The Express.
London, England, 1848-04-10 00:00:00

CENTRAL CRLIMVAL COURT.

01St (01 It'I•
.—l's(.,re Mr. Justice Creswell and Mr. Justice fire.
WILL Ft)!:OP.ltr.—John Dobhin, 46, described as a la-
bourer, but who fermerly held the rank of lieutenant in
her Majestt's navy, was indicted for forging a will purport-
ing to lie that of William Musgrave Bowen, with intent to
defraud Walinm Itichards.—ln other counts the priwmer
was claimed with aiding and assisting one Peregrine Bowen
to commit the offence alleged in the indictment.—The prose-
cutor re•ided in Wale•, and the father of the deceased hod
made Mr. Itiebards'e fa:her the executor of his will, and at
hie &cense the prosecutor was appointed to the same office.
The deceased died in China in March, MG. Soon aft( r the
prosecutor came to London and obtained probate of the will
and he then received an intimation that some subsequent
will of the deceased was in existence, and eventually ano.her
will was propounded in Doctors'-commons by Pe-
regrine Bowen, and upon this the probate that had been
granted was set aside, and steps wt re directed by the court
to be taken to ascertain which t f the instruments was valid.
The proceedings went on, arid it very soon became perfectly
clear that the will produced by Peregrine Bowen was a
forgery, it being proved that he had disguised himself as one
of the pretended witnesses to the will, end had given evi-
dence in that capacity at D ectors'-commona. He was et•b-
sequeutly apprehended and brought to London, but the day
before his final examination, Ceregrine Bowen hanged him.
self in the Compter, and the question now was, whether the
prisoner had been guilty of aiding and assisting hint in the
C,,113111i41011 of the forgery. It was shown that Peregrine
Bowen, at the time of this transaction, was a lieutenant in
her Majesty's navy, and the prisoner hail form. rly occupied
the same position, but was discharged, and at this period he
was engaged at the Edge-hill station, on the Birmingham
railway, and it appeared that Peregrine Bowen and
he were on very intimate terms, and upon the return
of the former to Liverpool, after bin examination
at Doctors'-commons, he stopped at Edge-hill sta-
tion, and left a packet for the prisoner. A let-
ter was also produced in support of the forget will at
Doctors'-c.mmons, purporting to be written by John Bell,
frotn New York, who represented himself to have been the
other witness to the will ; and evidence was given that this
letter woe in the handwriting of the prisoner, and also that
some portion of the forged instrument itself was also his
handwriting. These were the main facts upon which the
prosecution rested.—Mr. Clarkson addressed the jury for the
prisoner, and called a number of mast respectable witnesses,
who gave him a high character for honour and integrity, and
said that his conduct had always been what would be ex-
toted (corn an officer and a gentleman—Mr. Justice Erie
herint Rummel up, the jury returned a verdict of Not Guilty.
Foitr.gta.—.4brahnoi Cato, 49, merchant, was indicted
for forcing an acceptance to a bill of exchange with intent
to defraud Messrs. Livermore and Co.—The facts of this case
were very fully detailed in the police reports.—The jury re-
turned a verdict of Noe Guilty.

NEW COURT.—Before the gamma!' Srleant and Aldermen Gibbs

and Earebrothir.

THE CaMBERWELLHIOTBitiI:Einfery, 17, T. Howlett,
13, J. Taylor, 25, 11. Brown, 26, D. A. Duffy, 21, G.
Loorers,lB, 7'. Walker, 13, R. Archer, 15, 7'. horsey, IS,
S 22, 7'. Snead, 25, G. Payne, 17, W. Bailey,
IS, B. Webster, and J. Burden, were placed at the Lir,
chanted with feloniously breaking and entering the dwelling-
house of Thomas Gray, pawnbroker and jeweller, South-
ampt.,n-street, Camberwell, and robbing to the value of nearly
1,000/. of watches, jewellery, dec.—The evidence was then
given, but as we have published it at length before, its repe-
tition will not be required. An alibi was proved for Bur-
den, and the case against that pris,ner was withdrawn. The
jury acquitted Burden, Archer, Horsey, and Webster, and
convicted the others. The prisoners were called up for
judgmont, and Brown and Snead were a rdered to stand
aside. —The Common Serjeant said that after a very length.
ened iiiv. stigation the jury had found the prisoners guilty of
this very serious and grave offence. Of the prisoners the
court knew nothing; but if they were, as their appearance
denoted, persons who laboured for their daily bread, they
ought to have been the very first to resist such outrages
as these ; for such outrages took the labour by which they
lived out of their hands. What would become of labotring
people if the mercantile public, manufacturers, and trades
men, were compelled to suspend their usual business, as such
proceedings as these would compel them to do ? Look at the
press nt case : Mr. Gray's shop was attacked, plumb red of an
enormous amount of property, which might. for aught the
court knew, prove his utter ruin. For what other purpose
did that court sit the re than to protect tradesmen and the
public from such conduct, which would, if allowed, soon
overturn civilised society, and destroy every security to the
public and the property of the public ? If any of the pri-
soners could show any mitigating circumstances to the go
vernment, God knew he would be the last to offer any ob-
stacle to their being fully taken into consideration ; but
there, the court bad a bounden duty to perform ; that duty
was to protect the public; and however painful it might be to
the court, and however painful it might bet° the prisoners, it,
in the exercise of its duty, felt bound to pass a severe
sentence upon tho prisoners. That sentence was, that they
each be transported beyond the seas for seven years.—Brown
seed Snead were then placed:at the bar. The Common Ser.
jean said they were old offenders ; they had doubtlessly
been the instigators of the offence, and they had visited other
peoples' shops in like manner. However, acting only on the
sworn evidence before the court, the sentence was that each
of them he transported for fourteen years.—ln the course of
his observations the Common Serjeant remarked that it was
highly gratifying to the court to observe the eager prompti-
tuile with which the middle claws of all parts had come
forward to aid, as special constables, the authorities in pro
serving order.