The Sun.
London, England, 1849-11-21 00:00:00

POLICE

•ENCE

CLERKENWELL.
George Clarke, a boy of respectable appearance
and connexions, about 14 years of age, residing with
his parents, in Kirby-street, Hatton-garden, appeared
fore Mr. Combe, pursuant to his bail, for final exa-
mination, charged with having stabbed and wounded
Butti, aged about 14 years, son of Mr. C.
Butti, picture-frame manufacturer, of Hatton-garden,
with intent to do him some grievous bodily harm.
The injured boy appeared in court with his face
bound up with adhesive plaister and a handkerchief.
The particulars of the case have very briefly been
stated, and it may be recollected that he was unable
to attend the first examination to give evidence, in
consequence of the injuries he had received. He now
appeared, and said that on Monday night, the 12th
inst., he was near his father's residence, where he was
playing with some other boys, who asked the prisoner
to join them in a game which he declined, on which
they threatened to give him (prisoner) the " laws of
his country," when he took a penknife from his pocket
and making a rush at him (witness) stabbed him in
the face.

Mr. COMBS inquired the meaning of giving him
the laws of his country ?
It would appear from the reply that when any boy
refused to join in any game he subjected himself to
the infliction of sundry kicks, &c., from his com-
panions.
Mr. COMBE—And pray did you kick him ? Wit-
ness—Yes; but another boy kicked him twice. I was
going to kick him.
The prisoner's father here said he was a boy of
weak intellect.
A certificate from a surgeon was produced, which
stated the prosecutor to be out of danger.
A boy here said that Butti kicked the prisoner,
when the latter took the knife from his pocket and
stabbed him (Butti), who bled very much, and he was
taken to a doctor's.
Mr. CO MBE—Did the prisoner open the knife after
he took it out of his pocket ? Witness answered in
the affirmative.
Mr. CoßßE—Did he say anything at the time ?
Witness—No.
Another boy was called, who gave confirmatory
evidence in reference to the threat; to give the pri-
soner " the laws of his country" if he did not join
in the game, and the parties kicking prisoner, but he
flatly contradicted the other portions of the evidence
for the prosecution. Master Clarke, he said, had the
knife in his hand, cutting his nails, when the boys
commenced kicking him. When Butti was about to
kick him, he made a blow at him with his right
hand, and the knife was used without any intention
to do injury, and the wound was accidentally in-
flicted. When Butti was taken to the doctor's,
Master Clarke went there to ascertain if any injury
had been done. _ _ __ _ _ _

Mr. Butti, the injured boy's father, said he had
heard that the prisoner had used the knife similarly
before.
Mr. Clarke denied the truth of such statement.
Mr. COMIIE, after attentively listening to the case,
was induced to believe it to have been accidental, and
discharged the prisoner, leaving Mr. Butti to indict at
the sessions if he thought proper.
THAMES..
John Williams, an apprentice on board the Earl of
Durham, was brought up on remand, charged with
stealing, in conjunction with several apprentices of
other vessels, eight case bottles of Hollands, from the
Thomas King, now lying at the jetty in the London
Docks.
It appeared from the evidence, which was taken at
some length, that one of the apprentices of the Thomas
King, a boy apparently not more than eleven years of
age, had been in the habit of inviting several other
lads on board and treating them. to a Sunday jollifi-
cation. Amongst others was tb e prisoner, who was
caught in the fact of leaving the deck with a bottle of
Hollands on his person.
Mr. YARDLEY having heard some further evidence,
which went to show that no person was supposed to
be on board the ship at the time, expressed his sur-
prise that property to an unknown amount should be
left in so unguarded a state. It was an astonishing
fact that four or five lads should be getting drunk on
board a ship in the docks, and. no one be cognizant
of it.
Inspector White, of the Thnmes division, said that
ship keepers were generally ern ployed to watch these
vessels, but they were sometimes left without any
keepers under the general superintendence.
Mr. YARDLEY—The general superintendence

