CURIOUS HISTORY OF A CIRCUS RIDER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XIX, Issue 6566, 2 December 1882, Page 2 (Supplement)

CURIOUS HISTORY OF A CIRCUS RIDER.

• At tho Epsom Police court, before Mr. W. Trotter, Colonel Buller, ami other magistrates —Thomas Hough was charged with feloniously stealing one spring cart, two boxes, and other articles, of the value of £">5, the property of Maria Hough, his daughter. Mr. Pridham, solicitor, appeared to prosecute, and the prisoner was undefended. The facts of the case as stated by the solicitor, and corroborated !;y the nroaeoutrix aud her witnesses, were briefly as follows : —In IS7I the prisoner took the" prosecutrix, who was then but nine years of ago, into Russia, and apprenticed her to a travelling showman I named Manloy, described by prosecutrix as "a most cruel man." In 1574 her mother was separated from the prisoner, and obtained a protection order at Kiusgrove, in I Stiifibrclsliire. Shortly afterwards she j fetched the prosecutrix away from Russia, I and prosecutrix then contracted with Mr. G. Sangers to go with his circus on the Continent, givirg her mother £'CO, which she rej ccived from that ;:entlem:in as part salary. i Several times since *U'j had forwarded money I to her mother, and on one occasion she gave I the prisoner all the money tjhc bad, because !he said he wa3 " hard up." In March of the present year she returned to England, after having travelled all over the Continent and in Egypt, and brought with her as the proceeds about £50 in money and the jewellery mentioned in tre charge. .She was met in London by her mother, and together they went to Leathcrhead, where the mother was conducting a successful business as a licensed hawker, having bispn able to purchase a horse, a cart, with silver mountings, and a large stock-in-trade of earthenware, &e. Prosecutrix bought tho cart for £2."), and they lived together until June last. About that time the prisoner seems to have ascertained, by some moans orothei, their whereabouts, and he presented himself in Leatherhead, and, making himself l;uow to the prosecutrix, who we'llt by the name of Alice Taylor, tried to cajole her to give him some money, and, being unsuccessful, he broke into .•>. stable and too!; the horse and cart with tho other articles awav. Prisoner made several allegations against his wife, but was committed for tri.-il ;it the next session-, thu magistrates refusing to make an order as to the c:irt, which is at present in charge of the police at the Rotherliithc Police .Station.