The Sun.
London, England, 1837-12-28 00:00:00

EXTENSIVE SEIZURE.

CAPTURE OF A SMUGGLING VESSEL.—Yesterday James
Barnett, the master and part owner of the sloop Prince
Regent, George Barnett, his son, ,Tames Parker, mate,
and James Saunders and Charles Liversuch, seamen, were
brought before Mr. Ballantine and Mr. Broderip, at
the Thames Police Office on a charge of smuggling a cargo
of contraband Brandy and Geneva into the River in the
vessel to which they belong.
Mr. Benjamin Donne was an inspector of the River and
an officer of her Majesty's Customs. On Tuesday morn-
ing he was on duty with the men under his command, and
about eleven o'clock he boa.rded the Prince Regent, then
coming up the River. He fell in with her about a mile
below Tilbury Fort, on the Essex side of the River. The
vessel declared from Portsmouth with a coasting cargo,
and he found she was from Portsmouth, but having a
suspicion that she had a contraband freight on board he
commenced rummaging her, when his attention was called
by his men to some small casks which they saw concealed
under the cargo in the main hold. He went forward, and
on examining them ascertained they were kegs such as
were used in the conveyance of smuggled brandy and ge-
neva, all slung ready for removal. He bored a hole with
a gimblet, and found the kegs were filled with strong
spirits, brandy and geneva. He had not been able to
count them, but from his own observation he should judge
there were 10 or 100 tubs.

Mr. Ballantine—Have you seized her on the part of
the Crown ?
Mr. Donne—l have, Sir, and towed her up to the Cus-
tom-house.
Mr. Ballantine asked the Captain if he wished to say
any thing ? He had already incurred the loss of his ship
and the smuggled goods, and he was liable to a heavy pe-
nalty. He might offer an explanation or not as he thought
proper.
Captain Barnett—Knew no more about the thing than
the child unborn. He was called down by Mr. Donne to
look at the spirits, and that was all he knew.
Liversuch, a tall seaman, who stood next the captain's
son, here said he wished to speak. He and the two men,
Parker en 1 Saunders were alone guilty, and would stand
by it, and they had intended to have landed the tubs
when the captain was out of the way. He generally did
go out of the way when the vessel was in the Pool, and
then they should have landed the stuff; but as it had hap-
pened they would not be able to do so. It was all un-
known to the Captain, and he and his shipmates would suf-
fer the law.
Mr Ballantine remanded the prisoners to Clerkenwell
Prison.
The vessel turned out to be a more valuable prize than

was at first supposed, for during the day no less than 518
kegs of Brandy and Geneva were landed at the Custom
House-quay and deposited in the Queen's warehouse.
A great proportion of the kegs contained the best French
brandy, each keg containing about four gallons. The
value of the liquor is estimated at 2,3001., and the sloop
and her stores at 1,0001. more, making the total value of the
prize 3,3001. The P, ince Regent took in a legal cargo of
9,000 staves and a quantity of empty casks at Portsmouth
Dock-yard for London, and the Brandy and Geneva was
secreted beneath the staves. It appears that the sloop
had been long suspected of carrying on a contraband trade,
which caused Mr. Donne and his men to keep a sharp look
out for her on her way to London. It is believed, how-
ever, that it was the intention of the parties engaged in the
triinsaction to run the Brandy and Geneva ashore before
the Prince Regent entered the Pool, where, owing to the
vi dance of the Thames-police and revenue officers., they
ha've had some difficulty in landing so many kegs
willout being detected. The circumstances of this seizure
created a considerable degree of interest on the River
yesterday.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

MANSION-HO USE.

