The Sun.
London, England, 1863-03-21 00:00:00

THAMES.

THE CHAMPION OF THE FEATHER WEIGHTES.—Chas.
Lynch, a beer seller and landlord of a small houso of public
entertainment, at the corner of Church-lane, Whitechapel,
appeared before Mr. Selfe to answer a summons, wnich
charged him with unlawfully detaining £5 belonging to a
seaman named John Williams.

Mr. Charles Young, solicitor, in opening the case, said
the defendant was a pugilist, and well-known to the world
as Charley Lynch, the champion of the feather weights.
He had to complain of a most scandalous imposition pnc-
tised on a sailor. The complainant came home in the ship
Sunda three weeks ago, and he went to lodge at the house
of a man named Crawley, who took him next day to see the
lions of London, and among other places they visited the
New York Clipper, kept by the defendant, who told the
sailor that he had got into a hornet's nest, and that
he wail(' be robbed if he staid any longer in Crawley's
dwelling. The defendant so far prevailed on the complainant
to leave Crawley and stop in the New York Clipper. That'
night the defendant went to a coffee-house in Church-lane,
Whitechapel, where ho lodged for the night. On the fol-
lowing afternoon (Monday, the 2d instent) the sailor re-
ceived his wages, £l6, and deposited £5 with Lynch which
he had since been unable to recover. All the sailor owed to
the pugilist did not exceed 10s. The complainant did not
have his meals or sleep in the New York Clipper, and all
he had of L)nch were five meals, a pot of ale, five glasses of
ale, and ss. in money. The sailor had applied over
and over again for his money, but could not obtain
a farthing, and had been compelled to sell his
clothes and raise money to obtain food. No account
whatever had been given to the sailor, and on one
occasion the defendant when applied to for the money, said
that his wife had run away with it.
Mr. Joseph Smith, solicitor, who appeared for the defen-
dant, said the reason no account was made out was that his
client was tillable to write.
Mr. Selfe—He could make his mark. (A laugh.)
The complainant gave evidence in confirmation of his
solicitor's statement, and said he only had alf a bed at the
coffee-house. He slept with the defendants barman.
a
Three police-constables named Kelly, Andrews, and
Howland, said they waited on
to Lynchi,h how
Howland,
nhim c
a t
ao re-.
store the sailor's money, and
Lynch said that he had no account, but would make out
One. The defendant charged 12s. for bringing the sailor's
chest and clothes from the ship Sunda in the London dock,
although 2s. tid. was the usual charge for such a
job from
the Victoria Dock at Plaistow. Howland also said that
Lynch's place was very small, and there was not room
enough to swing
Mr: Selfe—lt is not likely that the defendant would like
a cat there.
any one to swing a cat there. (Laughter.)
Howland—There is only a cellar and two small rooms
above, one of which is occupied for the bar.
Mr. Joseph Smith said it was highly improbable that the
complainant only drank a pot and five glasses of ale while
he was in Lynch's house, and put in a bill in which the
complainant was charged for three weeks' board and lodging.
Mr. Selfe said he believed the sailor and his witnesses,
and had no doubt the account was cooked since Tuesday,
when the police constable Howland waited on the defen-
dant. There wes no date in the book at that time after
March 2. It was quite absurd to charge three weeks'
board and lodging; in fact it was a gross attempt at impo-
sition, He ordered the defendant to return £3 ss. to the
sailor, to pay Mr. Young his fee of one guinea, and to pay
a fine of ls. If that order was not complied with, the de-
fendant would be imprisoned for one month, and kept to
hard labour.