The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-04-19 00:00:00

ALLEGED INTIMIDATION,

A case of considerable importance to tradesmen, came
before Mr. Mansfield yesterday at
_the police court. It
was on the complaint of Messrs. John and Thomas
Wilson, against John Grant and others for having
threatened the men of Messrs. Wilson, and endeavoured
to intimidate them from working for that firm. Mr.
Aspinall appeared for the defendants.
Mr. John Wilson said a number of his men who were
at work at ships in the docks, had been intimidated and
threatened to be thrown into the docks by the defen-
dants, and his men were afraid of their lives ; some of the
men had left and asked for extra wages. He did not
give it, but in consequence of the intimidation held out
to his men, many of them were so frightened that they
went away, and he had to send several ships to sea with-
out being painted, and this caused him loss.
Thomas Mosley was examined, and said—l was at
the ship Beauclup in the Salthouie Dock, when Jones
and Grant threatened to throw me in the dock, but
did not say why ; they wanted me not to
work. To Mr. Aspinall, the witness replied that they
were not at work at the same ship ; it was at dinner
hour, and there was a talk about wages. They struck on
the next day (Tuesday). I was working with iMr.
Wilson regularly every day. They were working for
Wilsons. They wanted me to leave my work next day.
I had my work to go to next day, but I suppose I might
have left it if I liked. lam paid every week. I don't
recollect the begining of the conversation. They spoke
first, but I don't remember what was said—they said
they would throw me in the dock, and that was quite
enough—(laughter,)—they have not done it yet. One of
Mr. Wilson's sons was present and heard it. I have been
working there ever since. Mr. Wilson said he wanted
protection for his men. He could have brought half a
dozen of witnesses, if he thought it necessary, to show the
system of intimidation practised towards them.
Mr. Mansfield said he had such a horror of the prac-

tice of the intimidation of workmen from using their
labour to the best advantage, and as they 'pleased, that
if the case in the present instance had been proved, he
would not have the least hesitation in committing the
defendants for three months. However, he did not

think the evidence in this case amounted to a threat,
according to the act, and he would, therefore, dismiss the

Mr. Aspinall said, if the men would take his advice,
they would be quiet in future.
The case was then dismissed, and the parties left the
court.

THE HOTEL ROBBERIES AT

MANCHESTER

Yesterday, we published particulars connected with a rob-
bery committed at the Royal Hotel, and of another at the
Albion Hotel ; and, it will be remembered, that a person
named Oscar Kingston was stated to be in custody, in conse-
quence of his being suspected on the former charge, On
Thursday, another individual, who gave his name Daniel E.

Branch, Was brought up at the city police court, charged
with stealing four gold and other coins, belonging to Mr.
Johnson, of the Albion Hotel. Mr. Bent, the solicitor, was
in attendance on the part of the accused, who had been
apprehended at Liverpool, by Inspector Shanley, on Wed-
nesday evening. The following evidence in support of the
charge was adduced :
Mr. Johnson, the proprietor of the Albion-hotel, said : I
do not know the prisoner personally so as to recognise him,
but there are servants here who can. I have had four
persons robbed, and have been robbed myself. I went to
bed with my money all right, but in the morning when I
got up the money was gone. The money consisted of
foreign coins, American, French, and Spanish.
Inspector Shanley said : I have taken from the prisoner
something in the shape of a passport.
The passport was produced. It bears date the 29th
March, 1856, and is signed in the ordinary way by Mr.
Dallas, the American minister, and impressed with the seal
of the American legation. It describes the owner as
Daniel E. Branch, the bearer of despatches, and is granted
for France.

Ann Ward was the next witness examined. She said : I
am the barmaid at the Albion-hotel. This person (the
prisoner) has been in the house. He came the day before
yesterday, between half-past ten and half-past eleven
o'clock. He wrote his name in the arrival hook. It was
between nine and ten o'clock at night before I left the bar,
and before I did so, I received instructions from him that
he was to be called at half-past five o'clock in the morning.
I don't know where he slept, but I gave orders for him to
be called. I heard the next morning of the robberies. I
can't remember the name he gave, but it is in the book. It
was about eight o'clock in the mornino. of Wednesday, when
one of the gentlemen came down, that I heard of the first
robb ary.

