marks on the other articles had not been taken off. Among the other things found in the prisoner's custody, was a pair of old-fashioned silver tongs, a silver sauce-ladle, several silver tea and table-spoons, a watch with a tortoise-shell case, a number of rings, ear-rings, and brooches, some kneebuckles, several pairs of boots, and various articles of wearing apparelall of which would be proved to have belonged to Mr Parker. The prisoner, when arrested, was brought before a magistrate, and the account he gave him varied very much from that which he had given to the woman with whom he had cohabited. Having been committed on the charge, he gave in gaol an account, which would be produced, and which, instead of negativing, tended to corroborate what had now been stated. He admitted in this account that he was in Woolwich, but said that the murder was not committed by him, but by three other persons who had gone into the house while he stood at the door. That statement, if true, was an imperative call on the Jury to find him guilty of the charge, even though the fatal blow might not have been inflicted by his hand. He admitted, that as they came out of the house, he made this remark to them:

"I hope you did not put them to much pain;" and how could he have made such an observation if he had not been an accomplice? He then said that he had bought all the articles in question from those three persons for 11. If, however, he admitted that he was at Woolwich, and stood at the door while the crime was perpetrated, all doubt of his guilt was removed. And even if he did not adinit these facts, there was abundant proof of his guilt from the goods themselves. The prisoner had sent a letter to his nephew at Portsmouth, which had been destroyed, but the

learned counsel was instructed to say. that its contents were an injunction to get Ann Kirby out of the way, and saying, that if that could not be accomplished, her mouth must be closeda hint which could not be misunderstood. This was a proof that he had told her more than the history of the duel, because that was evidence that could not bear on the present case, and therefore he needed not have been so anxious to prevent her from appearing. Such was the evidence about to be submitted to them.

The

Our limits do not allow us to go into the detail of the evidence. following is that of Ann Kirby.

Ann Kirby had lived a twelvemonth at Portsmouth on the 13th of next month. She was an unfortunate woman, and first got acquainted with the prisoner in November. She knew him by the name of Watson. The prisoner came to her on Saturday, and left her on the Monday for Havre-deGrace. He returned, and brought a lady with him from France. The prisoner said he was going to London to get some money, which he expected, and that he did not think his father would send it him unless he went for it himself. She learnt from him that he lived with Mr Coles, at Portsmouth Point. She saw him next on Satur day, the 4th of March. He told her that he had come from Woolwich, from his friend: he said he and another person had rode to Mouse-hill, and then had taken the coach to Portsmouth. He said he had arrived at eight o'clock, and had come to her immediately. She met him in the streets. She renewed her cohabitation with him, and they lived at the Red Lion, where he was taken. She slept four nights at the Red Lion; she was afraid of the prisoner-he used to threaten to kill her he was so timerated in his sleep. By time

rated she meant he was frequently rising in his sleep, calling on some name in his sleep, which she did not recollect. When he was in a passion with her, he made the threats she had spoken of. In consequence of his threats she had left him. He made her a present of a pair of ear-rings and a shawl, and 15s. in money. He said that the shawl belonged to a young lady whom he had brought with him from France. After this she was with him several nights occasionally; but the same agitation still continued in his sleep. She returned to him because he gave her the shawl and ear-rings, and because he said he could not sleep by himself. The last night she slept with him was the night before he was taken up. He told her that the reason of his alarm was, that he had killed two men and a woman; the men in a duel. He told her that he could tell her a secret, but she was not to revulge it. She promised that she would not: he begged her never to mention it again, because he did not like to it, but he would not tell her the reasons.

Cross-examined. She had been 12 months at Portsmouth. Her father and mother live at Wickham. She lives in a private house in Red Lionyard, kept for women of her class; she has not been more than one year in her unfortunate condition. When she first knew the prisoner, she said he lived at Southsea, and introduced himself by the name of Watson. He brought a girl back with him from Havre-de-Grace; she never quarrel ed about it with him. She never said, “D—n you, I'll be revenged of you." He never accused her of robbing him. She heard from some other persons that he had; and he went with her to them about it. She had never been before any justice at Portsmouth un

til the time prisoner was examined. She had advised him not to drink, but not because it affected him in his sleep. He went oftener to the theatre after he returned from London than he did before; he went into the upper boxes; she only went with him there once.

No evidence was called for the prisoner, and he merely in his defence told a desultory story, endeavouring to account for his having got the money, and for the manner in which he had spent his time during his absence from Portsmouth.

Mr Baron Wood then summed up the evidence with great care and impartiality.

