The Express.
London, England, 1853-07-26 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS.-YESTERDAY.

The July adjourned Quarter Session of the Peace for
the county of Middlesex commenced this morning, at the
Sessions House, Clerkenwell, before Mr. Serjeant Mame,
Assistant-Judge, and a full bench of magistrates. There
were 62 prisoner. for trial ; of whom 68 were committed
for felony, and 4 for misdemeanor.
The Assistant-Judge very briefly charged the grand jury.
John Hutchinson, 60, a man of very respectable appear-
ance, was indicted for having feloniously embezzled the
several sums of 221. 6s. 2d., 271. 125., and 201., received by
' bin for and on account of the Great Northern Railway
Company, his employers.
He pleaded guilty.
Mr. Clarkson, for the prosecution, stated that the Great
Northern Railway Company had • very extensive coal
traffic from the Yorkshire collieries, and in the coal depart-
ment, of which Mr. Cole. Child was the bead, the prisoner
had to receive and collect the monies paid in for coal sent
out. It wu his duty to keep an account of the monies he
so received in books under his charge, and the mode in
which he kept his accounts was evidenced by the fact that
on application being made to various parties for pay-
ment it was found that the sums applied for bad been
paid to the prisoner, who had neither paid them to the
company nor entered them in his hooka. He was indicted
for embezzling three of the sums he so received, but these
were not the only instances of his misconduct.
The prisoner handed in a written defence, which was as
follows :—I acknowledge with sorrow the charges brought
against me, but I humbly beg the merciful consideration of
the court for the following reasons : I formerly for many
years carried en • respectable business as • wine merchant
Crutchedfrian, London. About eight years since I had
the misfortune to become bankrupt, but I obtained my
certificate. I was unable to procure a situation, and was
out of employment for a great length of time. I had a wife
and six children to support, and I unavoidably contracted
many debts to procure them subsistence. About two years
since I was engaged as clerk in the coal department of the
company (Great Northern Railway) at a salary of 1001. per
annum—a sum quite inadequate to pay house rent and
taxes, to maintain myself, my wife, and six children, to
educate the latter, and to present such a respect-
able appearance as to become • clerk of the com-
pany. As soon as I obtained this situation my creditors
became very importunate, and I was tempted, and did
appropriate this money towards liquidating their demands.
This crime I sincerely deplore. In consequence of my ex-
ertions my salary was for the last three months increased to
1601. per annum, and I solemnly assure the court that my
intention was to replace any deficient), out of say increased
income. I have endeavoured in every way (except in this
instance) to promote the interests of the company, and have
brought by my personal exertions many hundreds of pounds
into its treasury. The anguish of my mind occasioned by
my remorse ha. deprived me of reason, se that I was not fit
to be tried at the last smiting, and I humbly beseech the
court for the sate of my wife and my six innocent children,
to extend its mercy towards me, and to suffer me, at its own
pleasure, to endeavour to regain my lost position in society.
I have many friends who have promised to attend to bear
testimony to my former good character.
Mr. Clarkson said one of the offences was committed in
February, and two in May when his salary was 1601. • year.
Prisoner—lt was but 1001. in February.
The Assistant Judge said he doubted much whether the
court ought not to pass a sentence of transportation in so
very serious a case. It was not only a very serious offence,
but • most ungrateful one, for the prisoner bad gone on
robbing and robbing even after an addition of 501. a year
had been made to his salary. The sentence upon him
was that he be imprisoned and kept to hard labour for two
years.
Janses tlawkins, a powertublooking young man, was
indicted for having feloniously broken out of the House s f
Correction at Coldbath-fields, in the county of Middlesex,
he being there in lawful custody under a sentence of the
Central Criminal Court. He pleaded guilty.
Mr. Hoare, the chief warder et the House of Correction,
Hated that the prisoner was sentenced in April last to 12
mouths hard labour fee burglary, by the Central Criminal
Court. On the 2nd of July he and another prisoner escaped.
By trade he was a bricklayer, and on that day he was at
work laying down a drain in the fie-wheel yard, which was
about a hundred yards from the boundary wall. During
the time the officer m charge left to get his dinner the pri-
soner and another, by means of a plank and two ladder,
escaped over the wall. The prisoner had a hammer and
chisel doing his work, and from the fact of the window of
the place where the ladders and the plank were taken from
being broken open, it was supposed that he procured them
by means of those instruments. On the 14th of July the
prisoner was captured at Uxbridge.
The prisoner, in his defence, said the officer in whose
charge he was neglected hie duty, and as th.. things—the
ladders and the plank—were before his eyes, he and an.
other, who, like himself, was doing twelve months, stenzallY
enough, so he thought, used them to escape by, sad wasn't

