The action of Mr. Bowles, editor and proprietor of Vanity
Fair, against Lord Marcus Beresford, for a breach of the peace in assaulting him at the office of Vanity Fair, on October 16th last, was heard yesterday week, before Mr. Edlin, Q.C., the Assistant Judge at the Middlesex Assizes, and ended in an acquittal of Lord Marcus Beresford. The alleged assault arose out of an article in Vanity Fair attacking Lord Marcus Beresford for not compelling Colonel Trevelyan to pay his wife's allowance, for which allowance Lord Marcus accepted the office of trustee. Lord Marcus went to the office of Vanity Fair on October 16th to complain of the article ; and at the door of the office a scuffle ensued, in which it appeared doubtful from the evidence whether Mr. Bowles or Lord Marcus was the assailant. The jury vir- tually accepted the view that the attack was begun by the pro- prietor of Vanity Fair. The sympathy of the public was certainly with the defendant, who was clearly not the aggressor morally, whether he did or did not strike the first physical blow, for general cheering broke out on the delivery of the verdict of "Not guilty."
Previous page
