The Sun.
London, England, 1836-09-01 00:00:00

LIVERPOOL, TUESDAY.--'-The apprehension of a gang
of coiners, said to be one of the most extensive ever known
in this kingdom, has eatiod some sensation in'this large
commercial town. The exte,lt to which they have carried.
on their operations may be judged of by the fact of its
being supposed, on good authors'*, that they were the
means of circulating counterfeit coin, ronsisting of
I.‘r.
•
sove-
reigns, half sovereigns, and every desel4/..tron of imitation
silver coin, to the amount of some thousands a year. I
Powell, the Inspector of Coins to the vii t, Img
been aware of the existence of such an estai4-h„liment in
Liverpool ; but so secretly were the plans of the coiners'
carried into operation, that for a time they bid detiolvo to
his ingenuity in detecting such offenders. A visit to Liver-
pool at the late Assizes, gave that gentleman an oppor-
tunity of making inquiries in such a manner as not to
attract general observation, and the result was, that on
Wednesday last information was obtained which left no
doubt as to the reside of the suspected party being at
No. G 2, Virgil-street, a second-rate street leading out
of the Scotland-rtiad. Mr. Powell then procured the
assistance of Mr. Parkinson, Ainsworth, Halsall, Tirtn.s-
ly.T, and Flockhait, some of the •most active officers of -
the police force of. this town ; and so soon as they had
been stationed round the house, in such a manner as to.
render a retreat by the inmates difficult, if' not impossible, a
man in the guise of a postman, with a bundle of letters in.
his hand, was sent to knock at the door. A window was
quickly throwe.'np, and a female looking out, carefully .eye't.i*
the imaginary postman, and then opened the door. Par-
kinson and Ainsworth immediately rushed into the passage,
and a loud scream from the female confirmed the suspicions
of the officers. One man made his escape by the back
door, and was taken by Ainsworth, in the act of sealing the
%vial of the neighbouring house. The other parties were
taken in the house. When the prisoners had been properly
secured the house was searched, and in the back garret was
folio(' all the r.pparatus for coining, fitted up in the most
perfect manner, and in a style far above that ordinarily used
by coiners. In the course of the search a quantity of plate,
stolen from Aldcliffe Hall, near Lancaster, the seat of E. Davy,
son, Esq., was discovered ; as also a silver cup belonging to Mr.
Sudlow, a solicitor, of Manchester, and various watches (gold
and silver), knives, spoons, forks, soup ladles, and other arti-
cles of plate not yet owned. The prisoners behaved with the
greatest nonchalance, and Isabella Arnett coolly observed, " I
suppose its all up with us, but have another tune on the

pi,;:io," and no sooner said than done—down she sat and
played the air of " Over the Water to Charlie," in a style '
which drew forth the admiration and astonishment of the
officers by whom shew as surrounded.. The house in which
the prisoners were taken, and in which they appeared to be
residing as persons living on their means, is splendidly fur-
nished, and there are few articles of comfort or convenience
with which it is not supplied.
Shortly after one
.o'clock in the afternoon, Mr. Powell
having been sent for, and 'having conferred for a few mi-
nutes with Mr. Hall, the stipendiary Magistrate, it was
decided that the case should be heard in the Magistrate's
private room, before Messrs. Hope and Hervey.'
The examination of the officers was taken, and they
stated that after the prisoners had been taken to Bride.-
well, in searching the house they found'a variety of chemical
preparations, such as bluestone, verdigris, red ochre, and
yellow ochre, with a large quantity of counterfeit coin in a
finished and unfinished state.
The examination was postponed until Wednesday.