The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-04-06 00:00:00

DREADFUL FIRE AT ST. THOMAS'S.

-
The letters by the Leeward Island mail, received yester-
day, give details of a dreadful fire at St. Thomas's. About
one half of the town has been destroyed. The estimated
loss is nearly two millions of dollars. One of the letters
states, that suspicions were entertained that the fire was by
incendiaries; that several suspicious characters had been in
consequence apprehended. The other accounts attribute it
entirely to accident. The fire broke out early in the day in
the market-place, the very centre of business. ‘Ve seiect
the following as the most minute in the details of this
dreadful calamity :
" We have to make you acquainted with a dreadful
calamity which has happened to our town op the 12th inst.
About eight o'clock, a.tn., a cry of fire was heard about
the mark:!-place, and with such fury the clement was
spreadinp'' that at twelve o'clock it had reached the western
extent of the town, levelling in its way every wooden build-
ing with the ground ; of about twelve fire proof, there
were but six saved by the greatest exertion, to which we
owe the great luck of having it in our power to write the
present at our desk in its usual place. Having the flames
just in our front, with a north-east breeze, we could only
preserve ourselves by keeping the doors constantly wet from
the inside.

" The more valuable part of the town, all above the
market, bas not suffered in the least. A subscription of
10,000 dollars was raised immediately for the momentary
relief of the poor. One consolation we have—that it hap-
pened accidentally."

HOME CIRCCIT.

BENT ASSIZES, MAIDIToNE, MONDAY, APRIL 4.

Stephen Smith and Abraham Wickins were indicted for a bur-
glary and robbery, to the amount of nearly 1001., in the house oil
141 r. Thomas Thompson, at Seale, in the night of the 12th of No-
vember
last, and Thomas Bloomt.eld was indicted as a guilty re-
ceiver of part of the stolen property.
Mr. CLARIDGE conducted the prosecution. The prisoners
were severally defended by 3lessrs. DowLING, RYLAND, and
CLARKSON.
Two men, named Clarke and Butler, travelling tinkers, were
indicted at the last Winter Amitea for the same robbery, and were,
under circumstances of great suspicion, acquitted. It has since
turned out that they were perfectly innocent of the offence.
The principal witness to support the present indictment was
an accomplice named Thomas Avis, a notorious and desperate
burglar, who admitted, on his cross-examination, that he had been
concerned in no leis than twenty-two capital felonies within the
short space of eighteen months. From his evidence it appeared,
that the prisoners Smith and Wickins and himself, had planned a
robbery in the house of the Countess of Aboyne, on the night of
the 12th of November, but finding some of the domestics up at
the time they arrived at the premises, they changed their arrange.
menu and proceeded to the house of Mr. Thompson,* gentleman of
substance, residing at Fawke Common. They arrived there between
11 and 12 o'clock at night. 31r. Thompson and his wife were from
home oil a visit, leaving a groom and two female servants to take
care of the house. An entry was immediately effected through
a wash-house window, by means of a centre-bit and other imple-
ments of burglary. Avis, the accomplice, remained outside,
whilst his companions rifled the house of a considerable quantity
of household liven, wearirg apparel, and a tray 1111 of silver
plate, consisting of forks, spoons, ladles, &c. They were on the
premises altogether for about two hours. IS-hat occurred inside
the house was described by the man and the maid servants.
From their evidence it appeared, that about three o'clock the
females were aroused by two men entering their bed-room, with
their faces blackened, each having a candle is his hand. One of
them immediately withdrew, whilst the other went to the foot of
their bed and demanded where the prosecutor's money and plate
were. The girls, almost terrified to death, screamed for help. The
ruffian held a bludgeon over them, and threatened murder if they
made a noise. He then proceeded to search the drawers and cup-
boards in the room, and from one of the latter he took the plate-
tray, and handed it to his companion. By this time the cries of the
females aroused the grown, who slept on the name floor. lie came
to the door, and the sound of his voice alarmed the thieves, who
immediately fled, carrying off the property with them. A:cording
to Avis's story the plunder was equally divided between him and
his accomplices, and that next day he sew the latter go into the
house of the prisoner Bloomfield, and leave there some pert of their
*hare of the booty. Mr. Thompson advertised a reward of 1001.
for the appreheasion and conviction of any of the persons concerned
in the robbery. The two men named Clarke and Butler, above.
mentioned, were taken up onauspicion, in consequence of their
having been seen near the premises on the day before the robbery,
and were then discovered to have in their tinkery-barrow a screw.
driver and an old razor converted into a chisel, which exactly re-
sembled two instruments of tile same d.eseription which the thieves
bed left in the house upon their retreat. The tent in which Butler
and Clarke lived was afterwards searched, and these implement, hay.
Wg been found le theirbarrow, they were taken up. tried, and acquit.
ted. On Ist and 2d Jan. last, in consequence of information given
to Mr. Thompson by a brother-in-law of Avis, Smith and Wickins
were apprehended, sold then Avis voluntarily surrendered, confessed
his guilt, and implicated his accomplices. He admitted, on his
cross-examination, that he knew Clarke and Butler to be innocent
of the robbery, and yet allowed their lives to be placed in jeopardy
without any attempt to come forward in their justification. The
houses of the three prisoners were respectively searched. In the
house of Blcomfield were found several paws of sheets and a shawl,
which were identified by the erns: cutor and his wife. 'The initials I
marked on the sheeting lied been ingettiously picked out, but the'
traces were perfectly visil,".e. la the house of Smith were also'
found some pieces of sheeting, one of which was also identified in
the same manner to be the property of the prosecutor. The ac.
complice was corroborated in several collateral particulars of his
story.
No witnesses were called in defence.

