MISCELLANEOUS.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 118, 19 July 1873, Page 2

MISCELLANEOUS.

The trial of Mr Joshua Lebailly, judge of the Jersey Royal Court and managing director of the Mercantile Union Bank, now in liquidation, terminated on the 13th May, after having lasted eight days—the longest trial that has ever taken place in Jersey. The indictment against the prisoner contained six counts, charging him with fraud and embezzlement. The first related to his pledging with the Metropolitan Bank as collateral, security £SOOO worth of Sardinian stock, for which he was trustee with two other persons. The other counts eharged him with disposing, or sanctioning the disposal, of securities valued at £BOOO, which were deposited with the Mercantile Bank for security. He was also charged with borrowing £6OOO Rom the bank without debiting himself therewith in the books ; with giving the guarantee of the bank for a private loan of £4OOO ; with presenting a false report of the state of the bank to the shareholders; and with issuing 15,000 £l-notes, contrary to the orders of the directors. The Attorney-General for Jersey prosecuted, and the Advocate Durell defended the prisoner. He was found guilty on four of the six counts, and the Court sentenced him to five years’ penal servitude. The rumor respecting the murder of Sir Samuel and Lady Baker proves to be utterly unfounded. An Alexandria telegram, dated 22nd April, published in the “Daily Telegraph,” says:—“A native merchant named Bokoor, has arrived at Khartoum from Gondokoro and the upper country, bringing direct and personal intelligence from the expedition under Sir Samuel Bakei. He reports that Baker and his whole party were in security and good health at the station of Fatookra at the date of his departure. He further says that when he was at Gondokoro the messenger of Baker Pasha arrived, and in his own hearing delivered an order to the son of the King, bidding him despatch 200 additional soldiers to Fatookra. This i information may be received with complete confidence.” 'The Halifax correspondent of the “ New York Herald” says that one of the sailors in the Atlantic who lost their lives in the effort to save others turns out to have been a woman. Her sex was not known till the body was washed ashore. She had served for three voyages. As a shipmate there whs none more popular. She is described as having fewer of the vices incident to a sailor’s life than usual ; but she was as jolly a tar as any of them. In speaking to the “ Herald” correspondent one of

the crew remarked:—“l didn’t know Bill was a woman. He used to take his liquor as regular as any of us, and was always begging and stealing tobacco. He was a good fellow, though, and lam sorry be was a woman.” The woman-tar was the only Yankee among the crew. A terrible accident has occurred in Illinois. A bridge over the river, which was crowded people witnessing a baptism, gave way, and an immense number were at once precipitated into the stream. Fifty persons are supposed to have been drowned ; and thirty-two bodies have, up to the present, been recovered—mostly Avomen. Many persons are missing, and twenty-four are injured ; several fatally.