The Sun.
London, England, 1849-09-04 00:00:00

TITE

LACY INTELLIGENCE.

INSOLVENT DEBTORS' COURT, Scpt. 3.
(Before the CHIEF COMMISSIONER.)
IN RE CHARLES THROSBY.
The insolvent is an under graduate of Oxford Uni-
versity. It will be recollected that the insolvent's
debts were 764/. ; that he is the son of a gentleman
residing in Australia ; that his father had written to
his solicitors, Messrs. Young and Vallings, of St.
Mildred's-court, Poultry, authorising them to apply
to Mr. Ellis for the sum of 3001., and to apply the
same to the liquidation of his son's debts, provided
that the snm would suffice to pay them in full. His
Honour ultimately ordered the insolvent to be dis-
charged, conditionally upon the payment of a sum of
2501. into court.
Mr. COOKE, on behalf of the insolvent, now in-
formed the Court that Messrs. Young and Vallings
had, after mature deliberation, and a re-perusal of
Mr. Throsby, senior's, letter, with every desire to
arrive at a different interpretation, arrived at the con-
clusion that they were not authorised to pay the
sum on any other condition than that the payment
should give the insolvent a full release. They were
willing thus to apply the entire sum of 3001. (and
not 2501. as his Honour had named) in this manner,
and Mr. Nichols, the insolvent's solicitor, had com-
municated accordingly with the creditors. The result
was, that creditors to the amount of 546/., including
Messrs. Spiers and Son, 251. ; Mr. Prior, 1201. ; Mr.
Blackwell, 16/ ; Mr. Symonds, 30/. ; Mr. Slatter,
101 ; Mr. Richardson, 161.; Messrs. Herbert and
Co., 10/. ; Mr. Simpson, 21/. ; Mr. Fowke, 15/. ; Mr.
Warner, 161.; Mr. Totty, 40/.; Mr. Fletcher, 601.;
Mr. Sandilands, 40/. ; Miss Maye, 251.; Dr. Price,
201.; and Mr. Hill, 601., had intimated their willing-
ness to accept the same, and give the desired release.
A few other creditors, of whom Mr. Randall, hatter
and draper, was the principal one, had not acceded to
the proposal. He (Mr. Cooke) had therefore to re-
quest his Honour would give judgment upon the
case. R was much to be regretted that the whole of
the creditors had not accepted the offer that had been
made; they would have been paid 7s. in the pound at
once, and they would have had a claim upon the
insolvent, as a man of honour, to pay the remaining
13s. in the pound, should he hereafter be in possession
of means to do so. _

-- ------ -- __.
The COMMISSIONER suggested whether Messrs.
Young and Vallings might not reconsider their de-
cision. The discharge which he (the Commissioner)
would pronounce, would give a full release to the in-
solvent, with the exception that the creditors might
hereafter apply to the Commissioners of that court in
the event of the insolvent becoming possessed of pro-
perty. The discretion whether the insolvent should
then be required to pay the remaining part of the
debt would then rest with the Court.
Mr. Coos E explained how the debtor would
remain subject to annoyance, and be virtually at the
mercy of any creditor, by obtaining such a conditional
release.

The COMMISSIONER inquired of Mr. Randall what
course he now felt called upon to pursue ?
Mr. RANDALL said he would place himself in his
Honour's hands. He had suffered a great deal by
imputations that had been cast upon him for his con•
duct. The insolvent, in his schedule, had made a
statement which was untrue. He had attributed his
insolvency to him (Mr. Randall), saying that it was
owing to his suing him, and not waiting the receipt
of a communication from his father, that he had been
compelled to petition that court.
Mr. CooaE explained the remark, and said the in.
solvent was willing to correct it.
After some further discussion, Mr. Randall said he
was willing to accept 7s. in the pound, provided he
had a claim for the remaining 13s. in the pound,
should the insolvent become possessed of property
some ten or fifteen years hence. He had been in-
formed that the insolvent's father was a very wealthy
man. The insolvent's expenditure with the Oxford
tradesmen had been such that it could not with pro-
priety be said that they had encouraged him in habits
of extravagance. His expenditure with them had not
exceeded 1351. a year.
The COMMISSIONER said that on this subject he had
made some remarks on the occasion of former hear-
ings. Ile did not at the time wish them to be severe ;
but ha saw no reason to retract anything that he had
then said.

After some further discussion, the Learned Com-
MISSIONER reminded Mr. Randall of what he had
said respecting his willingness to leave his case in his
hands, and suggested that the best course for all
parties would be to accede to the offer that had been
made.

