Page:English laws for women in the nineteenth century.djvu/189

177 "You were not drunk?" "No, when I went away with the policeman, no more than I am now."

"It was very unjust, then, that you were turned off?" "Oh, Sir, when Mrs Norton told master to do anything, he must do it."

"It was her fault, then, was it not?" "Rather more her's than master's."

"Now, did you not say that that d—d b—h, Mrs Norton, had got you discharged?" "I do not whether I did or not, but I may have said it. I had had my wife confined, I lost my business, and it was enough to make any man angry, and speak what he did not mean."

"Did not you say that you would be revenged on her, or something of that sort?" "No, never, never."

"What, never?" "I did not."

"Have you not said that you were the principal witness against the Premier of England?" "No. I might have said I was one of them, but there was a good many of them."

"But you might have said you were the principal witness against the Premier?" "The Premier of England! I never did."

"Have you not said they forced you to leave your shop in Monmouthstreet, and go to Wonersh?" "I did not say there was any forcing in it."

"Have you not said they took you away at a moment's notice?" "I don't think I have."

"Did you not say you were to remain at Wonersh, and not to come to London till the trial came on?" "I did stop there. I remained there till last night."

Another witness having also deposed to receiving money, and remaining resident, with all her family, at Wonersh, for some weeks before the trial, the Attorney-General commented on these extraordinary admissions in his reply. He said—

"His learned friend (Sir William Follett) had promised the jury to call before them all the persons who had been in the service of Mr and Mrs Norton. But had he performed that promise? &hellip;&hellip; the witnesses had not been called; the evidence had been garbled; and those witnesses alone had been called, who had previously been tutored as to the evidence they were to give."

The witness Fluke, was the one who boasted he was the principal witness against the Premier of England, and said, 'if all went well he should make 600l., and spend the rest of his days in ease in Scotland.' It seemed he had been a soldier, and fought at Waterloo. When he came into the service of Mr Norton he had a cab, a gig, and a fly. He acknowledged he had been often drunk. He left the plaintiff's service in debt, and swindled several people. He bought the fly from Saunders to turn it into money, for he sold it. He had a colt to break in, which he sold for 20l., and no part of the money did he pay to the owner of