The Sun.
London, England, 1864-03-22 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS—March 21,

The March adjourned general sessions of the peace for
the county of ISliddlesex commenced this morning at the
Sessions-house, Clerkenwell•green, before Mr Bodkin, As-
sistant-Judge, End a bench of magistrates.
The calendar contains the names of 122 prisoners com-
mitted for trial, of whom IC4 were indicted for felony, and
18 for misdemeanor.

The Grand Juy having been sworn,
The Assistant• Judge briefly addressed them on the na•

ture of their duties.

Jane Element, 16, was indicted for abandoning a female
child under the age of two years, whereby the life of such
child was endangered ; there was a second count charg-
ing her with unlawfully exposing a child under the age of
two years, whereby the health of such child was endangered.
Mr. Cooper, who appeared for the prosecution, said the

charge against the young woman at the bar was founded on
the 24th and 25th Viet., c. 27, which enacted, "That who-
soever shall unlawfully abandon or expose any child being
under the age of two years, whereby the life of such child
should be endangered, or the health of such child shall have
been or shall likely be permanently injured, shall be guilty
of a misdemeanor, and being convicted thereof, shall be
liable at the dixretion of the Court to be kept in penal ser-
vitude for the term of three years, or to be imprisoned for

any term not exceeding two years, with or without hard
labour. This was one of those melancholy cases which

often came before them, and it was to be regretted that the
prisoner's place was not supplied by her seducer; but that
was a qu2sticn with which they had nothing to do, and if

the case was made out it would bo the duty of the jury to
find her guilty, leaving her then in the hands of the presid-
ing judge, who always tempered justice with mercy. He
should call the witnesses, and then leave the case for the
considerati-n of the jury.
Robert Fry said ho lived at No. 39, Goodge-street, Totten-
ham-court-road, with his aunt, Mrs. Baker. On the 14th
February, at abcut half- pabt 12 o'clock at night, he heard
a noise in the bask yard, and it appeared as if something
heavy had fallen In consequence of hearing that noise he
went out to see vhat it was, and in a sink in the middle of
the 3 and he fount a child. The sink- was in the middle of

the yard, and was used to let off the water. Seeing this he
went immediately for the police. The prisoner lived with
her father at the next house. The wall separating the two
houses was betwaen 9 and 10 feet in height.

Edmund Gall, police 'constable 25 E, said early on the
morning of Sunday, the 14th of February, he was called by
the last witness t) the house No, 39, Goodge-street, and in
the centre of tht yard he found a new born child, quite
naked and screaming. He took it to Middlesex Hospital,
where it was attended to, and in about half an hour after-
wards he returntd to Goodge-street. He knocked at the
door of the next house, having observed marks of blood on
the wall. He went to the third floor hick room in that
house, which was opened by the prisoner's father. lie asked
him if there was any one in the house sick, and he replied
that there was nct that he knew of. The witness then went
into the front room on the same floor, where he found the
prisoner sitting cn a sofa with her clothes on. He asked her
what was the water with her, but sho made no answer.
The father then said to her, " Jenny, whatever you say,
speak the truth."
Police-sergeant John William Ingerson, 6 E, said he went
to the prisoner's house with the last witness, and on going
into the yard belonging to Mrs. Baker ho saw blood. lie
afterwards went .nto the prisoner's house, and on looking
out of a window saw marks of blood about. lie saw the

prisoner sitting on a sofa, and he told her he should charge
her with attempting to destroy the life of her child. She
then said she had delivered herself in the watercloset, and
that she had thrown the child over the wall into the adjoin-
ing premises.
Mr. George Ross, divisional surgeon to the E division of

police, said he was galled on the morning of the 14th of
February, about five o'clock, to No. 40, Goodge-street, and
there found the prisoner sitting on a sofa in a very excited
state. He asked her if she had ben recently delivered, and
she said she had at helf-past 12 o'clock. Two days after-
wards the child was taken to the prisoner. He had attended
her ever since, The ctild was only injured by a slight bruise
on the forehead.
Mr. Besley addressed the jury, who found the prisoner
guilty, but recommended her to mercy on account of her
tender years.
The Assistant-Judge directed that the prisoner should be
liberated on bail, and hi brought up again next sessions.
John Cotter, 15, and William Thornton, 16, were indicted

for stealing a copper scoop, the property of Benjamin Hart.
Thornton pleaded guffly,Cotter was found guilty by the jury.

