The National Register. — London, England, 1820-12-03 00:00:00

k . .Ya•••_ GANG OF HORSE.STEALERS AND MURDERERS. I i the beginning of September last, two men were committed to Nlaidstone gaol, on a charge of horse stealing, tif the names of Hughes and Greenstreet. The latter. though not admined to turn evidence for the Crown, expressed his siailmeness to give all the informa• tion he knew respecting the transaction, which wool I lead to the apprehension of others concerned in that and other robberies. llis readiness to make confessions became known to those connected in the gangs Of horse stealers which have attested that part of the country fur a considerable time, and which are prnicipally cam ; °wit of gipen-s, and vengeance was determined on by the eang against Greenstreet. Oa Thursday afternoon, the nth of October, as we have already stated, a basket was received at Maidstone prtsen by the Carrier front TUIIbridgC•WCIIS, addressed to William Green , trcet, or Greentrees. On opening it the contents prat ed to In some clothes, some cheese, a pisce of bacon, and a boiled plum-pudding, apples, onions, &c. It so happened that when tile basket was opened Greenstreet and all the other prisoners had just done dinner. Greenstreet ate some of the pudding, and he offered some to his fellow prisoners, but they all de clined accepting of any, except one, of the name of Hearn. In a very short time alter they had partaken of the pudding, Greenstreet and Hearn were both taken extremely ill , and no doubt was entertained but that their sudden illness proceeded lust poison. They con tinued in a most dreadful state till both expired. It being strongly suspected that the plus-pudding contain. ed poison, it was analysed, when it was found to contain a large quantity of arsenic, supposed to be an ounce. On Greenstreet being msorined that he hid taken poison in the pudding, he expressed as having no doubt but that it had been dune by a man of the name of Proudly, who was contracted on ill a desperate gang of gypsies. Previous to expiring, he made all the atonement to society he could, by a confession of all the robberies he knew of to a magiArate. Great exertions were made in the country to trace out the perpetrators of the horrible deed, lint Ito trace could effectually be made as to its planners and executors. In conseqoence of the application to the Bow-street magis trates, on the 17th of last October, Lavender and ashop were despatched to Maidstone. They ascertained, be• yond a doubt, tliat &tie basket and its contents had not been sent by Greensucet's wife, or any of his relations or friends at itnwlandeastle, as the direction on it pur ported to be, but that the arsenic was bought and put in the plum-pudding at Tunbridge-wells, though there was no direct proof of it. Ail the articles which were in the basket were purchased by gypsy-women at Tun bridge-wells, and the direction on the basket was written by a female servant residing there, at the particular re . (pest of a gutsy woman. Olt the din instant, Lavender learning thar a number of gipsies resort e d to Itomsey fair, which was held there on that day, he went there, his great object being to apprehend Proudly, the gypsy, who is charged with horse-stealing and tea toiler. Lavender remaried on the look-out in the lair dosing the whole of the day without success, but he [curia that :lewdly was certainly expected ther e . Lavender, accompanied only by a constable belonging to Romsey, left lionisey between nine and ten o'clock. As they were proceeding through a lane, two uteu on horseback spline:chi:el them, and fortunately, just as I they came up to them, they stopped their horses to speak to a man who had called to them to ask a question ; when Lavender having no doubt but that. one of the men was Proudly, he seized his horse, and endeavoured to unhorse him. Lavender proved right in his conjec ture as to its being Proualy, who resieed most violently —Lavender, however. accomplished his object, and, having once seized hold of him, he was determined not to let him go. When he got hint ou the ground, he resisted still more violently, in which he was assisted by his companion on horseback, and probably a more desperate reneontre never took place, except with fire arms and deadly weapons. Lavender threatened La shoot hint if he did not surrender, but to no ellect; be kick ed and plunged, and made every possible resistance, and he nearly accomplished the ob ject be had in view of stripping himself naked, when it is almost impossible to bold a Mall lay any means; he got oil all his clothes except his nieeches. Lavender with the greatest difli• culty handeutled hint, In sne conflict L tvenUer received several seve:e bruises. The man who was riding on