The Jury deliberated about ten minutes, and returned a verdict of Guilty.

The Judge then pronounced the sentence of the law in the usual manner, ordering him for execution on Monday next.

Immediately after the sentence was concluded, the prisoner said to the Court-"The laws of my country have found me guilty of murder, but I am not guilty of it; the man who committed it is now in this town."

He was then removed from the bar, which he left in tears.

Nesbett has the appearance of a good-looking man of the sea-faring class. His countenance is determined, but betrays no marks of ferocity. During the trial he exhibited, in general, great firmness, we might almost say great hardihood, except when allusion was made to his father or his children. While the woman with whom he cohabited, was under examination, his agitation was extreme, but of a different description. Heevinced great self-possession while the sentence was pronouncing, but it deserted him before he left the bar.

TRIAL OF SOLDIERS FOR MURDER, BY

оск.

High Court of Justiciary, Nov. 7.

THE Court proceeded to the trial of Robert Surrage, John Dempsey, John Beck, Joseph Elliot, Malachi Clinton, and Patrick Lynch, accused of having, on the night of the 30th of July last, fired several shots from the window of a room in the house of Francis Quin, in Shannon's close, Greenock, at several persons then in the close, and by which shots Robert Simpson and Henry Pearson, watch men in Greenock, and Archibald Morrison, sailor in Greenock, were mortally wounded, and died a few hours after.

The panels pled Not Guilty to the crimes libelled.

The Lord Advocate passed from the charges against Clinton, and he was accordingly dismissed simpliciter from the bar. He was taken out of Court, in order to be examined in exculpation.

Muter Mitchell, a boy about 15 or 16 years, lives in Greenock. He went out one evening last summer to look for his brother, who had newly arrived from the West Indies. Heard a noise at the foot of the Highland close, opposite to Shannon's close, both of which enter from the Laigh Street. Saw a tall soldier there calling upon the best of the blue-jackets to turn out, and he would fight them. There were about five or six soldiers present, and about a dozen tradesmen or sailors in jackets. The sailors were all wanting to make peace, and not to fight. Saw a soldier with a bayonet concealed under his jacket, which the women wished to take from him, but he held it up over his head. A sailor came up with a pair of water stoups,

said," Come along, shipmate," and they all went down Shannon's close. Witness looked down the close, and in a very little time a quarrel began, when he saw one of the soldiers knock down a sailor with a water stoup. The soldiers went into the house, and the sailor, on getting up, went also into the house, when the door was shut. Heard the people who had collected say, they were killing some person in the inside. The people then began to break the doors and windows, in order to get in. Witness ran up the close to be out of the way, and had stood at the head of it but a very short time when he heard a soldier call " Fire!" and then a gun went off; on which the people called out, there was a lad shot, and shortly after saw him carried up the close by some persons. Understood his name was Morrison. When standing at the head of the close, witness heard several other shots fired from a window, which was in the garret of Quin's house. Saw an old woman running, calling for the guard; who, when they came, said to those who were in the house, " Halt, halt." The soldiers who fired desired them to take away the people in the close, which the guard did. After the guard went away, the soldiers continued firing from the same window. The crowd remained standing at the foot of the close, when a man came out from the crowd and spoke up to the soldiers at the window, when a shot was fired and the man fell. He saw the gun out of the window, and heard the voice of the same man who wanted to fight with the sailors. A girl came out of a house from the opposite side of the close, who asked to be allowed to take away the body; and she pulled him into the house. When the guard came the second

time, the people went down along with them to the house, and witness saw the man who was shot. Some of the guard went into the house from whence the firing had proceeded, and took away three soldiers: they afterwards came back and took away more prisoners, but does not know how many. The soldiers, at the time witness saw them, did not appear as if drunk. When the guard took away the three, they appeared to be beastly drunk. Witness saw a man taken from under a bed in Cochrane's house, which is immediately below the garret from whence the firing proceeded; the man was all covered with blood. Cannot swear now which of the prisoners is the person who offered to fight, and who called out of the window. Saw him, the day after, in the jail, when he was all cut. Witness pointed out Lynch as the person who had the bayonet, but was not positive. Cross-examined. When the soldiers went down the close, they seemed all willing to make peace; and when the soldier knocked the sailor down with the stoup, there commenced a sort of general fight between the people and the soldiers.

By the Lord Justice-Clerk.-Saw no stones thrown at the house from whence the firing came; neither did he see any stones thrown at any time that night.

Similar testimony was given by John M'Knight, cloth merchant; William Gowans, grocer; John M'Far lane, shipmaster, and several other witnesses.

