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    Hqvember 24, 1855.1 THE LEADER. 4123

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    OUB CIVILISATION. ATTXKPT to Hahqa BAlUF...

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    Hqvember 24, 1855.1 The Leader. 4123

    Hqvember 24 , 1855 . 1 THE LEADER . 4123

    Oub Civilisation. Attxkpt To Hahqa Baluf...

    OUB CIVILISATION . ATTXKPT to Hahqa BAlUFPi—Simon Hatch , bailifl to the Jfcev- George Grogan , Leinster , went to the lands of Kathgilbert , for the purpose of making some arrangements with a man named William Brennan . JEEe saw this man ' s wife , who invited him to sit down in the kitchen while she fetched her husband . Three other women were in the room at the time he entered it ; but these afterwards disappeared , so noiselessly that he did not hear them depart , and he was left for twenty minutes alone . He sat with , his back to "the door , and at length heard some persons enter . Immediately afterwards , a noose was thrown round his neck , and efforts were made from behind to tighten it . Hatch started up , and fortunately seized the

    noose so as to prevent its further constriction . He then saw standing about him Mrs . Brennan , Mary Hogan , Elizabeth . Dowling , and a little girl , the daughter of Hogan . Dowling subsequently pulled his legs from under him , and Hogan , calling for a stick that she might "knock the old vagabond ' s brains out , " as he would be " too long dying the other way , " began to beat him with the loaded butt-end of a whip . While this was going on , Mrs . Brennan , stood by upbraiding him with getting herself and her husband out of their farm ; but at length the little girl became frightened , « ereainedout i Murder ! " and unlocked the door , through which Hatch escaped , followed for some way by Mary Hogan , who continued to beat him with the whip . All the parties concerned were brought before the

    magistrates at BallyJinan , when the little girl waa liberated , and informations were taken against the women , who , however , were admitted to bail . I The Sufjposbd Murder at Axdershott . — An inquest has been held on the body of John Gordon , a private in the West Kent Militia , stationed at Aldershott , who , it will be remembered , met with his death in a very mysterious manner . He was found , on the morning of Sunday the 4 th instant , lying dead in a railway cutting between the camp and the village of Aldershott , with a severe wound about two inches long , over his left eye , and extending to his ear . No other wound was found on any part of his body . One of the surgeons of the regiment said that he did not believe such a wound would have been produced by a

    mere fall . Williain Chambers , a private in the same regiment with Gordon , said , in the course of a rather long examination , that , on the evening of Saturday , the 3 rd inst ., after the picket was discharged , he and Gordon ., together with several of their comrades , had a shilling's-worth of rum at a hut in the camp . Chambers was already partially drunk . After some time , he went with Gordon to the village of Aldershott for the purpose of getting more drink . Gordon was then intoxicated . At the tavern , Chambers had a quarrel , and was struck and seriously hurt on his head by a poker , in consequence of which his evidence was somewhat confused and imperfect . K " o angry words had passed on that night between him ana Gordon , nor was he aware that Gordon had ever-been on bad terms with any other man in the regiment .

    The landlord of the tavern corroborated that part of the evidence relating to the quarrel which Chambers had had at that house . A piivate in the West Kent , and another in . the Worcestershire Militia , now at Aldershott , stated that on the afternoon of the day on which Gordon was found dead , they heard a private in the Grenadier Guards say to some other soldiers , that he knew a militiaman who Baw " the blowB struck with & carving knife on the back part of Gordon ' s head . " The man who was stated to have said this was called , "but he utterly denied the whole allegation , declaring positively that he was not at the place at the tiruo mentioned by the last two witnesses . The jury , after a short interval of deliberation , found that the deceased had come by his death from wounds on his head , but how thofjo wounds had boon inflicted there was no evidence to show .

    Cruelty ' to a House . —Charles Whitohorn , a young man in the employ of a brick and rubbish carter , of Claygate , near Kingston-on-Thamos , has been sontencecl to throe months' hard labour , for shocking cruelty to a horse . Tho nnimal was old and infirm , and showed some obstinacy in starting with a load ; in consequence of which , Whitehorn first beat it savagely , and then lighted some straw under its bolly . Tho poor creature was dreadfully burnt ; but it in said that , evon after thia ill-treatment , it performed two journios to and fro .

