The number of incendiary fires has frightfully increased in the
county of Norfolk. There were five during the last week. One on Sunday night, which broke out in a large barn at Wootton, the property of Arr. Armstrong; but this, with great exertions, was got under' and the in- cendiary taken into custody. Another on Monday, at Mr. Thomas Hose's, of Corpusty, which burnt down a straw-stack and the barn- doors; but by exertions was prevented from proceeding any further. Gilbert Reynolds, a labourer in the village, is in custody 011 suspicion. This is the third on Mr. Hase's premises and the thirty -second in the hundred of South Erpingham, within the last three years. A third oil the Wednesday evening, at Swafield, in a barn belonging to Mr. S. Kemp, by which the barn, stables, and outbuildings, with a quantity of oats, were totally destroyed. A fourth on the Thursday night, on the premises of Mr. J. Cross, of Tower Earlham, near Norwich, by which a straw-stack, standing quite in the midst of other stacks, was destroyed. It was doubtless the intention to burn the whole. And there bus been another at Mr. T. Gaskar's, of Hillington, near Lynn, which destroyed a stack containing about six lasts of fine wheat. There are reports of others, but which we cannot depend upon. For the fire at Mr. K. Wright's, of Sculthorpe, a labourer of the name of Groom, living in the village, has been apprehended, and fully committed for trial.
On Tuesday morning, a fire was discovered in a hovel or open stable in a close in the occupation of Mr. Abraham Supcote, farmer, at South Imffenham, Rutland; and the building was in a short time entirely de- stroyed. • There is not a doubt that the fire was wilfully and maliciously occasioned; and a large reward is offered for the discovery of the offender.
On Monday evening, two wheat-ricks, a bean-rick, a hay-rick, a barn, and a stable, the property of Mr. Samuel Pickett, of Wroughton, near Swindon, were consumed by fire—the work of an incendiary. The fire was kindled in that part of the farth-yard Where the wind (blowing hard at the time) was likely to have the greatest effect. On the same evening, a rick of bay, valued at nearly IOU, the property of Mr. William Dowling, of South Tidworth, was set on fire, and wholly consumed. Strong suspicion is .attached to some of the labourers in the parish out of employ. The property was insured. On the same night, at Clatford, near Andover, the whole of the, premises of the late Mr. Head were consumed; together with a large quantity of corn and Wool, and several pockets of hops. This fire was also the act of an in-
cendiary. .
• A fire was discovered,. on 'Tuesday night, on a farm near Battle, when' a wheat-rick was consumed. The rick was the centre one of nine ; and had not timely assistance arrived, the' whole would in all • probability have been consumed ; but the exertions of the inhabitants • of-Battle were successfully directed, and frustrated in some degree the diabolical purpose of the incendiary.—Brighton Guardian.
The Cambridge. Chronicle gives the particulars of three fires which have occurred during -the week at Chatteris, in the- Isle of Ely, by which a number of straw, barley, and wheat-ricks, have been destroyed., The same paper also mentions four other fires in different parts of the county Of Cambridge, all attended with heavy damage, and all the work. of incendiaries. A Coroner's.Jury assembled at a tavern in .Plunistead on Monday morning, to investigate the circumstances attending the death of Mr. George Bodle, of that place ; who, as was mentioned in last week's Spectator, died from the effects of arsenic, which was mixed with his coffee at breakfast last Saturday week. The grandson of the deceased, John Bodle, who had been apprehended in London on suspicion a being principally concerned in the murder, was brought into court. He was attended by a solicitor : the parish authorities, who are bound over to prosecute, had also their professional. adviser. The evidence given before the Jury is of a very rambling mid diffuse description, and was not concluded till Thursday evening. It appeared that the prisoner, for a few mornings previous to the death of his grandfather, had been in the habit of going to his house veil early, to carry home milk for the use of his father's family ; and that he did so on the morning in question. He sometimes also helped the servants at his grandfather's with their morning's work, by opening the shutters, making the fire, and filling the kettle for breakfast. He was unusually early on this morning, and filled the kettle as usual ; he then went home, and afterwards went to Woolwich. Mary Higgins, his father's servant, swore that she had heard him, the week before the supposed murder, express a wish that his grandfather was dead, for that he should then have a hundred or a thousand a year, and that he should like his grandfather to die one day, and his father the next : on which she Observed, that it would be better one should die one week and the other the next, as then they would have time to settle their business. When the news of his grandfather's being poisuned was brought home by his