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Veterinary Jurisprudence. 
MIDLAND CIRCUIT.— WARWICK, March 24. 
Civil Side . — (Before Lord Campbell and a Common Jury.) 
Emery v. Peake. 
This was an action against a clergyman for keeping a dog 
accustomed to bite mankind. 
Mr. Bittleston and Mr. W. H. Adams appeared for the 
plaintiff, Mr. Serjeant Kayes for the defendant. 
The plaintiff is a working gardener living at Aston, near 
Birmingham, and the defendant is the vicar of the same 
parish. On the l6th of March in last year the plaintiff was 
walking home, when she saw Mrs. Peake come out of a house 
where she had been visiting some sick poor. She was accom- 
panied b}^ two dogs, who immediately flew up at the plaintiff 
and commenced an attack upon him, one before and the other 
behind. He defended himself from them with his hands for 
a short time, but at last one of them bit him in the leg, a 
little way above the ankle. These dogs were produced in 
court; they appeared to be of the Skye terrier or Dandie 
Dinmont breed, and bore the characteristic names of 
“ Mustard” and “ Pepper.” The plaintiff called out, “ Oh, 
dear, I am bit !” and the lady went up to him and expressed 
her sorrow for what had happened. The plaintiff went home 
as well as he could, and then found that his leg had bled 
very much. He endeavoured at first to cure it for himself, 
but the leg got worse, and on the 30th of March he was 
obliged to call in a surgeon, who found one deep sore and 
two smaller wounds in his leg, and who continued his attend- 
ance for about two months. The plaintiff had for a long 
time been incapacitated for digging and gardening work, 
and up to the present time even his leg was not quite well. 
About three weeks after the occurrence, he called upon the 
defendant, and wished to see him upon the subject of his 
accident; but the defendant sent him out half-a-crown, and 
refused to see him. Several witnesses were examined on 
behalf of the plaintiff to show that these dogs had previously 
attacked and bitten other people, and, among others, the 
butcher who served the defendants family, as well as his son, 
had been bitten at, and had their trousers torn by the dogs in 
the vicarage-yard, though their boots saved their legs, and 
