Lushington was taken to the Court of Arches. It was a suit for divorce on the grounds of cruelty and adultery. No opposition was offered by the defendant, and Sir H. Jenner, without entering into details, held the accusation to have been established, and pronounced for the divorce.
Trial of Earl Waldegrave and Capt. Duff - Seven Fishermen Drowned
Another reprehensible affair in high life, and in the same month was the trial in the Queen's Bench of Earl Waldegrave and Captain Duff, for violently assaulting a policeman. The first-named offender in this case was not the 8th Earl Waldegrave who, at a later date, was married to Mr. Milward's widow, but his nephew, the 7th Earl, who was the second of four husbands of a lady first known as Miss Braham, a daughter of the celebrated vocalist. The case excited a good deal of local interest in consequence of the Earl Waldegrave having visited both St. Leonards and Hastings. Counsel was heard at great length in defence of the culprits who were present in Court. Lord Denman also entered minutely into the case, and concluded by saying -
This court has always felt itself bound to protect peace officers in the execution of their duty, and the Legislature has added its sanction to such a practice, because it has provided that punishment may be inflicted upon persons who obstruct peace officers in the execution of their duty. That act of Parliament provides that persons may be punished by imprisonment for not more than two years, with or with-out hard labour, and a reasonable fine. We have taken all the circumstances into consideration, and, giving you the full benefit of having made submission to the law of the land, and willing to make compensation to the party injured, the sentence of the court is, that each of you be imprisoned in the Queen’s Bench prison, in the custody of the Marshal, for six calendar months, and that you, Lord Waldegrave, do pay a fine of £200, and you, Captain Duff, a fine of £20, to her Majesty, and that each of you be further imprisoned till those fines be paid.
As touching the divorce suit, though still bearing the name of her good-for-nothing husband, Mrs. Lushington had, of course, no cause to regret the legal separation, and could continue to move in fashionable circles with even greater freedom. She was one of the invited ladies to a quadrille party at Mr. and Mrs. Hollond's residence on the 15th of October, and on the 29th of December, she gave in her own ballroom, a gorgeously arranged fancy-dress ball to the leading nobility and gentry then in Hastings and neighbourhood.
During the year, the gains and losses of the fishermen included the following:-
A Hastings boat was lost during a gale on the 5th of February, whilst on a voyage to Plymouth, and at about 20 miles distant from that port. The whole of the crew were drowned, the names being, Coppard, sen. Coppard, jun. Jarret, sen. Phillips, Swain, Bumstead (a lad) and another lad named Simmonds.
In the first week of November, the local fishermen were fortunate in their vocation and particularly so as regards their catches of Herrings. As many as from 40 to 50 lasts[a] were landed daily, and prices were good until the markets were too plentifully supplied. That success was soon followed by a run of bad weather, and on the 17th of November, one of the fishing boats was completely wrecked on coming to land, and another was greatly damaged. During this period of stormy weather (on Saturday, 14th), there occurred a large fall of the cliff from the at Rock-a-Nore.
The successful netting of herrings in November, was preceded in October by an unusual catch of mackerel, these being landed on the 29th of that month as many as 75 lasts, which realised £937.
Among other maritime associations was the launching from Thwaites and Winter's premises, the new schooner "Osprey" intended for the foreign fruit trade. As showing the significance of the local shipping trade, the arrivals in three days (April 27th to 30th) were the Sussex, the Wiliam Pitt' and the Milward, with general cargoes; the Jane with cheese and coke; the Rising Star, the Queen Victoria', and the Lamburn with coal; the Mary Ann with potatoes; and the Caroline with coals.
Commissioners Meetings
At the April meetings of the Hastings Commissioners, it was announced that the persons elected to fill up the vacancies were Joseph Bannister, William Bannister, Thos. Edwards and William Carswell (1808-1858), all for St. Clements; W. Richardson and Thomas Houghton for All Saints; and George Clement and James Emary, jun. for St. Mary's-in-the-Castle.
The water-works committee reported that the work -
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