The Jury, after an elaborate summing up on the part of Mr.
Baron Gwattax, found all th; prisoners Guilty.
The Cot; RT sentenced Bloomfield to be transported for fourteen
pears; and sentence of Dratla was pronounced on the other pri.
soners; upon whom, the Learned Judge told them, the judgment
of the law must be executed.

OXFORD CIRCUIT.

:RSHIRE ASSIZES.-GLOUCESTIty APRIL 4.

CROWN SIDE.
[Before Mr. Justice LITTER/Lll.l
John Bert inlay, Jesse Beard, and David Meta were charged
with a burglary, in breaking and entering a dwelling house, and
Stealing _therefrom a pair of gaiter,.
Mr. PHILPOTS conducted the prosecution, and Mr. CUIVIOOD
the defence.

• Thomas Smart said, I am a shopkeeper residing at Chalford
Lynch, in this county. On the night of the Bth of November I
went to bed at about ten o'clock, and when I got up in the morn-
ing, at about eight, I round that the house had been broken open ;
it was then daylight ; but a clock, which stands near my kitchen
door, and which would be touched by the sudden opening of the
door, was stopped a little after one o'clock.
Mr. CURWOOD—This is not the way to prove a robbery to have
been committed in the night. The clock's stopping proves nothing.
My watch stopped last night.
The Lwasitzn JUDGE thought this evidence not sufficient to
prove the time of night at which the felony was committed.
Examination resumed.—l missed a pair of gaiters and some rib-
bon. I caused Jesse Beard to be apprehended. No inducement
was held to him to cause him to confess.

Cross-examined by Mr. el:11FOOD.—I did not take him to my
home to induce him to confess. I did not promise him 31. if he
would tell all he knew.

The tonfeesioa of Beerd before the committing Mwistrate was
put to sod read. It stated, that he with others broke into and
tabbed the house on the uigbt fn qwwldoc•
John .18pserow said, I bought a pair of drab getters of the three
pos" arms sod ariN whe was ts thew ceaspiny. I gave a sbillirg
fur them. li raM at Cleave. I bought the gaiters about the 18th
of November.

The prosecutor was re-callad.—He mid the drab gaiters delivered
to me by the last witness are make. They were stolen on the night
in question.
Cross.examined by Mr. Ccriwoors.—l have often seen whole
rows of drab gaiters banging outside of the ready-made clothes
hops • but I am sore that these gaiters are mine, because they are
raade from the same piece as a parr of breeches that I have, but not
those I have on now.

Mr. Custwooo--..50 these gaiters don't match with the breeches
you have on, but with the breeches your wife wears at home.—
(A Laugh.)
The prisoner Beard said in his defence, that he was induced to
make the confession by the promise node hitu by the prosecutor,
that he should have ?l. and be forgiven.
The other prisoners simply denied their guilt.
Elizabeth Bead, the sister of the prisoner Beard, said—l saw
the prosecutor soon after the robbery; he was very desirous that
my brother should confess. He said he should go tree if he would
do so, and he would give his wife a new gown. My brother would
not then confine, and the prosecutor then promised him three
pounds to tell all he knew, provided he would lay out half the
urney at the prosecutor's shop. Sly brother then said he would
- • it.
e LITTLEDALI told the Jury, that if the confession
by any promise of any kind, they were bound to lay
t of their consideration, as much as if it bad never
and then they would have to say, whether they were or
tisged of the evidence of stealing the gaiters. But they
law find one or more of sevaal prisoners (who were
) guilty of a burglary, and the others guilty of a
•
scoit;tted the prisoners of burglary, and found them
stealing the gaiters.
:ed JUDGE toes sentenced each of them to be itopri-
yurs, and kept to hard labour.
, .1 tiry have found a true bill against six individuals,
whom is only 24 yews of age, for a murder committed
between Bristol and Bath.
lad Side noting of the slightest interest occurred.