The Sun.
London, England, 1825-09-05 00:00:00

PRICE STArENI',ENCt.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

BENEFIT SOCIETIES.

Wronsit P-ST It EET. —A case invoicing a question of great
importance to the members of Benefit Societies was some days-
ago brought ,before .fir. TWYFORD and Mr. OsßoawE at
this office—namely whether a person convicted of a fraud upon
the Revenue, and imprisoned for non-payment of the penalty.
should considered as a prisoner for debt or for fraud. Tho.
folloWing were the.eircumstancei of the ease : • e • '
WilliaM Griffiths, a member of the " Friend-in-Need" Be-
nefit Society, Chisteill-street, was aboitt four months since con--
victed Under the Revenue Laws of illicit Distillation, and being
unable topay the penalty 2001., was confined in IVhitecross-:
street-prigon, where he still remains. -By a rule of the Society
a member. is entitled to a certain weekly allowance from the
funds, during sickness, or imprisonment for a just debt ; but
another article of the rule provides that any Member convicted
of treaeob, sedition, felony, fraud, or crime of any other kind,
whereby he shall lose his liberty, shall be excluded from the
benefits of the Society, and forfeit all the money lie may have
paid to its funds.
Griffiths having made application to the secretary, claiming
-the impri:o-nment allowance, the latter promised to lay the case
before the society, at the same time expressing his opinion that
they would consider it as within the exceptions, and exclude
hint. Upon these eepresentations of the secretary, Griffiths,
unwilling to incur the danger of exclusion withdrew his claim,
and having- afterwards claimed the sick alloWance, he upon the
same representations .froni the secretary, withdrew that alseL
His wife having lately died, he again made application, and
claimed the sum of money allowed by the society to a member
in such an .event, for burial expenceg: , The Secretary, how-
ever, resisted his claim, and, accorimmiled by a .female as ad-
vocate tOr the imprisoned member, came to the office to ascer-;
tain -the opinion of the Magistrate on the question.
' The. secretary. (Mr. Godfrey, an Undertaker of Chiswell-•
street) contended that the fraud of which Griffiths had been
convicted, and his imprisonment for non-payinent of the ne-
nalty, brought him clearly within the cases for exclusion from
the society. He felt much for that person individually, he
said, but the question was one of such great importance to the
society that he felt bound to resist the clainiA., •
The female, on the contrary, urged that Grfffiths was not
for fraud, but merely becatise he could trot pay his
debt to the Crown. The prison in which he was confined, she
said, was a receptacle for debtors only; and for any other of-
fence they were removed to other prisons.
The Magistrates having heard the circumstances of • the
ease, and perused the rules, Were decidedly of opinion that
Griffiths was not imprisoned for a fraud such as contemplated
by the rules.
The Secretary begged the Magistrates would take time for •
consideration before they pronounced such a decision • for it
was a queition of the utmost importance, not only to this, but
to all other Benefit Societies. It would be a hard case, he
said, that their ftinds should be made to operate as au induce.;
riient for, unlaWfully making whisky, which would be the case,
if thky were compelled to pensiOn people during their imprison.:
tient for such an offence.
Mr. OSBORNE said, the expression of the rules was, " a
Member convicted of felony, fraud, or any crime whereby he
shall lose his liberty, by Which was meant; whereby he in-:
curred a sentence of imprisonment for a definite period ; but
in this case the man was not imprisoned for the fraud, but foe
the non-payment of a sum of money, a debt, anti he need
not suffer imprisonment one moment after that debt was paid.
The Secretary said, the question was of such importance to
the society, that if the magistrate came to- stich :a conclusion,
they would be obliged to carry it to the sessions.
The Magistrates said they had no doubt on the subject ; their
opinion was decidedly in favour of the member's claim, and Mr.
TIVYfoRD, having consulted the Act of Parliament, informed
the Secretary, that in this case there was no appeal allowed
from the decision of the magistrates. The regular course was,
for the magistrates to make order for payment of the money,
and if that were resisted, a warrant of distress must issue. The
only remedy the society would then have was, by an action for
dairiages.
The Secietary then begged for a postponement of the deci-,
sion for a few days, in order that he might communicate with
his society on the subject.
The Magistrate said they were then prepared to decide in
favour of the claimant, and would only consent to let the case
stand over, on the condition that the secretary should indem-
nify the female fbr the amount of the funeral 'expellees, for
which she had passed her tvoed.
The matter being so' arranged, the parties retired, Mr.
TWY tom) desiring the female to inform the member that the
Magistrates were prepared to decide in his favour.
Since that time the case has been laid before the Society, and
they, taking into consideration the strong opinion expressed,
haVe consented to admit the whole of Gedfiths's claims on the
funds of the Society.