The National Register. — London, England, 1812-01-19 00:00:00

3 SAN. 1 9. OLDI3.4ILEV. Wednesday these Sessions . commenced at the Old Braley, before, Baron Mao:we/ten, Justice s CHAMBP. E and Lc BLANC, &c. Ge.)r,ge Skene was indicted for forgery. The prisoner was chief clerk of the Queen -square Police Office, and. it was his duty to pass the ac counts of the office. On the 21st of November last be rendered his :.ccount of the expences of the month of October, among which were receipts for coals, stationery, printing, and rent. It was. afterwards discovered that those receipts were forgeries, and that such sums were not paid. The signatures to such receipts were proved to be in the hand-writirg of the prisoner.—Being called on for his defence, he de clared to God and his conscience he had no intention to commit any kind of fraud, but his accounts were in error, he having been 500 miles in the country on professional business. The Marquis of Hunt ley appeared to the character of the prisoner, and stated that he had known him several years, and had always considered him a man of strict integrity and incapable of injustice. The other witnesses to cha racter were Messrs. Nares, Fielding, Stoney, Garden, Carrick, Rhode, Birnie, &c. Magistrates, who spoke of him a.s a man of strict integrity ; Captain Duff, of the Navy, also spoke highly of him ; he considered him as a man careless of his own concerns, but strictly honest. He • was found Guilty—Death, but was recommended to mercy. Thomas Collicott, a vender of quack medicines, was capeelly con victed of uttering forged medicine stamps, subject, however, to a point of law, reserved for the opinion of the ludees. Thursday, ~ ( ertn Clayton and William Jeniins, were tried for a burglary in the house of Mrs. Martin, in Bnry-street, St. Jemes's.— *This is the case in which the prisoners had obtain,el admission into the house by intriguing with the servant maid, and were secured by the Bow-street (hikers at the moment when they .hzel nearly completed their work.—( Ile particulars we gave in a former piper.)—The facts being clearly substantiated, the prisoners were found Gai'iy—Deolh. SATURDAY, JAN. 18. TRIAL OF ,MR. WALSH. Benjamin Wafeh stood indicted for feloniously stealing €2 , 2 Bank notes eif WM. each, and one Bank note for 2001. the property of Sir Thomas Plomer, Knt. with intent to defraud him of the said sum of money.— In other counts of the indictment the offence was variously charged, to which the prisoner pleaded Not Guilty. Mr. Asset yr opened the pleadings on the part of the prosecution. Mr. GARROW, in stating the case on the part of the prosecution, oh• served, that if it had been possible for the prosecutor in this action to have extended indulgence or commisseration towards the unfortunate oner at the Bar, the honourable and humane feelings and character of the prosecutor would have most willingly abstained from the present prosecution ; but from the nature of the case he was called upon to dis charge an important public duty, which was indispencible. He desired the Jury would discharge their minds from any impression which might he made by what they might have seen in the public prints, and be wholly directed by the evidence which should be adduced before them. - The prosecutor was his Majesty's Solicitor-Gene ral, and had long been acquainted with the Gentleman whom he ' had now the painful duty to prosecute. His father had been a Director of the Bank of England, and from this the prosecutor was induced to entrust the prisoner as a Stock-broker. lie then proceeded to state the case, as it appeared in evidence, and whirls we prefer giving in the detail, from which he concluded, that the time of tee prisoner's getting the means into his power, it was his intention to perpetrate the felony. As to the question of law, he took it from the oldest authori ties, that the crime of larceny was imputable to the prisoner. The crime of simple larceny was sufficiently known and well defined, it was feloniously raking the personal chattels against the will and %without the knowledge of the owner, with intent to convert them to his own use, and upon the evidence it would appear that the p: ironer at the bar bad taken this money with no other intent. Sir Thomas Plainer being sworn, stated, that he had for many years employed she prisoner as a Stock-broker, and in the mouth of :melee last, apprised him that he had tmtfle a contract for purchase sf an estate, for which he was to pay at Michaelmas, and it would be neces sary for him to sell out stock to a considerable amount eat: prisoner advised at that time to postpone selling out, as he ex p ected a consider able rise in stock, and the longer he postpoeed it the better; bur, in November, the prisoner urged him strongly to sell out, as stock would fall considerably, saying, he had consulted the most intelligent persons upon the subject, and, in consequence of this he gave bins authority to seU out stock to the amount of 13,4001. three per cents. and 18,6001. re dUced consols. On -tee following day he called at the prisoner's office in the city, who told him he had made the contract fot the sale, and it was agreed to he transferred on the 'Wednesday or 'Newsday following, which accordingly took place; and he then consulted the prisoner on the best way of disposing of the money until he should want it, and he advised the purchase of Exchequer Billy, but it was then, he said. too late in the day for that purpose. 