The Sun.
London, England, 1853-09-20 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS.—Sept. 19.

The sittings of the court for the September general
sessions were resumed yesterday morning at the Guild-
hall, Broad Sanctuary, Westminster, before Mr. Ser-
jeant Adams, Assistant Judge, Mr. Witham, Mr. Au-
gustus Robinson, &c.
The number of prisoners committed for trial was 103,
of which number 94 were charged with felony, and 9
with misdemeanour.
Leon Nathan, 34, a Frenchman, was indicted for
having stolen 43 sovereigns and other moneys, belonging
to Solomon Joel, in a dwelling-house.
This case was remanded from last session, the pri-
soner having, when arraigned, availed himself of his
right to demand to be tried by a half-foreign jury.
Mr. Woollett and Mr. Taylor appeared for the pro-
secution : the prisoner was undefended.
The prosecutor, a foreig,nsr, but well conversant with
the English language, carried on the business of a chi-
ropodist, and lived at No. 9, Poland-street, Soho-square.
It appeared that he and the prisoner were on inti-
mate terms, and the latter was a constant visitor at the
lodgings of the former. The prosecutor had 431. 10s.
in gold and 7s. in silver in a purse, in a drawer, about
half an hour before the prisoner entered his bed-room,
but immediately after he left he mi,sed it. Without de-
lay he communicated his loss to the police at the Vine-
street station, and telegraphed a description of the pri-
soner to Liverpool, having reason to believe that he
would make for that place, and he then took a cab and
went in the direction of a pawnbroker's shop, where the
prisoner had pledged a number of gold watches, and on
the way he met with the prisoner in another cab. On see-
ing him the prosecutor charged him with the theft, upon
which the prisoner drew a knife and said in French, " It's
either your life or my liberty," and, opening the door on
the other side of the cab, he jumped out and made his
escape. On going to the pawnbroker's he found that the
prisoner had redeemed six gold watches for 241. 10s.,
the whole of which sum he paid in gold, and one of the
sovereigns was the identical cracked one which the pub-
lican refused to give change for. The prisoner was
apprehended when he went to redeem the case of instru-
ments, the pawnbroker having received information, and
on his being searched seven gold watches, the case of
instruments, two sovereigns, and 17s. Bd. were found
upon him.
In his defence the prisoner handed in a long written
statement its French, which was read to the court by an
interpreter. It was a rambling attack on the prosecu-
tor's character for morality. His answer to the charge,
as well as- it could be gathered, was that it was an in-
vention premeditated by the prosecutor, who was aware
that he was about to redeem his watches, and, with
reference to the cracked sovereign, he alleged that he
received it from the prosecutor's own hands as the
price of a pair of razors and some articles which he sold
to him.
The Assistant Judge having summed up,
The jury found the prisoner guilty, and
The Assistant Judge sentenced him to one year's hard
labour.
John M‘Donald, 21, convicted at the last session of
housebreaking, was brought up for judgment, and the
court sentenced him to be kept in penal servitude for
four years.
James Elands, 19, pleaded guilty to indictments in
which he was charged with having stolen a telescope, a
sovereign, a half sovereign, and other moneys, the pro-
perty and moneys of Sir James Smith, and three gold
mourning rings, the property of John Ayrton Paris,
M.D., his master and employer.
Sentenced to six months' hard labour.

DEFRAUDING THE GREAT NORTHERN RAILWAY COMPANY.
William Cagby, 34, and William, Skinner, 33, were
indicted for haying stolen three sacks of coal, the pro-
perty
of the Great Northern Railway Company.
Mr. Cooper and Mr. O'Brien prosecuted. Mr. Horry
appeared for the prisoners.
It appeared that the prisoner Cagby was a carman in
the employ of Mr. Wiggins, contractor to the Great
Northern Railway Company, for the delivery of coal,
and Skinner was what is called in the coal trade " a
trouncer," to Cagby. On the 17th of August they left
the King's-cross station with four tons of coal to deliver
at the residence of the Earl of Jersey, for the use of the
kitchen. They took the van down a mews to shoot the
sacks at the proper place, and it happened that Sir
Alexander Cockburn, the Attorney-General, had stables
there. Sir Alexander's groom, a man named Beard,
never having seen either of the prisoners before, ob-
serving them delivering coal at Lord Jersey's, very coolly
walked up to Cagby and asked him if he could spare
him a sack. Cagby, evincing not the least indisposition
to enter upon a gross piece of roguery, at once replied in
the affirmative, and took one sack to a loft over Sir
Alexander's stables, and there shot its contents. The
groom having succeeded so far, asked Cagby if be could
spare him more, and Cagby complied, and in like man-
ner delivered two other sacks. This was all observed
by the Attorney-General's under groom, one Mason,
who having had a quarrel with Beard, told Lord Jersey's
porter of the matter, and the porter told Lord Jersey,
and Lord Jersey the company. Cagby received the full
price from Lord Jersey's servant for four tons. Beard
rewarded him with 3s. and a pot of beer. They were
apprehended on the 27th of August.
The jury acquitted Skinner and found Cagby guilty.
They recommended him to mercy on the ground that he
had been led into temptation by the witness Beard,
whom they thought ought to be strongly reprimanded.
The Assistant Judge agreed with the latter part of
the verdict, but not with the recommendation. He did
not think a man entitled to a recommendation who
could so easily be prevailed upon by a total stranger to
commit a very serious robbery and breach of trust. He
then sentenced Cagby to nine months' hard labour, and
with regard to Beard said his conduct was detestable,
and his expenses would not be allowed.
William, Streton Sturgis, a well-dressed man, aged 27,
was indicted for embezzling three sums of money,
amounting to 131. 3s. 6d., which he had received for
and on account of Charles John Stewart, his master.
Mr. Clarkson prosecuted ; the prisoner conducted his
own defence.

