A Strange, True Story, and Its Sequel. DEBATE IN THE COMMONS AND DEFEAT OF GOVERNMENT. (From Our Special Correspondent.)

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 217, 27 August 1887, Page 6

A Strange, True Story, and Its Sequel. DEBATE IN THE COMMONS AND DEFEAT OF GOVERNMENT. (From Our Special Correspondent.)

London, July 13. To correctly understand the nature of the Cass case, which is at present causing such a stir throughout the country, it is necessary your readers should learn certain compara'ively unknown facts about the metropolitan police. One of them is that all West End constables have what they call "constituents," i.e., ladies of flexible ethics, who pay a weekly *urn (varying according to their earning^) to be 1 ft unmolested -whilst " pavement-pattering." On the evening of Coronation Day towards 9 o'clock J 'dice Constable Endacott (who held a profitable beat in Regentstreet) saw a young- girl, -whom he had not upon the \ht of his constituents, walking slowly touaids Oxford-street. This wa*> Miss Cass, a young and perfectly respectable milliner, employed by Mdmo Bowman, of Southampton "Row, who had only recently come up to town, and who was strolling homewauls after an e-\ening walk, gaping (counti}-wit.e) at the shops and the crowd. Imagine this poor girl's horror and dismay who) .she found herself roughly seized* by the constable, chained with molesting gent lemon, and luwriedolt towards the police-station " I paw you to two or three men,' 5 Endacott avened ; " bosides l\e had my eye on you for some time/ Mi*s Cass endeavoured to explain -as well as shame and terror would let her that she had ne\ erbcen out of her employers house before, but the constable wouldn't listen. At the Police Station, overcome with the horror of her situation, the poor gill fainted. Madame Bowman was sent for and bailed her ewiplojee out, but not before the latter (untried and nnconvieted) had been entered on the ohaige sheet ny "a common prostitute. " Next morning at Mai Iborough -street Police Coint, bcfoia Mr Newton {who is known as the 'bobby's beak" from his laith in the infallibility and credibility of j»licemen),Mis-. Ca^s wah formally charged. Police Constable Endacott swoie that he tiid seen the young woman molest two gentlemen, aiH^hat a thud had absolutely complained to him about hei. There wero no other witnesses, ivii.^s Ca^s, who could scarcely utter a void trom .sheer agitation, murmured brokenly, "I never spoke to anyone, ssr," to which the representative of justice rudely retorted, '' I don't believe you."' His Woi-ship wa^ ju^t about to tine the unfortunate girl w hen Madame Bow man stepped forward", and. much against the jmagistiate's wish, d-epo-ed to the gill's excellent character and antecedents, and to the fact that prior to Coronation nizht she had never (since she came to town) been outside her door. After thh .'i committal %vas clearly impossible, but Mr ' Newton had ■no notion' of letting Mi-s Cass leave the Court without a stain upon her character. •'If," he said, sceptically, "you aie a respectable girl, don't be seen walkinf in Regent-sheet after 9 p.m., ot£evwi*e you will be taken up again, *md I shall certainly -fine or imprison you." It was this extraordinary magisterial " ultipomatum " (as the butterman says in " Our Boys") that attracted a Police Court reporter's attention, otherwise we should hare heard nothing of the case. That the fact of a girl's walking in Regent-street after 9 p.m. should be accepted by a magistrate as a privia facie proof ot pioctitution ■was, hoxve\ er, too much of a good thing. jNo sooner did the story leak out than hundreds of shop-giils, whose avocations necessitate their parsing- through R-egent- street sA> a late hour, loudly protected. The press took up the grievance roti ttvwrt. Mr Stead, of tho "Pall Mall Gazette," ■opened the ball.and the " Daily News " and "Telegraph" followed suit. Within 24 tours the Home Secietary was besieged with Parliamentaiy demands for an inquiry into the police constable's and the magistrate's conduct. Had Mr Matthews been a Minister of experience and a man of common sense, he would ha\e seen the danger of irritating the House of Commons over a matter of this sort. But lie is a pedant, -and he chose to take up a high and dry *' I can't mterfeie " stand. If Miss Ca«s %vere aggriei ed she had her legal remed}', etc., etc. He would pledge the Government to ijothimg. The result ot this ciass obstinacy was that on Tuesday evening, after a stirring tlebate, in the course of which not merely Mr Chamberlain, but also Ldd Randolph Churchill centred the Home Secretaiy's attitude, a division was taken and the Government beaten. Onthe following evening, Mr W. H. Smith endeavoured feebly to repair tho damage <3one by piomising the fullest inquhy botli into Mr Newton's and Police-Constable Endacott'scouduct,andbyaverring that the Government were nuite as anxious as the House that justice should be done. The House accepted his assurances at last, but *iob before more than one lion, member had jeered at the Government's penitence. The affair has led to some extraordinary revelations as to the soit of justice meted out at Marlborough -street Police Court. .Meanwhile Miss Ca&s is the most talked about woman in England. This erstwhile obscure milliner's adventure has shaken a «fcrong Government to its foundations, and ruined the Parliamentary reputation of tho Home Secretary. That it will bring about a number of important and most necessary reforms may also be con&idered certain.