The Statesman.
London, England, 1823-05-29 00:00:00

STEELS O. LUCAS AND ANOTHER.

This was an action by Mr. Steele, a jeweller, in Jr.
ford-street, against his neighbour, Mr. Lucas, and his
son, for an assault and battery. There has been an un-
forturAte di,pute respecting a right of way to certain
outbuitlinge between the parties, which, besides this
wits'', has given rise to an indictment for an assault, and
two indictments for perjury.
It appear,d, on the evidence of the plaintiff's witnesses,
11 that the servant lad of the plaintiff, being sent to take a
horse from the stable, unbarred the gate of the passage,
and in so doing let the bar fall on the ground. Upon
the defendants seized the lad and the bar, beat Lim
violently, and dreAced him across the way to give him
in charge to a watchman. The lad cried out, " Murder !
toaster I" till Mr. Steele and Oil brother beard him, and
went to his assistance. The defendant then towed on
Mr. Steele, struck him twice on the head with the bar,
and also with his fist, and at the same time assaulted It's
brother. In consequence of this ill treatment the plaintiff
was obliged to resort to medical advice, sod was unwell
for three weeks.

Mr. Cosmos SERGEANT scldretsed tbe jury for the de-
fendants, but called no witnesses.

The jury, after deliberating fora flouter of an hour,
found a verdict for the plaintiff—Damages, 30!.

HIGH COURT OF ADMIRALTY, MAY•2B.
YIIS kING 0. WHITAKER.

This rause, of which we gave a detailed account in
our paper of the 211 of April last, came on for sentence
to-day. It is proper again to • remark, that it is one
which may involve the fate of several others, in which we
understand similar proceedings have been instituted at
Antigua and elsewhere. It is the first instance, perhaps,
in which'lne severe penalties enacted by the statute 4
George 111. declaring a party aiding in the illegal im-
portetion into our colonies of prohibited goods, liable to
the payment of treble the value of such goods, have been
proceeded fur.
L 'rd STOWSLL said, this proceeding came op on ap-
peal from the Vice-Adniiralty Court of Jamaica, in which
Court William Whitaker had been proceeded against for
a breach of the revenue laws. Some papers had found
their way to his Lordship, containing a general obke-
tion to the jurisdiction of the Court ; but as nothing of
the sort had been noticed, either in the arguments of
Counsel or in the proceedings before this Court,
this Court did not feel itself called on to entertain
the question.
The XING'S ADVOCATI, with submission concerted In
this opinion of his Lordship. Some such objection bad, in-
deed, been raised on a similar question in the Vice-Admi-
ralty Court of Antigua, but not in that of Jamaica. In the
High Court of Admiralty, on the other hand, in a ease oe-
earring three or four years back, " The King against
O'Hara," this very statute of the 4th of (leo. 111. was made
the ground of the suit and of his Lordship's jurisdiction.
Lord Srowskt. observed, that the information in this case
which had been filed against W. Whitaker consisted of five
„counts, end the proving hint guilty of en offence ageism the
law under either of these counts was sufficient' to subject him
to the penalties proceeded for—namely, treble the value of the
I goods in the importation of alach the iodividual might have
been unlawfully assisting ; and as the value of the 211 barrels
of flour libelled was 2771. 4s. 2d.. the penalties in this ease,
should the offence be made ont as against Whitaker, would
he 3311. Ills. Od. The learned Judge. a ftereonsmenting on the
evidence adduced, and specially on a letter from Whitaker
to his agent, Alexander Maclean, Esq., (exhibited among
the papers), in which he did in fact admit the having im-
ported the dour contrary to the prohibitions of the statute,
declared his belief that Whitaker haul incurred suck penalty.
Doubtless the partieulat case of the defendant might be
harder than the Court had any present means of ascertain-
ing; hut seeing the way in which these goods had keen im-
ported into the colony, nst at an accustomed port where
there was a custom-house, but at a part of the island remote
and retired, and having no custom-house, it was obviously
a proceeding of that mischievous character which required
the suppression of every future attempt to renew it, as
highly hostile to that monopoly of our colonial trade and in-
tercourse which the polies, oche leugislsture had endeavour-
ed to secure to this cruintr%. Tae Court, therefore, COS-
denied the party In the peaty of treble the value of the
goods so illegally importer.