THE LAST "OUTLAW."

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLIII, Issue XLIII, 20 September 1909, Page 1

THE LAST "OUTLAW."

, AN ENGLISH CASE RECALLED. . Sentences of outlawry are to this day an ordinary occurrence in Scottish criminal procedure, but in England ■ such penalties are now practically unknown, writes a London correspondent. Som c in- - Isrest, thcr£fpre, i : attacbc£nid..:tlio zt-ory of the last English "outlaw;" .as recalled by Mr F. Hugh Short tho,principal Ckrk of the Crown Office, in his evidence before the Departmental Oosimitte on Coroners. : ' The outlaw in questioi was Lord Ernest Vane Tempest, uncle' of- the present Marquess of Londonderry who died in 1885. He was outlawed in 1857 as a result of a rule made absolute in tha Court of Queen's Bench which sat afi Westminster. The_rule was not, however, carried out. Jjord Ernsst had several purple patches in his career. Kb was convicted in 1854 of an assault upon, the manager of the Windsor Theatre and ordered to pay £5. Later, £25---damages were awarded against him id an aotion for trespass in ■ connection; with the same incident. Then, in 1836, he was the principal figure in a scandal which shocked Brighton. He was an of- 1 , ficer of the Fourth Light Dragoons, sta* tioned at Brighton. Together with Captain Burt and Cornet" Winstanley, he played pranks upoii, his brother officer.', which led to a court-martial and the : r dismissal from- the' regiment and the army for conduct, ''unbecoming officers and gentlemen." It appeared from tlis evidence given at tie qourt-martial that the three young' spdrks-rLord Err.-it being the leader— objected. ;.to w^.e young officers who refused to take pert in the extravagant behaviour, of Lord Ernest and his friends. A. "rag" was organised and one young officer of a highly (respectable, clergyman's family was taken, out o fhis bed and treated e.tactly like a child. .-He .was "smacked,'' tide up. 'wifih. a bib, and' fed like - a baby. Afterwards, to crown the md nity, he. .was placed' in a fountain in his nightshirt.;, Another j'cim.g oiScer, named Ames, son of a genilsrran '■living at Bagenti's Park^ .was haulad out of. bed, and one side 'of his f-cs shaved of whiskers. His_bcd was put in .water, and -the .furniturfc broken up. Young Ames sleipt -ths- night c.i Ihe floor,: and in the morning -rt ported the ponduct of the .three .officers io tha c--lo-hel, who' ordered 'an iiiquiry. L'-rd Ernest and his twi> ;wild io;.'p>--~ ; on were placed uridsr close Hrrcst-, r.nd :a--ter dismissed the ririr.v.." - : T\v<v.'*ohflis' aftev . ll«-?(s;! _ l -C- -. ■■•'■ mtssevl-'from- ihc. aTmy-ripplicn.tif.il v..is muda to tuo Oki.Qu&E-n'f- Bench,' sin as; at Westminster," for n rule nisi- calling upon- lArd.Ernesty(ane;T«aipest to show cause wh'y-.a? crimihal' information should not be filed ■against him for assault on "Cornet' Ames, : the_young:officer who en-dured-'the one-sided- shave. ; It ( ; appeared .that on. October 31 Lord Ernest was :at Brighton;; hear ; the ;DoAet Gard--uiß, where - Ames , was • v talking t}j la' la.-ly. Lord Ernest went up toAmes/.epat m hia face,, ad .called, hull a-: black guard and a coward. Ames did nothing at the tome;-, bufr placed the matter in iho handi of his 4 solicitor. The Coujrtgrsnted the rule,. and the erring youn<j vr.cjaber of the Londonderry family ,Bed -; ha country: "It was not till June 12. IB i 7. that another. aplication was raad« to the Court for the rule to be'made aVokte. This was owing .to the f act tiiat Lord Ernest had come; iback 'to -the country, but was. living in the Dowager L:>dy Londdnderify's licjuse iji Park Lane, i.nd the officers>of.the\Court were una bio to serve Mm>'withV-th4.inotice of the r.'le. Under tUeVvjDld . -'jQTneeh'a Bench; prrcedure- Ldrcl -feneit Was outlawed, !mt the outlawry, was afterwards set' a.=i-.le. He" .left thS'coimtrv,. and^ proceeded to America,' and is said to have fought iii tbe • Civil-^Wa*;. >' -Ho afterwards retvyned Home-, and suDsequently maVrjcd r-nrt. settled neaT-Steckton. There has b^en no case of tie^ .sjnee. Mr 11-eh' Saort^saj-5 it-has. Keen abolished in civil proceedings^ and : in criminalTn'scecdiag'i is no^SEiOst : nn.fco\^n'. ' .. ".