The National Register.
London, England, 1813-10-31 00:00:00

OLD BAILEY.

The Scqs;ons commenced on Wednesday, at the Old Bailey, be-
fore the licroi der, Lord Elleiibarough, Baron Thompson, Justice
Chambre, and several of the Matistratca of the City.
John Harwood was indicted for stealing a chesnut gelding, with a
saddle and bridle, the property of Dr. Kerr, of Northampton.
Mr. Knapp stated the case on the part of the prosecution, and
proceeded to call witnesses.
J. Langley, a servant to Dr. Kerr, proved that the prisoner was
in the service of the Docter about two months. Witness fed the
horse on the evening of the 2cl instant the day before it was missed;
the prisoner was with them about 20 minutes on that afternoon.
Harwood was follow( d to Stanmore, where he and the horse were
taken. The horse had b .en down, and broken his knees. The pri-
soner was taken at the Abercoru Arms, and the bridle and saddle
found in the stable of that inn.

The only evidence in favour of the prisoner, was the testimony of
Sir James Lambkin), with whom the prisoner had lived nine months
u butler, and who, though be gave him an excellent chawter for
honesty, anal thought his plate and wine safe in his keeping, declared
that he would not have trusted him with a pair of pistols, became
be considered him as disordered in his intellects. He said, when
be heard of his having committed this robbery he was not at all stir.
prised at it, as the extravagance of his behavioiii, while with him,
always kept him in a state of alarm and uneasiness, and was one
principal cause of his parting with him. •
Mr. Lever also said, that his brother, with whom the pristiner
bud lived, was on his way to town to give evidence to the same
effect.

The appearance- and behavieur of the prisoner during the whole
trial was very extraordinary and interesting, and not easily to be
memoir...o for, except from the statement made by Sir J. Longhorn.
The Jury, however, after an elaborate charge fr&m Sir A.
CIUtIII3RE, without retiring front the box, brought in a verdict of
Gulag,
Friday Mary Harrison was indicted for feloniously setting fire to a
dwelling-house in the possession of Jane Bloomfield, with intent to de-
fraud the Eagle Insurance Office. _ _

The prisoner was a straw bonnet-maker, and hired apartments of
Mrs Bloomfield, at a house which she occupied in Shadwell. Mrs
Bloomfield herself resided at another house in Ratcliff-highw-ay. Qn
the night of the 28th of September, the .prisoner and her maid only
were at home ; and the maid stated, that at ten o'clock at night she
went to bed, leaving the prisoner up, in company with a young man
who paid his addresses to her. At two o'clock in the morninir, the
prisoner went is a neighbour's for a light, stating that her child was ill
and cried very much. This fact of the child crying was corroborated
by other witnesses. Shortly afterwards, the watchman was Maimed
with the cry of fire. Assi•tance was gained, and by breaking into the
back part of the House, the fire was soon extingui,hed. The appear-
ance of the house, upon examination, exhibited great marks of suspicion,
for the Are had apparently been kindled at two distinct places, and a
large piece of wood, rubbed over with turpentine, was euchised in a
large parcel of straw. There wes a hole also in the floor, into which
straw had also been stuffed end was partly burned. During the con-
flagration the prisoner got out of the one pair of shin window upon
the lead and dropped the child frc,m thence into the arms of a fire.
man, and was apparently about to jump down herself, but was dis•
'waded by the people below. Mrs. Bloomfield was at her other house,
and did not sleep in the house that was fired.

It wag also proved, ih.st the prisoner was insured for 3001. and that
all her property hardly exceeiles 301.
Lord Ellenbormigh summed up, making several observations to chew
that though the crime of arson hod evidently been committed by some
person; yet there were severe favourable circumstances, such as the
crying of the child, her own evident alarm, want of contrivance to
em_ape, &c. which seemed to remove the guilt from her. The over—
in-ur►►ucc, great as it was, might have bees made on a speculative con-
tenyialion of an incretise of stocks sad 11 wish to rate it lit its utmost

OCT. 31•

. . .
standard. He left the whole circumstances to the Jury ; who iiumedi-.
atelv acquitted the prisoner.
Thomas Willis, who was indicted for forging a hill of exchange, and
the acceptance theta°, was acquitted. The evidence on the part of the
prosecution did not prove satisfactorily that there were no such persons
as the apparent drawer and acceptor, and the prisoner produced u wit-
ness who swore positively that the hill was given by the man (whips.
name appeared on it) in payment of a horse bought of the prisoner.

THE TAILORS.
The Public are already in possession of the circumstances res.
pecting the plunder committed at Mr. Maherley's, Army Clothier,
Paul's Wharf, and of the depredations committed on the Army
Clothing, in the care of his men, as journeymen tailors.
The following persons were tried for the same, before the RE-
CORDER and the London Jury :—William Brown, John Kanner,
Thomas Kenton, John Dixon, Timothy Askwith, Francis Heim
and James Stevens. They were severally found—Guilty. Sentence
deferred.
The bills were thrown out against the others, exeept one case, in
the county of Middlesex, which remains for trial.
SATURDAY, OCT. 30.

FORFERIES.--Thomas Ricketts Lyou was capitally indicted for
forging, and disposing of, a )ower of Attorney, of John Ormsby,
late Midshipman of the Raisonable, with intent to defraud Mr.
Hugh Thompson. The prisoner stood also capitally indicted for
forging, and uttering, a false receipt for prize money, due to G.
Hamlet, Master's Mate of the said ship, with intent to defraud Fre-
derick %Valiant Murray.- —The prisoner was tried upon the first in-
dictment, and the Jury found a verdict of Guilty—Death.
John Frederick Spur, was capitally indicted for stealing, and ex-
tracting, from a General Post letter, a tol. of England note. The
witnesses could not identify the note ; and, under the direction of
the Learned Judge, the prisoner was icquittcd.