The Statesman.
London, England, 1820-09-15 00:00:00

UIRCU!T COURT OF JUSTICIARY.

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DUMFRIEB.II•NDAY. SIP?. I I, IWO.
The Justiciary Circuit Court was opened here this
mPsuing by Lord Pitmilly. The Court immediately
proceeded to try the case of Edward M•Lory, ur
Nl•trory, accused of assaulting Hugh tla!holier,
labourer in Kirkcudbright, on the 10th of June List,
a: the Curse of Slants, betwixt Gatehouse and Cree-
town, and robbing him of U. in notes and upwards of
a ['wind in silver. The prisoner appeared in good
health and spirits, and when interrogated as to his
knowledge of the crime libelled. answered stoutly,
tka! he never robbed or assaulted any man in his
lite. This case was of a very aggravated nature, as
.ti.reared from the evidence of °snootier himself, who
deponed to the following effect—That he has dealt
occasionally in Irish linen, and in June, lel9, left
Kirkcudbright with the intention of going to Del-
tas'. While going to Gatehouse, two men came up
to him, who walked into the village with him, and
slett and supped in the same lodging house. They
;.i.o started with him early in the morning, and after
they had climbed a hill about five miles beyond
tia..ehouse, on the old road, they all sat down to rest
n.t martyrs by the side of a gate. After resting for a
'warier of an hour, witness ruse to proceed on his jour-
t.. y ; but just as he was opening the gate, the pelmet
r.. me behind him and struck him a violent lilow on
the head with a stick, which knockeit his hat off. On
tinning round he received another severe blow below
the rye, the mark of which he still bears. The pri-
soner's companion then came up and struck him with
a stone on the head, which had the effect of knocking
him down. While lying on the groom) the two men
broke a stick over his head, and rotated hint of all the
money in his possession. Inuocdirtrh on tilling his
pockets our of the teen began to rue off, when his
I oinpanion, the panned at the liar, celled him to route
load:, observing, " that the witness. 51 35 nut half thine
et, and that notices they did somethitig more to him,
hr would be able to follow them and get them both
hanged." This summons being obeyed, he was as-
saulted afresh, anti after being beaten dreadfully on
hos head and legs, he was dragged off the road and
thrown into a hollow. By this time he was quite in-
•ausible, and after reviving a little he was so weak that
he had to crawlen his hands and feet. At last he rut
to a house, the mistress of which gave hint a drink of
milk; after receiving which. and resting a little, he
Was so enabled to proceed to Creetown. At Creetown.
he lay from Tuesday till Saturday, and was attended
'oy Mr. Harries, surgeon there ; but having no money
to support himself he was oblige.' to refern home. al.
though still very unfit to travel. On the first night!
Ise levered so much, that his life was in danger, and!
',ired he has never had a day's health since the as-I
sault was COMUII ted.
In addition to Gallocher's evidence. John Gornien,
lately residing in Castle-Douglas. deposed that lie saw
the whole three men in the lodging-house, at Gate-
house, and also saw then. set off early next morning,
taking the old road 'o Creetown. il.r !Mlle day he
!nerd that a man had Bern rubbed and murdered at
t! e Curse of Slaiks t but alto the person was lie neither
heard nor knew. He attended, however. the last
Whits's° Fair of Ihntsfries, and haring seen the pri-
...otter, he gave information, and got him apprehended.
I he wife of this witness also deputies!, that. w bile
to aiti lig fur her husband, on the road to Castle-Douglas,
two men came up to her, one of whom she recognized
to be the pt Wolter at the bar. These men sat 'town
beside her, and she observed that one of them bad
spots of blood on his trowtres, w hirli he was endeavour-1
i lig to efface, by rubbing the spots %vitt, eravel. tin
lict aaking what had happened to him, he replied that
I. called at a house where they were killing a pig, ,
aiiol in this way had got his trowsers stained.
Another witness (Darby Diamond,) deponed that he
saw tialliteher come into his brother's house, where
is received the drink of milk. He told the family
what had happened to him; he was without a hat,
eel his head and other parts of his body appeared
to be severely cut. Witness and his brother writ to
the spot where the assault had been conomitted. %here
they found a hat, awl saw marks out the mound, such
as might arise from a violent struggle. The morning
being wet they easily traced Gallocher's footsteps, and
also traced the footsteps of oilier two men to a spot
w here they had turned off into the muir.
The evidence haring closed, Mr. Hope, the Depute
.I+-'locate, shortly addressed the Jury, observing that
hi thought it unnecessary to waste their time by any
liot4thened comments, in a case where the proof was
dear and the character of the witness so respectable.
Mr. Maimasni replied in a short but animated
speech, in the course of which he dwelt with much in-1
genuityl on one or two circumstances which appeared
to make for the prisoner.
Lord Pit utll.lr summed up the evidence in his usual
able and impartial manner, although it was at the
same time evident that his Lordship entertained no'
doubt of the prisoners guilt. The Jury retired, and'
altar an absence of a few minutes. they returned a rival
rose verdict, by their Chancellor, John J. Hope John-
stone, Esq. of Annandale, finding the prisoner guilty
of the crime charged.
Fitatteis ',lstria and Julia Dasher were then pat to l,
the bar, charged with breaking into the Mansion-
house of Barscobe, on the 7th of July last, and steal-
icg therefrom a number of articles of wearing apparel,
ts.o or three books, Sm. Both of these prisoners
(one of whom is a ware boy), at first pleaded Net
; but they afterwards retracted this plea, and
were found Gailty in terms of their own confession.
In this retraction they were probably a good deal in-
Iluteced by the fate of the preceding prisoner, who
persisted in protesting his intioceuce, although pri-
vately informed of the overwheltning nature of the
proof to be adduced against him. 'llse first of these
prisoners is an old offender, and was tried and found i
gitilty of 3 similar act of theft at ult. Circuit Coon in
September, At that time he shouldered a huge
crutch when brought into Court. and as he afterwards
contrived to escape from jail, every *se wondered how
a man ai.parently so lame could manage to creep out
at a window scarcely bigger than a pigeon-hole, let
himself down two or eireestories by weans of his blan-
kets cut into narrow stripes, and afterwards scale a
wall nearly tueltv feet high. But we now suseectthat
his lameness WAS al!ogether feigned, as he dow walks
the aid of either staff or crutch.

THA

Counsel for the prisoners, Messrs. Maitland IT hig-
h am.

Th 4. fall. of GraAs*, /Wert, and others, accused
of reset of theft was then railed.

The Depute Advocate said, that as one of the pan-
owls (we understood him to mean Hagan), was to be
tried in another place, he wished bis Lordship to de-
sert the dirt against him po toe° et tewpore ; and
this being the care, he thought it as well to do the
same with regard to the others. The whole three
were then remanded to prison on a new warrant.
Counsel for the prisoners, Messrs. Hamilton and
M'Caellan.

without
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