The Express.
London, England, 1862-10-29 00:00:00

THE MANCHESTER CITY BANK
DEFALCATIONS.

We briefly stated yesterday that Jonah Andrew,
the manager of the City Bank of Manchester, had on the
previous day been brought up and remanded on the charge
of misappropriating moneys entrusted to him as • bank
manager. The following report of the proceedings and
some additional particulars of the case are from the Ma ',-
dater Guardian :—Andrew is apparently about 35 years
of age. Mr. Richardsoo, solicitor, read the inforinatioa upon
which the prisoner was apprehended, which was to the
effect that on the 21st inst. be was entrusted as a banker,
or agent, with 371. 17s. 6d., bolooging to Mr. Samuel Lyon
with written instnictions to apply the money to moti
• kill at exchange at the liaise Bank. Leaden,
and that he did, in violation of good faith and
illegally, convert such money to his own use and esneflt.
The information was laid under the 24th and 25th
Vie., chap. 96 sec. 75, which enacted that whosoever,
etitrusted, as banker or agent, with any money, with
written directions how to apply it, should misappropriate
it, he should be guilty of a maiglemeanour, and on convic-
tion should be liable to penal servitude for not lees than
three nor more than @eves yaws, or to impriscguneat, with
or without hard labour and molit•ry connate:not, for a period
not exceeding two years. He intended to apply let • re-
mand, but would mention the facia briefly. They wore that
on Monday, the 21st instant, Mr. Lyon took to the de-
(soden: a WI, and instructed him to advise it at the Union
Bank, London. It was drawn by one Williams upon, and
by, Mr. Lyon, and payable at the Union Back os
accepted
day. Mr. Lyon gave written instructions to
retire the bill, and left the money with • alga in the de-
fendant's employ.
Mr. B. B. B. Oobbett, for the prissier, mid he was
quite satisfied that • rerfmnd must be granted ; and he
thought it would be most convenient that it should be
taken at moo, without any diacussion being entered into.
Sergeant Shandley, of the detective police, asked for a
remand for a week, which was granted by the magistrates.
Mr. Cobbett asked that the prisoner might be admitted to
baiL

The magistrates inquired the extent of the charge spinet

Bliandley said he had heard of several other mem, ana
knew of one in particular, involving 40/.
Mr. Superintendent M;ybury, of the detective police, said
the charge relating to 401. had only been discovered that
morning. He had reason to believe that there would be
other charges against the prisoner.
The magistrates said they had put the question in order
to be guided in their decision as to bail. Could Mr. Cobbett
find good bail in 2001. each ?.

The Prisoner—Oh yea undoubtedly.
Mr. Roes, the presiding magistrate, said the prisoner
would be admitted to bail m 400 i., sod two sureties la 2001.
each.

We have been informed that the prisoner in this case
was met on Thoreau evening by a gentleman who had lost
money by dealing with him. Andrew, it is said, was seised
somewhat roughly, and forcibly taken to the police
station, where he was set at liberty, the offence charged
agaimt him being such a one as would require • warrant
to authorise his apprehension. The next day a warrant
was obtained, which was not executed for • day or two,
a. Andrew could not be found. Ultimately he wee taken
at the Free-trade Hall on Saturday afternoon, where, in
his capacity of manager, be was attending a meeting
of sharebokiers and depositors in the City Bank.
The prisoner was removed from the Free-trade Hall in a
cab, his brother being allowed to accompany him. In
the cab he handed to his brother a valuable gold watch
and chain, which the police authorities afterwards
cautioned the brother not to part with. Besides the watch,
the prisoner had with him only • solitary shilling _ and a
book, the title of which was " The Life of Jesus." This
he begged be might be allowed to retain, as he acid it would
be his only comfort. In the months of January and
February, 1860, the affairs of the City Savings Bank, ae
Mr. Jonah Andrew then styled his establishment, were die-
' cussed at some length in the columns of the Guardian.
No fewer than sixteen letters from various correspondents
I were published, nearly all of which expressed suspicion that
the bank was not what it professed to be, and some con-
tained details of usurious practice perfectly astounding. The
discussion was commenced by a correspondent who objected
to the title "Savings" Bank, as calculated to mislead the pub-
lic, by conveying the idea that deposits in it were placed for
security in the hands of government. Mr. Jonah Andrew,
the manager, in a flippant letter, contended that the title
was general, and might be justly assumed by any bank in-
tended to receive savinp. A second correspondent quoted
from the prospectus of the bank the statemeut that it
offered interest at the rate of .5 per cent., and remarked
upon the fact that no names of directors and treasurers of
the bank had been published. Andrew subsequently wrote
„that the deposits of the City Savinp Bank are invested
under the direction of upwards of 70 geotlemeo of.Mancheeter
and district, whose names I em not at liberty to publish in a
newspaper." The names were published ; and in the
beak returns which are advertised annually, according to
act of parliament, of this bank, the following statement is
made : ' Name of firm, Jonah Andrew; person of whom
the company or partnership consists, Jonah Audrew, Med.
lock Vale. Ashton-under-Lyon, Lancashire, banker; name
of place where the business is carried on, Manchester, Lan-
cashire." The names of the modest seventy who knew how
to invest money sons to promise investors five per cent. in-
ured were not an absolute secret, for "Septimus" wrote to
us from Staley bridge that "the leading men in connexion
with these classes [the loan classes adjoined to the bank] are
almost all of them leaders of a popular religious denomina-
tion." The loon classes required explanation ; and an ex-
planation was given by Jonah Andrew, in reply to some
pertinacious inquirers as to how the deposits were in.
vested. It appeared from his letter that investments
were " " by classes, the business of each class
being administered by a committee of investor,. At the
time he wrote, January 27, 1860, there were 56 classes in
operation ; and the number has, we believe, since been
increased to 120, 20 of which are said to have run out, so
that the number of cleans at the time of the collapse wee
about 100. There is reason to believe that Andrew was
secretary to each of these climes. He stated in the letter
from which we have alreadyquoted that the Neuritis, given
by borrowers were in the possession of the due committees,
and that they consisted of insurance policies, mortgages,
and the like. Some persons were curious to know.
still further, bow the investments were " managed ;"
and sundry cases came to light, which sum.
cieotly indicated the character of the transactions
carried on by Josiah Andrew sad his seventy " leaders of a
popular religious denomination," The details of three

