The Express.
London, England, 1847-10-27 00:00:00

anticipated that this course would have been pursued, and
he could only say that he considered ho had done no more
than his duty, and ebould be prepared to act again in the
same manner under simile!. circumstances.—Tbe Recorder'
said if that was the case, he must be on his guard in future
against the statements that might be made by learned coun-
eel upon whom he had hitherto placed the utmost reliance.
ALLEGED ROBBERY PT A PUBLICAN.—J. Preis, 38, dray-
man, and R. l'ratt, a publican, were summoned to take their
trial upon an indictment, which charged the former with
stealing a kilderkiu of ale, the property of Mears. Truman,
Banbury, and Co., and the latter with feloniously receiving
it, knowing it to have been stolen.—A drayman named
Shepherd, also in the service of the proeecutors, said that on
the 11th of September he WY engaged with the priaoaer
Press in loading a dray with beer sad ale, and when the
dray was laden, Press went into the counting-house for the
delivery notes, and on his coming out he said he must have
another barrel of XX ale, and one was accordingly rolled
out and placed in the dray. At this time it seemed that the
kilderkin in question had been improperly placed upon the
dray, but how or by whom was not at all made
oat, but alter some of the beer had been delivered,
Press told his companion that he had got a kilderkin of ale
to deliver, but he did not soy to whom. The dray was at
length driven to the Crown and Anchor public-house,
Cheshire street, Bethnal-green, kept by the prisoner Pratt,
and the kilderkin which formed the subject of the present
indictment was taken out, and Press gave Pratt • note
similar to the usual delivery note, which he signed and
handed back to Press, who went away, thekilderkin of ale
baying previously, by Pratt'. direction, been rolled close to
the staircase. It appeared that Shepherd, considering the
transaction of a suspicious nature, subsequently gave infor-
mation at the brewery, and on the result the present pro-
ceedings were instituted.—Mr. Marr, the storehouse clerk at
Messrs. Truman and Co.'s, deposed to gis big the order for
the beer that was to be delivered to the two customers Howe
and Cockett, and that the prisoner Press had no authoiity to
take the kilderkin of double X ale that was after-
wards found in the poesession of the prisoner Pratt,—
On the Tuesday following, on the delivery of the ale at
Pratt's house, he went there, accompanied by Mr. Cook,who
was connected with the firm, and he tild hint that there
was something wrong with their men, and they wanted to
find it out. Pratt said that some of their men had left a cask
of ale at his house, but when or how it came, he did not
know. At this time the kilderkin of ale was standing in the
passage, and when Shepherd was brought in, Pratt recog-
nised him as one of the men who had brought it to has
house. Witness then told him, that as he had not ordered
the ale, and they had not sent it, perhaps he would not ob-
ject to their taking it away; and be replied, " By all
means." There was no order for such a description of ale
from the defendant l'ratt on the books. Since this transac-
tion the firm had c.ntinued to supply Pratt with beer, and
did so up to the present moment, and he would not swear
that he had not recently paid them as much as 401. for beer
so supplied.—The Recorder remarked, that it appeared the
whole inconvenience might have been avoided if there had
been a little more check upon the delivery of the good., and
a little more care taken to see the orders properly executed.
In answer to the Recorder, the leading foreman said he did
not go to see that the dray was loaded according to Lisa
order.—The Recorder asked him what use he supposed he
was to his masters, when, instead of being a check to the
men, he allowed them to be a check upon themselves, and
load what they pleased ?—The witness said he thought it
was Mr. Maser's duty to do that —Mr. Clarkson : And he
says it is yours, and the result is, that he dues nothing and
yen help him. (A laugh.)--Mr. Bodkin having intimated,
at this stage of the case, that he could not carry the evi-
dence any further against the accessory, Mr. Clarkson put
it to the court whether there was sufficient evidence to go to
the jury at against Pratt. —The Recorder was of opinion that
there was not sufficient evidence to convict either of the ac-
cused parties. There was an entire absence of any proof as
to by whose instrumentality the cask was placed upon the
dray, and there was, certainly, no evidence to show that it
had been wilfully put there by Press, with • view to rob his
maters.—The Recorder having addressed a few observations
to the jury, they returned a verdict of Not Guilty.

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS.
Before Mr. *vivant Adams.
The October adjourned sessions commenced yesterday
morning. at Hicks s-hall, Clerkenwell. There were 81 p.rt-
loners for trial (below the average), of whom 73 were in-
dicted upon charges of felony. In charging the grand
I jury, the learned ierjeant adverted to some arrangements
which had been made to obviate in some measure the incon-
veniencies of that court-house al a court of justice. In fu-
ture the first day of each session would be devoted to the
trial of male prisoners only, and the second to females. Iu
the first place, the effect of that arrangement would be that
the objection of en indiscriminate aseemblage of males and
females would be removed ; next, it would very
materially tend to facilitate the business of the court;
and it would be a most important saving of
time to the witnesses who attended to speak to the character
of prisoners, and of the first importance to the prisoners
themselves. The friends of a prisoner who were anxious to
testify to character were generally satisfied to devote one
day for that purpose, but it very frequently happened that
when the particular cue was not tried on the day they were
in attendance, it was with extreme relactanee that they came
up a second day, if, 1. fact, they did at all. The consequence
was that prisoners put oa their trial, fully expecting the
benefit of a good character, were disappointed, and the court
was left in ignorance of the former habits, conduct, and pur-
suits of those it was called to adjudicate upon. Under the
new arrangement, it was to be hoped, witnesses to character
might not be detained more than one day.—The grand jary
wars then dismissed to their duties.