horseback in company With Proudly proved to be the brother of Hughes, who was firm taken into custudy of the gang charged with horse-stealing. Proudly was taken behire the Mayor of Ronisey, who ordered him to be cantioed in prison that night. On the lollo%ving morning Lavender coincyed hint front Hotusey, and proceeded on his way to Maid 'vale. On his arrival there Proudly underwent an exa mination bettve the urtgis:rates, when he denied his name being Mond ly, and said it was Pearce; he denied all knowlege of llu hes; he was, however, committed. Another very material actor in the diabolical plot was wanted, viz. toe woIIICII Vo'llo made the plum-pudding, and put the poison in it; and, suspecting that she was with a gang of nipsies who were encamped, and re sorted l's linekitignainsiiire and Hertfordshire, the of since tie 17th inst. has been in pursuit of all the gipsies he could hear of. On Monday night he was so fortunate a 3 to meet with the woman, calling herself Mary Baler, encamped with an old man and woman, and SOW(' gipsy children, about three miles on the Weu duver roan, ll4ml Clse3hatll ; the Old man and woman are supposed to be the lather and mother of Ilieglies. Lavender took the uoulan belore the bevels of ma gistrates at Berkhampstead, who ordered her to tre taken behire the magistrates at laidstone; and Wednesday Lavender Jr:moved her from London, awl conveyed by r to Muidstsue. The Lady Wellington, packet, arrived at Falmouth from Gibraltar on the 12th ult. in company with *early 100 sail of vessel,. THE NATIONAL REGISTER On Tuesday last the first stone of a new building in Peter -street, Suit-street, fur the Bishopsgate Charity Schools, was laid by Sir %Yin. Hewiiits, in the presence of a numerous and respectable assembetee of ladies and gentlemen. The ceremony commenced by au appropeate address from Sir William, followed by * Dr. Bloinfield, reciter of tee parish, who, nr a s cry itneressive discouise, described the peculiar advantams Ia society by the early inculcation of morality and industrious habits, and earitestly exhorted a continuatinn of these efforts which had for more than a century been &leasing the bleeungs of instruction, and which had enabled the managers of toe institution to raise it to its tessent degree of excel lence. The Rev. Doctor concleded a very animated address by a prayer and betverlietioe. Sir W. Rawlins then proceeded to the north east corner of the ground, followed by Mr. Meredith, the veil:tete, witlt the plans and inscription plate; M r.G rimsdell, the master builder, with a trowel ; and Mr. Richards, the macer mason, with a bottle, containing a variety of gold and silver coins, which was let hue the stone; the stone was then lowered and fixed in dtre form. 'flie children sang a hymn prepared for the occasion, anti tile ceremony con chided by hearty shouts of congratulation from the spectators. The building will cumain, besides other conveniences, two achoel-routes, capable of ;seventies dieing hi or 700 children, and will ales be appropriated to the purposes of the parochial and eard meetings. CALAMITOUS FIRE.--Abotit three o'clock oil Wed• nestl.ty afternoon, a distressing and melancholy catas trophe took place at the house of el r. Fennel, bookseller and siationer, in Little Bell-alley, Mourfielda; Mr. and Mrs. Fulford, about nine o'clock tit 1;le meriting, went to see tee procession of the Queen in St. Paul's, leaving the house and family, consisttee of four children, in the care of their servant maid. About thee the neighbour hood was thrown into the greatest alarm by the servant miming out of the house, and in a state of madness, calling aloud " fire, murder, eec." scarcely a moment elapsed before the fire burst out a: the first floor window with the greatest fury; the servant exclaiming, " For God's sake save the children." M r. Itughes, an oilman, procured a ladder, and endeavoured to get in at the window to save the little sufferers, but all hta efforts were in vain, as the felines had pined such air asceu dancy, that every attempt was 101.111t1 to be useless. The devouring element raged for a conaidcrabie time before the least assistance could he obtained; at length the various fire engines arrived, and a plentiful supply of water being obi:tined, the flames were impeded in their progress, but not till they bad communicated to the a.ljoining house, occupied by Mr. Williams, bootmaker. By this time Mr. and Mrs. nand returned, and on the afflicting news reaching the ear of Mrs. F. she swooned, whilst her husband ran about its a state of frenzy, endeavouring to find his unfort u nate children, two of whom, to the great joy of the afflicted parents, were found at a theeltbour's house, where they had been the whole of the dey. All search