I wrote him so cries Nethersole, I never wrote him any thing of the kind, I have my letter book, and I will show: here, says he, calling to one of the young men in the office, run down to my counting-house, and tell Greensword to give you my let ́er book, so and so; the young man went, and presently returned with the letter book, which when he, Nethersole, had opened, he read the letter alluded to, which contained a paragraph, such as I have described; well, says Nethersole, that was not my meaning;; however, Mr. White will be in town himself to-day, and he will be best able to judge for himself, and shortly after left the office.

Well, says Mowat, 'tis a pity this affair cannot be made up; Ah, my boy, you will get an action from White about the goods why you will be ruined at law, so I left him fully expecting to have been served before the last day of summoning with an action, at White's instance for the goods lost, referred to at page 71, but none came.

FIRST ACTION.

En the Supreme Court.—June Term, 1835.

STERNE, HENRY; v. White, frederic,

Surry to it, Į Declaration filed.

HENRY STERNE, Esquire, the plaintiff in this suit, by Edward Charles Mowat, his attorney, complains of Frederic White, Esquire, the defendant in this suit, of a plea of trespass, for that the said defendant heretofore, to wit, on the 13th day of January, in the year of our Lord 1835, and on divers other days and times between that day and the commencement of this suit, with force and arms, at the Parish of Saint George, in the County of Surry, assaulted the said plaintiff, and then and there seized and laid hold of the said plaintiff, and with great force and violence, pulled and dragged him about, and also then and there, forced and compelled the said plaintiff, to go from and out of a certain public court-house or peace office, there situate, without any lanful authority, or reasonable or probable cause whatsoever, and against the will of the said plaintiff, to wit, at the parish and county aforesaid; and also for that the said defendant afterwards to wit on the day and year aforesaid, and on divers other days and times between that day and the commencement of this suit, with force and arms, at the parish and county aforesaid, assaulted and then and there seized and laid hold of the said plaintiff, and with great force and violence pulled and dragged him about, and then and there imprisoned the said

plaintiff, and kept and detained him in prison there for a long space of time, to wit, for the space of one hour, without any lawful authority, or reasonable or probable cause whatsoever, and against the will of the said plaintiff, and also, for that the said defendant, on the day and year aforesaid, at the parish and county last aforesaid and on divers other days and times between that day and the commencement of this suit, assaulted the said plaintiff and him the said plaintiff then and there did beat, wound, and ill treat, and other wrongs to the said plaintiff, then and there did against the peace of our Lord the King, and to the damage of the said plaintiff of £500, and therefore he brings this suit &c.

EDWARD C. MOWAT,

Plaintiff's Attorney.

NOTE.

This action having been thus settled by Counsel, PRICE WATKIS, ESQUIRE, and sent out through the Provost Marshal General's Office, was served upon the defendant White, by the Deputy Marshal, by the 11th of the month of May, which was shortly after communicated to His Excellency the Marquis of Sligo, Governor &c., who immediately appointed His Magisty's Attorney General, assisted by the Solicitor General, Mr. Panton, to act as Mr. White's counsel, and the Crown Solicitor Mr. Aikman, to conduct the case as his Solicitor; thus armed, and powerfully backed, Mr. White boasted in no measured terms.

Fitzherbert Batty, Esquire, was retained by me to assist Price Watkis, Esquire. as my counsel.

Matters remained thus, until the August Surry Assize court came round; my witnesses, twelve in number, having been all duly subpoenaed, and served with their service and mile money, attended the court, when lo and behold, most unfortu nately for me, both of my counsel were so unwell, as not to be able to attend at court. In this extremity, my solicitor told me it was a bad job, but that there was no help; and I must either submit to pay the costs of the defendant, in order to put off the trial for another court, or I must make up my mind to give my brief to some other counsel; this was a difficult point to decide, I felt great perplexity; every earthly power seemed to be against me, whilst White was aided by able counsel, and at free cost, backed by His Excellency the Governor, who to shelter himself from exposure, did all he could to help White out of this scrape; and worst of all, the Chief Judge, Sir Joshua Rowe, was mine enemy, and the adviser of the Governor; and I had good grounds to know he was determined to shelter His Excel.

lency and White, if possible; and then again, one of the assistant Judges, was Mr. White's intimate friend, viz., Anthony Davis, Esquire.

