31.—At the Norwich Assizes, before Mr. Justice Byles, Robert Hardiment, tanner and fellmonger, was charged on five counts with bribing voters at the last General Election to vote for Sir H. J. Stracey. The Attorney-General appeared for the prosecution, and the defendant was found guilty. His lordship remarked that this was a very serious crime, and, as he was desirous that sentence should be pronounced by the highest judicature of the country, judgment was reserved. Another person, named Banfather, charged with bribery at the same election, was acquitted. On April 1st, at the same Court, John Hughes Hulme was found guilty of bribery, and sentence was reserved. Edward Stracey, son of Sir Henry J. Stracey, was next charged. The Attorney-General conducted the case for the prosecution, and Mr. A. Staveley Hill, Q.C., was specially retained for the defence. On April 2nd the jury returned a verdict of not guilty. “No sooner was the announcement made than deafening cheers were raised in the Court, and it was in vain that the officers tried to suppress them.” The defendant Hardiment was indicted, before Mr. Justice Blackburn, on various counts, for committing acts of bribery at the Eighth Ward Municipal Election, on November 1st, 1869. On being found guilty, he was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment. Joseph Stanley, solicitor, was charged with unlawfully conspiring with Robert Hardiment and others to induce, by means of bribes, certain persons to vote for Edward Bennett and George Gedge, candidates at the municipal election in question. The jury acquitted the defendant. Anthony Freestone, baker, and Henry Ellis, shoe manufacturer, were also indicted for conspiring to bribe at the municipal election, and were acquitted. On April 8th Messrs. W. H. Tillett and Co., solicitors, addressed a letter to the newspapers, asserting that “the jury drew lots to decide what their verdict should be in the cases of Freestone and Ellis.” They added, “The verdict is, of course, bad, and we shall feel it our duty to lay the facts before the committee of gentlemen who instructed us in the prosecutions.” No further action was taken, however. In the Court of Queen’s Bench, on May 10th, before the Lord Chief Justice and Justices Blackburn, Mellor, and Hannen, Hardiment and Hulme were brought up for sentence. Mr. Bulwer, Q.C., applied for mitigation of sentence in the case of Hardiment, on the ground that he was then undergoing imprisonment for municipal bribery; in the case of Hulme it was urged that imprisonment would be injurious to his health. The Court passed sentence of ten months’ imprisonment upon the first-named defendant, to run concurrently with the six months he had received for municipal bribery, two months of which he had already served, to be classed as a second-class misdemeanant, and to be fined £100. Hulme was fined £100. Mr. C. S. Read, M.P., subsequently presented to the Home Secretary a memorial, signed by 1,500 citizens,