for the nasalising two—a fine girl about two years old, and a little boy, about six months old, Was lOUIId to be of ho avail. Tee origin or the inelauctioly circumstance is at present um k flown. Not an atom of furniture belutigine to the tin liirtutette Mr. Fulthrd was saved front toe co:Algernon. Tile house is eteiFely in ruins, and the house of Mr. Williams has suffer d severely. ALARMING AND DESTRUCTIVE FIRE.AbOUI half rail one o'clock on Wednesday morning the neighbour hose! of Warciour-street, Sohu, was thmwts into the utmost confusion by the springing of the watchmen's rattles, with the alarm tic litre bursting forth item the shop windows of the house of Mr. I)ring, tallow inciter anti chandicr. It originated h: the cellar, ID consequence of one of the pails femme over pert of its contents. In a short time tee wiiole of the lower part of the house was one body oh coedetned tire. The inmat s, who were all thus time buried in sleep, were at length roused, and exhibited a most distressing scene : they appeared to a state of nudity at the 3CCOOd floor windows, from one of which a female servant jumped into the street, and was fortunately prevented from experiencing any injury, by the persons underneath receiving her in their arms. The flames were gaining such ascendancy that the remainder of the inmates were obliged iodesert their further positions, and wee met seen and heard to rend the skies by their ecreanis from the attic s:ury. Scaling ladders and fire escapes were fortunately by this time procured, antkhy the humane and very great exel dons of the populece, they were all conse y ed site into the street, and took shelter in auopposite house. The premises were soot completely gutted, and the whole of the extensive stock in trade and very valuable furniture therein destroyed. The fire next extended us ravages to the two adjoining houses, the one occupied by Mr. J. Little, a master cooker; add the other by Mr. Griffiths, appraiser and undertaker, both of which, together with their stock in trade awl furniture, shared the fate of the former. The hives cud eroperty of Mr. Hutchins, chair manufacturer, and Mr. lliskett, cheesemonger, suffered materially, not by the tile, but by hexing the shop frOUIS and strcet window; min out, in (order to throw the fur niture &c. into the street, the greater part of which was either shattered by the fall, or carried off by the thieves, who are never absent on such occasions. Noble Mon Oct-am—All the labourers on the estates of Earl Forttscuc, the Lord Lieutenant of Devon, when past their labour, receive from his Lordship 3s. 61. or 4s. per week, together with a good dinner of roast beef and plum-pudding, and plenty of strong beer every Sunilay. Besides this, his Countess clothes and educates 180 poor child ren, and gives them an excellent dinner on the same day, dier their return from divine service. It has been suggested Ly some of the numerou s persons who were disappointed of hearing the worthy Archdeacon Bathurst's Sermon on Wednesday, ;2901 instant, at St. Paul's, that if the same w,re printed, it would !dhoti a peculiar gratification to the many thousands who severely feel and lament that dis appointment* $9l AGRICULTURAL REPORT FOR Novsmazit.--Thers is little novelty since our last report, for the universal distress of the occupiers of the soil, and the labourers who till it, are unhappily no novelty. Never before was Lime an gloat a prof isioo at Eli. lard. Wall the MX. 3. toles oi . 111.• and or all cor n • lures; bin for rte first r, the grower finds HO tennweration, anal was itow:illdilli; the apparent low nos of necessaries, the country la no nets in constant employment are barely able iu sub sist, and die considerable nu miter in many dis.riets, whom the farmer cannot elliploy, have no other resont ce to :11 a pariah allowance. A great accumulation of this misery is apprehended in the ensiling winter season.— Such is i lie strange state of our coo ntry,at the very summit of opoleoce, and superabundance, and with the boast of an unprecedented share of intellectual light. As a curium, ationtily, we have lately heard of ninety pounds per acre given for thin stapled, ordinary arable land, and from seventy pounds to that !.rice demanded for land in the county alluded to. Rents, however, in various parts of the couutry,are giving way,on the average probably of nearly thirty per cent. , apparently the only obvious no•le of working the necessary change in the present melancho:y and dangerous situation of affairs. Ihe late considerable reduction in the price of corn, is no doubt full as omen to be attributed to the poverty of the far mers us to the abundance of the crop. The low price of store cattlemay be referred to the sante causes, and to Inc almost general failnr.