In this my great extremity, myself not knowing what to do, or what to decide upon, I earnestly appealed to him, who searches the heart (and who, in the volume of Eternal Truth, hath declared, that "he will never forsake those who put their trust in him") for counsel and guidance; and I felt inwardly confident that all would be well, notwithstanding the threatening appearances without.

I decided on going to trial, and had to select for my counsel one who, at the same time, held a brief against me (viz. in the cause of Sterne v. Swire and others, and of which the present defendant, White, was a party) viz. BOSWELL MIDDLETON, Esquire, quite a young Counsel at the Jamaica bar, but as smart and upright a one as could be desired—one thing, however, I must say, greatly alarmed me, which was that he is related to the Chief Justice, Sir Joshua Rowe, and an almost daily companion of his; yet I must say, that in this trial he most manfully and independently did his duty.

My brief was handed to him, with the proper fee, only about forty-eight hours before the trial came on to be heard, and the day of trial at length arrived, which was

WEDNESDAY, 19th AUGUST, 1835.

My witnesses being all present, the following composed the Court and Jury:

THE COURT.

Sir Joshna Rowe, Knight, Presiding Judge. Assistant Judges. The Hon. John Mais, Hec= tor Mitchell, Anthony Davis, and W. B. King, Esquires.

The cause having been called over from the court list, my

witnesses, and all p. ties concerned, being in attendance.

BOSWELL MIDDLETON, Esquire, in a very able manner, opened the pleadings as my counsel. He gave the court and Jury to understand, that this was a case of very gross trespass, and assault, committed by the defendant, while acting in his Judicial Capacity as a Special Justice, upon his Client, the Plaintiff. That the origin of the case was from the defendants having, most cruelly and unjustifiably, committed an innocent apprentice of Mr. Sterne's, the plaintiff, to the St. Georges Workhouse, where he was incarcerated in irons, and put to hard labour, for no offence, but merely to satisfy the vindictive feelings of the defendant, that in consequence of such an unjustifiable committal of Mr. Sterne's apprentice; Mr. Sterne, who was at the time in the Special Justice's Court, having accompanied his wife, Mrs. Sterne, there, who attended in obedience to a very austere and peremptory written note, or summons, of the defendant, in his character as a Special Justice, which note will bye and bye be handed up in evidence. Mr. Sterne, gentlemen, as became a man, and, as he was in duty bound, ta protect his innocent, apprentice, stood up, and remonstrated with the Judge, and offered to produce evidence, to prove his innocence. Innocence, did I say? Innocence of what, gentlemen. There was no need to have proved any thing of the kind. His apprentice was not brought before this Special Justice for any crime, for any fault, but appeared there as a complainant himself, seeking redress at the Special Justice's Court; and Mrs. Sterne was summoned there by Mr. White, to verify as to the truth of his complaint (see page 75.)

The defendant, as we can prove, gentlemen, was owing this that he poor man an old grudge, and he had been heard to say, would take this opportunity of punishing him.

Mr. Sterne urged upon the Judge to hear Mrs. Sterne's evidence in the man's behalf; but, gentlemen, instead of the Judge listening to Mr. Sterne's remonstrance, and hearing Mrs. Sterne's evidence, he got into a most violent rage, refused to hear any evidence of Mrs. Sterne, declared he had already committed the he man; and, if Mr. Sterne dared to open his mouth any more, would likewise commit him, and have him put alongside of his apprentice.

On Mr. Sterne's attempting further to remonstrate, he swore at, and abused him from the bench, and called upon the policemen, who were then in attendance, with drawn swords, and made them lay hold of Mr. Sterne, and with violent hands they tore him, and dragged him out of the public Court-house; and all this done, gentlemen, in presence of many of the respectable parishioners, who witnessed the degradation committed on my client. Mr. Sterne having seen Mrs. Sterne home, and noticed