The Express.
London, England, 1846-10-05 00:00:00

POLlCE.—SArriapey.

CLERKENWELL.—lrarmnstense • lowa—Joe/4
Clayton, a well-known thief, was brought Wire Mr. Combo,
charged with assaulting Mrs. Benjamin, lead several of the
Metropolitan and City officers. It appeared from the
evidence that some months back the prisoner was tried and
eenvicted of felony at the Middlesex Sessions, Mrs. Benja-
Min's husband was foreman of the jury, and had been
Awe subjected to much annoyance from the gang to
lidded the prisoner belonged. On Friday afternoon, the
=Mer went to the complainant and endeavoured to ex-
oney from her for beer and gin, when, failing to do
es, he struck ter violently. She sought the protection of
her husband,who called several officers to his assistance, and it
required six of them to overpower the prisoner and strap him
awn on a stretcher, upon which be was removed to the
eidimehouse. Several of the officers were severely injured
ansfile.—Mr. Combs sentenced the prisoner for the
fret arealt to pay a fine of 51., or, in default, to be impri-
soned with hard labour for two months; for the assault US
the police to one month's imprisonment with hard labour,
without imposing a fine, and at the expiration of both this.
terms to find bail to be of good behaviour for the succeeding
two months.
MARL 13 OROUGH-STREBT.-81NOULAU Drum's:tit
Or A THlEr.—James Evans was charged with having picked
the pocket of a lady, whose name was unknown, of her
purse.—Jonathan Lawrence said he was a servant at St,
James's Palace, and on Friday he was at one of the windows
of the palace, when he saw the prisoner with a companion
allowing a lady, as if for the purpose of robbing her. He
dies saw the prisoner draw from the lady's pocket a long
gene, and immediately walk towards Jermyn-street. Wit-
ness immediately ran out, and overtook the prisoner just as
he was getting into a cab. When he accused him of taking
the purse, the prisoner said, " How dare you say so, I have
no purse about me." A police-constable came up who took
hint into custody, and • purse was found between his shirt
and his person. It contained 28a. 6d. in gold and silver.—
The policeman who took the prisoner into custody said he
was a known emaciate of thieves, and had before been in
custody.—The prisoner declared the witness Lawrence was
mistaken ; the purse found upon him was his own pro-
perty, to prove which he said he had stated the exact
amount contained in the purse.—The policeman said he had
gained that information at the station-house, where the
amount was mentioned in his presence.—Mr. Hardwick said
the case was one which ought to be submitted to a jury, and
therefore he should commit the prisoner for trial.
SOUTHWARK.—RAILWAY TRAVELLING.—The Rev.
W. Langley and Mr. J. Lockhart were charged before Mr.
Seeker with having violently assaulted D. Davis, a porter in
the employment of Means. Betts, distillers, of Smithfield-
ban, in one of the third-class carriages on the Greenwich
railroad.—The complainant, who exhibited a contused fore-
head and a black eye, stated that on the preceding night he
got into a third-class carriage at Greenwich, in which were
the defendants and several other persons. He observed one
of them (Mr. Lockhart) light a fusee and begin to smoke a
cigar. He (complainant) addressing him, asked him if he
was aware it was against the rules to smoke ? upon which he
exclaimed, " What's that to you, you impudent scoundrel ?"
Complainant replied that if there was any impudence at-
tached to it, he was as impudent as a Frenchman. The
moment he uttered the words Lockhart rushed at him,
seized hint by the collar, dragged him off the seat on
which he was sitting, and struck him a blow on the face
which knocked him down. He, however, recovered himself,
and was in the act of defending himself from other blows
aimed at him, when the other defendant (Mr. Langley) im-
mediately struck him two severe blows on the forehead with
a stick. The complainant called out " Murder !" and
" Police !" the train was stopped, and he then gave his assail-
ants into custody—A policeman stated that when he came up
to the carriage he saw Mr. Langley strike the complainant.—
The defendants did not call any witnesses ; but Mr. Lockhart
said in his defence, that he and his friend Mr. Langley entered
a third-class carriage by mistake. He happened to find fault
with the accommodation, when the complainant said, " It's

good enough for you ;" and added a mat offensive and dis-
gusting epithet. Exasperated at the expression, he went up
to the complainant, and asked him how he dared give utter-
ranee to such an expression. The complainant gave him a
blow, a scuffle ensued, during which he admitted he struck
the man, who, being likely to get the better of Lim, his
friend Mr. Langley interfered fcr his protection.—Mr. Lang-
ley confirmed this statement in every particular, and said he
believed they had got amongst a set of thieves; he, therefore,
interfered merely for the protection of Mr. Lockhart.—Mr.
Roberts, who was engaged for the complainant, said, that
after this statement his client had no desire to proceed any
farther, provided he received compensation.—The parties
retired ; but the offer made by the defendants being unsatis-
factory, the magistrate ordered the case to proceed, and
finally said he felt it his duty to send it before a jury. The
defendants were accordingly committed, and sureties were
entered into fur their appearance at the next sessions.
LAMBETH. COMMITMENT OF AN AUCTIONEER FOR
PRlONT.—William Ratclift; as auctioneer, carrying on
business in the New-cut, Lambeth, and Richard Miller, a
youth of 19, who has been in his employment, were brought
up fur final examination, on a charge of stealing two de-
canters, of the value of six shillings, the property of Mr.
Wolf, a glass and chineman in the London-road. The brief
fees of the case are these : Ratcliff had been engaged by
Mr. Wolf to sell off by auction the whole of the stock in his
shop, and on the 23rd of last month he and his man called
at the prosecutor's shop to make preparations for the sale.
They were left alone in the shop for a few minutes, and
during this time Rateliff told the other prisoner to take the
pair of decanters off the shelf, and carry them to his house.
He did so ; and almost immediately after Mr. Wolf mired
the property. Having some suspicions, Mr. Wolf proceeded
to the shop of Ratcliff, and there found the missing
decanters. Ratcliff admitted they belonged to Mr.
Wolf, but aaid they had been taken away merely
to show Mr. Wolf how easily he could be robbed, and
added that before the arrival of Mr. Wolf at his house, he
had told the other prisoner to take the property back. The prie
sorer Miller denied this; on the contrary, he declared he
was ordered by his master, in the fast instance, to take the
decanters, and it was not until after the property had been
found that he heard Mr. Ratcliff say anything about return-
ing it.—Mr. Norton observed there could not be a shadow
of doubt upon the mind of any person who heard the evidence,
that the youth Miller had been made the instrument of
his master in the commission of the felony. He should
therefore direct his statement to be taken down, and should
forward it with the depositions to the Central Criminal
Court, where, very probably, he would be admitted as a
witness against Rateliff—Bail was offered for Ratcliff, but
refused by the magistrate, who said that, under the circum-
stances, he should have no objection to admit the youth
Miller to bail.

