The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-12-23 00:00:00

A REMARKABLE CASE.

Thomas Stone has 'Well indicted, at the Derby assizes, for
forgery, ler the following remarkable circumstances :

A young lad, named James Young Stone, had
pleaded guilty to the charge of forgery, and was
called as a witness. James Young is a butcher in
Derby, and on the 21st of June he had a deposit of
£BOO with Messrs. Smith's bank in this town. For
tins he held a deposit note, which he secreted betwesu
the top of a cupboard and the ceiling. James Young
Stone was his illegitimate son, and lived with him and
was employed in One shop, He was 14 years 01.1. The
prisoner, Thomas Stone was his mother's brother.
The boy's stony was as follows : —The prisoner had
tout him he was sure Jaunts Young must have
money, and the boy most search for it and bring it
to him and they would go to Londen for a spree. The
boy found the deposit note and took it to the pri-
soner's house. The prisoner told him to sign his
name to it, and he sinfhed it "James Young." They
then went to the bank. The prisoner said, " Now is
the time, while the head clerks are away and only the
young clerks there." Ile went by the prisoner's direc-
tion, and the clerk at the bank gave him what he asked
for —viz., £llO, and returned the deposit note to him.
This n.,te was subsequently burnt by the boy. After
getting the money the pair set off in a cab to Notting-
ham, paying the cabmen i." 2. At Nottingham they
took tram to Ismdon, and went to Tabb's coffee-house,
in Bear-street, Leicestersquare. Here they lived at
4:3 per week fi ,r board and lodging. The boy acted as
paymaster at tin-et and kept the note. Ile gave money
to the elder prisoner As he wanted it. Subsequently
the elder prisoner got possemion of the money and acted
as paymaster. From the 21st of June to the 31st of
August they spent their time either at Tabb's coffee-
hi muse or at a publichouse formerly kept by the prisoner's
father at I'ost-4mA-hill, near Oxford. The landlord
asked the prisoner how Jim, the boy, came to have so
much money, and he replied, Jinn was a famous
scholar, and they went about betting at races, and that
was how they got the money. The boy stated that the
prisoner had come into his bedroom at night and taken
£l5O which remained, and refused to give it back.
When accused by the boy of having stolen it, the
prisoner struck the boy and said, "And how did you
get it 1' " There was no corroboration of the boy's story
as to the signing of the indorsement of the deposit note
in the presence of the prisoner, or of the prisoner being
with him at the time the money was obtained ; lent
there was corroboration as to what happened after-
wards.

Mis Lordship having summoned up with the greatest
Clearness,

The jury found a verdict of Cs iffy.
His Lordship, in passing sentence, said the jury had
very properly convicted the prisoner. There was no
doubt the prisoner had tutored and corrupted the boy,
and endeavoured to shield himself. NO one could tell
the amount of imjschief which he had done to the boy
and his Lordship feared that whatever might be done
for the boy he would always suffer from the effects of
the wicked and miserable tutoring which the prisoner
bad given him. Forgery was at all times visited with
severity. This was an especially aggravated case, and
his Lordship sentenced Min to eight years' penal
servitude.

Mr. liristowe, who appeared for the boy James
Young Stone, spoke in mitigation of punishment on
the ground that he had made a clean breast of it, and
had been indueod to commit the forgery by the elder
prisoner. He hoped his Lordship would permit the
boy to be sent back to the boarding.school which he
had only left three months. The father, who is a man
ijlpirti of means, would place money in the hands of some
responsible person as security for the boy's good
behaviour, and for the carrying out of any course
"„ hich his Lordship would recommend.

...Ir. Horace Smith, mi the part of the prosecution
and 7in behalf of Mesms. Smith's bank, strongly re-
commended the prisoner to mercy.

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His Lordship said he would consider what he should
do.