The Sun.
London, England, 1841-01-21 00:00:00

TIitTIiNDAV._JANIYARA.7 21, 14411

THE NitIRDEA OF MR. WEST

WOOD.

Under the above head some particulars have recently
been given of the trial, conviction, and subsequent sen•
fence of transportation of a person at the Hull sessions,
who was suppossd to have been concerned in the above
murder. A sort of contradiction was afterwards given,
but the matter was not at all placed in its true light.
The following particulars in connection with the subject
have been obtained by a correspondent from a source
that may be relied upon. It has been ascertained that
the individual in question, a few years ago, carried on
the business of a watchmaker at Kingston, and having
not into his possession a number of watches to repair, he
decamped with them, and went to London, and when
the hue and cry after him had in some degree subsided,
he allied himself with some of the gambling fraternity,
and was part proprietor of a gaming-house in Leices-
ter-square. Soon afterwards he became acquainted
with the female who was with him at Hull, and who
passed for his wife, deserte l his own wife, took up
with her, and they proceeded together to Hull,
where the fraud and felony were committed which
led to the prisoner's conviction and sentence. There
appears to be no doubt that finding himself in this
predicament, and desiring to be revenged on the woman,
who was to some extent instrumental in his conviction,
he concocted the story lie did, with a view to deceive
the Magistrates, and being aware that the work; of
many of the watches he had taken from Kingston were
still in the possession of the female in question, at their
joint lodging, he made use of the circumstance in sup-
port of his deception. The story of the prisoner, which
was taken down in writing at the gaol, in presence of
one of the Magistrates, was to the following effect :
Ile states that Mr. Westwood was in the habit of going
to bed at an early hour after the shop was shut up, and
that the woman with whom he (prisoner) lived used to
go and visit the old gentlemen afterwards, and it was
she who first proposed the robbery, but nothing was said
about murder. It was ultimately arranged that after
the women had gone into the house to the old man,
that he and two other men should be let into the
premises, and that they should strip them of all
the valuable prsperty which they contained. He
then went on to state that everything was ar-
ranged, and on the night en which the robbery
and murder took place, that he was to have
been at the house at a certain hour to assist in
the robbery, but when he got there he found the
woman and a man, who was one of the party, in the
act of putting the watches into a bag, and when they
had placed a great number in the bag it was banded to
-him, and be was told to make the best of his way from
the place, and this, according to his statement, was all
the share he had in the transaction, and he declared
that he knew nothing of Mr. Westwood having been
murdered and robbed until after the account of the
murder was made public. lie went on to state that the
cases were immediately removed from the works of the
watches, and melted down and sold, and the proceeds
divided between the parties, and a portion of the
works of some of the watches were left in his posses-
sion, and he brought them with him to Hull, and, as
he alleged, were still in the possession of the woman at
his lodging. This was the substance of the story told
by the prisoner, and in consequence of what he said a
search was made, and the works of a number of watches
were found ; but it has been satisfactorily ascertained
that these watches never belonged to Mr. Westwood,
and there is every reason to believe that they are the
same originally stolen by the prisoner from Kingston,
and that the whole of the story told by him referring
to the murder of Mr. Westwood was trumped up by
bun in the hope that he should thereby escape trans-
portation. The prisoner has since been sent to the hulks
in pursuance of his sentence.

HIGHWAY ROBBERY, WITH VIO-

LENCE, NEAR \VIGAN.

