The Express.
London, England, 1853-06-27 00:00:00

tOiJTHWARK.

Ehearil Mead, a young ni;i:intge employ of Mr. Wil-
son, was summo..ied before Mr. Seeker, to show cause why
he should not 'maintain two illegitimate children, of which
be was reputed to be the tether.
Mary Ann Dotson, a middle-aged female, with two babes
in her arms, and a little girl, about four years oltl, by her
side, ascended the witness-hoz, and stated that defeudent
was the father of all her children. She hied lived with him
as his wife near four years, and he had frequently promised
to marry her; but nine months ago he lelt her, and mar-
ried another. The first child was born three years ago,
when she affiliated it to him shortly afterwards, and the
magistrate ordered him to pay halla.crown a week towards
its support. They continued living together, and the result
wu the birth of the two other girls she held in her arms;
and on account of his leasing her, and marrying another,
she was again compelled to summon him for their support
also,

Mr. Seeker adjudßed him to be the father. and ordered
him to pay two shallop a week for each for 13 years, be-
sides half-a crown a week for the oldcst.

LEEDS BANKRUPTCY COURT.-CIL4RGE OF
FELONY AGAINST AN ASSISTANT BAILIFF.

During the past week, George Saunders, of Port-
land-street' Leeds, one of the assistant bailiffs connected
with the Leeds sairuptcy Court, has undergone several
long examinations before the Leeds justices, on the charge
of having feloniously appropriated to his own use a quantity
of drapery goods. Messrs. Riehardsons end Guant, solici-
tors, as agents for a Manchester firm, have prosecuted ; and
Mr. Ferns has defended the prisoner. The depositions,
which have been taken at great length, disclose the follow-
ing particulars : The prisoner is employed under the regu-
lar messengers of the Court of Bankruptcy as an assistant,
his duty being to take charge of property entrusted to his
care. On the Bth of March last he was entrusted with the
ion of the stock of Mrs. Jane Walker, draper, of
alifAx, a bankrupt, who having taken an account of her
stock the day before the fiat was issued against her, knew
exactly what the property consisted of. After this
stock taking some few articles were sold, but an
account of these sales was kept so that no diffi-
culty could arise from such sales. The broker
employed by the Bankruptcy Court, afterwards went
through the stock, made an inventory of it, which was
entered in a book and given to the prisoner Saunders. This
book, however, is not now forthcoming, and Saunders
alleges that he left it on the premises. Between the time of
the prisoner taking possession of the goods, and the sale of
them, many of the articles disappeared ; the value of the
missing property amounting, it is alleged, to nearly 1501.
At first suspicion tell upon the bankrupt, who it was sup-
posed had removed the property with the view of defrauding
her creditors, and inquiries were set on foot which led to
arrest of the prisoner. Mr. Superintendent James was en-
trusted with the execution of the warrant against the pri-
soner, and on searching his house, the officer found a con-
siderable quantity of the missing drapery goods, worth
probably about 101. When apprehended the prisoner said,
these drapery goods bad been sent to him by a relative, but
afterwards be acknowledged baying taken the goods from
Mrs. Walker's stock.

Oa Saturday, the prisoner was again brought up, pursuant
to remand from a previous day, when some additional evi-
dence was adduced. Amongst other things it was proved
that the sworn broker of the Court of Bankruptcy, bad
made an entirely new inventory of the stock, charging, ac-
cording to the regular allowance, one guinea-aud•a-half per
day for his time, whereas he might have used the inventory
previously made by the bankrupt, and compared the stock
with it, which would have saved both time and expense.
Mr. Lupton remarked that estates were in this and other
ways charged with heavy expenses, and the dividends of
creditors diminished. In hie opinion the Bankruptcy Court
needed a thorough reform.
The prisoner was further remanded to Wednesday next.