The Sun.
London, England, 1862-08-25 00:00:00

of love, and the cultivation of that feeling he
strongly counselled amongst all denominations of
Christians.

In connection with this bicentenary movement a
sum of considerably more than £lOO,OOO has been

raised.

Many of the clergy dwelt upon the same subject
yesterday, taking, of course, a very different view
of the matter to that urged by Mr. Binney. They
contended that the seceding clergy bad no right to
the benefices of which they held possession at the
time of the Restoration ; that their own conduct
provoked hard measures, and that with the " two
thousand" of 1662, the dissenters of the present day
could have no legitimate sympathy.

-----
THE BRITISH COLUMBIA OVERLAND
TRANSII COMPAIV.

Mr. James Henson, the Secretary to the British
Columbia Overland Transit Company, surrendered
in discharge of his recognisance before Alderman
Vinnis at the Guildhall, on Saturday, to answer the
charge of obtaining a sum of £42 under false pre-
tences, with intent to cheat and defraud Mr. Hmy
Isaac Collingwood.
Mr. Harris, of Moorgatentreet, conducted the
prosecution; Mr. Pearce, instructed by Mr. Ellis,
appeared for the defendant ; Mr. F. H. Lewis
watched the case on behalf of Colonel Sleigh ; Mr.
Whitehurst attended for the Hon. F. H. Fitz-
hardinge Berkeley, M.P., who was present and
occupied a seat on the bench ; Mr. Marden, for Mr.
H. L. Hime, the company's Canadian agent; and
Mr. Collete (firm of Prichard and Collete, the com-
pany's solicitors), for Capt. H. Edgecumbe Nicolls,
of Bootle, near Liverpool.
Mr. Coliette said a representation to the effect
that Capt. Nicolls did not repudiate his responsi-
bility having appeared in the newspapers, although
it did not transpire publicly, he was anxious, con-
sidering the great accuracy of newspaper reports,
to explain that although Capt. Nicolls gave his
consent to become a director of the British Columbia
Overland Transit Company which was then about
to be formed, he was not in any way legally
liable for the acts of Col. Sleigh, or any one else
acting in the name of the company. At the same
time he readily admitted a moral responsibility, and
would do all that could be reasonably expected of
him under the circumstances. He (Mr. Collette)
then produced the following letter, which he
thought would be important alike to the prosecu-
tion and the defence :
" West-end Bank, S.W., Thursday.
" Dear Captain Nicolls---Until I hear of the safe arrival
of my passengers in Canada, and their comfortable departure
from St. Paul's, I do not intend to send any more passen-
gers. Then next year the company can carry on the en-
terprise I have started and devoted so much time and
money to. I feel satisfied that I shall lose £5OO by . the
spec.' I hope to make it back when capital is subscribed.
I have received most gratifying lettere from my agents in
Canada. They are quite prepared for the noble 34 per U.K.
The clerk calls daily in the morning and after-
noon at 6, Copthall-court, for letters. There is no use in
continuing an expensive staff, paid out of my pocket, until
the amalgamation with the `Vest Company, is
effected, of which I hope to have intelligence shortly.—
Yours very truly, " A. SLEIGH."
Mr. Harris said that letter was really important
to the defendant, against whom he was not prepared
to carry the case any further at present.
Mr. Pearce said he would proceed to show that
the defendant was merely the clerk of Col. Sleigh,
the sole manager of the undertaking, and called
Capt, H. Wyatt, who said he had retired from
the army, and was then living at Denbigh-street,
Pimlico. He had known Col. Sleigh about three
years. He was not with Col. Sleigh when the
latter took the offices at 6, Copthall-court, but was
in attendance there almost daily for the last month
of the company's existence. He assisted Col. Sleigh
in copying letters and other documents. He had
seen money paid over to Col. Sleigh by the defen-
dant, and also by another clerk named Walker, on
two or three occasions. He had also received money
from the defendant and Walker, and taken it to
Col. Sleigh. He received letters from the colonel
directing him so to do, and he showed them to the
defendant as the authority to pay it to him. On one
occasion he received about £lOO, and on another
something less, both of which sums he handed over
to Col. Sleigh at his house. He took no receipt for
it. He did not know how much money had been
handed over to Col. Sleigh altogether. He asked
the defendant for all the money he had, and he be-
lieved the amounts he received had been paid by the
passsengers. He had nothing to do with the books,
but he had been present when Col. Sleigh paid the
clerks their salaries, and among them the defendant.
They were paid every Saturday.
Mr. Pearce asked witness if he had the books of
the company in his possession on July 29 last.
Witness said he accidentally called at the bank at
the Haymarket, and Col. Sleigh asked him as a
favour to take two parcels to his carriage, round the
