The Press. — London, England, 1857-01-10 00:00:00

JANUARY 10, 1857. Witness : No ; he was going over London•bridge,instead of going back to the Eastern Counties Railway. (Laughter.) Air. Mum.i:ws : What happened then? Witness : I went up to him and touched him on the shoulder, and said, " You must be going the wrong way, sir." (Laughter.) He replied no, that be was only going to his last employers to know if Anderson had sent for his character. At this time Anderson was not known by that name, but by another, which I forget. He changed his name each time that a cheque was sent. I said to the young man when I tapped him on the shoulder, " There's a gentleman waiting at the railway; he sent me after you; he is very particular in trying his servants before he en• gages them." I accompanied the young man back to the railway, when we met Anderson, who went into a public. house with him, I remaining outside. When Anderson came out of the public•house he and I afterwards met Seward. Anderson then gave the bank-notes that he had received from the young man to Seward. We then pro. ceeded together to the neighbourhood of the Hackney-road. This transaction having gone off so satisfactorily with his new acquaintance, Saward and Atwell exchanged mutual confidences:— Seward said if ever anything came in my way I was to let Mr. Saunders know of it. I said I would, and he told me that if any "business " turned up with him he would write to me. I gave him my address. I was then living in Cottage•lane, City-road, and was passing by the name of Hawkes. I was living there with a young woman who passed as my wife. I was occasionally visited there by my aunt. Seward visited me there three times. On the first occasion of his coining he said he had some " busi ness" for me if I would do as I had done before. The business was to watch the cashing of a forged cheque for 91/. on Smith, Payne, and Co. But this little affair was unsuccessful : The young man who had been hired for this job was first sent to the Camden•station of the London and North-Western Railway to make inquiries respecting some luggage which was supposed to have arrived there. Upon his return I followed hula to Smith, Payne, and Co.'s bank ing -house, and saw him take the cheque to the country ordi.r side. He then took it to the counter, where it was stopped, and I went off as quickly as I could to the place of rendezvous. I told Saward and Anderson. who were waiting there, what had happened. IVe then separated. A similar result followed one or two other attempts, each time for a larger amount. At last it was deter mined to try a coup for 1,000/. A " friend " bad just come home from Australia, one Hardwicke, and he entered warmly into the business. A bill of ex change for 1,000/. was forged upon Heywood's bank, after a genuine bill for 2001., in the possession of Hardwicke It was arranged that this bill should " come off " on a Saturday in June. We all four met on that morning at Child's public•house, in Old-street Road, Anderson dressed up as nsual, and we went to a public•house in Englefield road, Kingsland, the name of which I do not recollect. We all went to the public-house first, and Anderson after wards went to the lodging. Before he did so a 201. note was produced by Hardwick° Seward asked for a pen and ink, which was brought in by a woman. who, I believe, apologised for the room not being ready for the reception of visitors. A name and address were written upon the note by Seward. It was then given to Anderson, who took it to the lodging to give it to the young man to get it changed at the Bank of England. While the young man was gone the 1,000/. bill was produced and some date was put across it, but which of the dates I do not know. When the young man returned Anderson brought in two foreign bill stamps. Saward stuck a stamp ou the back of one of the bills, and wrote an endorsement upon it, and it was then taken by Anderson back to the lodging, for the pm. pose of being given to the young man Clements. It was then arranged that we should meet in a public-howe in Bishopsgate-churchyard to learn the result of its present meat. Hardwicke, who left first, was to go to the banking house and wait till I came. I followed the young man Clements. Seward was the last man to leave the public. house. Clements rode on an omnibus, and I rode by the side of him. I saw him go into Heywood's bank. Hard wicke also went in, and Seward was close by, in King \Villiam•street. Shortly after Hardwicke went in he came out, and made a signal to me, upon which I went into the banking-house, and saw that the money was being taken back by the clerk from Clements, to whom he had pre viously handed it. I asked some trivial question, and went out and communicated to Seward what bad happened. We all met shortly afterwards at the public-house in Bishopsgate-churchyard, where we had something to eat. We afterwards went to the Shades. The examination of the prisoners was continued on Wednesday, when the evidence given by Atwell, with respect to the forgery upon Mr. Turner, through Messrs. Gosling, the bankers, and reported in THE PRESS of the 4th of October last, was confirmed by the icke, concerned in that business. ardwicke entered into much iner in which the forgery was prisoners were remanded for a ....n3lll sue *lll 01 vcrooer last, was confirmed by the other convict, Hardwicke, concerned in that business. Both Atwell and Hardwicke entered into much detail on the manner in which the forgery was carried out. The prisoners were remanded for a week. FREE