Glasgow Courier. — 1850-10-01 (Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland)

JEDAURGH CIRCUIT COURT OF JUSTICIARY.  -The Autumn Circuit Court of Justiciary for the counties of Berwick, Roxburgh, Selkirk, and Peebles, was held at Jedburgh on Tuesday last. Lord Monereiff, Judge; Montgomery Bell, Esq., Advocate-Depute. The callendar was unusually light, there being only two cases to dispose of. Thomas Se,ott was accused of theft, of being habit and repute a thief, and of previous conviction of theft. He pleaded not guilty, and proof being led, the jury unanimously found the prisoner guilty as libelled. Sentence—seven years' transportation. John Johnston, station-master at Reston, on the North British Railway; James Robertson, engine-driver on said railway; and Henry Sliman or Sliming, senior, lately porter at Reston Station, were accused of culpable homicide, as also culpable neglect of duty, in so far as, on Saturday, the 13th day of April Mat, in consequence of their neglecting proper precautions and faith]; to observe the printed regulations furnished by the Railway Coinpany to its servants, an engine and luggage train, of which Thos. Cherry was the engine-driver, arrived at Reston Station from Edinburgh between ten and eleven o'clock at night; and having stopped there for the purpose of giving off some goods from one of the trucks; •• and a signal-wire which facilitated the using or presenting of signals on the signal post, situated on the side of the station next to Edinburgh, having been recently broken, and remaining still uurepaired, whereby unusual care and exertion" was required for the proper working of the same, said signal was neglected to be attended to by Henderson Shalom when the train stopped at the station. The indictment went on to charge John Johnston, the station-master, with failing to see that the red or stop signal light was duly presented when the train arrived, as he ought to have done, and with culpably leaving the station, several hours before the arrival of the train, and being absent until after Thomas Cherry was bruised and injured in manner after libelled. It charged James Robertson, the enginedriver of the goods train, which came up to the Reston station behind the train of Thomas Cherry, with culpably neglecting to sound his whistle at a quarter of a mile before reaching the station, omitting to have a lighted head-lamp on his engine, and failMg to be warned in time by the red tail lamp of Cherry's train, in consequence of which, being unable completely to bring his train to a stand, the death of Cherry was occasioned. All the panels pleaded not guilty. After the examination of various witnesses, the Advocate-Depute and the counsel for the several panels having addressed the jury, Lord Moncreiff ,vent over the evidence at length; after which the jury retired to deliberate, and, after an absence of about half an hour, returned into Court with a verdict, finding, by a majority, the charge against Johnston not proven, and unanimously finding Robertson and Sliming guilty of culpable neglect of duty as libelled. Lord MONCLIEIFF, in pronouncing sentence, said, he had had a very similar case at Ayr, to which he had paid great attention; but it was a worse case than this, as there were more persons hurt. Toe sentence in that case was four months' imprisonment. In this case it might be reduced to three months' imprisonment. Every one most be satisfied that that was as lenient a sentence as possible, but he hoped it would be sufficient as a warning to others in circumstances of similar responsibility, to exercise caution and vigilance in the discharge of their duties. Sentence on James Robertson and Henderaou Sihning—three months' iinprisonment.