John Lomas was the next witness examined. He said :
lam a servant at the Albion Hotel. I can't say where the
prisoner slept ; but I know where he ought to have slept.
(Laughter.) His room was No. 24 on the back landing,
a long way off from Mr. Johnson's room. It is nearly the
length of the hotel. I called the prisoner at half-past five
o'clock, and he came down about a quarter to six o'clock.
I took him in his bill, for which he paid me half a sovereign.
He had a small black bag. He was going to turn up first
towards the Victoria Station. I said to him, " that is the
way to the London Station," and so then he turned and
went the other way. I went into the bar and found I had
made a mistake in his bill of sixpence. I ran after and
overtook him. He turned round and waited for me. I
told him that I had made a mistake. He gave me a
shilling, and said that would be right. With that I came
back, and I saw no more of him.
Inspector Shanley recalled : There is no money that can
be identified found upon him. We have not had time to
examine his things closely yet.
George Bryant, waiter at the Palatine Hotel, was
examined, He said : On my going to work yesterday
morning, and about five minutes after I had commenced,
that gentleman (minting to the prisoner) came into the
coffa-room with a cigar in his mouth. That was about
half ;past six or a quarter to seven o'clock. He said he was
waiting for a friend. I asked him if his friend was in the
house ? He said " No." I told him he could not stop there,
and I was going to show him a private room, when the
gentleman walked out of the house.
Inspector Shanley said that was all the evidence he had
at present, but he wished to apply for a remand until
Saturday. _ _

In answer to questions from Mr. Maude, the prisoner said
he had requested that his effects might be searched. That
has been done, and they cannot identify any of the effects as
having been any of the effects that were in the house the
night before. The fact that I was in the house the night
the robbery may have been committed, is no proof that I
committed the robbery, no more than any other gentleman.
I have been in a great mystery until now with regard to
the charges against me. My profession is that of a lawyer
in New York. There is no one in this place that knows me.
I have been travelling in Europe for the last six months,
and have no friends in this town. I have no letters of
credit. I think unless there is some sufficient cause to
detain me, I ought to be allowed to go. There is no evi-
dence that has been brought to connect me in any way
with either of the robberies that have been committed.
My principal acquaintance is Captain Robert Brittain, but
I don't know whether he is in Liverpool at the present
time.
Inspector Shanley said, the prisoner was absent all day
from his hotel at Liverpool on Wednesday, and won't tell
where he was.
In answer to Mr. Bent, Shanley said that he went to the
hotel at Liverpool, for the first time, about four o'clock in
the afternoon. He did not know how long the prisoner had
been away, except from hearsay.
The prisoner explained that he arrived at Liverpool
about half.past ten o'clock, took breakfast, and afterwards
went out. Having but a day or two to stay, I went
about to see the town, and the very suspicious interval
of time to which he refers was from eleven to four, or it
may have been five o'clock. I came here to see the
country ; that was my business in Manchester. When I
left the hotel my intention was to have gone to Birming-
ham. I wished to have left here early, so as to get there
and see as much in the day as I could, but I changed my
mind and went to Liverpool. I told the waiter at the
Palatine Hotel that I was waiting for a friend; but that
was merely an excuse; he came in in a very insolent and
abrupt manner. 1 do not know anybody whatever in this
town. The prisoner was then/remanded, till Saturday
next, when he will be brought up with Mr. Kingston, who
stands charged with the attempted robbery at the Royal
Hotel. It is worthy of remark that Mr. Kingston stated,
in his reply to the magistrate, he stayed at Morley's
hotel. A recent bill, headed " Morley's hotel," has also
been found among the prisoner's effects. An advertise-
ment appeared in the Times, of the 16th inst., to the effect
that Mr. Oscar Kingston was requested to furnish his
address to some person in London.

CORONER'S INQUESTS.—Yesterday the coroner held the
following inquests :—On the body of a child named Edward
Brown, aged 3i years, who was killed in Burlington-street.
It appeared that on Tuesday evening the boy was playing
in the street, when, from some unexplained accidental cause,
he fell under a lorry, the wheel of which passed over his
head, and crushed him to death. Verdict accidental death,
—On the body of a female named Anne Cleave, who wa
killed at the waste ground, Lower Harrington, in conse-
quence of a beam of timber falling on her, It appeared
that the timber was not properly piled, and that the deceased
went to meet her husband at the place, where there was a
large pile of [timber, belonging to Messrs, Halhead and
Fletcher. One witness swore that a puff of wind would
have blown down the pile, but a person belonging to the
owners of the timber, stated that it was left in perfect secu-
rity three hours before the accident, and that the deceased
must have gone across the pile to throw it down. The jury
returned a verdict of accidental death, and at the same time
made a presentment that sufficient caution had not been
used in piling the timber. The coroner told the police to
call the attention of Mr. Fresh to the timber, as at present
it was a nuisance, and should be looked after.—On the body
of Philip Ware, a coloured man, who was found dead in his
bed. On enquiry it was found that death was the result of
natural causes. Verdict accordingly,