THAMES. IMPORTANT DECISION. -On Saturday,
George Harris Quinton, master of the ship Regina, from
Hung Kong, appeared to answer several summonses issued
by the crew for not having supplied the allowance of lime-
juice ordered by the 18th section of the Merchant Seamen's
Act, after the crew had been confined to salt victuals for ten
days. Mr. Pelham appeared for the prosecution, and Mr.
Ballantine, the barrister, attended for the defendant. From
the statement made by Mr. Pelham, it appeared that the
crew consisted of 37 Manilla men, who were Spanish sub-
jects. Three of the crew died on the voyage from scorbutic
affection, and seventeen others are now on board the Dread-
nought hospital-ship, labouring under the same disease. Mr.
Cullen, the surgeon of the ship, stated that the whole of the
crew, with the exception of three Manilla men, had suffered
more or less from attacks of scurvy. Mr. Ballantine, the
barrister, contended that no provision in the way of lime-
juice having been made by the owners, it was wholly
impossible for the master to comply with the regulation
requiring him to serve out " such" lime or lemon juice, ac-
cording to the words of the act.—Mr. Pelham argued that a
statute, the necessity for passing which was sadly illustrated
in the present instance, ought not to be rendered nugatory
by an objection which was purely technical. It was the
duty of the master of the ship to see that she was provided
with all the articles necessary for the health and comfort of
the men.—The magistrate was of opinion that that was
more properly the business of the owners or ofahip's-husband.
The law was very loosely worded, and though the object of
the legislature would be defeated by the present objection,
yet taking into consideration the whole context of the section,
he must admit that it was valid. The law, as he read it, if
strictly carried out, would press more heavily on masters
than on owners of vessels, for whilst the latter were only
subjected to 20/. fine in default of providing and keeping
lime-juice on board, the master was liable to a fine of 61. per
man for every instance in which it was neglected to be served
out, and thus the fines might accumulate to a ruinous extent.
He would, therefore, as the clause was a penal one, give the
defendant the advantage of the objection. The summonses
were accordinfpy disrmased.—A second charge against the
same defendant for shortness of provision was allowed to go
by default, his advocate undertaking to make up to the men
the amount prescribed by the act. There was a third case
charging the defendant with assaulting Jose Antonio, his cook.
It was fully proved that the defendant had ordered the com-
plainant to receive two dozen lashes, which were inflicted
without consulting Mr. Cullen, the surgeon on board. The
defence was that the complainant was dirty and disobedient,
and made his soups so badly, that on one occasion the
captain ordered the surgeon to put an emetic into one of
them, which was given to the cook to drink. The flogging
was administered after the captain had consulted two or
three of his officers. Mr. Ballantine doubted much
whether, under any circumstances, or with any sanction,
masters of merchant vessels were warranted in using vio-
lence to any of the crew, except perhaps in eases of mutiny,
and even then it should he resorted to with great caution.
He considered the present case had been sufficiently proved,
and the prisoner must find bail to answer it at the sessions,
himself in 201., and two sureties of 101. each. The required
bail was procured in the course of the day.
A gentleman named Harrison, who was understood to be
a solicitor practising in the City, applied to the sitting
magistrate, Mr. Ballantine, for a reversal of a sentence of
seven days imprisonment, passed on his brother, W. Har-
rison, who was convicted on the previous Wednesday of an
assault on police-constable Barnes, 88 H. The case formed
the subject of an article in the Express of Saturday,
which must be fresh in the recollection of our readers.—
Mr. Ballantine said he had already decided the case, and
could not now reverse his decision. He was sorry for the
infirmity of the prisoner, but, at the same time, he felt bound
to say, that, no matter who the party was, he would, under
ire Um circumstances, come to the saute conclusion. The

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redrew" hiss to do Maas Serretery.--Mr. lhasellna re-
plied, by re-aemaring des aqedicant that is mold not rentrea
his sentence. If he resolved any semmestication hem do
Secretary of Ste*, or the eaerninianers of police, it shod"
be immediately answered.—The applicant was about to enter
into some details mere:tine his brother, bat Mr. Ballsothe
declined all further conversation on the subject, and wiled
the next case.