The Sun. — 1867-12-26 (London, England)

IFIE SIDNEY MAL.  This cause eilebre, after occupying the court for thirteen days, at length seems to approach its close. The evidence for the defence closed with Mrs. C. Bagot, who corroborated the evidence given by the defendant's witnesses, so far as her knowledge extended. On cross-examination she admitted that Bernard Bagot bad informed hey from day to day during the trial of the statements deposed to, and asked her what points she could contradict. She also admitted that her husband said to Bergin that her evidence would destroy the case of the defendant, and that Bernard Bagot was to blame for allowing the transactions to be exposed instead of letting the defendant pay the bills. At the conclusion of the defendant's case, Mr. Bergin, Mr. Bloomfield, and Mr. Sidney were called for a rebutting case, and contradicted parts of the defendant's evidence. The defendant was again examined, and denied some of the testimony given upon the re-examination of Sidney, and Mrs. C. Bagot, having been recalled, contradicted Sidney's contradictions of her own contradictions of Sidney's statements. The parties having been thus confronted, and a brisk fusillade of denials interchanged, the evidence closed. Mr. Heron, Q.C., then proceeded to reply for the defence. After telling the jury that he should wish to appeal to their sympathies on behalf of Mr. Sidney, to ask them to restore him—a victim of a foul conspiracy— to his native land, the learned counsel deposed that his task was a very difficult one. It was a very painful one. He had to speak of great talents misused ; he had to speak of a life thrown away; he had to speak of reckless extravagance, insane and moat selfish ; of a wickedness that would sacrifice to that selfishness the happiness of young relatives growing up to manhood, the fortune of innocent girls, the last shilling of his dearest friends—a selfishness finally culminating in crime—crime of the darkest character, and on the part of one who during the present trial had shewn a keen and clear experience, purchased after twenty years' walk inthe ways of the world. The learned counsel then proceeded in strong terms to denounce Mr. Sidney, and taking up the story told by him in the witness box, said : It was told with. tears, told with sardonic smiles. and with a reckless, flippant, and strange manner—told by himself with all the lurid light which was presented to the suicide at the moment of death, with all the horrors of vengeance, hate, and shame, seemed to have been obtained from the very flames of hell. Was such misery ever before brought to light on a trial ? Husband and wife arrayed against mother, sister, andbrother. Mr. Heron then gave a resumi of the evidence. The prosecution had charged his client, Mr. Bagot, a country gentleman and a magistrate, first with being insane enough to give Mr. Sidney unlimited authority to put his (the defendant's) name to the bills, and then with being base enough to deny that authority, and, singularly enough, to get up a conspiracy by means of an extorted letter to prove Mr. Sidney a forger. The case which Mr. Sidney had endeavoured to make out was that three or four men gave unlimited authority to sign their names upon bills. Mr. Sidney's whole endeavour was to imitate the signature of those whose names he used, and he was so far successful that even experts had been deluded. He asked his learned friend, Mr. Dowse (the counsel for the prosecution), to give an explanation of the motive of imitating the writing of Blake and Henry Hynes. The motive for imitating the handwriting of J. L. Bagot was apparent. John Lloyd Bagot was known at the banks. But Hynes was a boy just arrived at 21; and he (Mr. Heron) did not think that the name of James Blake would command much respect upon 'Change, according to his own account. He could not find any conceivable supposition of innocence. The first time John L. Bagot dined at Sidney's /souse was on the 18th of February, 1864, and the whole of the transactions which had occurred or were alleged to have occurred, were comprised within that time and the flight on the 10th or 20th of August, 1866. The whole of Hyne's liability on bills was incurred within a period of three months ; and he would venture to say that the entire of Bagot's liability, £2,700 or £3,000, was incurred within the same period of time. The learned counsel discarded the evidence of Mr. Sidney's wife, and at the conclusion of his speech, Mr. Dowse, Q.C., replied 'or the plaintiff.