The Express.
London, England, 1850-01-02 00:00:00

THE POLICE COURTS.

MANSION-HOUSE.
AN OLD TRICK ADROITLY yinITORNIRD.— Wil
Blaelgors, a weldreeted young man, 'rho appeared to be
cfectly at his ease, and the moment he was put to the bat
an to take notes of the evident* against him, was charged
before Alderman liumphery with having stolen a theodolite,
value 261. The details excited some merriment.
Mr. Jelin Symonds Harrod, optician, of No. 63, King
Willieworeet, said—The prisoner came to my shop on
Wednesday to inquire about a theodolite, but I dM not we
him till Thursday, when he again called, and he then told
me he was one of the firm of an upholsterer's house in Great
Jame street, Bedford row, handing me a card of the esta-
blishment, and that a customer of the house wanted a theo-
dolite. He said he wished to know what commission I
would allow open the sale of the article, and I
agro d to sllow him 10 per cent. He very much
premed me to go to his warehouse to select fur-
niture to the whole amount, which I refused to do, and we
finally agreed that the purehess was to be a cash transaction.
I was to send the theodolite ea Saturday, to No. 21, Fea-
therstone-buildings, Holborn, when his friend, whose name
he slid was Mr. Hutt, would pay the amount. He 'hewed
me a note purporing to come from Mr. Hutt, and stating
that it the aruele was sent at • certain tame on Satuiday
evening he would be there and settle for it. I gent it &word-
ing to 1111.44o:dens, with strict injunctions to my servant
not to part with it without the mummy. af•er waiting a
long time my man returned, not with the money, nor the
article, but with the stand on which the article had been
Owed—(laughter)—and he informed me that the gentleman
who made the purchase took the theodolite off the stand, and
from ens room Into another, jut to show it to his friend, and
turned? but walked away leaving the stand upon the
mtge. Upon inquiring of the landlady of the house he
learned that the gentleman had only just taken the apart
manna, and that he had just gone out. (Leughter.)
Alderman Humphery—And you were to have allowed him
60s. upon the sale of the article to his friend ?
Witnese—Yes.

Alderman Ilumphery—He was of course a stranger to the
house ?
Witness—They knew nothing at all about him there, or
about his friend Mr. Hutt. I hed given the most positive
directions to my m►n net t 3 leave the theodolite without the

M 000).
William Gray, shopotan to the proeecu'or, was then
called, and
Aldermen Humpbery proceeded to put. questions to that
witness, but was interrupted by the prisoner, who com-
llained, raising hi+ head from his notes, that it was unfair to
ead a witness, aid suggested the propriety of adhering
strictly to the rules of evidence, especially in a cue involvii g
character. (Laughter.)
Mr. Goodman (the chief clerki said there was not in the
enquiry before the court the slightest departure from the
mode of ex imination sanctioned by the judges, and adopted
throughout the kingdom.
The Prisoner—Olt, very well; go on. go on.
William Gray—The pruner clime to me in the first in;
stance and asked me whether we had an iestrument of the
sort, and I showed him the theodolite, and told him the
price was MI. He then asked me what per centsge would
be allowed upon the sale. I told him I could not tell, but
that Mr. Merritt would he at home at six o'clock. He re-
presented himself to me as having cnme from an upholsterer's
twuse in Great James-street, Bedford-row. After Mr.

Marian had sten the prisoner I rewired instructions to take
the theodolite to Featherstone•buildinp, Holborn, and not
to part with it without the money.
Alderman Humphery—Awl why did you ?
Witness—The thing was done in such a way it was impos-
sible to acppoose that a robbery was intended. I was to tr-
ait,. 251, and the prisoner was to c,ll and settle with Mr.
Narrate on Monday. I arrived at Featherstone buildings at
• quarter past six on the Saturday evening, and a young
woman showed me up stairs to the first floor front. I saw
the prisoner, and he told me his friend would be there in a