A tradesman of steady and re,pectable appearance,
named John Wilson, was brought before the LORD MAYOR.
An officer, on the preceding night, as he was on duty,
saw the defendant stager, evidently from intoxication, and
tumble to the ground; without making any effort to save
himself from the fall, which happened to be in a place
usually destined to receive drunken men—the kennel.
The unfortunate man, upon being raised from the mud,
was quite unable to put one leg before the other, and was
in that condition carried to the station-house, where proper
care w is taken of him and his money, of which he no doubt
would have been robbed, if the police had not been vigilant.
The gentleman, upon his recovery, denied most solmnly
that he had taken as much intoxicating drink as would
have affected the head of a child, and declared that it was
the tooth-ache that had put him into the difficulty.—(A
laugh.)
The LORD MAYOR could not have supposed that a per-
son of such bearing in the Justice-room would have dis-
graced himself by getting into the Christmas condition of
a coalheaver.

The defendant said that there never was a greater mis-
take than the supposition that he was drunk from drinking,
but he certainly was rendered as insensible as a drunken
man by a tooth-ache, which a friend of his told him could
be only cured by a pipe of tobacco.
The LORD MAYOR—And so you smoked yourself drunk?
Defendant—My jaw and ear, and the whole side of my
head, were in the greatest agony. and I took a pipe and
began to pull at it violently, for I never smoked before.
The harder I pulled the more my friend told me to keep it
up, till I couldn't see anything but the flame of the candle.
Well, I got up to breathe a little fresh air, and I hadn't
gone far when I saw the ground rising gradually, until I
thought it hit me right in the forehead, and then I found
myself in the kennel, but out of it I could for the life of me
get.—( A laugh.)
The LORD MAYOR—I hope you found your tooth-ache
better ? Defendant—l never felt it since, my Lord, but I
would not cure it again on the same conditions.—(Laugh-
ter.) You may judge whether or not I am stating facts,
when I tell you that all I spent was six-pence, out of which
I paid a penny for tobacco, and when I pay another penis),
for tobacco I hop I may lie in the same spot.
The LORD MAYOR—I have no doubt of the truth of
your statement, and am very glad that your drunkenness
was so innocent, and I trust that you will take care how
you apply remedies for a toothache.
A man, named William:, who was also a person of re-
spectable appearance, was next brought up.
An officer found Mr. Williams, who was known to be a
very eloquent sort of a gentleman, in a speechless condi-
tion. When witness asked him what was the matter with
him he shook his head, as much as to say that he was so
drunk as not to be able to use his tongue. Witness con-
veyed him to the station-house, where he lay for some time,
and upon recovering he requested to be let out. Witness
finding that his customer was brought back to his senses
opened the door. The defendant was then immediately
seized with a fit of talking, and not being particular in what
he treated of, for he called them who acted so kindly to
him common robbers, he was conducted to a place of se-
curity, in order that he might substantiato his charge, or
be made responsible for his attack upon honest men.
The defendant bad been engaged in discussing matters
of some consequence in the early part of the evening, and
the glass stole upon him until he lost the faculty which
never failed him under any other circumstances.
The LORD MAYOR—Then I think you are a capital
subject for the drunkard's penalty, and I fine you ss.
The defendant laid the blame to the insane mass of words
which he had used, and not to the liquor.

....._.. ,
The LORD MAYOR said that the defendant deserved to
be fined too for the infliction upon his hearers, and that it
was infinitely better to be smoked than to be talked out of
a room.—(A laugh.)

MARLBOROUGH-STREET.
John Jones was yesterday brought before Mr. DYER,
charged with burglary.—The prisoner was fully committed..

MARYLEBONE.
Yesterday Thomas Gregory, a porter in the employ of
Mr. Evans, the extensive silk-mercer and woollen-draper of
Tottenham-court-road, was finally examined before Mr.
RAWLCNSON on a charge of having plundered his employer
of upwards of a hundred pounds worth of prop, tty. consist,.
ing of cloaks, shawls, table-covers, and otlser articles.
An immense number of cloaks, shawls, whittles, table
covers, &c., were produced by pawnbrokers, one of whom
clearly identified the prisoner as the person.
The prisoner, who was formerly a policeman in the H di-
vision, was fully committed, without saying a word in his
defence. He is, it appears, a married man.