The Sun. — 1858-02-01 (London, England)

CRIMINAL COURT.—{This Day.)  The February Sessions at the Central Criminal Court commenced this morning at the Sessions House, Old Bailey, before the Right Hon. the Lord Mayor, Sir G. Carroll, the Recorder, Alderman Wire, Alderman and Sheriff Lawrence, Mr. Sheriff Allen, the Under Sheriffs, and other civic authorities.  The calendar contains a list of 70 prisoners for trial, with the exception of five cases of manslaughter and two of murder, they were of the ordinary description. A. number of jurymen were fined 10/. each for nonattendance. The grand jury having been sworn,  The RECORDER, in delivering his charge, said that although the calendar was not heavy, he was sorry to say that five of the cases extended to manslaughter, and one to murder ; in that case two men, named Jeremiah Calligan and Patrick Murphy, were charged with the wilful murder of Henry Morgan, a police constable, and it now appeared that the occurrence arose out of a drunken row ; a person bad given Calligan into custody for an assault, and a number of persons attempted a rescue when be was in the custody of the deceased, which resulted in his receiving a blow which terminated in his death. One of the questions will be, whether there is sufficient to identify the prisoner Calligan as having inflicted the blow ; if there was sufficient evidence, no doubt the prisoner was guilty of murder, and those who were identified as having taken part in the rescue were equally liable. There appeared to have been strong evidence of the identity, and if they were of that opinion, it would be their duty to return a true bill. The next case was one in which James O'Neal, a tailor, was ()barged with feloniously assaulting John Richardson, with intent to murder him. This case also arose out of a drunken squabble, in which the prisoner seised a pair of tcngs, and struck the prosecutor several violent blows. The next case is a charge against Sarah Bennett, a married woman, for feloniously killing and slaying Mary Bennett.  It appeared from the depositions, that the prisoner had been quarreling with her husband, when the deceased seemed to have interfered to protect her mother, and re, nited in her receiviog a violent blow on the head with a hammer, which caused her death. The learned Recorder having britity adverted to the other cases which would come before the grand jury, in which the master of Newington Workhouse was charged with converting the bodies of paupers under his care for anatomical purposes, said that some time since an act vra,. passed for affording facilities to medical students and surgeons for the purposes of scientific anatomical pm.poses, but the act required that they should be the bodies of persons who had died, and who either had no friend. or were not identified. The defendant, had, it would, he believed tern out, made use of his office as master of the workholve, and used the bodies of persons who had relatives, and a sort of mock funeral took place, which was followed by the relatives ; there was he believed, no e press statute ; the ordinary cases in the books were those where bodies had been disinterred, which was an offence at common law. The principal evidence was that of a person who was in the nature of an accompice ; and it they thought the defendant had used the bodies for gain and reward he would advise the jury to return a true bill, and then the case would be considered in that court. He did not think there were any other cases requiring observation. The jury then retired.  The trial of Mr. Glover, the late member for Beverley, for making an aleged false declaration as to his qualification to sit in the House of Commons, is postponed till the next session., with the consent uf the Crown.