Police-constable 207 11 said that Cotter was the associate
of thieves, and Thornton was a teacher of them. If they
did not do what he told them he beat them.

The Assistant Judge sentenced Cotter to be imprisoned
and kept to hard labour for two months, and then to be sent
to the Cornwall training ship for three years. With regard
to Thornton he would be kept in penal servitude for three
years, not merely because he was a thief, but because he
was a trainer of thieves.

George Cooper, 44, was indicted for stealing seven live
tame fowls, the property of Enoch Dukes, and assaulting
John Carter, constable of the metropolitan police fere e,with
intent to prevent his lawful apprehension.
The prisoner pleaded guilty.
The prisoner was stopped by the constable Carter with a
quantity of fowls in his possession, and not giving a satis-
factory account of them he sai he sheuld take him into
custody. Upon this the prisoner struck him a violent blow
on the head with a plasterer's hammer, which most seri-
ously injured him, and it was nothing less than a miracle
that the officer survived the injuries he received. He had
been ever since, and was sti.l, unfit for duty.
A previous conviction of 12 months' imprisonment was
put in against him, which sentence was passed upon him at
the Central Criminal Court in Sept-, 1852, for endeavouring
to obtain admission to the city police force by means of a
false character.
The prisoner said he was Liven to the commission of his
present offence through starvation, being unable to obtain
employment for the support of his wife and family.
The Assistant Judge sentenced him to be kept in penal
servitude for three years.
John Marchant, 17, was indicted for stealing 13 silver
spoons, value £7, the property of William Matthtws. He
pleaded guilty.
The prisoner was in the employ of Mr. Matthews, chemist,
4, Wigtnore-str,:et, as porter, and on March 1 he left with-
out giving notice. On that morning he was admitted to the
house by Sarah Reeves, the servant, at half-past 7 o'clock,
and in a quarter of an hour after he was gone the spoons
were missed from the back dining room, He was after-
wards found in custody for another offence, but was detained
on this charge.
Police-constable 76 D proved a previous conviction
against the prisoner for burglary at the Central Criminal
Court on the 24th of November, 1862, there being then a
previous conviction against him. At the time of the rob-
bery in 1862 the prisoner and another boy went to Margate,
where they hired two horses and rode them to Gravesend,
where they were apprehended on suspicion of stealing these
horses. At the time of their apprehension at Gravesend by
Sergeant White, 16 D, on each of the prisoners was found
a brace of pistols leaded with bullets, and with property
the result of another burglary at Mitcham, in Surrey, for
which they were not prosecuted. When the prisoner
was apprehended on this charge he had just been
discharged from Marylebone Police-court on a charge of
parsing a bad five-shilling- piece.
The Assistant Judge sentenced him to be kept in penal
servitude for four years.
Edward Baptist Noel, 25, baker, was indicted for embez
zling various sums of money received by him for and on ac-
count of Geo. Wright, his master. He pleaded guilty,
The prosecutor is a dairyman, and the prisoner was in
his service and received the money for milk supplied to the
customers, which he appropriated to his own use.
The Assistant Judge sentenced him to be imprisoned and
kept to hard labour for twelve months.
"Wm. Pearce, 41, was indicted for stealing a leather bag,
containing a handkerchief, a comb, a brush, a pair of gloves,
and oLher articles, the property of Eliza Collett, from her
person.
On the sth of March, at about a quarter-past eight at
night, the prosecutrix was walkin.z. in Russell-square, hav-
ing a leather bag on her arm, Suddenly a man sprang out
from some place behind her, and seized the bag with such
violence that the handle of it was broken, and he ran away
with it. She screamed out and followed him, calling out
" Stop thief." He was afterwards stopped by a wan named
Wm. Bellew, a gasfitter, who struggled with him and got
his clothes torn in doing so, He, however, held him until a