The Sun. — 1863-10-31 (London, England)

THAMES. A BRACE OF RuFFIANs.--Daniel Shea, aged 28, and Joseph Early, 19, two pow erful fellows, were brought before Mr. Partridge, charged with being drunk, disorderly and violently assaulting Mr. William Henry Mills, a licensed victualler, in High-street, Shad well, Robert Wass, his potmart, and James Hayward, a seaman of the brig Ryhop.  Mr. Mills said the prisoners came into his house last night at 10 o'clock. They were preceded by a confederate, who asked for a pot of beer. The prisoners knew he had. forbidden them to come to the house on any pretence, and that he would not serve them. Directly they entered the house they abused, swore at, and insulted every person in the house, and without any provocation beat an old man who could not defeud himself. Early struck another man, and cut his cheek. Another man received a- blow on the eye, which was blackened. He went into the tap room in the middle of the disturbance and ordered the prisoner to leave the house. Shea immediately seized him by the throat, while Early beat his potman. He sent out for the police, and others called out murder. He never saw two such ruffians in his life, They fought desperately. Wass, the potman, confirmed his master's statement. When he requested the prisoners not to make a disturbance, they threatened to murder him, and Early knocked him down. He got up, and Shea hit him on the eye. Mr. Mills was recalled, and said his reason for not serving the prisoners, and forbidding them the house was, they had often made a disturbance there. One night Shea hit a man, as he was sitting down, in a cowardly manner. The sailor, Hayward, whose name was on the charge-sheet, was seriously injured, and could not leave his ship. Roche, the jailor of tho court, said the prisoners were too  Denis Mehan was placed before Mr. Corrie, on remand. charged with violently assaulting John Whiting, a police. constable in the F division.  The constable stated a few evenings ago the prisoner and a man named Wiley were quarrelling in Drury-lane. He went up to them, and desired them to go away, when Wiley struck him a violent blow. He (witness) then collared Wiley, when a struggle commeaced, and both fell to the ground. While they were down the prisoner Mehan came up and kicked him on the head, and as he (witness) saw he was about to repeat the kick, he put up his hand to protect his head, and in =sequence he received a blow on the back of the hand. He still kept his hold of Wiley, and called for assistance, during which time Mehan kept on kicking him in various portions of the body, and Wiley endeavoured to escape. Fortunately, anather constable came to his assistance, and both prisoners were secured and taken to the station-house. On the first examination Wiley was fined 40s. fur the part he had taken in the transaction, but as the constable's hand was much injured the prisoner (Mahon) was remanded, in order that the nature of the injury might be ascertained. The constable is still incapacitated from duty, and this morning he appeared before Mr. Corrie, and informed him that the divisional surgeon was of opinion that it would be a long thee before he would be fit for duty.  Mr. Corrie said it was a most cowardly assault, and he should commit the prisoner to the sessions.  Mehan, on hearing this, said he never struck the policeman at all, but some one else might have done so, because he had taken his (Mehaws) wife into custody for doing nothing.  Mr. Corrie said he should send the case for trial, and for that purpose it would be necessary for the surgeon to attend and state the nature of the injury. He would, therefore, remand the prisoner till Tuesday, but he had made up his mind what he would do on that occasion—v.z., fully commit the prisoner for trial.