A highway robbery, accompanied with considerable
violence, was committed in the neighbourhood of Wigan,
during the night of Thursday last. Mr. Coupe,
bleacher, of Haigh, after spending the evening with a
few friends, at the house of Mr. Isaac Ogden, pub-
lican, in Scholes, quitted that house between twelve
and one o'clock, to proceed to his own residence at
Haigh, distant about two miles. Mr. Coupe, though
somewhat under tEe !influence of liquor, was by no
means deprived of his faculties of observation or recol-
lection. While pursuing his way up Roger-lane, which
is situated between a public-house called the " Von
Blucher" and his own residence, a man suddenly
rushed upon him, and instantly knocked him down,
but by what means he could not tell. The man
then fell upon him with great force, and proceeded to
riff: his pockets, which, however, contained only a few
pence. Mr. Coupe, on recovering from the stunning
effect of the blow which had felled him, resisted the
robber, and a desperate struggle ensued, which lasted
for some tme ; but at length Mr. Coupe was over-
powered, and completely deprived of sensibility by his
murderous antagonist kicking him in the most savage
manner tepeatedly on the head and face. On recovering
from the state of insensibility induced by these brutal
injuries, Mr. Coupe was discovered by a man well known
in the neighbourhood mak:: the cpacanen of "Sam."_
who, knowii g Mr. Coupe, conducted him to the" Von
Blucher," that being the nearest house. Here Mr.
Coupe discovered that his neck and face were covered,
and his shirt and clothes saturated with blood ; of
which he must have lost a considerable quantity. As
his hat had been. knocked off, and lost in the struggle
with the highwayman, Mr. Coupe requested Sam to
go back to the spot and search for it. Shortly after-
wards, while Sam was absent, a knock was heard at
the door ; and this, not being at first attended to, was
repeated ; on which Mr. Coupe desired a lad, the only
individual left up in charge of the house to open the
door, supposing that Sam had returned. On the door
being opened, a man entered, taking off his hat, and
depositing it somewhere.in the lobby, while he went for-
ward to the fire where Mr. Coupe was seated. One
glance at the intruder sufficed to assure Mr. Coupe that
w
shoe
~ahgoain
r tlysaw
before
before
bee
been
him the v
engaged
ill a in
in
(i
ewa
di with
conflict.loi m lie
With
it
h
the natural feelings which such a recognition might be
expected to awaken, Mr. Coupe sprung upon the fel-
low ; and, notwithstanding he was again assailed with
severe blows and kicks, inflicting additional wounds, he
succuded in keeping his hold of the ruffian, until some
of the inmates of the house, roused from their slumbers
by the noise of the conflict, came to his aid, and the
man was secured. The hat was then brought from the
lobby, and proved to be that of Mr. Coupe, the lining
having been torn out of it subsequent to the highway
robbery. The prisoner threw a handkerchief into the
fire which he had had wrapped round his body ; but
this was snatched from the fire before-it was materially
damaged, and was identified by Mr. Coupe as his own.
A policeman was then sent for, into whose charge the
prisoner was delivered, and by whom he was recognised
as a fellow of bad character, a native of Wigan, named
James Bolton.

'rho Magistrates, after hearing the whole of the evi-
dence, committed the prisoner for trial on the charge of
highway robbery.
We are glad to hear that Mr. Coupe is in a satisfac-
tory state of progress towards recovery from the effects
of the injuries he received in his double conflict with
the prisoner.

ONE hANN Or ISSUE.

The principle obstacles to the establishment of one
Bank of Issue are thus enumerated by Mr. Gilbart :
‘. We think the country Banks of Issue will have no
difficulty in showing that numerous issuers are a check
upon each other by the system of exchanges, which can-
not apply to a single issuer—that, were there a single
issuer, there would be no greater security against undue
fluctuations in the amount of currency than in the case
of numerous issuers—that a currency conducted on a
principle of being regulated by the foreign exchanges is
wholly unsuitable to our agricultural, manufacturing,
and mining operations—that a currency administered by
one Bank of Issue could not be distributed as at present,
in a manner adapted to the local circumstances and dis-
tricts of the country--that the assistance now given, to
trade and industry by country bankers would be much
curtailed or attended with heavier charges to the parties,
operating as a tax upon the middle classes of the com-
munity—and that in some districts banks, or branches
of banks, would be discontinued from inability to pay
their expenses in case they had no longe: the profit upon
the issue of notes. and those districts would thus be
depris ed of all banking accommodation. It may also
be maintained that a sole Bank of Issue would soon
become more powerful than the Government, and might
be abused to the worst purposes of either tyranny or
faction."

