The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-02-03 00:00:00

LIVERPOOL QUARTER SESSIONS.

BoroughTh f
The General d
Quarter Sessions of the Peace for th
Liverpool cotritnenced yesterday; before
G lbert Henderson, E's'. Recorder.
There airs 99 risonieis for trial, of WhOm 16 are
Charged with misdemeanors
the folloWing gentlemen were sworn on the
GRAND JURY.
-11E1W; William Charles Fosbery, merchant, Tithe-
))arn street.
William Armstrong merchant, South Castle street.
Thomas Francis Bennett, merchant, Lower Castle street;
Thomas. Barton, tanner, St. Anne street. •
Edward Beodribb, tea' broker, Cook street.
James Beaziey, merchant, Redcross street
James Blake, soap manufacturer, It i;ehen street.
'-'°llll Gordon Brown, merchant, Sweeting street.
James Gibson Carter, distiller, Dale strut.
Junes Cunningham, broker, Oldhall street.
!lucent Chaloner, merchant, Bailin street.
Samuel Dutton, merchant, Water streot,
enryFernie, merchant, Water street.
• oolal Gerard Gellar, inerehant Castle street.
Thomas Gale, merchant, Exchange street West William •
Intnan, merchant, Tower Buildings.
Williain Imrio, merchant, Runiford street.
A"hihald,lielso, merchant, Union Ceuit.
'Y`TiDiarn Makin, corn rderohant, Brunswick street.
nrge Maples wine Merchant, Harrington street..
aterchant, Fenwick street.
3.!,:ibas oenson Rathbone, broker, Exchange Buildings, and
u-ePh Taylor, merchant, Lancelot's Hey.
eer the usual proclamation against vice bad been
le
lies ids: Recorder proceeded to charge the Grand Jury.
—Gentlemen of the Grand Jury, you are as.
4ee jnbled after the lapse of six weeks to enqeireinto the
-Idenee against ninety nine persons named in the
11 ender, charged with various offences against the law.
this number be large, it will be some satisfaction to
lislaritaho to learn that, with very few exceptions, the casesa are
"' very
w b
hoist character, and the witnesses few. Indeed,
Many of the cas s I am satisfied you would- not
bane been troubled, had not the previous character and
k e Previous misconduct of the parties charged been
knowledge,
to the magistrates. It falls within my own
that some of those charged with the slightest
offenses are perpetual and continuous offenders. I may
>Zt"ent'oll a few of those cases which appear to me most
fere°lls. There is a charge against a merchant's clerk,
h',aviag plundered his employer of about £lOO, given
'ro, in various sutra, to pay customs duties, and other
eues ee
paelc ui the firm. There is a case in which thirty
a or Wheat were taken from the quay to
the er` by thieves, instead of being deposited in
ktT Warehouse of the owner. A grocer's shop in Byrom-
erefeet was broken open at the back, the iron stanchions
from windows forced, and about £2O in money taken
e-,7 It. One so frequently finds stolen property in the
eeession of pawnbrokers, that sometimes a suspicion
018 es that it has been too hastily and rashly received.
141.t1,1e Present occasion you will find two instances in
,leo the pawnbrokers- detained the parties offering
ITl4en goods, and who are now sent here for trial.
ere are but two cases in which persons are accused of
bayingreport
wounded others with knives. In the recent
0-113°rt, of the head constable it is stated that in the nine
d °atlas of the last year there were 168 charges of this
leeseription ; and at the late sessions we had no less than
t, eases of that character to deal with. There is at the
ese,t
that moment a diminution which induces me to hope
the persevering severity with which this class of
east
has been dealt with by the magistrates and this
o°:rt' has had some effect in stopping such detestable
f ,ratees.
There is a charge against the mate of a ship
himrng a steward ; and it is alleged that he struck
tt with his hand armed with metal knuckles ; that is
o say, helding a piece of metal in his hand, fitted with
INTO4B, and calculated to inflict a very serious injury.
8 "% Without prejudging the case, I think it right to
211, that this court will certainly deem it its duty, if
Outrages should be clearly proved, to visit them
with such a degree of severity as mIY effectually sup_
Press them. There is one charge, and one only, gentle-,
011; of a man holding a ticket of leave, and the offence
luairged against him, is of a very slight character.
..e-eecl, it is some satisfaction to me ;to observe that
toneerally in cases where ticket of leave men have
sentenced by the court, and return again, they do
l'nave recourse to very violent, or very serious offences.
ua may however, I have remarked a distinc-
tionw -egarie to ticket of leave men from some
eate
her4'- citirters• with whom I have occasionally to deal
v,,ein:leonaveeitatT,;:aiso long been a subject of remark here,
I.` t ' 'nat a very large proportion of offenders in
'Una tee \•omee • and, undoubtedly, nothing would
the ditiiinution of crime, than to lessen
the number of the unfortunate miserable women who I
12,1-rOewl about the streets of this town at night. Out of
tyanine prisoners in the calender you will find
,!nte,ot fort's are women ; and I have been
rmed •
by the governor of the jail, a gentlemen who,
addition to his other duties, 'lays great attention to
ire statistics of the jail as connected wi! h crime, that on
riday last the jail contained 451 women and 495 men •
4nd that if the juveniles were excluded in the quarter of
i
*O'st year eedinre3lst of December, the ntimber of women
"t only exceeds, but considerably exceeds the number of
committed to the jail; the number of committals
°f men in the quaiter ending December, 1856, bring
I'o2'o,
e and the number of committals of feraeles 1,177.
"his proportion, I venture to say, is without parallel,
lir. any approkuth to a parallel in any of the jails in the
e;`,Tool. Gentlemen, with these observations, I shall
lass you to our duties.Th
of the
Grand" Jury there retired, and proceeded to disposo
c bills submitted to them.