it to be expected that they would escape if they c3uld ? The
other man pointed out to hint how it was to be done, and it
was too tempting a e: sing not to be tried.
It was stated that the prisoner's sentence would expire on
the 3rd of Apeii neut.
The Ais'..tant-Judge, after consulting the bench, said it
might s".em at first sight that the sentence he was shout to
pass wu a severe one, but in reality it was not. If an at•
tempt to escape from prison, or an effectual escape, was at-
tended with violence, or with injury to the officers, or was
the result of combination, a very severe sentence would be
passed ; but in this ease it appeared that the prisoner had
been left alone, and having a knowledge of whore these
ladders were, got them and with a natural effort to regain
liberty, bad us-d them to escape by. For this offence the
Court thought three mambo a sufficient punishment, but as
there were eight months of the original sentence unexpired
the sentence would be ele-en months' hard labour front that
day, which would combine the two.
The prisoner was sentenced accordingly.
James Smalls, 18, E•tosard John Burnett, 18, and Alex-
ander James 1.461:1, 18, were indicted for stealing a cash-
box, eontsit.',ng 841. and upwards in money, and monies of
the Landon Dock Company, their masters, from their
duck, Burnett and Laing were also charged with feloniuusly
euteiving.
It appeared that on the 18th of Jane the office of the
head gauger of the London Dock, situate on one of the
I quays, was broken into in the middle of the day, and a cash
box containing 15 sovereign., 72 half sovereigns, 172 half
crown., 228 shillings, and other coins, carried off, the same
being the money of the company. Two of the dock con-
stables, Sayer and another,on the robbery being discovered,
set to work to find out the depredators. The prisoners
worked in the dock, and in consequence of Smith ;having
absented himself, one of the officers, Clement, asked sonic
questions of Burnett, and ascertained from him that Smith
was spending money very freely, and that he had an appoint-
ment with him at Hemerton church door, between
0 and S o'cick on the night of the 7th of July, and the offi-
cer told him to keep it. They went and awaited the arri-
val of Smith, who when he saw them ran off, but finding
himself hotly pursued he threw up his hands and exclaimed
" I surrender. ' He told the officers that the cash box was
in the wheel room on one of the quays ; that he had spent
501. of the money without doing himself any good, and that
the only person concerned with him in the robbery was
Buraett, ;whom he suspected had put them upon him.
Burnett was subsequently apprehended, and he admitted
that he was concerned in it, and told the officers that Smith
took away all the gold, but left the silver in the box, which
was then lying concealed under some bags in the wheel
room. It appeared that both these prisoners implicated
Laing, who from his conduct seemed to have known quite
as much about it as they did, and he had participated in the
plunder according to the statements of the other priso-
ners.
The jury found Laing guilty of receiving, and the court
sentenced Laing and Burnett each to 8, and Smith to 12
months' hard labour.
WifGaes ICnigh! , 30, was indicted for stealing a portman-
teau and other articles, value 10s., the property of the Greet
Northern Railway Company, his employers.
Mr. Cooper prosecuted—Mr. Horry appeared for the
prisoner.
The prisoner was a supernumerary carman at the =bag's
Cross Terminus. The case was clearly proved against
him.

The jury found him Guilty, and the court sentenced him
to one year's hard labour.