e-lies were pu Wished at that time, to which we will add a
fourth ; and we have no doubt that these are only types of
hundreds of eases in which similar nefarious practioee have
ruined partite who have been caught in Jonah Andrew's
net. A young man wished to borrow rd. He received
from Andrew 101. 3a. 6d., and made himself responsible for
2.5/., the remainder above what he received being swallowed
up by the alleged cost of a policy of insurance end other
expenses. In the repayment of this loan of 101. 3s. 6d.
and interest. Andrew received in little more than two years
2ell. ; and he had demanded 411., but consented to
forego the additional 13!., rather than the ease should
come before one of the law courts, el the borrower's surety
had put the matter in the hands of a solicitor. In another
ease, upon a loan of IV., 171. was repaid, when the bor-
rower's surety was served with a writ for 36/. for unpaid
balance and interest. The third ease ws narrated by the
employer of a young man who wished to borrow 100/. He
received from Andrew, at various times, 491. ; his sureties
' repaid 821. 14s. and then learned that there ass still up-
wards of 404 owing. The case which has most recently
come to our knowledge is one in which a nominal loan of
10/ was effected for which 71. 15e. was received. The bor-
rower repaid 8!. by instalmeote, and wee thee informed that
the debt still owing wee 134 We have no doubt, we
repeat, that when all the affairs of this so-called bank are
disclosed many similar instances of usurious dealing will he
revealed.

CONVICTION OF A RAILS AY COMPANY FOR
USING UNJUST WEIGHTS AND WEIGHING
MACHINES.

On Monday afternoon, the Mayor of Bath (Mr.
T. Fuller) was occupied for upwards of four hours, at the
Guildhall, in that city, in hearing two cases against the
Great Western hallway Company, upon summonses issued
by Mr. England, the inspector of weights and measures,
charging them with having, at their station at Bath, where
"goods are weighed for conveyance and carriage." bad in
their possession two weighing machines, the same being in-
correct and unjust ; and also with having in their possession
sax weights, the same being light and unjust.
Mr. Edhu, barrister, instructed by Mr. J. Stone, tows
clerk, appeared in support of the information ; and Mr.
Slack on behalf of the company.
At the conclusion of the evidence, which was of great
length, the Mayor, in giving judgment, said be had paid
great attention to the case, bemuse he knew it was one of
great importance. The evidence of the inspector as to the
fact of the machines indexing 21be. against the customer,
had not been broken down in the slightest degree, sod
whilst admitting all that had been said about the effects of
temperature, Ike., upon the machines, he thought that only
showed that companies like the one before him, who had
such extensive transactions with the public, should lia all
the more careful to see to their adjuatineut. if,
did not fur a moment impute any intentioual fraud
to the company or their servants ; but seeing that it had
been his duty to impose penalties occe.sionally upon poor
persons found in the pommies of unjust weights and
scales, he felt that he must also in this instance inflict •
fine. The company must be fined 40.. and costa.
The ease affecting six weights from 11b. to nb., seised
in the parcels ottioe, and which were shows to be deficient
frets ball a drachm to two drachms each, was then gone
into, and a penalty of L. for each weight and costs was
indicted.

Messrs. Pickford, the carriers, were summoned by the
game inspector a few days me for basis' 15 unjust weights
in that posionias, sad Ihni Is, for awl and owls.