• of the turnip crop, which will reraLf.r cattle lecthilg in the spring extremely expensive. The young wheats look as healtay and well in general, as they usually du at this season, but from casualties of weather, the sowing of considerable breadths is 7ost noised till sifter Christmas. In some p.irts the drought continued too long; in others, particularly the north west, they were deluged with rain. In Scotland the crops were fortunately secured. Wheat and Oats great ; barley deficient, both in quantity and quality. Potatoes, a light but sufficient emit. Wheat well got in. The demand for labour too great to be supplied The wool trade is reviving in a slight degree, for middle and long wools; as fn. English tine wools, foreign importation has lung since beaten ilium out of Lite field and out of the market. ALARMING FIRE —On Thursday night about half past eleven o'clock, a lire was discovered in the timber ya.%l oh• Mr. Baynes, Holten-sweet, Wardour-street (very close to the houses which were burnt on Wednesday morning.) In a short time an immense volume of flames burst !Unit and illumined the atmosphere for some distance; the fire soon spread its ravages to the adjoining houses b:-lore any effectual means could be procured to suppress it. Engines arrived from all quarters, but for some tiine they were unable to work, u, consequence of there not being a sufficient supply of water. Tne ache city of the firemen prevented the fire in some measure bow extending any eistanee ; but the backs of all the houses were completely consumed. A Wesleyan chapel, in Little Cttapel•street, was very much dammed, as were also a numberof houses in (.; rest and LittleCtia pel. streets, IVarthrur-street, and Ilollen-street. The thieves were, as usual, very active on tile occasion. A detach ment of the foot-guards attended, which, with a strong party of the Bow-street patrol and other constab!es, were very successful in preventing depreadations and keeping a free passage fur the exertions orate firemen. No cause has as yet been assigned as to the origin adds dreadful fire, but it is supposed that some flakes of lire must have flown ova on Wednesday, and remained concealed until Thursday night, when they burst fort!). The houses were principally occupied by poor lodgers, who hive union mutely lust their goods. Mr. Baynes was insured, but, we hear, not adequately to the loss he sustained. A Fortunate Enconnter.—Friday night four well known thieves, after getting drunk at a putdic-house in Kent street, sallied forth, and committed several most daring outrages in the nei t athourlitiod. 'lvey forced their sw•.ty into a baker's shop in anion-s:reet, where the baker's wife and (blighter, and a young gentleman, who was paying his addresses to the latter, were sitting, and coin. menet(' a most brutal attack upon all present; they knocked down both the women, and then forcibly drag ged the young man into the street, where they beat and kicked him till he was altnost insensible. His own cries, and those of others who beheld his situation, at length brork;ltt Snow the constable, and a posse of watchmen to the spot, at sight of whops the ruffians tuuk to flight. The young man grappled one of them; but by dint of stipertor strength the bellow got clear, and attempted to escape, pulling the a °untied man after him, who, as a last effort, made a grasp at some part of his clothes, but he missed his hold, and his hand caught his assailant's watch chain, six lenJatis of which, to. gether with five chased gold seals and key, were left in his possession. Tne seals are worth 10 guineas at La , t. By the prompt assistance of the constable and his party, the assailants were forced to fly in all ditectlons, and were chased as far as Dover -street, where they escaped. in consequence of the repeated outrages and street robberies which have recently taken place. Lord Sidwouth has increased the force under the any. - 'nand of the magistrates of the different Police Of. (ices vd ry considerably, and that active precautions are taken to prevent, us much as possil;ie, the frequency of such robberies, to which the present season of the year is always favourable. Wednesday being the day appointed for paying the differences in the accounts at the 'Stock Ex change, there was an unusual number of delitulten.„ and consequent failures. In order to check the evil arising leant the nefarious practices of jobbers and desperate speculators, it is the determination o: the Committee to inscribe upon a black board, with out as well us within the :rouse, the names of all djaultcrs, and to exclude them in future. During the late troubles in Palermo, a ma7azin• of gunpowder blew up, and 49 rerbons were kille.l in cut►sequcnw, 1 _ s ~.