The Sun. — 1853-08-03 (London, England)

ABERDEEN. It has so happened, consequently, that we have hung like a clog up to this hour upon the skilful and resolute arm of French diplorbacy. It has so happened, moreover,' that the CZAR has pressed forward with daring and unflinching pertinacity, under cover of a grand and golden opportunity. Until, not merely have his soldiers crossed the Pruth and taken violent possession of the Danubian Principalities, but the political agents of his Absolutism in Moldavia have forbidden Prince GHIKA, the Hospodar of that province, to send further tribute as of yore to his liege Suzerain at Constantinople.  Startled, it would seem, into a tardy recogni their intelligent brethren, who found a verdict of " wilful murder" against Lord JOHN RUSSELL, on account of the death from destitution of an old woman in the county Mayo, and apparently desirous of being thenceforward, and for ever, classed in the same category with these model jurors, arrived at the decision that the Hon. F. SCOTT and Mr. BEATTIE were guilty of the manslaughter of the unhappy man, whose fate they earnestly deplored, but for which they were in no degree accountable. The result was, that these gentlemen were held to bail, to appear and answer the charge at the Surrey Assizes, and they were yesterday arraigned at Croydon, on the Coroner's inquisition, before the Lord Chief Baron and a Coroner's. Jury, and that they were acquitted as a matter of course, the learned Judge having, before a single particle of evidence was offered, on the mere statement of the counsel for the prosecution, expressly stated his opinion that " a railway chairman or director, who engaged a special train, was in exactly the same positton as an ordinary traveller, and he might reasonably suppose that all that was necessary to be done would be done by the persons in the employ of the railway upon whom that duty devolved ; and he would not be responsible unless he had done some personal act, or given some directions, that led to the accident." On this statement, and also the judicial announcement that " the mere fact of the defendants being the occupants of a special train did not make it incumbent on them to take care that all the necessary arrangements were made at the different stations through which they had to pass. He was of opinion that no such duty was cast upon them ; and that, whether in the case of a chairman or a director of a company, or a manager of the traffic, neither of them was responsible for what might happen at any station over which they had no personal control." This sound common sense, as well as legal view of the transaction, of course, terminated the proceedings. The experienced and eminent counsel who conducted the prosecution at once bowed to the decision of the Judge, and offered no evidence iu support of the indictment. The defendants were, of course, exonerated from all further liability. But who was to repay them for the annoyance and vexation, loss of time and heavy expenditure incurred by the outra'geous decision of the coroner's jury, through whose conceited self-sufficiency and gross ignorance it occurred that these gentlemen had their names exposed in the criminal calendars as culprits, who " feloniously killed and slew" one of their fellow-creatures, were compelled to appear, at any personal inconvenience, at the general gaol delivery for the county of Surrey, no matter how urgent their other avocations might be, and to bear the heavy expense of instructing a numerous staff of counsel. The grand jury may chuckle at their own impunity from the consequences of their mistaken verdict-, but they may learn that such gross ignorance as they have displayed is scarcely more defensible than wilful malice, and that, although not legally, they are morally responsible for th e damages incurred through their most absurd and most unjustifiable verdict.