The Sun. — 1868-01-27 (London, England)

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT. The January session of the Central Criminal Court was opened this morning by the Lord Mayor, the Recorder, Alderman Sirß. Carden' Alderman Sir 'B. S. Phillips, Alderman and Sheriff Stone, Mr. Sheriff M'Arthur, the under-sheriffs (Messrs. Davidson and Roche), &c., &c. The first edition of the calendar contains the names of 83 prisoners. Of this number 20 are committed from the City of London, 4G from Middlesex, 2 from Essex, 3 from Kent, and 12 from the county of Surrey. The offences are thus classified : Arson 4, concealing bankrupt's estate 1, bigamy 1, burglary 11, uttering counterfeit coin 23, embezzlement 4, feloniously casting corrosive fluid 1, forcible entry 1, forgery 2, horse stealing 3, housebreaking and larceny 2, larceny from the person, &c., 2, stealing a post letter 1, misdemeanour 13, murder 2, receiving stolen goods 1, rape 1, robbery 5, and feloniously wounding 1. —The Recorder, in charging the grand jury, said the first case to which he would refer was an indictment for wilful murder against James Conning, a seaman, and they would be under the disadvantage of not seeing the witnesses on whose evidence the crime was to be made out. The depositions were taken before a consul at a foreign port, and if the witnesses were not in this country the depositions would be taken as evidence. It appeared that the deceased and a companion bad been on shore and returned drunk, some quarrelling taking place after they came on-board, which resulted in 'the prrsoner stabbing the deceased. The statement he made was that he did so in self-defence, and under the whole circumstances he (the Recorder) did not think the crime would amount to more than manslaughter. There was also a charge of murder against an Italian named Morelli. In this case there was no pretence that the prisoner's own life was in danger, but it might be considered whether, the crime being committed in the heat of blood, there was sufficient evidence to support the capital charge. The learned Recorder next alluded to a charge against a woman by the name of Eliza Collins, for the murder of her child by leaving it exposed in a field, and stated that the question for the jury to consider was whether there was any intention that the child should die. There was a charge preferred under extraordinary circumstances against Thomas Wagstaffe and his wife. The charge was to the effect that the parents caused the death of their child by neglect, and it appeared they were members of a sect who called themselves " The Peculiar People." One of their tenets was that it was contrary to the teachings of raSctriiopnturoef health,tohav ereacnoudrsethteo mcoeudrsicael atdhevyice afdoropttheedrewstasoto anoint the child and pray to God for its recovery. The child was suffering from inflammation of the lungs, and the medical testimony was, that if advice had been sought it would have had a fair chance of life. matterthe w forord s regret of Scripture that a any body It was difficult to say that death was caused by the neglect of fdty of parents,he to neglect the means usually resorted to in cases of illness. The Recorder proceeded to comment on some cases of people should but Nvm so perverta minor importance, and the jury then retired to their room for deliberation.