father, he was up stairs in his room, and asked what was the matter ; being told, he said nothing, but shut the door. In the course of the day, he said to his mother that he would not mind poisoning any body he did not like ; and when she said that she would not risk her soul, he replied, " Oh, I would not mind,--give me the stuff, and you will see." A quantity of arsenic was found in the prisoner's box, which he had purchased of a chemist at Woolwich. The conversa- tion above mentioned rests upon the evidence of the servant girl Mary Higgins. The prisoner and his mother in the most positive terms deny that any such occurred. The former, when called upon for his de. fence, gave a clear statement of his proceedings; in which he admitted the fact of his having been at his grandfather's on the morning he was taken ill, and that he filled the kettle, and put it on the fire, by desire of the servant, as he had often done before. He utterly denied having poisoned the water in any way. He used arsenic for the itch, and had done so for four years : in this way he accounted for having so much of it in his possession. John Bodle, the prisoner's father, said that he visited the deceased, and was with him half an hour before he died. He deposed that the latter had whispered to him that his grandson (the prisoner) was the murderer, and no other. But two women, ulna were close to the bed, and the room was so quiet that they could bear the least whisper, did not hear a syllable of this conversation. The old man repeatedly said to his son " God bless you." Considerable suspicion rests upon John Bodle, the father. He seems to be a man of indifferent character. He admitted having been once tried for cutting hop-bines, though be said that he was acquitted : there were also two discreditable transactions about a horse and a bill ; and his son said that four years ago be deserted his mother and cohabited with another woman. The manner in which he gave his testimony was very suspicious, and he made numerous contradictory statements. lie professed to be on good terms with his son, though he sometimes did not speak to him for days together ; and never inquired where he had been after several days' absence from home. He was evidently anxious to bring home the offence to his son. He admitted, that on the Friday night (the eve of the poisoning), he had left his bed and gone down stairs ; but swore that he did not go out, and that he was not at his father's at all that day.
The deceased kept his coffee in a cupboard, and gave it out in a cup every morning. But this cupboard, where the sugar also was kept, was not fastened; any body in the house might have had access to it. There appeared no evidence to implicate any of the servants in either family. The Jury yesterday returned a verdict of Wilful Murder against the prisoner, John Bodle the younger ; and the Coroner bound over one of the deceased's executors to prosecute him at the next Kent Assizes.
Mr. W. H. Blateh, a farmer of Nutley, near Basingstoke, on the night of Tuesday week shot a man, who had formerly been his servant, and who had entered his house for the purpose of robbing it. Mn Blotch was awakened by one of his female servants, the sister of the deceased ; who told him that some one was trying to get into the house. He took his gun, which he always kept loaded, and went down stairs: after searching a room adjoining a pantry in which the china and other things are kept, he went to the pantry, which had been locked on the passage side, and turning the key, prepared to enter, and on pushing back the door found some obstruction behind. He immediately stepped forward, and on turning round the door, discovered a man with a brown cap drawn over his eyes standing behind. He immediately called out " Hallo !" and not receiving any answer, fired, and the Man fell, crying out iepeatedly," Hallo! "as if calling to some one outside. A Coro- ner's Jury the next day found a verdiet.of "Justifiable Homicide."
James Dickenson has been committed to Lancaster Castle, to be tried 'for beating his wife to death with a poker. A verdict of Man- slaughter was returned against him by a Coroner's Jury. The prisoner and his wife lived in Liverpool. On his return from hunting on Wednesday week, Viscount Dillon received a severe blow of a pitchfork from a man, which knocked him off his horse. The cause assigned by the man was, that 'Lord :Dillon had trespassed on his premises by jumping his horse into his cabbage- garden. The man kept the horse in custody till his Lordship fetched a constable from Brighton.
A prize-fight took place on Tuesday, at Crompton, near Wolver- hampton. It commenced on the Wolverhampton race-course ; but the Magistrates interfered, and the combatants, with the usual company of brutes and blacklegs, decarhped to Crompton, where, the battle was re- sumed, and lasted an hour and a.quarter.- [At Crompton, we presume, there are no peace-officers or Magistrates. This is a case for Lord Melbourne's interference : but his Lordship, has something else itt at- tend to than the preservation of order in the counuy]
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