The Sun. — 1851-09-01 (London, England)

WORSHIP-STREET. John Start, who stood remanded from last week upon a charge of assaulting in a very infamous manner a young woman named Mary Anne Morehouse, whom he had engaged to convey with her boxes from the house of a family in Bloomsbury-square to that of her mother at Clapham-common, but, after driving her about in a covered van for four or five hours, ultimately drove her to Temple-mills, in the Hackney-marshes, where, in a lonely road, he subjected her to such persecution and violence while endeavouring to accomplish his purpose, that she was obliged to fling herself out headforemost upon the backs of the horses, and narrowly escaped with her life, was on Saturday placed at the bar for final examination before Mr. D'Eyncourt. On the last occasion the prisoner was remanded to procure the attendance of the driver of the van in which the outrage took place, and Frederick Churcher, the driver in question, now stated that he was its the service of Mr. Grainger, a van owner, in White Lion-street, Pentonville, and on Saturday, the 23d ult., was employed to drive one of his master's vans, which the prisoner and another man had hired, to bring a load of potatoes from Wanstead to London. After delivering the load at a house near Bloomsbury-square the prisoner came up with the prosecutrix and her boxes, and haling privately informed him that the young woman was his own sister, handed her and the boxes in, together with a mattress, and having then got in himself, told the witness to drive to some street, but he, being a stranger in town, did riot know where it was. He was sitting on a high seat in front of the van, and after going some distance asked the prisoner where he was going. The prisoner replied to Tyler's Farm, at Bow, and on witness telling him he was sure they ware going wrong, he replied that they were not, and for a long time afterwards kept directing him first to the right, and then to the left, till it at last became quite dark, and he found himself in a very lonely road, and with scarcely any houses near. He repeatedly heard a violent struggling going on inside the van between the prisoner and the prosecutrix, who screamed "Murder" two or three times, and at length earnestly implored him to protect her from the prisoner's violence. Witness told him he ought to be ashamed of himself to molest the girl, and told him to 1 eave her alone, but the prisoner threatened him with personal violence it he interfered, and upon a renewed attack by the prisoner the young woman made her way out through the front of the van, and clambered on to the seat by the side of witness, exclaiming that the prisoner would certainly kill her, if she could nut escape from him. She had scarcely got on to the driving seat, however, when the prisoner ran forward after her, and made a grasp at her clothes, which had been much torn in her previous struggles against her assailant, with a view to force her back into the van again, but the young woman shrieked out "Murder " in great terror, and leaped from the van with such reckless precipitation that her feet were caught in the horses' traces, and he considered it little short of a miracle that her life had not been sacrificed. It was impossible for him to help her, as his horses were very spirited animals, and he dared not let go of them, but a young man who had fortunately witnessed the prisoner's scandalous conduct from the back steps of the vehicle ran forward and rescued her from her perilous posi tion, and the prisoner was shortly afterwards cap tured.  Some further confirmatory evidence to the same effect was also adduced ; and the prisoner having in defence acknowledged that he had agreed to carry the prosecutrix as she had described, but that he was obliged to take her that distance out of her way as he had to take up a fresh load in that direction, but protested that he had not offered her any violence further than kissing her and placing his arm round ber waist,  Mr. D'ErNcouaT directed the evidence of the witnesses to be reduced to &positions, and the prisoner was fully committed to Newgate for trial.