CHINESE LABOUR IN THE WEST INDIES has given use to a carrying trade remarkable for its horrors and its profit. Neither in this feature of the trade, n3r in the after fate of the unhappy coolies at Cuba, is there much room for distinction between free and slave labour. Let us see it any simi- larity exists between the Hong Kong and Cuba voyage, and the African middle passage. A case at the THE PRESS. Thames Police-office on Monday may assist us. Captain Seymour, master of the merchant ship the Duke of Portland, summoned before Mr. Selfe for payment of a balance due to one of his seamen on a voyage from China to Cuba and London, pleaded that the man was, from disease brought on by his own indiscretion, unfit for work during the greater part of the voyage. To this it was replied, that if there had been proper medicines on board, the sea. man would have been cured. The magistrate called for the ship's log, and what followed we give in the words of the police report: — Mr. SELFE, on looking over the cfficial log, said he did not wonder at the doctor not being able to cure the com plainant of the disorder he had contracted, for it appeared that the passengers died off like rotten sheep. There was an entry every day of the death of one or more of the Chinese taken on board at Hong Kong. He found it stated over and over again, " Died of lever," " Died of exhaustion." He should like to know what this meant? Captain Seymour said he was very sorry to state that 132 Chinese died on board the Duke of Purl:and between Hong Kong and the Havannah. Mr. Young : It is most horrible. Chinamen are brought from China to work on the plantations, and this is the result. The English flag is disgraced by such a traffic. Mr. SELFE : I have heard of the horrors of the middle passage when the odious slave trade was in existence, but I never heard of anything like this. Captain Seymour: Yes, sir; l 8 of them died. Mr. SEISE : Yes, I see ; " departed this life from ex haustion;" those are the daily entries. Captain Seymour: Yes, sir, I am sorry to say it is so. I have had as many as 2tX) invalids at one time. Mr. SELTE : Yes, the poor Chinese died by wholesale, although it appears they were taken on board in good health. I hope her Majesty's Government will hear of this. Captain Seymour : It is a dreadful traffic, sir, and quite time it was put an end to. I can assure you that every Chinaman brought on board underwent two medical examinations before he was shilped. Mr. SELFE : Then, how came about this dreadful mor• tality ? Captain Seymour: I don't know, sir. Mr. Young : And I ani given to understand that many more of the Chinese died when they landed in Cuba. the Spanish agents hire the poor Chinaman from their native country to become slaves in Cuba. It is shocking. The wages were ultimately ordered to be paid. THE ROYAL. BRITISH BANK threatens to become a species of Baron-de-Bode case, to terminate only in the mutual deaths of directors and shareholders. On Thursday the shareholders comprehended in Class B—viz., those who took shares in 1855—appealed to the Court of Bankruptcy for permission to repudiate those shares, and, instead of being treated as share holders involved in the bank's liabilities, to appear as creditors, and to be allowed to claim the amount paid for their shares, on the ground that the directors, in the circular of March, 1655, deliberately misrepre sented the assets of the bank, stated to be upwards of 800,000/. in convertible securities, and a reserve fund of 10,00r)1., when, in fact, they bad scarcely sixpence in hand. After hearing an affidavit read from Mr. Edwin Booth, of Great Queen-street, West minster, in which Mr. Booth detailed the induce ments held out to him to become a shareholder under the New Charter Act, the case was adjourned till Monday, the 19th, in order to bring up, if possible, Mr. Cameron, Mr. M'Gregor, and other witnesses. THE CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT SESSIONS were resumed on Monday. The learned Recorder, in his address to the grand jury, referring to the cases of Redpath and Robson, alluded pointedly to the duty of Stock-Exchange gentlemen exercising some caution and inquiry in their transactions with persons pre viously unknown to them : It appeared to him that the same caution should be ob served in transactions of this kind as would be exercised by all honourable men who were dealing with any property or goods belonging to others, and that the same care should be taken to prevent the chance of being supposed to have any share in a guilty transaction. THE BAKERS of the metropolis have been thrown into consternation by a recent decision of Mr. Beadon, the sitting magistrate at Marlborough street, upon the subject of the Smoke Act. Mr. Cook, a baker, of Coventry•street, was summoned by Government officials for not, in accordance with the regulations of the Smoke Act, having adopted a certain apparatus to effect the consumption of his own smoke. On the part of Government it was maintained that whatever change in his furnace Mr. Cook had effected it did not answer the purpose of consuming the smoke of the fire, and that was the so!e point at issue. On the part of Mr. Cook it was maintained that his furnace was fitted with the best invention at present known—having regard to the words of the act, which stated that " practicable means " were to be used—to effect the consumption of smoke. To this, on the part of Government, it was replied that there were two patents, Von Rauther's and Davis's. Von Rauther's was the Utter of the