The Sun. — 1844-03-25 (London, England)

CLIVE—The men were entire strangers to witness. The defendant told us they were travellers.  The door was opened by the defendant immediately that they knocked. By the defendant—Came from the direction of the bridge to the house, but did not see him standing in the road before they came up. Defendant told them that one of the four persons had been taken ill, and had had some brandy-and-water. Police-constable Jones, T 31, deposed that he accompanied the last witness to the defendant's house, and corroborated his statement as to four persons being at the bar.  By the defendant—The shortest of the four appeared very ill, and he said something about having had brandyand water, or he should have died. The whole of the young men offered to give their addresses in support of their statement. Every facility was afforded by the defendant to the police searching the house, and on their entering he opened the bar-door, and said, "'here are four persons there," but witness had already seen them through the glass window. Mr. Bolton declared that the real facts of the case were these:—Oa Sunday, soon after eleven o'clock, two young gentlemen brought a third to his house, saying he had been taken very ill, and begged for God's sake that he might be admitted for the purpose of having some hot brandy-and-water. On the police coming to the house he explained to them the circtrestances, as did also the party in question, who were all connected with public offices, and were therefore unable to attend at that Court that day. He had, however, the waterman in attendance who had brought them up the river, who would prove the truth of his statement. He then called Charles Campbell, waterman, of No. 1, Church-street, Waterloo-road, who deposed that on Sunday morning last he took a party of three gentlemen up the river from Westminster-bridge-stairs. It was a very cold day, and the wind blew very hard. One of the gentlemen who sat in the head of the boat, when near Hammersmith-bridge, was taken very bad, and they were all afraid he would have died. He was taken ashore at the bridge by the other gentlemen to the defendant's house, and witness afterwards went to see how he was, when the landlord asked him in, and he had a pint of porter and a biscuit. The pot he had it in was that which the policeman had spoken of. Mr. CLIVE said that was not a case for a conviction. The summons must be dismissed.  On Saturday information was circulated, by authority of Government, and inserted in the Police Gazette, offering a reward• to the amount of 3001. for the discovery of a person, at present unknown, who, on the morning of the 13th instant, attempted to murder Charles. Grimmer, a farmer, at Pakefield, in Suffolk, by discharging a loaded gun at him. Rewards of 50/., on the part of her Majesty's Government, and 201. by Mr. Grimmer himself, in addition to 2801. by the Magistrates and others, are offered for the discovery, and it is stated that her Majesty's pardon will be granted to any accomplice (excepting only the person who actually fired the gun), who will give such information as may be the means of bringing to justice the perpetrator of the outrage.