The Statesman.
London, England, 1821-04-16 00:00:00

SURREY SESSIONS.

THE COAL TRADE.
On Saturday the Court met according to adjourn-
ment, to hear evidence in support of the memorial of Mr.
T. Bradfield, for the dismissal of F. Bigg, Esq. from
the office of principal coal-meter for the county of
Surrey. The Court was attended as before by a num-
ber of persons interested in the coal trade.
J. Harrison, Esq. took the Chair. There were ten
other Magistrates on the Bench.
Mr. Turton and Mr. Abraham attended in support
of the memorial. Mr. Nolan and Mr. Heath con•
ducted the defence. Several witnesses were examined,
and a further adjournment took place.

DEATH eXDSR SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSDANCES,

Two men. named Bosh and Footman, master
sweeps, residing at Camberwell, hare undergone se-
veral examinations during the past week at Union
Hall Police Office, before J. B. Allen, Esq., npun the
charge of having caused the death of a chttnney-sweep
boy, eight years of age, who was apprenticed to Foot-
man. 'I he Magistrate very laudably wrote to Mr.
Jemmett, the Coroner for the county, and suggested
to him the propriety of having the body disinterred,
to be examined by medical men, and an inquisition
held thereon. On Saturday Mr. Je ttttt lett arrived at
Union Hall, and Mr. Allen stated that he had seen
the Rector of Lambeth parish, who had no objection
to the body, which was interred in the church-yard oi
that parish, being taken up.
The Lambeth Beadle happening to be in the office,
he was asked by Mr. Jemntett if a Jury cum: i be sum-
moned to sit on the body that evening ? The beadle
said, that if it were absolutely necessary, he would take
upon himself to have a Jury ready by Live o'clock, at
Lambeth Workhouse.
'I he Coroner then gave orders for the hotly to be
taken up, and examined by the surgeon of the parish
preparatory to his attendance before the Jury to be ex-
amined touching the death of the boy.
CORONER'S INQUEST.
At five o'clock the Jury was assembled at the Lam-
beth Workhouse, before Mr. Jernmett ; and thirteen
Jurors having been sworn, they proceeded to view the
body, which had been disinterred and pliced in the
bottelsonee. hey were accompanied by Mr. Hyde. a
surgeon at Lambeth, by whom the body had been ex-
atuined, hut it was in too putrid a state to admit of
I more than an external observation. The following
witnesses we.e examined :
Elisabeth Elites, wife of Thomas Elkes, of Bloxam's
buildings, Lambeth, deposed, that trine weeks back
she applied to Footman, a chittiney.sweeper in her
neighbourhood, for a boy to sweep her chimney. In
half an hour afterwards, Bush, Footman's foreman,
brought John Thorp, the deceased, and desired him I
to go up the chimney. The child was aliout nine or
ten years of age, and seemed to be very poorly. The
child went up reluctantly a short way, and there
stopped. Bush struck him with a strap. Another
apprentice, named Lane, then came its, and Bush
desired hint to take the strap and follow the
deceased, and not be ashamed to use it. Lane'
went np the chimney, and witness heard a noise as
if one boy was passing the other ; but she heard no
noise or scuffle. Bush then took the deceased by
the leg and pulled hint down from the chimney, striking
his head against a shelf as he came down. He then
took the child by his leg and'arm, and threw him
across !he room upon the boards with great violence.
The boy got np, but did not cry. Witness said," !or]
Christ's sake, Mr. Bush, you will kill the child-1
you will murder him:" Ile replied with an oath, " I
wish I could." Witness then said, " for God's sake,
return hint from whence he came to which he re-
plied, " No ; his brJther (meaning Footman) was not
to lose six guineas by the scoundrel, for then he would
go to the Penitentiary." Ile then ordered the deceased
to get on his slices, and while he was doing so he
struck him with his brush and strap on the loins, add-
ing with another oath, " that he should go up ano-
ther chimney now." In all this time the boy never
uttered a word or cry. They left the house, and in
about a quarter of an haur afterwards, witness heard
a boy crying " Sweep!" in Footman's chimney ; she
believed it was deceased. In two or three days subse-
quently witness met Footman on Dulwich-hill, and
said to him, " Dear me, Mr. Footman, in what a man-
ner Mr. Bush used that po r child in my house."—
Ile replied, with an oath, " I wish he had killed him."
Mr. Charles Hyde, the surgeon by whom the body
had been examined, was then called. Ile deposed
' that be bad examined every part of the body, and
that be had nut been able to discover any marks if
violence which, in hls opinion. could hate occasioned
death. There %sere some sputa on the head, which
ha oonsidered were produced front a diseased. or son
sea*. There sras no freetttre of any of the bout.
There.wais aleciate um each knee. and on each elbow.
which he believed was common to all young chimney
-There was alba a wound in the leg : it