The prosecutor was a bookseller in King William-
street, Strand, and the prisoner had been in his service,
as clerk and cashier, for about seven years and a half,
his salary for the last three years and a half being 21. per
week. Suspecting that something was wrong, Mr.
Stewart fixed a day for an investigation of the accounts,
and when that day arrived the prisoner told him he need
not enter upon any such task, and then admitted that,
during the last four years, be had robbed him to the
extent of from 3501. to 400/. The prisoner had been
married about that time. The prosecutor nevertheless
went on with the investigation, and the result was that
he found that the total amount received by the prisoner
and not accounted fOr was over 6001. The prisoner left
town, with Mr. Stewart's knowledge, but subsequently
it was discovered that he had forged his master's name
to a cheque on a City banking-house, for a sum remitted
to them from the country on Mr. Stewart's account, and
that the same proceeding had been taken with a post-
office order. Upon this Mr. Stewart caused the prisoner
to be apprehended, and on the case of forgery being
gone into before a magistrate it broke down, and the
prisoner was sent for trial on three charges of embezzle-
ment.
The prisoner, in cross-examining the prosecutor, ad-
mitted his defalcations, and endeavoured to show that
Mr. Stewart had condoned his offence, and had made
the matter one of debt.

Mr. Stewart denied this, and said he certainly had no
intention to prosecute him for the embezzlements, and
the cause of his being taken into custody was the disco-
very of the forgeries.

Prisoner=What was the reason the case of forgery
broke down ?

--
.
Prosecutor—The reason was
given
'this. The magistrate
thought that because I had .vou a general au-
thority to collect and receive
money for me it was no
forgery for you to sign my nametoa banker's cheque,
and get the money and keep it.
The Assistant Judge remarked that that certainly was
an extraordinary decision, and now it was mentioned he
recollected noticing it at the time in the newspapers.
Mr. Clarkson e
surprise when hehe certainly held up his bands with
heard it at Bow-street.
The Assistant
heJudge said that it was as much as say-
ing that because a person a general authority
to receive money on
hvhie7s account, it was no forgery for
that person to write
at
his
to a cheque for all the
money be might have
The prisoner, evident' is banker's.
jurc.a The
of education and talent, addressed the
*tcte substance of what he
umn ade the thing a debt,
said was, that Mr. Stewart h
upon him that he
and that it arose very hard and
should now be pcuted. He aditsttt
the tota
but Mr. Stewart, he repeated, had treated
the deficiencies,luatryednot to give
amount as a debt due, and he asked ther
debt, but at
full credit to that gentleman's evidence.
Mr. Stewart said he never treated it as a
the time he had no intention of prosecuting for the em-
bezzlement.
The jury found the prisoner guilty.
The Assistant Judge said the case was one of the
grossest he had ever witnessed. lie sentenced the Pri-
soner to be kept in penal servitude for four years.

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT—Sept. 19.

OLD COURT.

Joseph. Legge surrendePrEeßdjtUoßTae his trial for misde-
meanor.
The circumstances under which the present charge
was was preferred were fully detailed uponthe trial
defendant two or three sessions ago, Pon which occa-
sion he was convicted, but judgmentwua was afterwards aßardlsiaroe:
re-
spited upon a technical objection taken
by
tine, who then appeared for the defendant,
_ to the form
of the indictment. The defendant, it will be remem-
bered, carried on, in partnership with his brother, the
business of an upholster at Pimlico, and upon their be-
coming bankrupts their debts to different creditors
amounted to 1,300/. and upwards. They appeared to
have had little or no capital when they commenced
business, and upon the creditors causing an inquiry to
be made it was ascertained that a very large quantity of
property had been removed to a house in York-place,
Southampton, which was occupied by a person who
went by the name of Marshall ; and upon the defendant
being examined at the Bankruptcy Court, after having
made the usual declaration required by the statute, he
stated in his examination that this Marshall was a per-
son whom he had only known for a short period, and
that lie was a speculator and had advanced him money
at different times upon the security of the furniture that
had been placed in his possession. It turned out, how-
ever, that Marshall was the father of the defendant, and
there appeared no doubt that the property had been
placed in the house at Southampton with the object of
ultimately
defrauding the creditors of it. The present
indictment erns preferred against the defendant for hav-
ing
f a fALe statement b* -e
r i .7