The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-02-07 00:00:00

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

LIVERPOOL. 7
(BEFORE MR. MANSFIELD.)
NOVEL CASE OF BREACH OF PROMISE OF MARRIAGE BY
A FEMILE.—An Italian, named (in English) J seph
Walker, who was recently in partnership with another
Italian, named Rogers (in English), as boarding-house
keepers at 6, Liver-street, was brought up in custody,
on a charge of having made a false declaration, whereby
he obtained two silk dresses from a pawnshop kept by
Mr. Woodruff, in Park lane, said dresses being the pro.
party of one Bridget Bird, said declaration being false
fraudulent, &c., whereby the prisoner had committed a

Inisderneanour under the act, and so forth. Mr. Bluck
appeared for the prosecution, and Mr. Snowball for the

prisoner. • Mr. Black, in opening the case, said : I appear
for Bridget. Bird, who when she comes into the box, I
think every one will admit that she is a " pretty bird "
(laughter), and she charges the, prisoner with having
made a false • declaration, whereby he obtained
two valuable silk dresses out of a pawn shop, where
she bad pledged them. My client, the ".pretty bird,"
happened to live for about six months in the service of
the prisoner, who, although he is an Italian, is very Wes
most
.other men, susceptible of soft emotions towards
Y" pretty birds." That point, however, I will not touch
upon, as no doubt the able cross examination of
my learned friend,,Mr. Snowball, will elicit that. About
ten days before last Christmas the prisoner made her a
present of a silk dress, and about a week ago he gave
her another. Like many other handsome birds, she was
now and then in want of some cash to keep up the
plumage, and she had recourse to a benevolent relative
yclept an " uncle," who held out peculiar inducements
to those in want. II tying availed herself of the disin-
terested assistance of the " relative," she got in return for
the depositing of the silk overalls, two small oblong slips
of paper, with certain hieroglyphic signs, and
these things . the vulgar call " tickets." One of
these documents she (as a fat good humoured frin,d of
curs in Lord street would say) "casually,
• and by misfortune," lost, but she had redress in what
might be likened to the town hall 'flock, she " stopped"
them. About a week ago she lef..•
the service of the prisoner,
and then she pledged thP., second dress, but lost the ticket.
These facts she co'annunie.eted to the prisoner, and he
went, made tl'.:e false declaration, and redeemed the
dresses.'will call witnesses to prove the case, and 1
do not 'intink that the fact of the prisoner• having given
I". dresses to my client entitles him to act in that way.
Miss Bridget Bird, a smart, primly lookingzirl, with eyes
so! most " unholy blue," and cheeks that " shamed the
'roses' hue," teeth bearing a strongleseroblance to ivory
handled knives, and about as much red ribbon on her
fancy bonnet as would deck oat a small millinet's win-
dow, was then called. She pulled her varigated green
shawl about her shoulders in the most bewitching
manner, and then stood upright, cast down her silken
eyelashes, •suailed, showing her pretty teeth, and then
spoke as follows :—I was servant for about six months
at Messrs. Walker's (the prisoner) and Rogers'. (Here
she turned about and smiled benignantly on Mr. Rogers,
who stood close behind her.) Mr. Bluck : What sort of
servant were you ? -A servant of all and every descrip•
tion of work. (Loud laughter.) I left about a week
-' ago, and since that time I wantei money
(Mr. Blink (aside) : A very fr.qient want more
people than you)—and pleiged the dresses. On Tuesday
last I met the prisoner in College lane, and told him
about the matter, and how I had lost one of the tickets.
• He asked me for the other ticket, as he said the dresses
were his property, but I said the dresses were my bonney
fkley dresses, and I refused the request. He then went
and got them out as his property. Cross-examined by
Mr. Snowball : The prisoner is an Italian. Mr. Snow-
ball : I believe you have a little affection fur him ?
Witness : I believe I have not (Great laughter.) Mr.
Snowball : Cruel Miss Bird, Miss Bird (smiling honey-
like) : Oh, ere don't say so —(most languishingly).—pray
don't sir. (Roars of laughter.) Mr. Snowball, : I believe
you were ruing to be married to him tin Sunday next,
were you not ? Miss Bird (assuflefing a most tiger-like
aspect, which quite spoiled, t'ae appearance of her pretty
lace) : No ; I was not, sir. Mr, Snowball (with his tine
gentlemanly bland smile; s Be quiet, Miss Bird, I shall
not annoy you. NIL!, Bird (more fiercely) : No, I wont
sir—(and theta she made au attempt to cry, but it was an
titter. fataure4 Mr. Snowball : Did you ever 'promise
hi marriage ? Miss Bird drew herself up in Queen.
like dignity, and in a voice that ran in a parallel line
• between the roaring of a lien and a chip of thunder,
shouted cut—" Never I never -I" (A sort of electric
shock was communicated to all present, but it took a
laughing direction, and went off at a tangent .in that
line.) Mr. Snowball: Well, now was it not in eontem-
phition of marriage that he purchased the dresses for you ?
