The Express.
London, England, 1865-10-19 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS.

(THIS DAY.)

(Before Mr. Payne, Deputy Assistant Judge.)
CONVICTION OP AN OLD THIIP AND TRAMS OF SOONG
THILVDS.
Jots Backman, sged 26, was indicted for and found guilty
of stealing a portmanteau and other articles, the property
a illobael Homy.
A provisos conviction was proved against the prisoner in
lids court oa the Ist of Jsimary, 1887, when be was son-
Mead to 12 months' imprisoamena He was subsequently
triad at the Surrey tismians in October, 1861, and sentenosd
to 18 months' impriscament.
Polios-oonstable Miller said the primmer was sentenced
to 'Swanking' imprisonment at the Surrey Sessions for
...eepting to steal a gentleman's watch osi the steps of the
closed 'Wiles, and ales for breaking a sergeant's ocdiar-
base. He made his escape acid left his hat behind. A
...panicle of his was now serving penal servitude. Ho
(witness) had knows him for 10 yearn about Golden-lane,
sad he never did any work. He took little boys from their
sad trained them up to pick pockets, sad 13 of his
'-ea were at peasant is Holloway Primo. He had seenhwith two or three is a day is the City ; be used to
pay their fare to rases to go there to commit robberies.
Wart's Wootton, a superannuated sergeant of polio.,
mu be proved a previous conviction against the primmer,
whs. begot 18 months. He had known him from a boy,
ma be was me of the cleverest thieves in Loden.
Baked limey, 146 (1, camoborated this evidence.
Mr. Payne said that it was impossible to conceive a worse
offmos than this, to take oblides° away from their parents
sod educate them to commit robberies. It was • moat
abominable thing, and be mast have a very heavy sentence,
no be had already bad 12 months' and 18 months' im-
Cr'st„ sad it was a shocking offence to train ung
, and put them forsrard to rob while bo kept In the
The sentence of the mart upon him was
ababwitr be kept ia penal servitude for tee yearn.
The witnesses fee the defence were told that they had
bed a narrow escape from being sent to prime and charged
with MOM%
Whoa the sentence was made knows there was a great
mug amoopt a crowd of roughs assembled outside the
pet, sod there was much booting sad shouting when the
pima was seat away in the prison van. Mr. Montagu
Williams, the learned counsel who had cooducled the pro-
secution, was mobbed by the prisoner's triode and threat-
sod with personal violence ; bat be got away from them
by metering a cab, which was immediately driven off.

THE POLICE COURTS.
(THIS DAY.)

CLERKEN WELL.
CH ARCI OP ARSON AOALYIST • TILLDISSIAS.
Alfred Stearn, aged 31, an upholsterer. of 9, Victoria-
pad, Holloway, earreedered to his recogniaanose to answer
• charge preferred spinet him by Inspector Barber, of the
N division, of having wilfully get fire to his house, a female
servant being in it at the time.
Mr. Lewis, sea., &geisha.
It 'speared from the evidence of this female, Margaret
labs Sims, that she was domestic servant to Mr. a •id
Morris, who occupied the upper part of the house, but who
ewe out of town. She slept in the top front room, and
about half .pset 1 on the morning of Saturday week she was
awakened by the smell of fire, and on getting up, her room
door being partially open, she saw the mffeetion of flames
b the looking.glass, and rushed out on to the land-
bg, and then saw the door of her master's bedroom
al WOOL She then ran dowartaire and out at the
phi eameniog "Fire." On her way down the •c
who occupied the parlours., came out in hie night-drer and
mid, "What have you doee r and then himself called out,
"Fire." The police mane, and one constable deposed that
when he went to the top of the lions' he towed the door of
the room on the top landing on fire, and subsequently
flume proceeding from a cupboard in the kitchen. The
inn step was to get water in pails to pat out the firs,
Y which the prisoner, who was then dressed, sr
Ibid. Having done so they thee saw a number
dial! burnt newspapers and pariodicala, rte., outside the
door en the Ladle', sad on examining them they were
found saturated with paraffin oiL The police then told the
accused their suspicions, when he said he bad had so paraf-
fin oil in the house for • long time, and had only burnt a
little remaining in the lamp a night or two before. Police
segeedi Lock, N division, had previously gone into
the servant's room, sod foud her bedclearly
bdicating that she' had slept inn
it, and her clothes were at
tie foot of the bed, but on subjecting the bed of the
same& to a similar process, although it had been lain
upon it was quite cold. The accused on being told this
mid that the servant's bed might be warm from its being
seer to the fire. This as wall as other things strengthen the
snepieioesof the police, and Inspector Barber, N division,
felt it his duty to take the awned into custody. When he
did so, the accused said the police bad done him a great
wrong, as be had sot been up the stein for six weeks. The
pities subsequently foundin a cellar which accused admitted
to be his two bottles which bad contained paraffin
ell, sad on directing the accased's attention to this fact he
said poseibly some one else might bare put them there.
Inspector Barber now said that amongst the papers found
partially burnt were portions of a number of the Pludrated
News, published in ltM. Amongst the fragments he could
lame the pages 456-78, and in the room belonitrg to the
mound, and the door of which the accused unlocked to
let him in, he found on the chest the pages of the same
Bomber, 459 and 460. Some pages of blood Words were
sun found partially destroyed, and he Akio foiled some por-
tions of that publication in the prisoner's room.
Mr. Lewis, for the dame,. contended that there was sat
111 tittle of evidence to connect the accused with the fire, and
asked for his immediate discharge,
The =giants again remanded the prisoner. remarking
that it was a weak case, and !admitted the prisoner to bad.
MARLBOROUGH-STREET.
BMWS 111 A POLICE CELL.
On Mr. Knox taking his seat on the beech this morning
lospeetor Welker stated that a man who was charged at
the Vine street police-station yesterday, committed suicide
while is the cell.
It appears that yesterday afternoon the deceased, Charles
Drgsrd, a cab-driver, hedge 963, wee taken into custody by
Pohorooostable Wood, 193 C. in jermye.street, being at
the time drunk and wholly incapable of taking care of his
brae and cob. About 9 o'clock in the evening the
damaged was found to have tied a pocket handkerchief toned
hie rack and secured it to the grating of the window. Mr.
Totlull, the divisional surgeon, wee immediately sent for,
animal every effort to restore animation, but without sne-
er& The deceased was in the employ of Mr. Mayhew, the
cab proprietor.