few 'minute; He walked about the room, put his hand upon
a plan forte which was there, and asked me whether Mr.
51arratt would want that. (Laughter.) I Hid I thought
not, ac he had one already. He then went out of the rot m,
and I heard the hell ring, and tt.en he came again, and said
his friend was come, and he would show him the instrument,
so off he took it, leaving the stand upon the table and me in
the room. (Laughter.)
Alderman Huniphery—Why did you not follow him out
of the room ? I suppose you stayed there to take cue of the
stand. (Laughter.)
Witness—l saw him, as I thought, go to the bedroom
where he said his friend was, and had no notion of a fraud.
I sat down for a few minutes, and afterwards I saw the lar d-
lady, who, in reply to my questions, said the gentleman had
gone out ; that he had taken the lodgings that morning, and
was to go in on Monday ; and the • knew nothing what-
ever about him. I then saw that 1 tat done, and I went
home with the stand. (Laughter.)
The prisoner seemed to utile the joke very much, and
upon being asked whether be wished to ask the witneu any
questions. said " No; that'll do." (Laughter.)
A. R. Wot d, a pawnbroker, said—Toe prisoner, whom I
have teen before, cams to me at 7 o'clock on Saturday
evening, to ask me whether I would take in a theodolite,
an: he afterwards came b,tween 8 and 9 with the instrument,
upon which I lent him 41. He told me he was a surveyor,
and had used the theodolite in 1845 and 1846 in railway
businew, and had earned as much as 81. a day with it. He
pledged it in the name of William Hutt, 37, Windmill-
, street, Tottenham-court-road.
Here the theodolite was produced and identified.
Storey, the officer, said that having heard of the robbery
be ascertained the fact of the pawning, and apprehended the
prisoner next morning in the pawnbroker's shop, to which
he had taken a party who was to have bought the insteu-
mutt out and out. Upon being charged ro the thief the
prisoner did not deny the truth of the accusation.
Alderman Humphery, having read to the prisoner the
usual words of caution, eked him whether he wished to say
anything.
The prisoner (with a smile)—Oh dear, no.
Aldermen Humphery said the robbery was managed with
great neatneu and apparent simplicity, and the practice
which led to such perfection in the art must have been moat
extraordinary. He expected to hear of severed upon the
publication of the case. He, however, must my he was
surprised that so ingenious a fellow should have gone into
the lion's mouth next day.
Storey sa d that many robberies of the kind had been very
lately perpetrated in the City, and no doubt with the rid of
the prisoner.
Committed for trial.
The Lard Mayor requested that the press would acknow
ledge his receipt raf 204 from " T. and S.' for the poor-box
MARLBOROUGH- STREET.
BILL DISCOUNTING.—Louis Joel, till discounter and
jeweller, Little Argyll-street, was brought up for further ex-
amination on a charge of having (aged a bill for 1,6001.,
purporting to have been accepted by a young gentleman named
John Marcus Clements, and on a second charge of having
fraudulently obtained three bills for 7501. from Lieutenant
Garland.

The ;:lepoeitions baying been completed, Mr. Compel', the
solicitor, of Warwick-street, whose sir= is concerned (or the
London and Dublin Back, applied to have the bill given
back into his poem/ion, as he had only parted with it on the
understanding that it would be given back to him again
when the evidence was closed. It was indispensable to have
the bill on the p•oceedings now pending on behalf of the
London and Dublin Bank.
Mr. Bingham said the solici.or was under a wrong im-
preision about any unierstending that the bill would be
given back to him. Nothing of the sert took place. The
13.11 would be kept in safe custody, bet would be forthcoming
tor the purposes of the solicitor wh it might be
m9The witnesses were then bound over to prosecute.
The second charge for fraudulently obtaining three bills
for 7601. from Lieut. Garland, was about to be called on,
when Mr. Ballantine row and said his client wished the ,
cue to be further adjourned in order to give him further
time to cossult with his friends, and prepare his answer to
the charge.
A caseareatkan then took place, in the course of which
Mr. Clarkson, on behalf of Lieut. Garland, stated that that
gentleman had paid every bill palmed by him, with the ex
eeption of these instruments, which had boon obtained from
him under circumstances that formed the ground of the
preeent_proceedings.
Mr. Ballantine assured his learned friend there wen not
the least disposition on the pert of the prisoner to cast any
reflections on Lieut. Garland.
The dierussi.m wee cut abort by Mr. Bingham naming two
sureties of 7501. each, and his own recognisances in 1,0001,
as the bail for the priii,ner, who is to come up again neat
Monday.
SOUTHWARK.

WHOLIBALI ROHl;iliti HT i3IO3MAN. Robert Mason,
a man in the employment of Mr. Wiliam Jones,l linendraper
and hcherdarher, of Newington Causeway, was charged with
plundering his emp'oyer of upward, of 1001. worth of pro.
perry, principally consisting of boxes of ribbons (produced),
with which be had stocked a shop and set up in Wittiness for
himself.

The complainant stated that the prisoner was shopman in
tie employ since the 6th of November, and that he was
. principally engaged in the drapery dope twat of the busi
sow. Tnat on the morning of the 22.nd ultimo he (complain.
r ant) ascertained that the prisoner kcdt back a small amount
• of money which he had taken from a 'male customer.
and which it was his duty to have paid over to one 01 th.
I cashiers in the shop at the time of the transaction. When
I the prisoner was subsequently questioned on the subject he
denied the WOW illOO ; but a witness named Boyce, shop.
walker in the same employ, &di that he was satisfied the
prisoner bad been robbing the complaisant to a considerable
intent, and suggested the necessity of examining his lodgings
in order to discover ski property. The prisoner, after some
hesitation, at length gave his 'elms at ,Battbebridge, when
the complainant, accompanied by a policeman and one
of his Morisco, repaired them, and found that
the prisoner inhabited a spacious house, sad had 1
a atop for the sale of beam*, ribbfto, lees,
LT, and other artiolee, is all of all& the complainant I
Thom was ao muss is km* of the bow, *ad whoa I

the complainant and his foreman came to examine the stock
they found a qusntity of ribbons in boxes upon the table and
couuters, the greater portion of which he (complainant) was
ambit(' to identify from los private meek, upon them. end
from the general appearatre of the whole of the rest of the
property (produced), Rost of the articles haying the tickets
wl ich wore previously attached to th m t•ra sit. Ile (c
pleinant) *tied the property (produced) at 1001., end at
present bed so means of knowing to wtat further extent
ha might have been plundered.
Other evidence having been adduced, confirmatory of the
whet, the prisoner wee committed kr trial to the Central
Criminal Court.