The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-09-20 00:00:00

POLICE INTELLIGENCE

LIVERPOOL.
(BEFORE SIR. E. R. HARVEY.)
A LUCKY SAILOR.—A woman, named Catherine Ward,
was charged with having stolen a ten pound note from a sailor,
named John Stephens. The man had that day been paid off,
and amongst his money was a ten pound note, which was
stolen from him, and, about six o'clock yesterday morning, the
prisoner, and some other women of bad repute, entered the
public-house of Mr. James M'Keon, Scotland place, and
offered the note for change. Mr. M'Keon at once suspected
that the note was stolen, and he sent for the police and had
the prisoner arrested. It turned out as supposed, and the
note was identified by Jack, who was informed that he was a
lucky fellow to get back his note. The woman was committed
for two months.

Two SORTS OF AB3TRACTION.—A LOVER OF LITERATURE.
—John Lewis, alias Seth Roberts, was charged with having
stolen " The Lives of the Poets," and " Don Sebastian," from
the shop of Mr. John M'llugh, bookseller, South John street.
A young man, an assistant to Mr. M`Hugh, said, for some time
past, books were missed from the shop, and a look-
out was kept. The prisoner visited the shop on Thursday,
and on leaving he put a book under his coat. He was
followed and given into custody, and on being searched the
second book was found in his pocket. The prisoner, in
answer to the charge, said he had been in the shop a day or
two before, and purchased a book ; he went on Thursday to
purchase another, hut finding he had no money, he put the
hooks in his pocket in a fit of abstraction ! Mr. Clough said
there were two sorts of "abstraction," the "abstraction" of
the books and the abstraction of the mind—be did not believe
the latter in the present instance. The prisoner was com-
mitted for one month.

GETTING INTO Dock AND GETTING our OF IT!---A
young fellow named Richard Radcliff,was brought up by officer
.508, charged under the following very strange circumstances :
The officer's evidence, and that of other witnesses, went to
show that the prisoner and some other persons were surprised
on board the ship Culloden, in the Prince's dock, in the act

of committing a felony. They were followed, and the others
managed to escape, but the prisoner being much pressed by
the police, he jumped over the side of the vessel into the
dock; great alarm- prevailed lest he should be drowned,
and several ropes were thrown to him, but he
refused to take hold of any of them. until
he had emptied his pockets, which he did in the coolest man-
ner with one hand, whilst he held himself up with the other.
Having performed this "duty" he took hold of the rope, and
was hauled on board. He was sent to gaol for one month.
Wno Is RionT?— Sarah Lavelle, Brian Lavelle, and
Thomas Kelly, was charged by Thomas Winchip, a shop-
keeper in Warwick-street, for having attompted to pass a base
half-sovereign on him. He sa'd the prisoners entered his
shop, and offered him a coin in payment for some goods. He
tried it in the " patent tester," which he had on his counter,
and found it was a counterfeit, and he gave the narties into
custody, and then tbey told him they got it up the country in
payment of harvest wages. Mr. Clough said he suspected,
when he saw the half-sovereign, that it was a good one ; be
showed it to a goldsmith, who pronounced it to he good, and
he then sent it to an assayer, who said there was r ever a better
coin made on earth. The coin was handed about the court
table, and almost a blind man would know it was genuine.
The Magistrate at once ordered the prisoners to be
discharged, saying it was a hardship that they had
been given in custody at all. Mr. Clough ordered the
coin to be given back to the prisoners, and at the same time
remarked—"lt was very careless on the part of the officer
and also on the part of the bridewell-keeper to lock up these
people, as it was quite apparent the coin was good, and they
might have made enquiry about it." He strongly advised
Mr. Winchip to arrange with the parties to prevent an action
being brought against him for false imprisonment.
AN DCAPE. —Samuel Atkins, said by the police to be an
active and accomplished thief, and well known to them, was
charged by detective Thomason under the following eireum.
stance : —He said he was at the Lime street station of the
London and North Western Railway, about ten o'clock that
morning, when he saw the prisoner and two other yltst class
legs prowling about for prey. Knowing them to be thieves
and robbers, and "megsmen," ho watched them. In a short
time he saw them fall in with a gentlemanly-looking man—
evidently a person from the country—and, after a brief conver-
sation, they all went up London road. The officer followed
and watched them into Ford's public house, and he at once
entered, when the prisoner rushed out, and, after a regular
chase through all the intricacies of the locality,
Thompson captured him ; but, just as he came up to
him, he dropped a purse which contained about 10
California sovereigns. About a ten days ago, he found the
prisoner "trying it on" some emigrants at Waterloo dock
with nine five pound flash notes and twenty Californian
sovereigns: and on that occasion ho promised to "cut" out of
Liverpool, and was let go. Mr. Henry Brown, from Boston,
in Lincolnshire, said he was going to emigrate. lie came to
Liverpool and made arrrangements, and then sent for his wife,
whom he expected to meet at the train. She did not come,
however, and he was joined by the prisoner, and the other
" gentleman," who seemed to know something about him.
They insisted on his taking some ale with them, and lie con-
sented, but they had not time to do anything wrong before the
officer came in and rescued him from what he now learned to
be a pack of robbers. He felt very grateful to the police, as
no doubt he would have been robbed, for the prisoner asked
him if he had any money, and he replied £3l. Mr. Harvey :
1 think the best thing you can do is to g;ve your money to
Mr. Clough to keep whilst you remain in town. Mr. Clough :
If he lodges it the Borough Bank it will be safe, and ho can
draw it at any time. Mr. Brown : Well, I think after this
adventure that I may venture to keep it myself, as it will be
a warning to me. lam very thankful to the police for having
saved me. The prisoner begged hard to be let off this time
and he would at once quit the town. Mr. Harvey : You shall
certainly quit the town for three months. Commit him for
three months with hard labour.

RUNCORN.
(BEFORE PHILIP WHITEWAY, ESQ.)

Peter O'Connor, a youth about 16 yeats' of ag), was charged
by Mr. Blake, the chief constable, with being a suspicious
character. The evidence given was quite conclusive; in short,
the prisoner, who stated that he came front Huddersfield,
could give no account of himself. The worthy Magistrate
took down the whole of the evidence himself, with all the
quickness and gravity of any of the judges of the land, and at
the conclusion of the case, ordered the prisoner to be remanded
for further examination.
A respectable looking man, named John Valgrave, was
charged with stealing sixty yards of iron pipeing, the property
of Mr. John Rigby. The case in all likelihood is destined
to prove somewhat critical, involving a question of partnership,
and therefore the prisoner was remanded.

.us
iinacre. appears-11t30,rio lless
frotht.t an a
fifty-one
issued6ommissions of Eliquiry. have been appointed, and of
those seven are still existing. These latter are—The
commission for enquiring whether advantage might not be
taken of the re building of the Houses of Parliament for
the purpose of promoting and encouraging the Fine Arts ;
sstmerNdsayorthEaNtQ,
the commission for enquiring in the process, practice, and
system. of pleading in the superior courts of law.; the
commission for enquiring into the state and practice of
county courts; the commission for enquiring
Co ;es
sale and the transfer of land ; the commission for'rement in
subject of the registration of title with referenicneeLtilr
enquir-
ing into the several modes of promotion and r
mission for
state of the endowed schools, Ireland ;thee in Scotland.
enquiring into the state of lunatic asylumsommissions soap.
The total aggregate expense of the c
the military forces; the commission for enquiringometi into the
pointed amounts to 4768,438 38. sd.