    Fonauay by a Woman . —Eliznboth Pigot Ims boon committed for trial on a charge of forgui-y and falso pretonce . A short time Binoo , Messrs . C ' outtH , tho bankers of tho Strand , had occasion to send n letter to Mrs . Elizabeth Pigot , a lady rot-tiding in tho country , informing hor that a mini of . £ 500 had boon deposited in their hamta , being tho produoo of corfcaiii railway debenture ^ which would be paid to hor order , if endorsed by tho signature * of four gentlemen who acted as her trusteoB—namely , MoHrtrn . J . Urant , 13 . Bere , J . C . Wildo , and H . 13 . Pigot . Tho lottor wan addressed to Mrs , Pigot at her supposed rosidonoo , near Wimbome , in Dorsetshire , and despatched through the Poat-oifioo . A day or two aftorwarrlH , the prisoner prosontod herself at the bank , produood

    the letter , and Btated that she was the " Elizabeth Pigot" referred to , adding that she had come to draw the money . One of the clerks in the bank , Mr . R . Twiss , informed her that Mrs . Pigot had no power to draw the money without an order signed by the trustees named in the letter . Subsequently , the prisoner called again and prodnced what purported to be an order for the payment of £ 50 of the money to the bearer , Mrs . Pigot , the balance to remain in the hands of the bankers . To this order , the names of the trustees , copied , no doubt , from Messrs . Coutts ' p

    letter , were appended ; but Mr . Englebach , another clerk in the bank , immediately pronounced the whole document to be a forgery , and caused the woman to be given into custody . The envelope of the letter appeared to have been re-directed , but it did not transpire in what way the prisoner had got possession of it . The prisoner said , the letter came to her by post at Sir E . Baker ' s , Ranston-house , Blandford , where she was stopping with , her mistresB , who was visiting there . As she had a friend named Grant , who formerly courted her and obtained ^ £ 58 from her to invest in

    the Eastern Counties Railway—subsequently leaving her to go abroad—she concluded that the money had been sent for her by him . A Blind Swindler . —Charles Alfred Rickaby , a blind man , and James Rickaby , his son , were placed at the bar of the Lambeth police office , together with William Cox , charged with conspiring to defraud Mrs . Emily Clarke , a widow , of household furniture to the value of two hundred guineas . Mrs . Clarke had put an advertisement in the papers for the sale of her furniture ; the three prisoners answered it , and agreed to give two hundred guineas for the property . They then asked if they might take away an instalment , the money to be paid on a subsequent day . Mrs . Clarke , thinking she was dealing with respectable people , agreed ; but the money was not paid , and Mrs . Clarke , on applying to the police , found she was in the hands of swindlers . All three were remanded .

    Russian Bank—Note FoRGERY . ^ Abraham Rosenberg and Simon Barnet , subjects of Russia , are under remand at the Mansion-house , charged with having plates in their possession for the purpose of printing and forging Russian bank-notes . The prisoners had engaged a Mr . Smith , an engraver and printer , to execute the plates ; and this gentleman , suspecting that all was not right , gave information to the police , who kept a watch on Rosenberg and Barnet from the 20 th of October , and finally arrested them in the Btreets , as one of them was examinining the plates under the light of a gas lamp .

    The Knife . —A tall and powerful Irishman , who gave the name of Charles Seaman , and who is a person of respectable exterior and good address , is under remand at the Thames ponce office , charged with a murderous assault upon a watchman named Kerr , in thejemployment of the St . Eatberine ' s-dock Company . Seaman , who was drunk , was threatening to be revenged upon a wharfinger named Keene , who , he said , had prevented him from getting a job on board ship , when he waa ordered to be put out of the dock . He procured a knife at an adjoining tavern , and ran at the gatekeeper with intent to stab him , but was prevented by Kerr . Seaman then snatched the truncheon from Kerr's hand , and Btruck him such a dreadful blow on the head that his life is in danger , and afterwards endeavoured to stab a police-constable with the knife .

    The Murder at Matfkn . — 'The adjourned inquest on the body of Dorothy Bewicke , an old woman who met with a -violent death nt a lonely little village in Northumberland , called Waterloo , has terminated in tho following verdict : — " Wo find that James Conroy , Michael Allan , otherwise known aa Anderson , and John Simm , are guilty of the murder of Dorothy Bewicko ; and that Isabella Allan , alias Anderson , Ellen and Jane Allan , and Elizabeth Conroy had a knowledge of the murder , that they were aiding and abetting in the said murdor , and are therefore , guilty of murder . " One of the women -Isabella Allan ,

    generally known by tho name of'' Tibby Andoraon —was taken , on tho day of the old woman ' s funeral , to see the body . > Sho knelt down beside the coffin , and , offering up a prayer , Haid murder would not hide , and that she hoped who might soo tho murdbrtu's burning in holl-firo . The Hamo woman stated to one of the witnoFwe'i at the inquest that hIio saw tlio deceased on her bod ; that she wont forward , embraced hoi' , called hor by name , and observed , " I only winh you could Hpoak , and Hay who murdorod you . " This woman ' s boh jh now in custody .

    Tiik Ex-Pkovoht oil' Lkitii . —A memorial to Kir Goorgo Groy , for tho commutation of tho Kontonoo passod on thitt man , who , it will bo recollected , was recently found guilty of licentious conduct towards girln , in now in course of signaturo at Loith . Tho sentence wvh transportation for fifteen years ; but , considering that tho offence wan not carried to tho worst extent , it is thought tliat imprisonment might be substituted . Tho Dean' of Faonlty say * ho is not aware of tho same offence over having boon punished by transportation .

