The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1868-07-14 00:00:00

PORTLAND.

TH. Channel equadron (Admiral Warden's division)
now at Spithead is ordered to fill up with coal and
prepare to escort her Majesty on her coining trip to
Germany.

YOUTHFUL CIMMULTTT : • PORTLAND VISITOR.—
An extraordinary case of youthful criminslity was
before the Kingston magistrates • few days ago. A boy
of fifteen, named John who had been em-
ployed by Messrs. W. H. Smith and Son at the Surbiton
station bookstaU, wee prosecuted for stealing money
from his employers. Mr. Holliday, the manager for
Messrs. Smith at Surbiton, produced the fdllowiag letter
from the prisoner, which be received by poet after the
boy had abeoonded :—" Sir,—l am sorry to do what!
bare done. You respected me when your suspicions
were groundless ; now you will have something to suspect
me for. Do not let my mother or any of my friends
know anything about it. I hope to be ebb to
return it in three months' time, so do not make
a noise about it, as I am • useful member of
society. You know my real name; now know me by
the title of Captain Claude. I shall be at Dover, on
my road to Prance, before you get this. No doubt
your friend, Mr. —'s son, would like to have my
place, as you promised you would do something as soon
as possible. Do not try to ankh me, as your efforts
would be in vain. If you do, beware. (Signed)
Captain Claude." Chaise ll'Eachen, • little boy aged
ten, the prisoner's brother, said : "I reediest
Saturday, Juno 20. A little after one on that day I
saw my brother at the railway station. He told ine
to mind the stall for two or three minutes whilst he
went out, and I did too. When he returned, he gave me
a bank note and half-a-crown wrapped up in • piece of
old newspaper. lie told Me to give the note to mother.
I opened the parcel as I was going up South Batik to
see what it oontained." The mother got the money
which was gives to the little boy, and handed it
over to Mr. Holliday. A Dormitahlre policeman, who
took the boy into custody at Portland, said : I
marched him. He had only gut three halfpence in
money, • six-barrelled revolver, a edger-bolder and
eye, a comb, pocketbook, and • pawn ticket for •
watch. He had some cartridges at his lodgings, and
be told me he wished he had met ma yesterday, when
be bad three barrels loaded, for he would then have
given me the controls of them." The officer, on search-
ing his lodgings, also found • carpet-beg, containing,
among other thlogs, a couple of novels, preeent-
ing in attractive game the daring deeds of highway-
men and other lawless villains. One of these books,
" Paul Clifford," appeared to have been • choice
study, the leaves being turned down in several places.
The poliee-eergeant said the prisoner had been living
at the rate, of shout £5OO a year for the two or
three days be mesa Portland. His tab hire sometimes
came to El a day; he had also heard he had been very
free at the public-honors, where he had run up wine
bills. The prisoner, having been charged and eautioned
in the usual form, answered very flippantly that he had
nothing to say further than that he took only 1.15,
and wanted something to eat, as he was getting hungry.
He was committed for trial at the Surrey session, where
he was sentenced to three months' imprisonment, and
four years in • reformatory.