The Sun.
London, England, 1852-11-16 00:00:00

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

MANSION-HOUSE. —An able-bodied vagrant,
named Benjamin Brett, was brought before Alderman
Wire, charged with having committed a street robbery.
Mr. John Fraser, a gentleman who has recently ar-
rived from Scotland, said—On Saturday evening, at half-
past six o'clock, I was walking along Cheapside, with a
plaid shawl on my arm. Close to Queen-street, I felt a
sudden jerk, and supposed that my shawl had got en-
tangled in something. In an instant, however, it was
wrenched away from me, and I saw a person like the
prisoner running along and wrapping it round his per-
son. I followed as fast as I could, but unfortunately I
fell when I was gaining ground. I continued the pur-
suit when I got upon my legs, but lost sight of the
person, who was, however, secured by a policeman with
the shawl in his possession.
Waldron, one of the City officers, said—l saw the pri-
soner running along Lawrence-lane with the shawl,
which he dropped upon seeing me. When I told him
to stop he made a bolt at me with his head, and made a
desperate effort to get away, but I prevented his escape.
The prisoner—The fact is, my lord, that I am per-
fectly guilty ; but I had been wandering about day and
night, and could get nothing to do, so I thought I would
take the shawl without giving much trouble to any one.
The officer said he had upon inquiry learned that the
prisoner was a fellow who could not be prevailed upon
to work.

Alderman Wire—Exactly so. He is well able to work,
but would rather steal. There is no sort of excuse for
this prisoner, for he is a powerful young man, and there
is abundance of work for the industrious.

The prisoner—But, your Lordship, I have been
brought up to nothing but farming, and I can't get any
work.

The officer—l saw the prisoner skulking about Cheap.
side the night before, and have no doubt as to his object
there.

Alderman Wire—He is committed.

WORSHIP-STREET. —A stylishly-dressed young
man, named Matthew Brooks, was placed at the bar before
Mr. D'Eyncourt, charged with having carried on an ex-
tensive system of robbery on the premises of his em-
ployers, Messrs. Sewell and Co., wholesale jewellers and
general merchants, in London-wall, and Fore-street,
Cripplegate.
Mr. John Sewell stated that the prisoner had been in
their service as warehouseman, at a liberal salary, for
the last two years, and during that period numerous
valuable articles had disappeared. Not the slightest
suspicion, however, attached to the prisoner, in whom
they had always reposed implicit confidence, and in con-
sequence of the number of persons who were employed
upon the establishment they were unable to obtain any
clue to the delinquent until that morning, when they
received information that the prisoner had been stopped
in an attempt to dispose of a quantity of property be-
longing to them.

Mr.-Edward Cotton, a pawnbroker in the Hackney-
road, stated that on Saturday afternoon the prisoner
entered his shop and produced fifteen silk purses and two
gold-mounted scent-bottles, on which he requested an
advance of 12s. His suspicions were excited, and on
questioning the prisoner he declared them to be his own
property, and stated that he was about to commence
business as a jeweller in that neighbourhood. He was
proceeding to question him further when the prisoner
suddenly darted out of the shop, but witness pointed him
out to a policeman, by whom he was overtaken and se-
cured.

Police-serjeant 'N 14, stated•that he proceeded to the
prisoner's house, on searching which, he discovered a
large assortment of miscellaneous property, comprising
purses, pocket-books, and drawing room ornaments, the
majority of which had since been identified by the firm,
although their private marks had been carefully oblite-
rated from the greater part of them. On being called
upon to account for the possession of the property, the
prisoner in the first instance confidently claimed the
whole of it as his own ; but on being subsequently
Icon-
fronted
with t e principal of the firm he became greatly
,
agitated and, a d exclaimed, " I acknowledge they be-
long to you, an must throw myself upon your mercy."
The prisoner, ho declined offering any defence, was
remanded for a Week, to afford the police an opportunity
for tracing the remainder of the missing property.

