The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1807-07-04 00:00:00

OLD BAILEY, JULY 1.

IPSWICH BANK FORGERY.
Charier Sandford Pill, and WilQaw liit,binr, were
capitally inditted. on the prosecution ofirenes Page,
sen. of Swaffham, in the county of Norfolk, brewer,
for forging and uttering, knowing the same to be
forged, two promissory notes, of the Bank of Ips-
wich, signed Ralph Holden and Co. and made pay-
able at Messrs. Hinckley, Brothers and Co. at No. li,
St. Michael's-alley, Cornhill, London.
The Counsel for the prosecution stated, that no
such person existed as Ralph Holden and Company,
nor any such persons as Messrs. Hinckley. Brothers,
and Company, at No. 6, St. Mishacl's•alley,
Cornhill, aod that this was part of a system of fraud
and forgery carried on and conducted by the Pri-
soners ; the one of them, Mr. Stil!, being the osten-
sible person at St. Michael's-alley, and the other,
Mr. Hitchins, the ostensible person at Ipswich.
The first witness for the prosecution was the son
of the Prosecutor, James Page, juo. a school-boy at
Font:hutch-street, who stated, that on or about the
2bas of April last, he received from his tather a bill
of exchange for 1001. indorsed by a Mr. Seaman,
std payable in two months alter date, with elrec-
lions to present it to the Prisoner, Mr. Still, whom he
found, not at No. 6. Michael's-alley, but in a few
days after at Baker's Coffee-huuse, and delivered his
father's letter to him, with the bill of exchange.
Mr. Still told him, that if he would go at a certain
bout, which he did, to the Edinburgh Castle, op-
posits Somerset House, in the Strand, he would find
owe of the firm of a country bank there, who would
give him Ipswich Bank notes to the amount of the
bill. The boy went accordingly, and saw Mr.
Hitchins, who gave him 1001. in five•pound Bank
Notes of the Ipswich Bank, signed Ralph Holden
and Co. payable at the house of Messrs. Hinckley
and Co. No. 6, Michael's-alley, Cornhill, and
stated that Mr. Hitchins. whom he had not seen
before, told him that his (the boy's) father knew
him well. for that he bad been at his house.
Mr. Page. the father, being called as A witness,
denied any knowledge of the prisoner Hitchins, and
stated, that in a few days atter receiving his son's
letter, acivainthig him that the house at No. 6,
Michael's-alley, had failed in a day or two after
the interview with Mr. Hitchins at the Edinburgh
Castle, he hastened to town with the remaining
notes, his son having kept some of the Ipswich
Bank notes, namely, those received from Hitcbins,
because they had wafers on them, whereas those
received from Mr. Still had not wafers on them.

Young Page, in his evidence, stated, that he 016-
serval an alteration in the two notes since his two
examinations before the Lord Mayor, and that by
t-litmrtitrtet. the AttWan tor the Pro•

secution, he had made a seleilion of tbe notes re-
ceived for his father, tram Mr. Still, and those
receives from Mr. Ilitchins, but he admitted that
his present remarks were made lately, and that his
father had the notes out of his hands for a short
time. perhaps five minutes.
The next witness, Mr. Evans, of Coleman-street,
stated, that he engraved the plates for those notes;
there were four kinds, namely—for ten-pound notes,
for five-pound notes, for one-pound notes, and for
day checks ; and that twelve or fourteen thousand
pounds worth of those Bank notes were taken off or
printed.
Mr. Kitchin, an engraver, stated, that he had
made alterations in the original plates, by intro=
darn g with the words " Ipswich Bank," the word
" Suffolk," where a very respeltable Bank was
established, and that he had also engraved the Oak
Tree, which was not in the original engraving.
Mr. Humphries, the attorney for the prose:ution,
proved the service of a notice yesterday, to produce
an agreement about taking the house at Ipswich,
upon the Prisoners, which was by the Court ruled
to be too short.
Lucy Smith was called to prove the letting the
house at Ipswich, for one hundred pounds a-
year, for the use of a Bank. There being no scamp
to the second agreement whizh she had it could not
be received in evidence. She, howe4er, proved,
that she gave possession of the house to Mr. Hitch-
ins, at Ipswich ; and Mrs. Vaughan proved, that
she had let the under part of her house, in Michaels'.
lane or Alley, to Mr. Still, the other Prisoner, but
never saw Mr. Holden, the reputed Banker. She
saw the names of Hinckley, Brothers, and Company,
i on one side of the door, and a different name on the
other. _ .

Thomas Young, Clerk at the honce, at Ipswich,
stated, that he had been sent to that town by Mr.
Still, who told him he would meet a gentl..man,
whom he expeaed to be Mr. Holden ; but After two
days was told by Mr. Hitchins, who did all the bu-
siness at Ipswich, that he was mistaken in taking
him to be Holden, for that his name was Hitchins.
This witness proved, that all payments were made
while money lasted, and that atter the failure of
payment by the house in town, he received orders
from Hitchins, from London, to pay every note to
the last farthing. He stated, that he lately saw Ralph
Holders write his name so like the hand-writing of
Hitchins. that he was totally unable to sweat that
the name subscribed to the bank-notes and letters,
produced in Court. and shewn to him, was of the
hand-writing of Hitchins.
It was contended, on behalf of the Prisoners. by
their several Counsel. and assented to by the Court,
that this was a new case, of the first magnitude to

the parties and the public, and that it amnuated to
no crime of forgery, but to the common failure of
persons in trade ; that the prisoners took no advan-
tage of the fiSitious names of both houses, nor
evaded any payment on that ground ; that it differ-
ed not from the ordinary Casa of persons continuing
the names of partners in mercantile houses long
since deceased, as for instance, the House of Child,
in Fleet-street; and that no fraud had appeared in
the evidence against them.
Several witnesses were called to prove this case ;
after which the following witnesses gave the pri-
vinets a good charaBer, via.—Thomas Hedgley,
Dorset-street, Selishury-square ; Jam-s Cowper, of
Broad•street ; Edmund Reed, of Vauxhall ; Ste-
phen Nicholson, Barber. Coenhill ; and Sensual
Mindon. Merchant.
Sir Acas Carinsaz, who tried the cause. ad-
mitted in hia charge to the Jury, that the qu,rstion
' was too new and momentous to be determined by
their verdift. as to the law points in it, or by his
opinion, and that of Mr. Justice Lausesce, his
associate. as it must go to the Twelve Judges, its
ease et a verdia of Guilty.
The Jury, after retiring for half an hour, returned
a verdict of /vet Guilty as to both the Prisoners.
The Court was uncommonly crowded from an
early hour, and the trial lasted nine hours.