Star.
London, England, 1827-08-16 00:00:00

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.

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SHREWSBURY, Avaurr 15.
RIX V. JOHN CHARLTON AND MARY SPINCIR.

Mr. C. PHILLIPS said that the prosecutor was Mr.
Nicholas Whitworth, an EnJi.h Gentleman, who re-
sided in Ireland. He had come to E igland. and was
at the home of Mrs. Spencer, who kept the Eagle and
Child Hotel at Holyhead, The prosecutor ha.l booked
an outside place by the mail at Bangor, and bra recent
regulation the packet sailed immediately after the ar-
rival of the mail, and it would appear that as the pro-
secutor was going to the snail btsat, a person named
Stringer came up to the prosecutor and demanded 6s.
as the fare. The plaintiff said it had been paid to Miss
Jones, at Bangor ; however. he was dragged to the house
of Mrs. Spencer, and Stringer said—" I will bet you five
pounds that your name is not on the way-bill I" and by
way of punishing Stringer, the plaintiff said he would
bet him ; and the way-bill being referred to, it appeared
that the name was there; and a Gentleatan, who had
taken the stakes of the bet to hold, delivered the notes
to the prosecutor, who proceeded to the packet to get on
board, when Stringer proceeded to the mail coach, and
got out the two loaded blunderbusses, and pointed one
of them at the prosecutor, who ran to Mrs. Spencer's
Inn, much frightened. Mrs. Spencer came into the
room. She was aware that he had won Stringer's money,
but she said he should have no bed in her house. This
was at 2 o'clock in the morning, but the packet having
sailed, the prosecutor insisted on a bed, and said—"lll
am turned out to walk till morning, I shall be murdered
by this fl How !" and on this Mrs. Spencer actually sent
for a constable to take Mr. Whitworth into custody, be-
cause he insisted on a bed, which he offered to pay for.
The constable came, and Mrs. Spencer ordered him,
when he came to take the prosecutor into custody. The
towable took the handcuffs out of his pocket ; how.
ever, they were happily not put on the plaintiff, and the
guard, who now assumed an altered tone, asked the five
pounds back as a favour; and Mr. Whitworth, in con.
sideration of his better behaviour, gave him his money
back, and then Mrs. Spencer, whose only object was to
get the money back for this guard by threats and inti-
midation, allowed Mr. Whitworth to go to his bed. The
guard had been tried and convicted, and the prosecutor
now sought justice against Mrs. Spencer and the con-
stable, who were the other parties concerned.
Mr. Whitworth said—l am a corn dealer tesiding at
Drogheda; I am an Englishman by birth ; I had taken
a place from Bangor to Holyhead, which I had paid
fur. On my arrival at Holyhead, I was walking to•
wards the packet, which sails between two and three
o'clock in the morning. As I was walking to the packet,
Stringer, the guard of the mail, came up and said I had
not paid my fare. I said I had, and that my name and
the money were entered in the way-bill. He began to
swear, and said I must pay. On my refusing to pay,
he took hold of me and dragged me to the Inn of the
defendant, Mrs. Spencer. When we got near the house,
he said he would bet me five pounds that I had neither
paid my fare, nor had my name in the way-bill. I
said "D ,ne." He still kept hold of me, and dragged
me into the bar. He put a five-pound note on the table,
and I put a ten pound note (not having a five-pound
note), and covered it with that. A Gentlemaa present,
who was a traveller, held the money at my request.
Stringer made no objection to his so doing. Stringer
then pulled the way-bill out of his own pocket, and I
pointed my name out in it, and the money entered as
paid. The Gentleman said I had wen, and handed me
the money. S ringer said, " You are not going to keep
my five pounds, are ye?" I said, "I have no five
pounds of yours—l have five pounds I won of you; and
that I shall keep." I got out of the bar, Stringer having
dashed me -against the wall. He then swore that I
should never quit the place till I had given him the five
pour ds, and he dashed me against the wall a second
time. I got into the travellers' room as soon as I could,
I staid there fifteen or twenty minutes, till I thought
Stringer was gone, and.l then proceeded towards the
packet. Stringer came up to the again, and seized me,
and swore that I should never go till I had paid my
fare and the five pounds, and if I diA not he would shoot
me. He ran to the coach, and got the large pistols,
such as the guards carry. He came towards me, and
presented one of them at me. A woman came up, and
turned his arm away, a lying, 44 For Gon's sake, man,
what are you going to do?" I was much frightened,
and ran back to the only house which was open, which
was the hotel kept by Mrs. Spencer. I got into the
,travellers' room, and fastened myself in. The waiter
and Mrs. Spencer and one or two women came in.—
Dirs. Spencer said, What is all this noise and disturb-
ance about ? I told her that the guard had attempted
to shoot me. Mrs. Spencer said, I cannot have my
house disturbed in this way, you must leave it. I said,
licannot. Would you have me go into the street to be
murdered by that ruffian ? She persisted in saying that
I must go. I said she had better let me go to bed
quietly. She said, It you won't go out I must send for
a constable. She did so, and a constable named Charl-
ton came. Mrs. Spencer said she wanted me taken out
of the house, as 'I would not go out. I said I would
not go out". to meet that fellow, and have my
brains blon n out in the street. The constable said,
You must go—you see what Mre. Spencer's orders
are. I told the constable that I feared to leave
the house. The constable said he knew his duty.
I said he had better do his duty ; it was neither English
nor Irish authority, and I would not submit to Welch
authority. Atter that I said, shew your authority;
and he put a staff and a pair of handcuffs on the table,
and said he would handcuff me and take me to the
lock-up. He unscrewed the handcuffs, and did his
best to put them on. I resisted effectually. After this
the constable said to Mrs. Spencer, I must have more
assistance to handcuff him. I did not strike the con-
stable. I never struck any one in my life but my own
'children. Stringer, the guard, came in, and I appealed
to the constable and Mrs. Spencer to protect me.
Stringer then asked in a civil way that I would give
fam the five pounds back, and he begged as a favour
that I would give him the money, as it would ruin
bilis, the moat y not being his own. I did so. In
an hour after Mn. Spencer let we go to bed.