CLERKENWELL.—Patrick Burke, a powerful-look-
ing Irishman, was charged with having violently assaulted
Oliver Brown, 155, and George Mills, 131, G division,
by which they were seriously injured.
Brown, whose eyes were blackened and swollen, and
who bore other marks of violence, deposed that on Sa-
turday night last the prisoner was causing a disturbance
in Whitecross-street, St. Luke's, when he remonstrated
with him and advised him to desist. He commenced
abusing witness, pursued him, and collected a great
crowd of persons, principally consisting of the lower order
of Irish. He made an attack upon witness, knocked
him down, and began kicking him about the head and
body (as he now exhibited) was disfigured through kicks,
and he must have been killed had it not been for the
arrival and assistance of other officers. Whilst he was
, on the ground, and the prisoner holding him down, a
I cry of " Kill the —" was raised, and several of the
mob held his legs and maltreated him cruelly, and he
was completely exhausted.
George Mills, 131 G, received information that a j
policeman was being murdered by a mob in Whitecross-
street. He proceeded thither, and found upwards of
400 persons of the lowest order assembled, and there
was a cry of " Kill the ." He rushed through
the crowd, and saw constable Brown on the ground,
struggling with the prisoner who was on the top of
him. When witness made his appearance a cry was
made, "Here is another of the , serve him the
same." The mob attacked him, and he had a narrow
escape with his life.

This evidence having been confirmed by disinterested
witnesses,
Mr. Corrie, addressing the prisoner, said that in such
a gross the extent of his power would not allow him
sufficiently to punish him ; and, as an example, he
would fully commit him to Newgate for trial.

SOUTHWAIK.—Mr. A'Beckett gave his judgment
in the case of a cab-driver named Thomas Hill, who was
charged with plying for hire within the enclosed space
at the terminus of the London and Brighton Railway
station, that being a place not authorised by the Com-
missioners of Police.

As it had been understood that the real issue was the
right of railway companies to withdraw the cabs at the
stations from the provisions of the general statute and
the superintendence of the police commissioners, a con-
siderable amount of interest attached to the trial.
Mr. A'Beckett said that he had well considered not
only the case, but the opinion of counsel which had been
placed before him by the company, and was unchanged
in the opinion that in plying for hire in a place not
sanctioned by the police commissioners for that
was the only question the defendant had broken
the law. In prohibiting the plying of hacknay car-
riages " elsewhere " than at places approved by
the commissioners, the legislature meant without
exception, otherwisb such exception would have
been particularised. It was not desirable that a number
of public vehicles should be withdrawn from the super-
vision to which, by law, all were subjected. The rail-
way authorities were irresponsible, and if at one time
their regulations were made for the public, at another
they were made for their own profit. Some of the re-
gulations made by the company were most inconvenient,
witness the placing of other numbe Ts on the sides of cabs
than those of the license, thus leading the public astray,
and in the cases of summonses causing confusion. The
company had had time to consider their course, and
comply with the law, but had not done so. It was his
duty to put the law in force, which he would do im-
posing the nominal penalty of is, with costs.
Another case was heard, and a cabman plying at the
same station was fined 408., for refusing, in obedience to
the company's rules, to take the first fare that called
him.

It was announced in court that the company had re
solved to comply with the act in future.

THE COMING RAIEWAY ethreatenings
of February are loud and ominous. In addition to
an increase of applications for new bills; we have
Thbefe waoreunst the certainty of a fierce and general war.
t
of a decision last sessionhe
comingon t the
struggle,
Shrews-
bury contest will be keenly felt in
iiothing of which is to be relied on save a squander-
ing of the profits which proprietors alone should
realize. The pressing question of amalgamation, too, is in-
creasing in intensity, and spreading out to an importance
that must ultimately attract the attention of the senate
in the loftiest sense of its name and duties. All things
considered, the session must be looked forward to with
anxiety, if not with dread, unless, alas ! faint hope—
shareholders generally bestir themselves and demand
peculiar pledges from each individual member of their
boards.—Railway Times.
PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED ON THURSDAY NEXT.—
Let any one just think of the problems to be solved next
Thursday. The first is, how to form a procession three
miles long, including about 10,000 men, and get it to
St. Paul's. When there, how are they to be disposed
of ? How are 17,000 persons, requiring possibly 3,000
carriages, to be got into St. Paul's before the commence.
ment of the ceremony How are 200,000 pass-holders to
be passed to the line of the procession before eight ?
What barriers and quantity of police and soldiery will
suffice to keep back the crowd at the great cross tho-
roughfares, such as Blackfriars and Waterloo bridges ?
How will the line itself be kept sufficiently clear, in spite
of the numbers oozing into it from the Mail thorough-
pro, alleys and private paehagee