corner. They were put in a cab by the porter, and
he drovelinto Suffolk-street and placed them in a
carriage, in which he saw Mrs. Sleigh. He did not
know the parcels contained books until the follow-
ing day, when defendant's brother asked him what
he had done with the books. He would not have
taken them if he had known they were books. He
had seen Col. Sleigh since.
Cross-examined—He merely had to copy letters,
&c. He declined to interfere with, the books.
There was no company. Colonel Sleigh wrote the
drafts of the letters he copied, and the defen-
dant signed them. He lent himself to the scheme
because he knew a company was to be formed, al-
though it was not registered. Of . the directors
whose names appeared in the prospectus only Capt.
Nicolls, Mr. Jadis, Mr. Starkey, and Mr. Vi Luker
attended at the offices. They attended separately,
and if Col. Sleigh happened to be out they called
again. Col. Sleigh called himself the manager, but
he was everything. The company was his, as far
as he could see. Among the books he saw a pas-
sengers' book, a ledger, a cash book, a passage
money receipt book, and a letter book. There was
no minutes book or directors' attendance book. He
used to sit in Col. Sleigh's private room as his con-
dential clerk. The receipt book was kept in that
room, and was taken away by the defendant or the
other clerks when money was to be paid in,
.and
afterwards brought back with the money and given
to Col. Sleigh. Witness received a salary of £2 per
week, defendant £2 per week, and the clerk Walker
£1 per week. He left when Col. Sleigh left. He
(the colonel) said he would not send any more ves-
sels out, and there was an end of it. There was not
much doing after the company was started. Col.
Sleigh said he would not send out any more pas-
sengers, as it did not answer his purpose. He was
induced to assist Col. Sleigh because he thought
him a talented man, and that something good would
turn up out of his speculations. He was concerned
with Col. Sleigh in establishing the Western Bank
in the Haymarket.
Re-examined—There was no wages book, and
they signed no book or receipt for their salaries. An
interval of 10 days elapsed between the occasions of
his taking the money to Col. Sleigh's house.
Edward Walker, son of one of the directors, said
he acted as clerk to Col. Sleigh at his offices in
Copthall-court from the middle of April until the
offices were closed in June. Afterwards he used
to go there daily for letters. He never knew of any
of the money received from the passengers being
returned by the defendant. The receipts were all
signed in blank by the secretary, and filled up when
the amounts were paid. When the company's offices
were closed he took the books to the bank in the
Haymarket, byCol. Sleigh's directions. The draught
from which he copied Mr. Hay ward's instructions
was in Col. Sleigh's handwriting.
Cross-examined—He never paid any money into
the bankers of the company. There were plenty of
prospectuses about the office,but the clerks were not
permitted to distribute them. Col. Sleigh directed
that none should be given out. He was only a su-
bordinate clerk, and attended to the strict letter of
his duty. He did not know why prospectuses were
printed if not to be given out. He did not know any
thing about the bona fide nature of the company,but
he might have had his suspicions in consequence of
the letters in the newspapers. The secretary was
away part of the time on private business, and in
his absence witness signed letters and other docu-
ments for him. He did everything by direction of
Coi. Sleigh. He afterwards went to the West-end
Bank, of which his father consented to act as one of
the directors. Four of the company's directors were
also directors of this bank. They were Captain
Nicolls, Mr. Samuel Starkey, Mr. N. J. Fenner,
and Mr. H. F. Jadis. There was no meeting of
directors while he was at the company's offices. No
one but Cu!. Sleigh interfered in the management.
William Henson, the defendant's brother, said he
received £1 per week as clerk to Col. Sleigh. He
was engaged on the 21st April, and on the 29th
transferred to the West-end Bank.
Cross-examined—He saw his brother acting as
secretary of this company. He had heard from Col.
Sleigh as late as the beginning of last week, as he
had called for letters for him.
Charles Lowden, porter at the West-end Bank,
said he saw Capt. Wyatt go away in the cab with
a blue bag containing a large book, on which was
a label bearing the word " transit."
Mr. Wm. Penny said he was a printer, at 57,
Lincoln's-inn-fields. On the 29th March last he
received an order from Col
. Sleigh for some pros-
pectuses, the drafts of which were in the colonel's
handwriting. On the 4th o f April he printed 500
copies ; on the sth 500 copies. On the 7th he re-
moved Mr. Mangles name, and printed 250, and on
the Bth 500 more. His bill came to £l2l, but he
had onblyergeoctei;aesdh
ea
dchequee flovr
e£B24
nfrdo
Bank.l Sleigh,
examined—That account was for a passeia.
whcicrohes.