Star.
London, England, 1818-03-24 00:00:00

HIGH COURT of JUSTICIARY, SCOTLAND

Wednesday last the Court proceeded to the trial
of the ltev. Mr. Robertson and William Pearson, spirit-
dealer, in Canongate, accused of falsehood, fraud,
and forgery, and of celebrating unlawful marriages.
The Act on which the prisoners were convicted
was the 4th Act of the Ist Session of the Ist Par-
liament of Chines 11. (1661, cap. 34.) entitled—" An
Act against clandestine and unlawful marriages,"
whereby it is enacted—" That the celebrator of such
marriages be banished the kingdom, never to return
therein, under the pain of death." The prisoners had,
on a former day, pleaded Not Guilty ; and having
again adhered to that plea, a Jury was chosen, and
the trial proceeded.
Alexander Ross, Sheriff Clerk of North Leith, being
shewn a certificate in name of Mooney, a soldier of
the 88th regiment, and a girl named M'Pherson, he
declares it to be a forgery, and the name Alexander
Ross, at the bottom of it, not to be the witness's hand
writing ; and a certificate in favour of a soldier of
the 88th, named Fitzgerald, and a girl named Urqu-
hart, shewn to him, he also declares to be a forgery.
Sarah Urquhart, Margaret M'Pherson, John
Mooney, and Edward Fitzgerald being respectively
examined, proved the fact of their having been mar-
ried on the foresaid certificates by Mr. Robertson.

Exculpatory proof was adduced by Mr. Robertson
to spew that the certificates had been furnished him
by the other defendant, Pearson, and that he was no
party to the fabrication thereof.
Mr. DRUKMOND charged the Jury on the part of
the Crown ; and Mr. MAITLAND on the part of Mr.
Robertson ; and Mr. PRINGLE for Pearson, and the
evidence h;:ving been summed up by Lord Giwes,
the presiding Judge, the Jury, after deliberating in
die box for about fiteen minutes, returned a verdict,
unanimously finding Mr. Robertson Guilty of cele-
brating the clandestine marriages, as libelled, and
both prisoners Guilty of uttering the counterfeited
certificates of proclamation of banns, knowing the
same to be counterfeited.
JURY COURT, SCOTLAND.
LEVEN V. YOUNG AND CO. AND PITCAIRN.

Tuesday a trial of considerable importance came on
before the Jury Court, in which Mr. Leven, an officer
of Excise, was plaintiff, against Messrs. Young, dis-
tillers at Burntisland, defendants. The ground of
action was in consequence of some information hav-
ing been conveyed to the Commissioners of Excise,
relative to certain practices alleged to have prevailed
in the manner in which Mr. Leven conducted his
business with the defendants, on which it was thought
right to dismiss him. By some means he obtained
information, not only of the nature of the allegation,
but also of the course of the information. Being able
to disprove the former, .he was re-appointed by the
Excise Office.
The Court of Session (First Division) having found
that Mr. Leven's dismissal from office proceeded from
the unfounded complaints of the defendants, and that
three articles of the Plaintiff's libel, inferring malice,
were proven, remitted to the Jury Court to assess the
amount of damages, which were laid at Twenty
Thousand Pounds.
Mr. KZAY stated the case for the plaintiff, with
great clearness, and called three witnesses chiefly to
shew the value of the office held by the plaintiff.
Mr. JEFFREY then addressed the Jury for the de-
fendants, in a most powerful and impressive speech,
contending, that it was not implied, in the judgment
of the Court of Session, that Mr. Leven's continued
exclusion from office was owing to the defendants,
and that the Jury would be able to judge of the ex-
tent of the malice imputed to the defendants, by pe-
rusing the documents produced by the plaintiff. He
complained, in severe terms, of the proceedings of
the Board of Excise, which had produced every do-
cument which Mr. Leven required, and had withheld'
the material documents necessary for the defence of
his clients. In these circumstances, and on account
of the terms of the decision of the Court, he declined
to lead any proof
The Loan Cuter COMMISSIONER delivered amost
able and perspicuous charge to the Jury, who, after
deliberating for an hour, gave a verdict for the plain-
tiff.—Damages Two Thousand Pounds.

The Sussex Assizes did not tinit.h until late on
Thurday night. There were 19 capital convictions,
but none of them were left for execution.—James Nye,
the elder, aged 48, for being an accessary in the
Rudgwick felony, after the fact ; Henry Gardener,
2.5, for burglariously entering the dwelling house of
William Smith, of Ashburnham, and stealing therein
a clarionet and other articles ; and IV. Fames, SO, for
passing aforged r cte for 51. at Uckfield, severally re-
ceived sentence of transportation, the former for 14
years, and the latter for seven years each.
At the York Assizes, Mr. Justice Borirr passed
sententence on the prisoners convicted in the course
of the preceding week, when twenty-five prisoners
received sentence of death. The Bar being insufficient
to contain so large a number, these unhappy men
were brought up at three several times —Previous to
his Loi dsip's departul e, he respited all the prisoners,
except Samuel Leatlai convicted of paying, at
Hull, forged Bank of En,glend Notes.
Saturday morning, Isaac White, aged 32, George
Biggs, aged 19, and William Johnson, aged 26, were I
executed near Winchester. White was convicted of
uttering forged notes; Johnson of highway robbery;,
Biggs' crime was a burglary in the house of his mas-
ter, from which he carried nearly 4001. in cash and
notes. Great interest was exerted in his behalf. Pe-
titions, signed by the Minister, parish officers, and a
number of respectable inhabitants of Gosport and Al.
verstoke, were presented to Lord Sit:mount and Sir
S. HOLROYD, to commute his sentence into transpor-
tation for life—the reply to which was, that " the
Judges are determined that the law shall take its
course, in all cases where servants of any description,
may be convicted of being concerned in robbing their
m asters."

At the Assizes for Staffordshire eighteen prisoners
received sentence of Death, two of whom, for house-
breaking, are left for execution.
A man of the name of John Peregrine has been
committed by Lord DYNEVOR to the cdunty jail of
Carmarthen, for the murder of Margaret Powell, a
poor Cottager, 74 years of age, in the absence of her
husband, by giving her several dreadful wounds on
the head, apparently with a spade.
Last week a Tyburn ticket was sold in Manchester,
(exempting the owner from all parish offices) for 280/.
which, with the auction duty, =punts to neauiy 300!.