WORSHIP-STREET.
SHx SISTEII9.—A SAD CAB!.
Minima and Ellen Hill, about 19 sod 26 years of age,
both wearing shabby mourning, were charged with robbing
their furnished lodgings.
Claudine Phelps, a widow, and occugaut of • house
in the eity.rasel, said—The girls Dave had a room
to my house for about three weeks ; it was fan:imbed.
Yesterday evening I ascertained that the counter-
pane and sheets were miming. and whets I taxed
them with having made away with the articles they ad-
mitted it.
(Eoth prisoners hare appeared choking with grief.)
Magistrate—What did they say'
Prosecutrix—" Don't press the charge ; don't lock us up
far Heaven's sake."
Magistrate—What are the prisoners?
Proseentrix—Artiticial flower makers, sir.
[One of the girls barescreamed, fainted in the other's arms,
mad was earned out of court in the 1/1114 of a countable.
Another charge was disposed of, and that in question was pro-
ceeded with.] I found- that the thing. had been pledged.
Here they are. I value them at 16e. Id.
Elisabeth—For pity'? sake let me suffer. She is innocent.
I alone did it. Oh do. I beseech you.
Fllen—l was not at home at the time. lam not guilty.
Yy sister would have restored them.
[Both prisoners here became almost frantic with grief, pro-
testing and imploring with united voices that it became
quite impossible to gather their exact words.]
Magistrate—ls anything known of thou girls'
Haynes (warrant oftleer)-1 have known them, your I
worship, I may say almost from their cradle. Their father
was a very respectable tradesman, but he is dead. [The
girl Ellen, on hearing bee father mentioned again.
fell into her sister's arms, and both sobbed
aloud.] The mother is very mach given to drink,
and 1 believe all this results from it. She was at this
court last week for robbing her furnished lodgings, and
this girls bays frequently remained at home until the
pawnbroker's shops have been closed, to p t her
Davin an opportuaity of taking things from the place and
Pawning them. I know nothing whatever against the
character of the prisoners before.
After some further attention to the charge, the girls were
Remanded. Ellen on bail, if in the course of the day it could
Is furnished.

SOUTEIVILBIL
COWARDLY AMBAULT ON A immure onu. 1
Thomas Pretty, as engineer, via brought up for SW I
esaminatioe, charred with attempting to commit a misdeal
stendt upon Ann Lewis, a poor destitute girl about 16 years
•el ace, the particulars of which were given in our Tuesday's
edition.
la cromexamiastion to-day prosecutrix said she was
swain the prisoner was the man who assaulted her, se be
;Vend her two handkerchiefs isatead of gooney. She re-
, Ned to accept them. and sifter be was taken into custody
titres hondkerthiefs were found oe
Yr. Edwin, on behalf of the primate, contended that the
eel must have been midaken in the identity of he client.
He bad only just left his brother in Greeneereet, end was
bug home when be wee stopped and taken into custody.
The Magistrate observed that it was a question for a jury,
Amstar* be Jived commit him for trial.

01111.101711 Cracrocarcacr.—Dering the storm
Nish mama on the okkt o Mooday, the 9th Jost,
Mimic of woodcocks mend over this town (Buoy Bt. U-
nmade) cad one of the somber, a apleadid bird, cum in
contact with the arrow sod ram on St. Mary's Tower.
The arrow pierced the cock of the bird, and it hang till the
Aid morning, when it wws token dove sod given to Mr.
O. Thompson, chnrchwardem—Bitry mid fforrick Poet.