The Northern Daily Times. — 1857-04-08 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

ERPOOL, WEDNESDAY.  inspire-in the minds of the profligate and vicious, thei.e• could be no safety, either for life' or property, and society must of necessity resolve itself into its original chaotic elements. The , more perfect that system of police is, which has for its object the prevention of crime, and the protection of the virtuous, the weak, and the well-disposed, the nearer do we approach towards true civilisation. We agree with SIDNEY SMITH, that " the staff and the stout arm of the constable is the only effectual method of keeping a clear highway in England.". Our " new policeman" is a being of comparatively modern creation. He certainly cannot boast of the antiquity of his order, although he may most truly of his efficiency and respectability, when these are contrasted with his predecessors ; and wa believe the community have no more valuable servant than the constable who knows, and who, honestly, fearlessly, and faithfully performs, his duties. Such a man is indeed a " terror to evil doers, and a praise to those who do well." His sleepless nights are spent in anxiously guarding those who repose secure in his watchfulness. He is ever ready to rush to the cry of distress, to the protection of the weak, or the safety of the helpless, and his own life is often imperilled by his efforts to protect that of his fellow-citizens, when exposed to danger. His task is indeed an arduous one, exposed as he is, in all weathers, for some ten hours, night after night, without rest or shelter of any kind, moving round his beat like a mill horse ; his work is as trying to the constitution as anything can be—so trying that many sink under it. The constable who is openly at war with criminals of every stamp has every right to all the protectino which the law can throw around him, and it is the knowledge of the possession of this which enables him to act with confidence and promptitude on every emergency. He is armed with power of the most formidable kind. To interrupt a constable in the discharge of his duty, either by word or deed, is a very grave offence; to touch him is an assault ; and he has the terrible power of inflicting death itself on a- prisoner who may he legally in his custody, should that prisoner endeavour to make his escape. On the other hand, should he fall while in the execution of his duty, the law decrees it to be murder, and nothing less. But while the law thus arms the constable with such vast powers, it is scrupulously careful that he shall not exceed the limits allowed him. Of this we have a most striking instance in the recent stabbing case at Birkenhead, where a constable was instantaneously deprived of life by a miscreant, who struck him to the heart with a knife. Such was the feeling of horror and indignation which this assassination provoked at the moment, that had SMITH been put upon his trial there and then hislife would no doubt have been forfeited, as it certainly would have been subsequently had it not been for the facts which transpired on the trial at the Assizes. From these it appeared that the constable was called to the ' housp of a publican, morning, to remove the prisoner, who Was disorderly. The landlady, however, refused to give him into custody, and the constable acted discreetly by counselling the prisoner to go home. This advice he appears to have taken, for he did zo some distance in that direction. What exactly transpired in the interval does not clearly appear, for the only person who could have thrown any light on that portion of the transaction—namely, SMITH'S companion—was not examined. We have it in evidence, however, that VAUGHAN was joined by another policeman, named WurrEsinn; that the two had some conversation ; that they then demanded the prisoners' names, which was refused, on which VAUGHAN seized SMITH by the collar, while WHITESIDE seized his companion, and attempted to drag them off to Bridewell. This was resisted, and the result was the death of