, 1874-03-18
THE TRIAL
OF
THE TICHBORNE CLAIMANT
OF
HUNDRED AND sEYENTY-THIRD DAY.
S~TMMING-IP.

The Lord Chief Justice, in his summing up,
purSues only one thread OF events in strict
chronological order. Assuming the truth of
the Defendants claim, he continues the nara
tive of Mr.. Tichborne's life by lacking on to
it the story of the defendant from 1854, point
ing out, however, as he passes along, the diff
culties in which, according to the whole body
of evidence, oral and documentary, this assump-
ton appears to be involved. 1t is, perhaps,
owing to the novelty of this method, no less
than to the acute and vigorous intellect now
brought to bear upon this vast field of inquiry,
that the various aspects of the case appear,
even to those who are familiar with its details,
to wear in his lOrdship'S address an air most
of novelty. Nearly the entire day yesterday
may be said to have been devoted to the sub
ject of the Osprey, for q few preliminary re-
marks upon the different accounts of the ship
wreck of the Bella, and alleged rescue OF a
portion of her crew, given at various times by
the defendant and bis counsel, occupied but @
short time. Passing then to the question of
the r|escuing vessel, his lordship dwelt fOrcibly
upon the circumstance that the existence of
any such vessel was not confirmed by any re-
cord either at her port of departure or place of
arrival, "No man." he added, "who had
been saved from death by being picked up at
sea could fail to ask the name OF the vessel
which saved him nor, if he received kindness
and hospitality from the captain for three
months, could he fail to ask Who is 1T to
whom [ am indebted 2" In his affdavlts.
and his original examination before Mr.. Rou-
pell in 1867, the defendant said nothing about
"his brain" or his memory" at this period
having suffered. Even when that notion was
suggested to him by his own counsel, he had
at first declined to adopt it but he had always
said that though he was i'll aboard he recover
ed, and took his meals in the captains cabin.
"SureIy Them observed his lordShip, che
must have ascertained these facts"
The Lord Chief Justice tn n reviewed at
some length the evidence of witnesses who had
been brought to establish the fact that an
Osprey did arrive at that period with ship
wrecked sailors but the confused and contra
dictOry character of their recollectlOns was
pointed out at some length; while 1t was an
admitted fact that no contemporary notice OF
any such vessel was to be found. His Lord
ship remarked on the absolute necessity under
which the defendant on his arrival had labour-
ed of giving some account OF the vessel
which be said had picked him up. 1t had been
alleged that shortly after that period he had
made searches at Lloyds; but this the deten-
dant positively denied, declaring that "he ala
not even know where Lloyd's was !" but the
keeper of the registers at Lloyd's had been
called as a witness, and had deposed that the
defendant did make searches both for the
Osprey and the Bella at the period referred
to; that he was introduced to him as Sir
Roger Tichborne, and that he attended upon
him on the occasion for four hours. The re-
suit of this search was, that there were Difficult,
ties in the way of fitting any vessel called
the Osprey to the defendants story and
thenceforward he gave a qualified statement
In Sydney he had said in his solemn declara.
ton that the captains name was "Owens.
He now said that he believed it was Owen
Lewis or Lewis Owen. Of the Osprey itself
he thenceforward said only that he was under