The Express.
London, England, 1853-11-10 00:00:00

THE POLICE CO URTS.

WORSHIP-STREET.

JoAn Harlon, an athlet.c middle aged man, wee charged
before AI:. D'Eyncourt with a aeries of brutal and aggra-
vated assault!.

Thomas Payne, a jobbing shoemaker, in Old Caszle-
striet, Bethnal-green, stated that he was married to the
sister of the prisoner, whom he had occasionally employed
to assist him in his business. At a late hone on the pre-
vious night the prisoner called at his house in a state of in-
sosication, and bunting into the room in which he was
seated, demanded payment for the last work he had done
for him. Witness replied that if he called again at a
reaw.nable hour on the following day, he would pay him
the money, which amounted only to Bd. ; but the prisoner
insisted upon an immediate settlement, and after assailing
him with the foulest epithets, struck him a violent blow
in the face, which blackened his eye as it now
appeared. The prisoner followed up the attack by
a heavy blow on the side of the head, which
knocked him down, and before be could recover his feet,
be flung himself upon him, and declaring that he would do
for him at once, grasped bold of his neck, and compressed
his throat with so much violence that he was almost
strangled. On observing his perilous position, the wife of
witness, who was in an advanced state of pregnancy, in-
stantly ran forward, and was endeavouring to drag the
prisoner away, when he commenced a furious attack upon
her, and knocked her dowa five times in succession. After
striking her down on the last occuioa, the prisoner made a
disgusting allusion to her pregnant condition, and repeatedly
struck her with all his force upon the stomach, at the same
time assailing her with threats and imprications of a t hor-
rible description. Their cries of " murder" and " police"
at length attracted the attention of some of their neikh-
hours, who hastened to their assistance, and rescued them
from further ill-treatment, and after a severe contest, the
prisoner was ultimately secured and given into custody.
Jane Payne, the wise of the last witness, who appeared
is such a dreadful state of suffering that she was scarcely
able to articulate fully, confirmed the evidence of her hus-
band, and added that she had been ever since in excru-
ciating paia trom the effects of the savage violence of the
prisoner, and, as she was within a short period of her con-
finement, the most serious consequences might result from
the brutal treatment to which she had been subjected.
Mr. D'Eyncourt ordered the prisoner to pay a penalty of
St, or to be committed in default for two months to the
House of Correction, for the assault upon kis brother-in-
law, in addition to which he should sentence him to be im-
prisoned and kept to hard labour for the further term of
four months for his unnatural violence to his sister.

CLERK EN WELL.
James ArGregor, a young man smartly dressed, who was
recognised as being a swell =lnman, was charged with
attempting to commit robberies at the Great Northern
Railway Station, King's-cross.
On Monday afternoon last, the prisoner was observed by
Fisher, a detective, attempting to pick a lady's pocket.
On the arrival of the train from York, he took up a port-
manteau, and was about to go away with it, but ho was
seised by thelefficer, and conveyed to the station-house. On
his road thither the prisoner said to Fisher " I suppose we
can settle this business on the quiet. I don't mind a dragger,
I'd rather do that than spout you in the court. Several
pocket books, and other property were found in his posses.
eion, which had no doubt been the produce of robberies-
The term "dragger" signifies, it seems, three months' im-
prisonment, with hard labour.
The prisoner, who said nothing in his defence, was sen-
tenced to that imprisonment.
The sum of 10/. has been forwarded to the poor-boa of
this court, by a benevolent donor, under the initials " C.D."

MARLBOROUGH-STREET.
Wm. E. Clarke was charged with having assaulted
Police-constable Martin, C division, and with being
drunk.

Mr. Bingham was about to hear the charge, when an ap-
plication was made to him by one of the officials of the
Paving Board of St. James's for the charge to be allowed
to stand over, as the case involved circumstances in which
the Commissioners of Paving took an interest, and it would
be advisable to have them apprised of the proceedings.
Mr. Bingham consented to put back the case for an
hour, by which time several of the Paving Board Commis-
sioners were in court.

The constable said about half-put eleven o'clock the pre-
vious night be saw the defendant drunk in Windmill-street
with a book and pencil in his hand. The defendant came
up to him, and said he should take his number, and other-
wise made much disturbance. He told the defendant to go
home, but the defendant still continued to make a disturb-
ance, and told Dim he had been *ant by Mr. Yorke, one of
the paving-board officials, to watch the proceedings of the
police. Witness again urged the defendant to go home
quietly, but the defendant would not take this advice, and
the defendant having seized him by the wrist, and scratched
the part, witness took him to the station-house.
Police-constable C 190 said when the defendant' was
brought to the station-house, he was very drunk, and used
very foul language.
Inspector Illahony said the defendant was as drunk as he
well could be.

The first witness said when he first saw the defendant, he
Wm with fire or six loose women, with his book out. When
first told to go home, he told witness he would fetch Mr.
Yorke to him.
_ _

Mr. Bidgood, one of the Paving Commissioners, said what
he had to state to the bench might possibly induce a dif-
ferent view of tho case. The Inhabitants had expressed
much dissatisfaction at the conduct of the police in the dis-
trict, and had made a complaint to the commissioners in
Scotland-yard on the subject. The answer had not been
such as to do away with the grounds of dissatisfaction, and
accordingly the board of Paving Commissioners had em-
ployed the defendant, who had been strongly recommended
to thous as a man of probity, respectability, and sobriety, to
collect statistic, spinet the police for ulterior purposes.
The mission of the defendant had somehow become known
to the police, and the defendant had in consequence been
subjected to a good deal of obstruction and annoyance. It
was not, therefore, unlikely that the present charge had
something to do with the fact of the employment of the
defendant by the board. lle would not go so far as to say
that the charge had been trumped up, but certainly he
thought the court might very well conceive that the evi-
dence had been exaggerated by the police.
Mr. Bingham had only to consider whether the evidence
was sufficient to establish the charge of drunkenness against
this very respectable person, employed by the Paving
Board to get up evidence against the police. The charge
of drunkenness had been substantiated on the oath of a
police constable of good character, supported by other con-
stables, and by the inspector on duty. He was therefore
of opinion that the charge of drunkenness was proved, and
the defendant must therefore j.ey the drunkard's tine of
five shillings.
Mr. Bidgood said the board would pay the fine.
SOUTHWARK.

Georgenusey, a labourer,wu brought before Mr. Comb*,
charged with embessling 31. 65., the monies of his master,
Henry Noakes, a potato salesman at Rochester and the
Borough-market.
The prosecutor deposed that he sent the prisoner •.0 the
Borough-market with a load of potatoes for sale last week,
with strict order, to bring the money back, and give a pro-
per account of them. Instead of doing so he put the money
in his pocket, and left the horse and cart in the stable near
the Borough-market, and ahseonded with the money. He
was eventually apprehended at Maidstone, and transferred
to Rochester, when the magistrate directed him to be
brought to this court.
Mr. Combs, asked whether the prosecutor had ascertained
to whom the prisoner had sold the potatoes ?
The prosecutor replied that he had, but the witnesses
were not in attendance.

The manor, who acknowledged his crime, was accord-
ingly remanded for a week to enable the prosecutor to pro-
Glm his witnesses.

Thomas Risharditon and John Warr, two notorious
burglars, were brought up for final examination on &charge
of burglary, and breaking into the dwelling-house of Mr.
W. Williams, a retired tradesman, in New Kent•road, and
stealing therefrom a quantity of plate and other property.
There wu else a second charge of felony, but they were
committed only upon the first.