Robert Robertson resided in Greenock when the affray happened there in July, and saw a fighting going on in Shannon's close. A soldier asked him to fight, but he would not, and advised them to go home. Was knocked down, and dragged into Cochrane's house, and was again knocked down,

and became insensible. This was about 12 o'clock.

Alexander Cochrane, fisher in Greenock, lives in the house below Quin. On the 30th of July, Dempsey got two half mutchkins of whisky that afternoon, to treat four of his companions. Heard a disturbance in the street late in the evening, and some soldiers came to his door, and demanded to get into their lodgings. At that time the crowd was great, and making a noise. He admitted the soldiers, and a young man, named Robertson, came in along with them. One of the soldiers struck Robertson with a candlestick, while two of them held him. Witness took Robertson into the kitchen, and the soldiers went up stairs. The crowd on the outside broke his window-shutters; and it was so great, that he could not get out at the door, but went out by a window for the guard. Heard a shot fired; and, before he got out by the window, another was fired. When coming with the guard, heard several shots fired. The streets being cleared, he got into his house, and went up to the room where the soldiers were, and told them they were firing upon their own guard. There were three men in the room; two of them were at the window, and a musket was on cach side of it, the other man standing behind. Dempsey was one of the men who was at the window, and had a musket in his hand. Witness did not know the others. A soldier was lying on a bed, and another was in a room in the house getting a wound cleaned. When witness told them that they were firing on their guard, Dempsey said, he would blow his brains out for bringing them. After the guard came to the house, there were three shots fired.

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Cross-examined. At the time when he opened the door to let the

soldiers in, they were all bloody; and the crowd on the outside were calling out, that they would have the bloody souls of the soldiers. The window where the soldiers fired from was all broken. During the time Surrage and Dempsey lodged in Quin's house they were quiet and peaceable. No firing took place till the window where the soldiers were was knocked in, and, as he thought, the shutters from his window were forced off, and thrown in at it. Saw the window next day, the panes of which were broken, and part of the casement. The soldiers got from him that day ten half mutchkins of whisky. Several of them were very drunk. Dempsey did not appear much the worse of liquor.

William M'Lurg, serjeant in the 13th regiment, remembers a man and a woman coming to the guard-house for the guard to go to Shannon's close. Went down with four men. Having heard firing, he returned with the men for their fire-arms, and brought with him six men. When he came down, he saw Surrage and Dempsey leaning out of the window of their lodging. They asked who went there; when he answered, the serjeant of the guard. Dempsey told him to stand back: he said, "Don't fire, as it is the guard." They had both their muskets in their hands; and Dempsey presented his firelock at witness and cocked it, when one of the guard struck the musket aside, when it went off. They said, if he would take two men who were at the door, and who had struck them, they would come out. Met several men carrying another, but does not know whether the person was wounded or not. When he was going into the room Dempsey pushed him back, and asked Surrage whether the firelocks were loaded, and ran to the bed-side and presented the musket at witness. Came away, as he could not get them

out. Witness sent a man for the offi cer, whom he met coming down. Saw Beck, one of the prisoners, in the same room, lying on a bed, seemingly drunk. Elliot was in the room, but he was not doing any thing; and he did not see Lynch. Captain Shearman called to Surrage and Dempsey, that he would protect them to the guard-house. Thought that Dempsey was rather unwilling to go. Saw both Surrage and Dempsey fire, but did not see any one fall from their firing. They were all bloody, and said they had been nearly murdered.

Andrew Colwell, soldier, 13th regiment, was on guard at Greenock on the night of the affray in July last. Corroborated the evidence of M Lurg, as to the guard going to Shannon's close. Witness stated, that Surrage was ordered to come down; but he said, he had been almost murdered by a mob, and that two men were at the door wanting to come in. The guard took these two men into custody; and, on coming back, witness saw a man lying in the close. Surrage was at the window with his musket, when the serjeant ordered him to lay it down, which he did. Dempsey took it up, and put it out of the window, cocked it, and the witness struck the piece to turn it aside, when it went off. When witness went into the room, Dempsey and Surrage were there; the former with his musket, who collared the serjeant, and rested his mus ket on his haunch, when witness and another soldier took it from him. Surrage was willing to come down, but Dempsey would not. The guard left them in the room, and returned with Captain Shearman, whom they met coming down, when they took Dempsey and Surrage into custody.

Joseph Wootten, soldier in the 13th regiment, corroborated the evidence of Serjeant M'Lurg and Colwell in every particular.