The Sun. — 1848-12-07 (London, England)

WORSHIP-ST.REET. Owen Moran, Wm. Jones, John Breedes, and Joseph Barnes, were charged with a criminal assault and robbery upon a poor widow named Anne Coxfield, living in Quaker-street, Spitalfields. The particulars of the ease appeared in our paper of Tuesday week, and Sergeant Kelly now reported to the magistrate that the injured woman was unable to attend, having been confined to her bed since the last-exanaination from the effects of the brutal treatment to which she had been subjected, and had been attacked with a succession of fainting fits of such a debilitating character, that some doubts were entertained of her recovery, and that she would not, under any circumstances, be able to appear at the court in support of the prosecution for a considerable time. A neighbour of the prosecutrix, who acts as nurse to her, corroborated this statement, and added, that upon attempting to raise her this morning, about an hour b:fore, she fainted immediately. Mr. 'alarm., who bad at the first examination presented the prosecutrix with 10s. froth the poor-box, directed the officer to attentively watch the case, and take care that the poor woman was provided with proper medical attendance, and every necessary that her anfurtenet° condition required, and ordered the prisoners to be again remanded for a week.  monstrated with on the subject, and in order to keen him the (loot: was kept locked. Abeul, two o'clock that day complainant went into the bakehouse where the prisoner was engaged, and the moment he entered the place the latter seized a long and sharp knife, and advancing with it towards his employer swore he would " du" for him. The complainant retreated some steps on seeing the weapon, and was followed by his assailant, who made two or three attempts to strike him with it, when the former, fearing that the prisoner would murder him, made a sudden rush, in order to snatch the knife from his grasp. He succeeded in laying hold of the blade of the knife, and a struggle took place, during which he made the most vigorous efforts to disarm his antagonist, who, however, still retained possession of the handle of the knife, the blade remaining in that of the complainant, whose wife hastened to his assistance, but she, in her attempt to take the weapon, was cut in the hand. Finding that the prisoner continued to strive hard to get the knife into his own hands the complainant's wife hastened to obtain assistance, and a policeman at length being informed of the circurostanca entered the bakehouse, and succeeded in getting possession of the knife, which was produced in court, and was a very formidable weapon, used for the purpose of cutting dough in the bakehouse. The complainant added, that the struggle between him and the prisoner lasted nearly three. quarters of an hour, and that to save his own life he held the blade of the knife, which inflicted the wound between his forefinger and thumb, and, as a medical certificate described, was of a dangerous ❑ature, and within almost a hair's breadth of dividing the artery. A policeman said, that when he entered the bakehouse he found the parties struggling with one another, each having hold of the knife, which he (the policeman) took possession of, and the complainant then described to him what had previously occurred, and he therefore arrested the prisoner. The prisoner, in defence, said that his employer flew into a great passion with him while he was scraping the dough off his trowsers with the knife, and tried to get possession of it, and that in the struggle he had his hand cut. Lie (the prisoner), however, denied having used threats against his life, and now regretted what had taken place on the occasion. Mr. COTTINGHAM, in order to hear evidence of 1 the prisoner's former character, remanded him until Tuesday.  --