Mr. Randall intimated that he could not accede to
any proposal that would give the insolvent an unqua-
lified release.
His HONOUR said that cases had occurred in that
court where debtors, after a lapse of twenty or thirty
years, had honourably placed the means of paying
their creditors in full in the hands of the Court, and
obtained the dismissal of their petitions, and appealed
to Mr. Randall whether it might not be the best
course to trust to the honour of the insolvent and his
friends ?

Air. RANDALL said he had others to consult, and
could not at present adopt the suggestion of the Court.
The Learned COMMISSIONER then said that he
would defer giving his judgment until the 17th inst.
He had thrown out to Mr. Randall his opinion of
what he should do, and he was willing to hope that
the pain consequent upon a judgment might yet be
spared.
Adjourned to 17th inst. accordingly.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
GUILDHALL.

Yesterday Eliza Stillman, aged 14, of No. 7,
Holborn-buildings, and Margaret Gray, the mother,
were charged before Alderman Challis, the former
with having a gown and shawl in her possession which
had been stolen on the 21st of June, and the latter
with receiving the same knowing them to be stolen.
Mr. Robinson defended the prisoners.
Mr. James Cole, of 92, Shoe-lane, Fleet-street,
coffee-housekeeper, stated, that while passing over
Blackfriars Bridge the previous evening, he met Eliza
Stillman with two other girls, who passed him, when
he instantly recognised that the younger prisoner had
on his wife's gown and shawl, which had been stolen,
with other things, on the 21st of June. He accord-
ingly followed her until a policeman came up, when
she was given into custody, and taken to the station,
house, when she at first said she bought the gown at
Mr. Meeking's, in Holborn, some months back, but
afterwards said that her mother gave it to her.
Alderman Cmuus—What do you charge the
mother with ?

Mr. Cole—As a receiver, knowing it to be stolen.
Alderman CHALLIS—How do you prove that ?
Mr. Cole—Why, the mother confesses that she
bought them of a man in the street.
Alderman CHALLIS—Did you ever see them before?
Mr. Cole—l recollect their faces, but cannot sav
positively. The shawl I value at 10s., although it cost
31., and the gown at 1/.
Alderman CHALLIS—How do you identify them?
Mr. Cole—Because there is a stain left when my
wife slipped down one day in Battersea-fields.
Cross-examined by Mr. ROBINSON—There is a side
door in a court, and any one besides the lodgers could
go up stairs. I might not take particular notice if I
heard any one going up. I don't know either of the
prisoners, but recollect their faces. The mother said
she would go to the station with me and the officer,
and went accordingly.
Mrs. Cole identified the gown and shawl as her
property, and said that she saw it safe at ten o'clock
in the morning, and found at a few minutes before one
o'clock that one of the rooms had been stripped of a
great number of things.
Henry Mills, 352, said he took the prisoner Still-
man to the station, when she said her mother had
given them to her. He afterwards went to Mrs.
Gray's, and was immediately admitted, and on
searching the place could find nothing which the pro-
secutor could identify. The mother said she had
purchased them from a man who stopped her in
Chancery-lane. and asked her if she wished to buy
them, and said they might fit her daughter. She
gave him 75., and 4d. to get a pot of beer.
Mr. ROBINSON addressed the Alderman, and said
that nothing was more likely than that the elder pri-
soner had spoken the truth, as nothing was more
comniGn than for Jews or low hawkers to stop people
in the streets and ask them to buy. There could be
no doubt the gown and shawl were stolen from Mr.
Cole's house, but there was such ready access to it
that the man who sold the articles to Mrs. Gray
might have been there for aught they knew.
Alderman CHALLIS—Why does the mother bear a
different name to the daughter?
Mr. ROBINSON said that the daughter was a second
child by her first husband.
Alderman CHALLIS asked if there were any wit-
nesses to character ?
Mr. ROBINSON said there were, and called a num-
ber of them, who stated that they had known the
mother for more than eleven years, and some of them
thirty, as a most hard-working, industrious woman,
carrying on the trade of a laundress, and that the
daughter was in the service of a house in the Old
Bailey, as a bookfolder, and nothing like an irnputa-
lion had been thrown upon their characters for
honesty. It was also proved, as a sign of innocence,
that the daughter had been constantly wearing the
gown and shawl, which would not have been likely
had they a guilty knowledge. A letter was also
handed up from the girl's employer giving_
dher
_an ex-
cellent character,
and saying t
at h.
back again into his service, so shout take her
convinced was he of her
innocence.
Alderman CHALLIS said, that he could not help
thinking that the prisoners had spoken the truth,
and
the excellent characters they had received went to
confirm that opinion, and therefore he would dis-
charge them ; but at the same time he hoped this would
be a warning to them not to purchase second-band