Don't tell me such stuff. Why he-re is a system
calculated above all others to make thieves and
drunkards of this class of boys. There is an utter
recklessness of property on the one hand, and of
morals on the other. Let this lad's captain be
instantly brought here.
Captain Grayson shortly after appeared, and,
giving the lad a good character, said the Earl of
Durham was a teetotal ship, but he could not account
for the lad's conduct when out of the vessel.
141 r. YARDLEY considered that captains having
apprentices ought to pay the same attention to them
whether on shore or on board. The prisoner does
ice. not seem to be the most criminal in this matter, and
- I will fins him 203., which I hope the captain will
pay, or he must be imprisoned for eight days.
Captain Grayson—l consider imprisonment the
best punishment which can be inflicted on him.
Mr. YARDLEY—I am astonished to hear you say
,34 so. You have children of your own, and taking this
lad as an apprentice, you enter into the place of a
father over him, and it is your duty to feel and act
as one towards him, and to rescue him from the
contaminating contact of prison associates.
The captain, with considerable. reluctance, ultimately
consented to pay the fine.
LAMBETH.

MariaAldred was brought up in custody of Sergeant
`2 Gooff, BL, and charged before Mr. Elliott with steal-
ing two 51. Bank of England notes, the property of
Lieutenant Alfred Cooper, of the Honourable East
India Company's service. From the evidence of Mr.
toe, Cooper, it appeared that he was stopping at the house
of his brother, in Oxford-terrace, Clapham, and that
on the night of the 13th of last month he missed two
61. notes, which he received on that day, and inquired
.
s, from the prisoner, who was then, his brother's servant,
34 if she knew anything about them. She replied in the
Is. negative, and he sent her to the person from whom he
44 had taken them, to get their date and number. On
N. her return the said she could get neither, and
1.% added that he must have lost them out of doors. On
subsequently searching for the notes, Mr. Cooper
found a number of pawnbroker's duplicates sewn
up in a silk band, but did not disturb them, and
in a few days after he also saw some more
duplicates in the prisoner's workbox, one of
which related to a watch pledged for 125., and ano-
ther for a ring pledged at Mr. 13arnett's, near the
Surrey Th3atre. He spoke again to the prisoner
about the notes, when she replied that there was no
use looking for them, as she fait certain he must have
dropped them out of doors. He, Mr. Cooper, subse-
quently called at Mr. Barnett's, where the ring was
pledged, and then discovered that the prisoner had
passed a Si. note at that shop. The prisoner was
discharged from her situation on the 3d of the pre-
sent month, and on the 7th witness called at the
pawnbroker's.
Henry Winch, shopman to Mr. Barnett, a pawn-
broker, in St. George's Circus, produced a. 5 1 . note
which he had received from the prisoner, and which
had all the appearance of being new when he took it.
The prisoner, when she passed the note, gave the name
of " Dyer," and her address, 10, Kent road.
The prisoner, in reply to the charge, said that on
the evening the notes were lost, she went out on an
errand, and on her return she found them lying on the
kerb-stone outside the door.
She was fully committed for trial.
The Count De Taxa Dembeche, the Polish im-
postor, who stood remanded from Saturday on a
charge of vagrancy, was finally examined.
The prisoner, who is a stout person of about sixty
years of age, is one of the boldest of his class, for
after knocking with the utmost authority at the street
door and asking for the lady or gentleman of the
house, he without ceremony walks into the drawing-
room or parlour, as the case may be, and causes con-
siderable alarm to the female in mates. On the pre-
sent occasion he described himself as an old French
officer lately returned from America. Horseford, the
smoecniedtiycitysinoeffiecelrB, said
32,anthde
hpardisobaneernwraespkeanto:dviny tcootmhe
-
mitted to prison as a common beggar.
Mr. ELLIOTT committed him for three months to
Guildford House of Correction.
urn

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THE NOVENIBER ASTERIODS.—These remarkable
meteors, which some years ago excited so much atten-
tion, appear to have become "matters of history." The
generally clear state of the atmosphere would have been
very favourable for observing them for some hours dur-
ing the early part of the last few evenings, but very few
have been seen. Two or three on the 11th inst., a few
more on the 12th, and a fow on the 13th, were, however,
noticed; their numbers, however., being wholly insuffi-
cient to have attracted attention. bad not their former
periodical occurrence on the corr esponding nights of this
month led to an expectation of t heir possible re-appear-
ance. One only of any brillia»cy was noticed on the
13th. The general direction clf the courses of those
seen on that and the preceding nights was from S.E. to
N. or N. W.— Durham Advertiser.