Cross examined—There was a considerable noise. I
won't swear that the chairs were not upset. Mrs.
Spencer is about sixty, and she said she could not have
Ler house distut bed at that time of night. f won't
swear that I was told that the house was full. Mrs.
Spencer said the noise had brought ber down stairs.
Ann Price did not offer me a bed at her house. There
was no civility. I was not asked civilly to leave the
house,

Examined . by the Learned Batton—The bed I got
into was a made tip one. It was not a warm bed that

some Gentlem in had got out or to make Mom for me.
—Mr. Sergeant ItossEt.t. addressed the Jury for the
defendants.
Ann Price said—l am cook at Mrs. Spencer's hotel.
Oa the night. in que,tion there was a great noise. The
hotel was quite full. Mrs. Spencer, who had gone to
bed, got up and said, What noise is this?—l thought
the house was on fire. I told he: that a man who came
by the mail had got a five-pound note belonging to the
guard. She said that such a man should not remain in
the house among all the Gentlemen's luggage. Is was
the guard who fetched the constable. Two Gentlemen
who had ordered beds went away by the mail. I
offered the prosecutor a bed at my house. Mrs. Spea•
cer was not in the room when the prosecutor and
constable were. •

Mr. C. PHILLIPS replied.
Mr. Baron VAUGHAN left the case to the Jury, on
the question whether ther_believed the evidence ad-
duced on the part of the prosecution, or the evidence
called for the defence; and his Lordship remarked that
it was exceedingly singular that Mrs. Spencer, who,
like all other persons who were in the same line of
business, lived by the guests who frequented their
houses, should pursue a line of conduct likely to drive
them a way.
The Jury, after a shalt consultation, acquitted both
the defendants.