The Express.
London, England, 1862-10-07 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS.

The October quarter seances of the pease for the county
of Middlesex commenced yesterday morning at the Court-
house, on Clerkenwell-greem before Mr. Bodkin, assistant-
judge ; Mr. Payne, deputy ; Mr. Posed', chairman of the
bench ; sod the following justices :—Mr. White, Mr. Par-
bury, Mr. Swift, Mr. W. P. Bodkin, Mr. J. B. Chapman,
Mr. Ballantine, Mr. P. N. Laurie, Mr. Z. W. Cox, Mr.
Hopp, Mr. Rigg, Mr. Beideford, Mr. Baxter, Mr. Griffiths,
Mr. Armatroog, Mr. Warner, Mr. D. Pletcher, Lord En-
field, M.P., Mr. Adams, and Dr. Batsman.
The calendar contains the names of 107 prisoners, of
whom 88 are charged with felony, and 19 with misdemeanor.
The Assistant-Judge charged the grand jury, and Minded
to the heavy Mate of the calendar, which was attributable
to the circumstance of • longer period than meal her* in-
tervened since the last session.
Charles Ernest Norton, 32, • man of superior education,
was indicted fur embezzling money to the amount of 4001.,
belonging to his employers, Mews. Siegmund Ochs and
Co., and for stealing property of the value of 4001. from
the same firm. He pleaded guilty.
Mr. F. H. Lewis prosecuted ; Mr. Sleigh appeared on be-
half of the prisoner.
The prisoner had been for some years is the service of the
prosecutors, who are general dealers in fancy goods, mine-
rals, and precious stones, their principal plat* of business
being in Hatton-garden. His capacity was that of traveller,
and as such he had to receive money and take orders, and it
seemed that in Jape be left, when money and stock to the
amount of 8001. were missed. The prisoner was subse-
quently traced to Hyde, Isle of Wight, by Sergeant Charles
Wootton, 401 B(G reserve), where he was found carrying
on business on his own account with the property of which
he had robbed his employers, and in he shop the officer
found 2691. worth of the prosecutors' things, which of
course were secured. His salary with the prosecutors was
35e. per week, with • gratuity of Si. at. Christmas. He
traded at Ryde under the name of Crawley, and when the
officer found him he telegraphed to the Messrs. Oche, and
the result was that the property was secured, and the pri-
soner taken and brought to Lc doe by Wootton.
Mr. Sleigh addressed • few observations to the court in
mitigation of punishment, urging his age, had state of
health, and that he had acted under the influence of some
one who had since absconded.
His Lordship had the prisoner put back for some time,
and when he was called up remarked that after full °onside-
, ration he could arrive at no other conclusion than that it
was one of those serious cases in which, in furtherance of the
ends of justice, in the interests of society, and for the pro-
tection of employers, it was the duty of the court to pun a
sentence which would be • warning to others. The prisoner
had plundered his employers to the great amount of 8001.,
cot from want, sod that would be no excuse, awl was found
carrying on business on his own account with the property
of his masters, in the Isle of Wight. Under all the circum-
stances the court felt that it had but one course to pursue,
sod the 'apiece* was that the prisoner be kept in peel
servitude four years.
John Mee, an engraver, 36 years of ego, was indicted for
stealing • leather bag and other articles, the property of
William Manley and also for another rubbery on the
Great Northern Railway.
Mr. Cooper prosecuted for the company.
The sea was clearly proved, and the prisoner was sen-
tenced to 18 months' bard labour.
Williams, 32, described as,a lath render, pleaded guilty of
picking • lady's pocket at the International tinn. He
said he did it through distress.
Sergeant Tanner, of the A detectives, stated that he saw
the prisoner commit the offence by putting his hand through
a hole in his coat into • lady's pocket in her crinoline dram
The priaoner having made certain statements, was re-
mended for inquiry to be made.
Robert Clarke, 21, pleaded guilty to • charge of ma-
liciously, Bc., breaking • glass, the property of Edward
Magfoed. The prisoner worked for the prosecutor, •
baker, and felt himself aggrieved about the beer he was
allowed ; it had been Mopped in quantity through some
misconduct. He procured • large hammer, secreted it the
day preceding the commission of the offence, and with it
smashed a valuable glass, and was about 'o perform the
same operation on the front window when he was seised by
a maser by and prevented from carrying his scandalous de-
sign into execution.
His lordship said he could by law give the prisoner Ave
years for the offense, but be should lenience him only to 18
months' hard labour.

SECOND COURT.
(Before Mr. Payso.)

_ .
George Thompson, 25, a Mesa-finisher, was indicted fee
stealing a sovereign, the money of Thomas Batas.
Mr. Cooper prosecuted for the Great Northern Railway
Company, and Mr. Ribtou was counsel for the prisoner.
In this case a somewhat singular point wu raised by Mr.
Ribton, which, after the verdict of the jury, was reserved
for the Court of Criminal AppeaL The facts were these:—
The wife of the prosecutor, an engineer at Greenwich, went
to the booking-office of the Great Northern Railway to pro-
cure a ticket for York. but finding that in a rush she could
not get through the barrier, she asked the prisoner, who
seemed to be getting one for himself, if he would get her one
for York. He said, ' Yes," and she handed him a sovereign. It
wan then the prisoner's turn to pass the window, but he
turned round, looked at Mn. Batea,aod passed on without
taking any ticket at all, and bolted on to the platform, where
be endeavoured to hide himself. However with the aid of
• constable she found him in about ten minutes on the plat-
form and charged him with die theft of her sovereign. At
first he denied it, but then saSd, " Are you the lady l" The
constable had bold of his hand at that time, in which there
wars sovereign, and the prisoner produced two tickets for
Doncaster. The woman asked for her change, which would
be 10s., but he only produced 2s. from his pocket. He was
close to her when she gave him the sovereign, and the neat
moment he tan away, and she said " For York" so dis-
tinctly that she could not have been misunderstood. Os
the way to the station,_ the constable found some playing
earth on the primmer and two return tickets for Doncaster.
The prisoner on the platform said something to a man, who
then ran away, something having been passed to him. This
was outside the barrier.
At the close of the case for the prosecution Mr. Ribton
contended that upon the facts as proved no charge of
larceny could be sustained, as there was no trespass, the
&overlain. having been given to him voluntarily by the
prosecutruc, that it could not be brought within the &HIM
Act, because there wee no delivery of property to be re-
turned, and quoted authorities in support of his argument.
Mr. Cooper replied, and also quoted authorities to show
that in his view there was a dear ems of fraud.
Mr. Payne ruled that it was • ease for the jury, and Mr.
Ribtoe then proceeded to address them at some length.
Mr. Payne having summed up, the jury found the pvi-
seiner Guilty, and in answer to the court, said they con-
sidered that the prisoner took the sovereign with intent to
apply it to his own use, and not to get a ticket for the
; proseeutrix. The mistimes was postponed, and the point as
to whether the case amounted to a felony was reserved for
the superior court.