The political evils that may result from a sole Bank
of Issue have been too much overlooked. Were the
whole currency issued by a Government bank, or by a
bank closely connected with the Government, might not
a foreign power, by getting possession of a few million of
our notes, paralyze the national energies at a moment
when the exercise of those energies would be most re-
quired? Or might not a political party attempt to em-
barrass the Government by making a run of gold ? This
would be no new event. A run for gold on the Irish
banks took place in 1381, when the Government com-
menced a prosecution against Mr. O'Connell ; and
another in 1833, during the passing of Earl Grey's Co-
ercion Bill. A run was made on the Bank of England
in 1832, during the passing of the Reform Bill ; and
large sums were drawn in gold from the Sa%ings Banks
in 1838 by the Chartists, actuated solely by political
motives. A contraction of the currency occasioned by
these means would admit of no remedy, for it is a part
of the system that the bank shall issue no notes except
upon a deposit of gold. Another evil would be, that
whenever distress was produced by a contraction of the
currency, it would be ascribed directly to the Govern-
ment, and hence would ensue popular discontent and
insubordination. Sir Robert Peel seemed alivo to these
dangers. He wished to ascertain if Mr. Loyd were
friendly to a Government currency, convertible into
gold upon demand. Mr. Loyd answered with his usual
wariness. Sir Robert was baffled, and gave up the pur-
suit.—Westminster Review.

THE STATE CHURCH.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

Stn,—Knowing the strong light in which you justly
view the arrogant assumptions of the Ecclesiastical Es-
tablishment of England, I am induced to address you a
few lines on the subject.
I believe there is no nuisance which the people of
these countries are more called upon, as a duty to both
God and man, to get rid of than what calls itself the
Church of England. But, Sir, this nuisance is not to
be abated merely by getting rid of the Bishops in the
House of Lords ; nor will it be sufficient to abolish the
Ecclesiastical Courts, which exercise a tyrannical and
arrogant authority, in the name of a sect, over those
Englishmen who disclaim and disdain its communion.
No, Sir, the ramifications of this iniquity are spread all
over the land. Thus the Parish Minister, being Chairman
of all Vestry meetings composed of persons of all reli-
gious denominations, gives of necessity a rank to the sect
to which he belongs, while it attaches to himself a po-
litical weight and influence that is incalculable.
Let then the Bishops be sent out of the House of
Lords. Let the Ecclesiastical Courts be abolished.
Let the Ministers of the Moloch or King-Supreme
Head of the Church Heresy be thrown for support
upon the resources of their own flocks, and let
the parochial divisions which were borrowed from the
Church be changed into territorial communes which
shall choose annually a chairman, and then the different
sects will be placed on an equality.
Another point which I would allude to is the Prero•
gative Courts, wherein the property of the country as
disposed of by will, passes as it were through the hands
of Dr. Tooley, who is ignorantly made to call every exe-
cutor or administrator who takes out letters of adminis-
tration, be be Jew, Infidel, or Mahommedan, " his
beloved Son." All those monstrosities had in-
deed their origin in the Church, as according to
the primitive principle of community of goods,
no Christian was supposed to keep back from
the Christian Voluntary Association any portion of his
worldly goods. It was usual, however, for him to de-
clare his wish or will how they should be disposed of,
and the Bishop, in a friendly manner, took care to have
such wish or will carried into effect. This might answer
all very well for their own community, but what has it
to say to the devising of the effects of the whole people
at a nation ?_ Such a tyranny_ is
_intolerable, and
should long since have been swept away in England as
it was in Scotland, where they substituted the Com-
missary for the Ecclesiastical Courts.
Let me add one further advantage in doing away
with the ecclesiastical establishments, namely, that this
would promote the complete amalgamation of the
people, as it is, no doubt, a great cause of disunion to
have two different establishments at either side of the
Tweed, and an anomalous bayonet-upheld Ecclesiasti-
cal Establishment at the other side of the Channel,
which is very justly represented as one of the grievances
of the Irish people, and to get rid of which I would
heartily join in a repeal, if no other way could be found
for accomplishing it.
I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
WILLIAM VILLIERS SANKEY.