LEAVE.—FIRST READING. (Hansard, 17 April 1860)

§ MR. PAULL

said, he rose to move for leave to bring in a Bill to amend an Act relative to malicious injuries to property. Recently, in Cornwall, some malicious persons applied a weight to a particular part of a mining engine, the consequence of which was that the engine did not act, and the water rose sixty feet in the mine in six hours. The circumstance of the mine itself being shallow, however, prevented the mischievous consequences which would have otherwise ensued, and by the exertions of the men employed at the time the water in a few hours was pumped out. An indictment against the offending parties was preferred at the next sessions. It was framed under the statute of Geo. IV., relating to malicious injuries. The 5th section of that Act related simply to injuries to mines. The 6th section however enacted that if any person should cause water to be conveyed into a mine he shall be guilty of a felony, and the 7th section enacted that if any person shall damage an engine so as to stop its working he shall he guilty of a felony. In the case he had referred to, however, on the removal of the weight which had been attached to the engine it was found that the engine had not been injured. The Judge ruled that the prisoners had not committed any offence under the Act, and he directed an acquittal, but added some strong observations on the defective state of the law, expressing his opinion that it was desirable that an Act of Parliament should be passed as soon as possible to meet such offences as that which had been committed. With that view, he (Mr. Paull) had framed the measure which he asked leave to introduce.