At the opening of the Crown Court at York Assizes,
a circumstance *anspired which afforded considerable amusement. A person sum- moned upon the Jury applied to Mr. Justice Williams to be excused, on account of deafness. His Lordship, with the shrewdness for which he was always remarkable, immediately put the question in rather an under tone—" Have you been troubled with deafness for a long time ?" The deaf man, unsuspectingly—" Yes, my Lord." The Judge, drop- ping his voice a little more—" Do you think you could hear if you were in front of the box?" The Juryman, not perceiving the drift of his Lordship's questions----" I do not think I could." The Judge, speak- ing in a voice little better than a whisper—" Does your deafness im- prove as the day advances ? " The Juryman—:" No, my Lord, it does not." Loud peals of laughter followed each question ; and when the last answer was given, the Court was almost convulsed. It is needless to add that his Lordship considered him a proper person to sit on the Jury.—Durhani Advertiser. [The Times truly remarks, that a low, distinct voice, is heard more ea,ily by a deaf person than a loud One: the Juryman may have been deaf. He does not seem to have heard
the loud peals of laughter. "1 A fire took place on Tuesday night at the cottages attached to the Tivoli Gardens, Margate, firm the fulling of a blue light on the thatched roof. The flames spread so rapidly, that before the arrival of the engines the cottages were completely destroyed. The amuse- ments of the gardens not having terminated, there were nearly two thousand persons present, who all seemed anxious to render every assistance to preserve the property. The damage was confined to the wattages.
Previous page