--- -*rt when you would not marry him, he totir them out
of pawn, where yt: u had most improperly placed them—
Is it not so ? No, I never promised to marry him—not I
e---he gave me the dresses—nasty wretch—and now he
wants them back—mean fellow—but they are my bonney
Adey property. (Renewed laughter) Mr. Snowball : On
your oath, "My pretty bird," did you not break your
promise to many him ? No, I never promised to marry
him. Was there ever a marriage between you talked
'about I None. Mr. Snowball : Take care what you say.
ask you again, were the dresses not purchased for your
in trriage with bins ? No, he made me a present of them.
• au r. Snowball : Was there ever anything about a mar-
riage at all mentioned ? No, never. Mr. Snowball :
Well, yeu may go down, until we hear what some other
witness will say. A young woman, named Connor, who
said she was sister to the prosecutrix (and married)
was then examined, and her evidence was to the
following effect. That the prisoner purchased the
dresses for the complainant, consequent on an
intended marriage between them. That they
• stopped at her mother's house for some days
arranging about the matter, and that they •
grubbed to.
gether,(lond laughter)—all the time, and at last, the
• comialainant said Mr. Walker was too old for her to
_marry hitn. MreSnowball : Oh, then what she said about
not promising to marry him is not trued Witness . Not
a bit of it. Mr. Snowball : Well go on and tell us 'the
rest of it. Witness : 'Why, when she said that, I told her
she should have thought of it before, and not sarve the
poor furriner after that sort of way. (Great laughter)
Mr. Onowball : So I think too, and you acted very
honestly, and just like a lady that had some regard for
the feelings of a gentleman. (Renewed laughter) •Then
there was an arrangement about a marriage ? Witness :
Oh, dear, yes, sir,. and a very nice arrangement it was,
only she said he was too old for her. Mr. Snowball :
Then the dresses were bought for the special purpose of
the marriage, and when she got them she refused to
marry him ? Yes, and I told her it was a shame to do
so. Mr. Snowball: You acted quite right, and
as an honest respectable married woman would act.
Mr. Bluck : Oh ; but I have a question to ask this
. witness. Are you married ? Certainly I am. Where is
your husband ? At sea. You are not a widow then ?
No, thank goodness I am not yet. Mr. Bluck : I thought
yon might be a widow, and that you had a sort of
. " sneaking regard" for the prisoner yourself.—
: (Great laughter.) Witness: Nothing of the sort, sir; I
have a first rate husband. (Renewed laughter.) Mr.
Ruck : Don't you think the prisoner would make a
" first rate" husband too ? 1 think he would, and what's
more, I think he was treated very badly. Mr. Snowball :
By whom was he treated badly ? By my sister. Mr.
!slack. Of course. Witness: Of course. (Great
• laughter.) A young man from the pawnshop of Mr.
Woodruff stated, that the prisoner brought the usual
affidavit or deelaraticn, and released the silk dresses,
'.stating that the property belonged to him.. Mr. Rogers,
an Italian, partner to the prisoner, was examined, and
raid he saw the latter give the dresses to the complainant.
Cross-examined by Mr. Snowball: I had lately a
quarrel with the prisoner about the debts due to
• the house. This being all the evidence for the
prosecution, Mr. Snowball, in an exceedingly
humourous and clever speech, addressed the court for
the prisoner, and contended that the complainant had
not only robbed and cheated his client out of his affec-
tionS, but also out of his Proper:y. (Roars of laughter.)
He characterised the conduct of the complainant as
"mean, shabby, and dirty," although she was a good
- loaking_girl, and it was -quite dishonest on her 'part to
keep the dresses and not marry him. (Laughter.) Mr.
Mansfield, in deciding the case, said there was no doubt
• that the prisoner intended to marry 'the complainant,
and that she treated him most shamfully. Instead of
arranging with a priest, she resorted to the police court,
and he must say that no jury woull have the least sym
pathy or feeling for such a girl as she was. He would,
• therefore, discharge the prisoner.
AssAuvr.-,-Mr. Campbell appeared for a woman named
Catherine Murray, who keeps a " gay house" in Anson
place, who charged two young girls, named Margaret
: Walkinsen • and Eliza Jones with having violently as
satilted her in her own house. From the evidence
• it appeared that the prisoners, along with two
• men (not forth coming) , entered the house of
complainant, on Thursday night, and without any pro-
voeatieli, violently assaulted her, and at the same time,
robbed her of a purse and 8s Gd. The prisoners were
sent to jail Tor one month.
GARROTTING IN HAUGHTON STREET.—Any oil
has 'been in the habit of reading
the police repoertswfhoor
have observed the great
many months past; must
number of garrotte robberies that have been perpetrated
in this 'street, almost with • impunity. If the " Major"
OA the man) directed a little more of Ilia, quiokness" to
this locality, it would- be very desirable, but, of course,
police officers are like omnibuses, you always get one_.
about an hour and three quarters after the time wanted