The Sun. — 1857-11-23 (London, England)

OLD COURT.  The November session of the Central Criminal Court, the first under the mayoralty of the newly-elected, Lord Mayor, Sir R. W. Carden, commenced this morning, and, although barely three weeks have elapsed since the the grand jury were discharged at the last session, there are more than a hundred prisoners for trial already, and, in all probability, about twenty more will be committed before the session is brought to a cl,lse. The Recorder, in charging the grand jury, said although so short a time had elapsed since the court last assembled, there was a large number of prisoners for trial. It was a satisfactory fact, however, that there was not a single case of murder or manslaughter in the calendar, and although there were some serious cases of burglary, wounding witb intent to do grievous bodily harm, there was an absence of the graver description of charges, which had unhappily been so numerous at some of the recent sessions of the court. There was one case of very considerable interest to the commercial world to be disposed of, was a charge against two persons named Marks and Simmons, of having obtained goods to a very large amount in anticipation of bankruptcy, with a view to cheat their creditors ; and there was also a second charge of the same character against a person named Skinner and some other defendants. Although the cases were to a certain degree complicated, he did not anticipate any difficulty would arise to the grand jury. If so, the Court would most readily lend them its assistance.  The grand jury then retired to their room. The judges who will preside during the session are Lord Chief Justice Cockburn, Mr. Justice Coleridge, and Mr. Baron Watson.  It will be remembered that at the last session an indictment was preferred against Lord C. Clinton and a person named Jeffree for obtaining money from stockbroker in the City by the deposit of shares, tl e transaction being alleged to be a fraudulent one, and the grand jury returned a true bill against both parties. The trial was postponed at the last session,  and during the interval application has been made to the Court of ,Queen's Bench for a writ of certiorari, to remove the case into that Court, and the application having been acceded to, the trial will therefore not tyke place at the Old Bailey.  The Hon. Mr. and Mrs. Vernon have arrived at the St.. George's Hospital. FERRYBOAT RUN DOWN BY A STEAM PACKET —A fatA accident occurred on the river Ouse at aoout seven o'clock on Friday night, by which bur persons lost their lives and two others had an extremely narrow escape from dreeNning. The Empress steam packet, which plies hetwoen Hull and Thorne, started from the former piacion her return journey at five o'clock on Friday evening, with reheat 50 passengers on board. The night was dare, and tt it, vessel carried a light at her stem and ano her at her st rrn.. Ou approaching Whitgitt-ferry, on the river Ouse, the captain of the steamer observed the ferryboat cressiag die stream, and called out to the men in charge of it to back their oars. The tide was running strongly at the time, and the men in the boat either did not hear the captain or were incapable of getting the boat out of the w ay, and tho steamer struck the frail craft in the middle, lifting it up on one side and turning it complete ly over. There were six persons in the boat, indud rug two ferrymen, and they were of course all thrown into the river. Tee boatmen ana two other persons (a Mr. Sneesby, son of a cattle dealer living at Sheffield, and his cousin) perished. A master of a barge named Taarior succeeded in gaining the steamer, and was rescued ; and another man, a ratcatcher, who was greatly coneeirned about his ferrets (which were ultimately a :recove red), escaped by swimming to the shore. A party 'of mea were engaged all Saturday in dragging the river `tlor the bodieF, but up to the evening of that day not one -',of them ,bad been found.