'the neXt day the prisoner called at his chambers at Lincoln's lon, ard lie ,gave him a check on , Messrs. Gos ling, his bankers, for ei,2001. for the purpose of purchases these Ex chequer Bills, and.he promised to return with :km that day at four o'clock; thio Was Ilurulay, ith D:ceitaber. lie retorted about half THE NATIONAL REGISTER. , . . past four, appeared agAatt•dcand cefirplained of an Asthma; and atter a little p.tuse told him he had made the contract Nvith .Ir. Trotter, Mr. Coutts's broker, but the Exchequer Bills could not be del:vered until Saturday, as they were locked - up in the Bank, and Mr. Coutts w.f.* not in town; and that he should call on that day at three o'clock. At that time he produced 60001, Exchequer Bills, which he said he would lodge with his Bankers, along with thz: receipt for the balance. lie afterwards enquired at his Banker's, and found the Exchequer Bills , fur 60001. were lodged, but •no receipt, and he never saw the prisonte after until he saw him in Bow-street. The witness then referred to the letters he had received, which have been already published. Upon his cross-examination by Mr. SCARLET, he admitted be bad given the cheque for 8.1,2001. for the express purpose of - purehasinz l'-a.- chequer Bills ; as his stock-broker, he did nut give him any particular injunction as to the mode of obtaining the money for the cheque, but. left it to his own discretion. The several letters from the prisoner to his brother, and others. which were intercepted, and have been already published, were this read in evidence. _ _ _ - William Ewins, clerk at Goslings, and Co. proved the payment of the cheque for 22 1 2001. to the prisoner in person ; and Mr. Williatn Harman proved the purchase of 6,5001. in Exchequer Bills, by order et . therri sorer ; and George Hankley, his clerk, proved the delivery or theta to the prisoner. Mr. Ennis De Beirdt, a Broker of American Stock, proved the prisoner having commissioned him on the 29th of November, to purchase 1( tie 11,0001. American Stock fur a gentleman going to that cntmtry. The purchase was completed ; and op Thursday the sth December, aknit 12 o'clock in the forenoon, the prisoner paid him in 11 bank-notes 4 10001. each, for 10,4591. 19s. American Stock, and the witness gavehira a cheque on his bankers for the balance. Mr. Joseph Walsh, brother of the prisoner, proved a payment to Nina of 10991. odd, on the sth December, due to him - by his brother •sonie time. 4 ' Thomas Clark, the brother-in law of the swieoner, also proved a pey ment to him by the prisoner, on the same day, of one i 0001. bezel: elae, and he gave him a cheque on his Banker WI taki. leaving in Ins hai:Os 4001. Henry Atwright, clerk of the prisoner, preyed his having chanced a bank-note for 10001. given to him by the prisoner on that same day. Here Mr. GAaaow took occasion to observe, that there was not the slightest grounds of suspicion that any of these witnesses had any pre. , vious knowledge of the prisoner's intention. Mr. Charles, of the Bank of England, proved his having made the contract with the prisoner for the purchase of' the Stock sold out by S.ir Thomas nattier. Joseph Hearn, a silversmith, proved the purchase of 3001 . in Portu guese doubloons from him by the prisoner on the sth December. Mr. James Webb, a hoster, in l'hreadneedle-street, proved the Fri. sorter's coming to town in the Hackney stare, on the morning of tOe sth December—his leaving a travelling portmanteau and great ccr.c et, his shop, and returning for them in the evening, and pureha-iug a #.1:.....L.- pair of woollen boot-stockings and four might-capi. Mr. Jenkins, Solicitor to Sir Thomas Plotter, proved the subsetleeet arrest of the prisoner at Falmouth, the circunistemes of whico 11:: . .e already been before the public. The case on the part of the prosecution being closed—the priseeer declined making ai:y defence. Mr. SCARLET, fur the prisoner, in addressing the Court, honed he would not be understood to entertain any other SentinituAS of tiiis of fence than a conviction of the moral turpittele of the ::rieetier, at:3 he was satisfied the prisoner hitnself entertained no ether Sailtitilecit, ard felt all the contrition belonging to such a crime; Out it new bcconie his duty to make such objections as occurred to him ; first, there could be no charge of this sort for stealing the cheque, for it was in evidenee . the prosecutor had given it to the pri oner for a specific purpose, and it was nut altogether misapplied, for he had purchased sonic Excheyier Bills, and the Iw:sr did not allow the act of' felony to be in nen. separated. Thu second objection was tinder. the Statute cf the second year of the reign of Ceoo,e 11. by wl.ioll the sececiiy inoroed by the legislature was to such property as wai stillavailabie r.) ::le 1::.:11.? himself—in this case the prosecutor had parted A ith all conPeoul ever Ithe cheque by delivering it to the prisoner. Thirdly, the felonious in tent of the party taking was not in itself sufficient to constitote a felony when the party to whom the property belonyed had relinquished his aontroul over it : and, in support of these objectioes, lie referred to several casts in point. After some observation; by Mr. GARROw, Mr. SCARLET, and Mr. ALLEY, it was agreed the Jury should find a verdict suLject to the fu ture judgment of the twelve Judges upon the CairEr BARON'S report. The Ciller Be }tore acquiesced in this arrangement, and then ad dressing the Jury, adverted to that pert of the evidence which went t 9 ' , show the previoueintent of the prisoner to commit the felony. Otokeee. i ing, at the same time, that it was impossible, upon such evidence, not to find the prisoner guilty; wko, in consequence of the objections mod; • lb Twelve his CoonSel, woeld have 211 the-benefit of tile joigu.cnt of tile I Twelve Judges hereafter. The Jury immediately returned a verdict of --Guilty. Counsel for the ler wecutyp—Messra. 0.41.411AQW, A4S2IOT, oust Goa. oat. 45 ~l I :~