    Escape op a Costvict from the . York Housi of Correction . —On Tuesday week ( says the York , shire Gazette ) , two convicts , named John Poland anc James Williams , confined in the York House of Cor rection , endeavoured to effect their escape from prison the former being successful . At five o ' clock , Mr Raper , the governor , saw Poland and Williams in the day-yard , but , within half an hour afterwards , Poland waB missed , and Williams was found in the stoneyard . On being questioned , Williams said that he and Poland assisted each other in scaling the palisading which is surmounted by a chevaux defrise , enclosing

    the day-yard . Having reached the garden , Poland and Williams had next to encounter the outer or boundary wall , the scaling of which was essential to their escape . By extraordinary exertions , Poland , with the aid of Williams , succeeded in gaining the summit of the wall , a position , however , ¦ which , entirely incapacitated him from rendering any assistance to Williams , who was , therefore , foiled in his attempt to regain his liberty . Poland dropped , from the wall into the moat adjoining the bar walls , and , meeting with no further obstruction , he made good his escape , and has not since been heard of .

    A Street Hobhob . —We find the following in the Times : — " I have just witnessed in the Strand ( with Borne hundreds of other persons ) one of the most revolting spectacles it is impossible to imagine—a poor woman , of about twenty-five years of age , being literally devoured by vermin , and this in one of the principal thoroughfares of this enlightened metropolis —and there appeared none to assist her ! For me to exaggerate the state of this wretched object would be impossible , as her hands and arms were entirely covered ; and as for her head , you could scarcely guess at the colour of her hair , it being actually covered and matted with these noxious animals . A policeman was spoken to , but he said he was afraid to he could

    get near her , and walked away as speedily as . This wretched creature was followed by a horrified crowd some hundred yards down the Strand , until she reached Salisbury-street , when she turned down , and dived into the dark arches under the Adelphi—perhaps to resign herself to her awful fate , and where I am satisfied she will remain until death relieves her , unless , through your kind notice of the case , some person ia sent to briag her forth and lighten her of this horrifying burden . May I implore of you to call attention to this shocking fact in any way you think most likely to assist this most wretched of fellowcreatures , and you will indeed be a friend to the oastaway . "

    ^ A Fiery Gentlkman and his " Dear Boy . " An action was brought , during last week , by a Miss Melville , a governess , who had been employed in the family of a Mr . Fitchmarsh , a veterinary surgeon residing at Bishop ' s Stortford , but who was dismissed , aa she alleged , without proper cause . There was also a count for slander . Mr . Fitchmarsh , against the wish of his counsel , insisted on telling his own story in the witness box . He said : — " Miss Melville conducted herself well until April , and then I had cause to her

    complain of her , for when 1 found fault she put - self about sadly . Once she was taking up coffee to my dear son , who waa ill , it was spoiled , and not fit to enter the stomach o # my dear boy . I asked her to make some tea , and she was sulky for several hours . Another time I was going to dine at the Freemasons Tavern with his Grace the Duko of Cambridge , and a scarf which I wanted to wear in a bow was not hemmed . She said I had worn it before and might wear it again . On another occasion , tho door of tne sideboard was open , and the plate-basket visible . I

    spoke to her about this , and sho was out or temper about it . One day , I was going to tako my dear boy out on his pony , but I found ho had a hole in his trowsers , and I spoko to Mi . ss Mclvulle . She said sho could not eit up all night to mend his clothes . One day she helped hornolf to butter and throw the knife across the table so violently that if it had not been stopped by the vinegar cruet , it would have dropped on the ground . 1 told her she afforded a bad example to my darling children , and I called her a wolf in sheep ' s olotbiiig , and a sho dovil . Tho jury returned a verdict for tho plaintiff , with damages for tho wrongful dimnirtHuI £ 13 , and for tho slander £ 75 . A ^ JaiindyorandJaiwdvob" Case . —Wo road in the law reports of the daily papers that tho atiKo of _ . _ _ * . 111 1 i / " 11 » IH 1 AAKV 111 k \ Vfl ¦*< 1 M Ol has boon in Chancery upwards o

    Irby * . Ifby , which twenty years , came on ono day last weak for «/"" iittl settlement of tho minuter , of a decree >"«* " «*• £ J " jeetions , however , being taken by soino f ^ fff * ^ tho case was adjourned for 1 hoJjj ; . or oo « , » £ £ " «* audaettlo themmutoB in cons . iJto « J < g t - such consultation , though « loomo < 1 to ™™ , factory , was ^ ortuin . y _ not couo ^ £ , - tl , h being called on ngnin on * j HOOmod to could understand nnyb < ly < u d ev y ^ have boon har , Uy »^ J ^ ^ ° to ftnd in courfc in vrliioli the onKinrf ^^ ho ^ om » tate of oonftiworo oon « idomblo , " - » " " intelligence could ponoeion that no mon ^ « ^ £ , ^ 0 itH O § uotn . After tho Sritur ^ oT uyr ° bopo of ^ tU « ,. m ^

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Nov. 24, 1855, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_24111855/page/7/