two, which statement competent wit. nesses corroborated. Mr. Cook used Davis's patent, and several witnesses were called for the defence but, after hearing the evidence, Mr. Beadon decided 35 -- - that as none of these witnesses had seen both in ventions at work, he must regard the defence as futile, and inflict a fine of 51. and costs. Two CHILDREN, Margaret and Catherine Coch rane, about a fortnight since were found apparently suffocated from a fire breaking out in the room of a lodging•house in Liverpool. The children were buried, but the circumstances of the case were somewhat suspicious. It was remarked that three former children by the same mother had died violent deaths, and that a fourth child known to have been born lately had suddenly disappeared. The mother, also, was of a notoriously bad character. An inquiry Was held, the bodies of the two girls exhumed, and a postmortem examination made of the contents of the stomach of each, when full traces of oxalic acid were found. An inquest was at once held, and a ver dict of " Wilful murder" returned against Bridget Cochrane, the mother, who is at present at large. MRS. BACON, charged with the murder of her two children in Lambeth, was re-examined on Tuesday before Mr. Elliott, at the district police-e ourt. No fresh evidence of any importance was given. TEA police.constable who arrested her confirmed his pre vious statement that nu one could, as Mrs. Bacon said, have got in at any of the windows of the house and murdered the children, as the windows were not only bolted, but the sills of each were covered in long standing undisturbed dust. Neither were there any traces in the garden of footmarks. Mr. Bushell, the surgeon, stated it as his decided impression that Mrs. Bacon must have murdered the children herself, from the arterial blood stains " spirted over" her night dress. The prisoner still maintains her air of passive idotic indifference. A rather important statement was made by the husband to the effect that the house had certainly been robbed, and 71. in cash, which he had left at home, were missing. The police are investigating the affair, and meanwhile the case was adjourned to a future day. THE CRIME OF STABBING is almost becoming a na tional custom in street quarrels. Several cases have occurred lately among men and women. The habit appears to be even naturalising itself among our boys. On Tuesday a young ruffian, George Hall, a boy of ' thirteen, was brought before the Lord Mayor, charged with having stabbed another lad, named Moss Wolff, with a knife. The prosecutor, who appeared in a very weak state of health, said:— On Saturday last I was walking down St. James's-place, with a lad named Moss Lewis, when I saw the prisoner standing at the horse's head of a van, of which he was in charge. As we were passing, the prisoner called out to us, " I had a bit of pork, and I stuck it on a fork, and I gave it to a Jew thief." I took no notice of him, and passed on ; but upon his repeating those words. I turned back and slapped his face. As I was on the point of leaving him, he plunged a knife into my left side, about twelve inches below my armpit. When he drew the knife away I felt I was cut. I did not observe a knife in his hand, nor did I notice what he was doing. I found that blood was flowing copiously from the wound, and proceeded home. Dr. Conelatt ex amined and dressed the wound. I have been compelled to keep my bed till to-day. The knife went through my coat, waistcoat, shirt, and flannel shirt into my side. Mr. N. J. Conslatt, surgeon, of j4,' Castle-street, Houndsditch, said ! On Saturday last I examined the person of the prosecutor and found in his left hide an incised wound about an inch and a quarter in width. I dressed the wound. The knife had evidently glanced on the rib, which prevented it from entering the abdomen, and thus the life of the prosecutor was in all probability saved. A knife such as that produced by the officer would cause the wound I have described. The prisoner, who cried and said he was very sorry for what he had done, was remanded. THE PETITION FOR ADJUDICATION IN BANKRUPTCY in the case of Mr. Humphrey Brown, M.P., was disposed of at the Bankruptcy Court on Saturday. Mr. Com missioner Fane held that the petitioning creditor's debt (that of the Royal British Bank for about 40,0001.) bad been proved, as also an act of bank ruptcy. Adjudication of bankruptcy Witi accordingly made. The assets available fur the creditors are said to be of very inconsiderable amount. THE MISAPPROPRIATION OF I FRIENDLY SOCIETY'S FUNDS BY A COUNTY MAGISTRATE was proved last week at a petty sessions at Chepstow, against Mr. William Hollis, for many years a justice of the peace for tho county, and who, until witnin the last few year:, took his seat on the bench, but who now appeared to a summons charging him with misapplying the funds of the Shirenewton United Friendly Society, of which ho was trustee, until lately removed from office. Upon the information being formally read over, Mr. Hollis pleaded guilty to the charge contained iu it, and he was ordered by the magistrates to refund the amount, 561. ss. 4d., together with a penalty of 101., and Bs. 6 d. costs, and in default of payment to be committed to the House of Correction at Usk, and there be kept to hard labour for six weeks. THE BROMPTON CHEMIST'S ASSISTANT, Burrows, who last week mixed prussic acid with a dose of castor oil, and poisoned his neighbour, the tailor 3larcooly. has been committed to take his trial by the coroner on a charge of manslaughter,