downham, Norfolk, the
Lady of the Rev. J. R. Tharkcray, of a (laughter.
The 16th inst, at Muncaster Castle, the Lady of Ibra Lind-
say, of a son.
The Lady of Captain Halliday, Rd N. at Harn Lodge, of a
daughter.
On the Bth ult. at Halifax, Nova Scorja, the Lady of Colonel
Donglas of the.99(11 Regiment, of a daughter.
On the 6th inst. at Woodbridge, the Lady of Major Frazer,
Royal Horse Artillery, of a son.