The Statesman.
London, England, 1820-05-30 00:00:00

Til E STATESMAN.

issued his warrant, and Captain Mills was committed
to Sewgate. Ile was, however, bailed cut upon lay-
ing the cire tances of the case before one of the
Judges, and u!!un the trial afterwards at the Old Bailey,
hontsur.ibly acquitted. The Learned Counsel then
read the evidence of Whitehorn upon that occasion,
the falsity of which caused the present charge against
her. Amongst other things, she swore to four facts,
all of which he would show to be untrue. First, that
Captain Mills violated her person against her consent;
secondly, that he kept her confined in his house for
sixteen days; and in that time she had no opportunity
of making her situation known to ber mother ; and
lastly, that he had communicated disease to her. 'these
allegations he meant to rebut by the clearest testi-
mony ; and he hoped to be able to sh,.w that she had
perfect liberty to go in and out of the house as she
pleased. If lie made out this case, it was unnecessary
to tell the Jury that it was an ag,4rarated one, and
one which called for severe punishment.

The follAring evidence was then given f:r the pro-
secution:—

The word of the acquittal of Capt.iii Mills, at the
Ohl Bailey, was put in as evidence of a trial having
taken place.
V,n. Oliver, a short-hand writer, swore to the evi-
dence given by Sar..h Whitehorn, the delcii,:ant, upon
that trial. The substance of it was that stated by Mr.
Searlett.
Some dismission arose as to whether the defendant
was sworn or not. This witness was not able to speak
positively to the fart, but the Court said it was to be
presumed that she was sworn.
Captain Samuel Mills gave in detail the eireum- ,
stances of his knowletkre and cuanectiun with the de-
fendant. Ile never gave her any wine, or &reef(' to,
twit. the slightest liberties with her. Her person was
filthy in the extreme. Ile put no restraint upon her.
He was in and out every day; frequently dined from
home; she was only a temporary servant. Ile sent
her out almost every day on errands to Chelsi.a. De-
nied having violated her person by tore. Ile frt.-
trendy spent nights out.
Cross examined by Mr. Ihrxwax.—He saw Hannah •
Whitehorn sworn at the trial—saw her kiss the hook.
Witness had been a Captain in the 49th Regiment, but
was now retired. Ilad not lived long at Chelsea he-
tre the time. When Whitehorit came to his house,
there was another girl there of the name of :-arali Dilly.
She left next inorning. They never were in the par-
lour with him ; never gave them any think ; White-
horn came into the parlour only when she brow:lit any I
thing in ; she never sat with hint at night iii the par-,
lone: there were candles burning in the kitchen. Fennel
the time he eame to Chelsea to the time that the de-
fenilant left hint, lie had had eight servants; this was a
spare of about time months ; was bringlit tip to Queen
-
square Police-otbee by two other servants, b;i si-ttled
by given these women one pound earl*. Vie time
Hannah Whitehern ‘1•; :here he had 101 l one servant.
Mrs. Byguis lived near Captain Mills' h,pse, at
Owls `a, and saw the defendant oa.se or twee out on
errands ; there was nothing. offensiv. ;Aunt hvr person,
she was rather cleanly.
Mrs. Porter, a dairywoman at Chelsea, who served
Captain Mills with milk, said she had uften seen the
defendant at his house.

lilliSl litelg..s was a servant girl wl:o Betel with
Captain Mills from Tuesday to Saturday in the week
that the defendant left him. Whitehorn was out three
or four times in that time ; there was nothing to keep
her within ; on Thursday she complained of being ill ;
witness saw nothing disgusting about ber person.
Mr. Brodie, the surgeon, proved that the defendant
was infected with a venereal disease, which seemed to
be of some days standing, when he examined her soon
after Captain Mills was taken up. On cross-examina-
tion he said it was possible the symptoms might have
been produced by other causes.
Mr. Box, the surgeon to New-gate. examined Captain
Mills soon after his committal to that prison, and saw
no svmptonas of disease upon him.
Mr. SCA/ILKI'T slid that was his case.
CHID JUSTICII.—A very slender ease it is. I ob-
serve you have only one witness to the fact of the dis-
ease, and I don't think the other assignments supported.
Mr. SCAR! STT.--if yonr Lordship will allow me,
I'll pet the depositions made before the Magistrate, to
show how much they differ bow the evidence given by
the defendant at the trial.
Cuter JUATICE.--1 hope you will confine yourself'
to those passages to whirls you assign perjury. I don't
care if her whole account of the transaction he untrue;
still, if yen fail to show that these particular allega-
tions are not only false, but wilful and corrupt, your
case fails.
'I he depositions and her evidence ageism were read.
Mr. lIa? MAN then addressed the Jury fur the de-
fendant. Atter commenting strongly upon she im-
probability of a girl so young as this misioisig up is
-false story against the prosecutor. lie °hewers', that
the prosecutor might have been easily sppported by
evidence to shame that slit. was at lilserty to go in and
out of his house fteely, if the fact really was su. It
did not make against her that she did not ditelsiseber
case to strangers. It was more natural, with the in-
'Renee which the prosecutor hail over her, as living in
his house, that she semmuld hive c 'needed her shame. I
Besides, it was not clear that she knew the way house
to her umother's. Opportunity was not a matter of
fart, it was a matter of opinion. The prosecutor could
nut assume that she had an opportunity of tommuni-
eating wills her mother because she saw sonic strangers,
for it might not be the sort of opportunity she her-
! self would choose. To convict her of perjury, time
Jury should not only find that she spoke falsely, bat
, also corruptly and wilfully. From the circumstance
! of Captain Mills having been twice at the police-office,
! Queen-srinare, it was clear that he wee, to say nothing
worse, in the habit of treating his female servants in-
decently. Ile concluded by saying, that after what
fell from the Court, he would only offer evidence as
'to her general character.
IThree or four very respectable witnesses which were
called, gave the defendant an excellent character for 1
' veracity and good conduct,
The Cater Jug% ice, after summing up the evidence,
told the Jury he did not think the case proved. In
support of the assignment respeetiug the violation of
her person, there was only the evidence of Captain
1
Mills himself. 'I he law required two witnemes to
establish per;ury. As to the allegation of being con-

fined in the prosecutor's house, it should be established
that she meant thereby that she was actually confined;
but that was assumed only by the prosecutors. In
cases of rape the delay on the part of the female to
complain was a strong presumption against her ; but
she, at least in this case, was the first to complain.
Perhaps her whole story was untrue; but the prosecu-
tors certainly failed in showing that the passages which
they selected were corruptly and wilfully untrue. As
to the last, which was a material issue respecting the
disease, his Lordship observed, that there was only
one witness to that fact. These, his Lordship said,
were the impressions on his mind; bat it was for the
Jury to draw their own conclusions from the evidence
which they had heard.
The Jury instantly acquitted the defendant.
BOSSVIEI.II R. StROtGIITON.
This teas an action by an attorney against the de-
fendant (who is sun to Sir Charles Broughton), for
the amount of his bill of expenses incurred at the last
election for Evesham, in the defendant's service.
.1 great deal of contradictory evidence was offered on
both sides, and the contest seemed to be upon the ques-
tion of whether this hill was to he included in the
lump sn:n for which the plaintiff promised to do all the
business, or was to be a distinct charge. It appeared
the plaintiff otherwise received large sums of money.
The Jury found for the defendant.