The Sun.
London, England, 1840-11-05 00:00:00

KINGSTON PETTY SESSIONS.

(Before Mr. SHRUBSOLE and Mr. NIGHTINGALE.)
IMPUDENT ROBBERIES BY A SOLDIER.—George
Robinson, a fine-looking young man, a private in the
9:lk Lancers, was brought up in custody of the police,
charged with two distinct acts of felony, committed
under very aggravated circumstances.

Henry Lamb, apprentice to Mr. Sealcy, a bookseller
and news agent, at Kingston, deposed that on Saturday
night the prisoner came into his employer's shop, and
asked for a newspaper, and witness told him be had
not got one. He then asked to see some Bibles, and
several were shown to him, and he looked at them, but
complained of the price, and said he wanted one at
about three shillings. He at length said that he had a
comrade waiting outside, and he asked witness's permis-
sion to show two to him, and he then took two Bibles
worth nine shillings and sixpence out of the shop, and
witness believing he merely intended to show them to a
comrade as he represented, had no suspicion, but after
waiting for some time, he went out to look after him,
and he then discovered that the prisoner and the Bibles
had both disappeared, and he saw no more of him until
he found him in custody upon another charge of felony.
Mr. Fortune, another bookseller, residinc, at King-
ston, proved that shortly after the time spoken to by
the last witness, the prisoner came to his shop and
produced two Bibles, and asked him if he would pur-
chase them, and he asked eight shillings for them, and
witness ultimately bought them of him for five shillings.
A short time after the prisoner had left the shop a
circumstance, came to his knowledge which induced him
to believe that the prisoner had come by the books dis-
honestly, and he took them to Mr. Seeley's, and he im-
mediately identified them as those that had been stolen
by the prisoner. Mr. Fortune then proceeded to state
that he shortly afterwards found the prisoner in custody
upon the charge of stealing an inkstand from his shop,
and he must have effected the robbery while he was
bargaining with him nbout the bibles.

James Fortune, the son of the last witness, corrobo-
rated the evidence given by him relative to the purchase
of the Bibles, atid he said that when the prisoner came
into the shop there were three inkstands upon the
counter, close to where he stood, and immediately after
he was gone one of them was missed. Witness was
afterwards sent in search of the prisoner, and he found
him at a public-house, and asked him to go
back to his father's, as he suspected there
was something wrong about the books ; but
the prisoner refused to do so. Witness waited till the
prisoner came out of the house, and he then followed
him and saw him go into the house of Mr. Brown, a
tobacconist, where he purchased some tobacco, and then
pulled from the breast of his coat an inkstand, and
offered to sell it to Miss Brown, but she refused to pur-
chase it. When the prisoner came out of the shop,
witness gave him into custody, and the inkstand was
found concealed in his breast.

Mr. Fortune identified the inkstand, and he also
stated that soldiers frequently had such things as Bibles
given to them by their friends, and when he purchased
them of the prisoner, he told him that he should have
them back at any time, if he returned the money he
gave him for them. He should not have had the least
suspicion that the prisoner had come by them impro-
perly, if he bad not found Mr. Seeley's shop-bill in one
of them ; and upon doing so, he immediately gave him
information of the circumstance.

The prisoner said nothing in his defence, except that
the inkstand had been given to him by a girl ; and he
was fully committed upon both charges.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

GUILDHALL.

A respectable looking mechanic. named James White,
was placed at the bar before Mr. Alderman Hum-
phery, charged with robbing his master of various sums
of money.

Mr. Francis Staining said that the prisoner had been
for some time in his employment, during which he
misted a quantity of money from a till in his shop.
From some private information, he was induced to watch
the prisoner, and yesterday morning he saw him leaving
the counter very hurriedly, when a policeman, who was
in waiting, searched him, and found a skeleton key ca-
pable of picking the best patent lock. Upon going to
the prisoner's lodgings, a sum of 3/. 7s. 9d. was found,
which the prosecutor entertained no doubt belonged to
him.—The prisoner was fully committed.