The Sun.
London, England, 1841-10-13 00:00:00

WESTMINSTER SESSIONS.

The Court ►net at threw o'clock yeAterday (Tuesday)
for the purpose of renewing and granting music licences,
and for other general business. _

Music licences were renewed to the following places :
The Haauver-square Rooms; the Lowther Assembly-
rooms, Strand ; the Grapes, Old Compton street ; the
Duchess of Clarence, Vauxhall Bridge-road ; the Cath-
erine Wheel, Great Windmill-street; the Windsor Castle,
Long Acre ; the Crown and Still, Clare-market ; the
Two Angels and Crown, Upper St. Martin's-lane ; the
Swan Tavern, Hungerford-market ; and the Prince's
Theatre, King-street, St. James's.
An application for a music licence for the Bclgrave
Tavern, Elizabeth-street, Pimlico, was made on behalf of
Mrs. Rebecca Hodgson, and granted by the Court.
The Report of the Visiting Justices of the New
Bridewell was then read—the Report of the Committee
of Account, and the Annual Return of the Governor of
the Bridewell.

The Report of the Visiting Justices stated that the
Bridewell was in a clean and healthy state ; the number
of prisoners confined was 287, viz., 167 males, and 120
female. 3. Since the introduction of the new dietary, the
number of patients in the Infirmary, had considerably
diminished, and from the dates of the last Report there
had been only one death.
. _ . .

After some further routine bu3iness had been disposed
of the Court a'ijourned.

POLICE INTELLU2ENCE.
MANSION-HOUSE.

Policeman William Knox, No. 421, was brought before
the Lord Mayor, by Sergeant Vale, No. 403, by the di-
rection of the City Police Commissioner, to answer for
the offence described in the following evidence :
Sergeant Vale stated that as he was passing along
Cannon-street, at a quarter before twelve o'clock on the
preceding night, he saw the defendant and another
policeman in a puLlic-house, and said to him when he
came out, " You can't deny, now, that you were in a
public-house." The defendant said that he had not been
drinking., and offered to bet five shillings that it could
not be proved that he had been drinking. Witness re-
fused to lay any wager, and the defendant put himself in
a boxing attitude, and, after using very provoking lan-
guage, struck him in tile face three or four times, not
with any degree of violence, but evidently for the pur-
dose of inducing him to strike.
The LORD MAYOR (to the defendant)—What
have you to say for having committed this folly ?
The defendant said that he certainly did go into the
public-house with another policeman, a gentlman hay-
idg given them two-pence a-piece to pay for something
to drink, as the night was so bad. As, however, the
other policeman was intoxicated, the publican refused to
serve the man, and he (defendant) then refused to be
served, and walked out, when he was charged by the
complainant with having been drinking, which he imme-
diately said was a falsehood. Provoked by the charge,
he did, he admitted, put himself into a boxing attitude
before the complainant, but he solemnly denied having
given a single blow.
The LORD MAYOR—Bu t why did you put yourself in
a boxing attitude ? Dependant—l was greatly irritated
at the charge ; but I did not touch him. _ _

Sergeant' Vale—He struck me three or four times on
the cheek with his shut fist, but he did not hurt me.
His object was to excite me to strike him. I took him
into custody. He has been reported before for fighting.
Defendant—l have never been reported fur drinking
in my life, at any rate. The sergeant was himself in the
house twenty minutes before.

Sergeant -Vale—Yes, but that was on business, as the
publican is here to prove. _ .

- The Lotto NfAYo- a—l have nothing to do with. that.
I have merely to decide with regard to the, assault.
Defendant—l have a wife and two children, my Lord,
and I hope you will take that into conAideration.
The LORD M.t.vort—l tiny you ten shillings for the
assault. The Commissioner knows how to deal with
you as to what does not come under my cognizance.
The night was certainly a very severe one, and a man
might be excused for looking for shelter anywhere.
_ _

Two young rn:m named Shaw, alias William '✓lonics,
and Watkins, alias George Dar) ah, were brought up fur
final examination, on a charge of having uttered a base
half-crown piece in the shop of Mrs. Abrahams, tobac-
conist, in Sun-street, Bishopsgate. 'The conduct of the
prisoners, who are notorious dealers in bad money, hav-
ing beelfdeAperate, the Lord Mayor requested that Mr.
Powell, of the office of the Solicitor to the Mint, would
attend, to ascertain whether there might not be suffi-
cient evidence to justiey a committal, although one of
them had succeeded, by swallowing the base coin, in
putting out of reach a part of the usual evidence con-
sidered necessary to establish a conviction.
William Hoddy (policeman No. 652) stated that he
saw the prisoners, whom he knew to be very bad cha-
racters, look into several shops in Sun-street, and at
length enter, one after the other, into the shop of
Mrs. Abrahams, who was alone. After they left the
shop witness. entered and soon learned that the poor
woman had given them change for a bad half-crown.
He immedately pursued them, and with the assistance of
a sergeant, apprehended, and brought them back to the
shop, where Mrs. Abrahams identified them. Witness
then desired her to mark the half crown, and at the same
moment Shaw cried our " gnash it," and Watkins, with
great violence, grasped Mrs. Abrahams arm, snatched
tho bad money, put it in his mouth, and some persons
having rushed in to the assistance of the prisoners, sue-
ceededin swallowing it, after which he said to witness,
" Its down."

Mr. Powell regretted that the evidence was not suffi-
cient, for he had known the prisoners to be incorrigible
smashers for a length of time.
Mrs. Abrahams said that she could not guess how the
policeman escaped serious injury, for a hundred people
rushed into the shop and quite overwhelmed him..
Sergeant Burrell (No. 602) corroborated this part of
the policeman's conduct, which he witnessed in the shop,
and secured one of the prisoners. He found upon each a
quantity of good money.
The LORD MAYOR asked whether either of the pri-
soners struck the policeman ? Policeman Hoddy said he
could not say that he received a blow.
The LORD MAYOR—Did the prisoners resist you ?
Policemau Hoddy—Certainly they
The LORD MAYOR—I consider that they have been
guilty of a high misdemeanor in assaultint, Mrs. Abra-
hams and resisting the police, and I shall commit them
if they do not find good bail

Mr's. Abrahams :said that she was very poor, and had
been greatly plundered by persons like the prisoners.
Mr. Hobler suggested the propriety of directing. the
City Solicitor to prosecute the prisoners, who were expe-
rienced hand 3, and knew how to get out of ordinary dif-
ficulties.

The LORD MAYOR immediately desired that in-
structions should be sent to the City Solicitor on the
subject, and mentioned that he had been given to under-
stand that many cases Of swallowing both good and bad
money had proved fatal to those who got rid of prosecu-
tions in that way.
Mr. Powell said that he was acquainted with various
cases in which the swallowing of good as well as bad
money had produced ulceration of the stomach, and ab-
cess of tho intestines, which ended in death. One of
the individuals he alluded to (Thomas Seeley) had swal-
lowed seven good half-crowns, and died in great agony
of intestinal abcess.

Tito prisoners seemed, by their countenances, to deny
the efficiency of such a mode of getting rid of life.
They did not at all contradict anything that had been
uttered against them, but stood cAutionsly and steadily
at the bar, and perfectly comprehended the whole of the
proceedings.

BO TV-STREET.
Alfred French, a money-taker at the Olympic, was
yesterday placed at the bar, charged by Mr. Wild, the
lessee of that theatre, with having last night " bolted "
with all the money that he had taken at the pit door up
to half-past nine o'clock.
Mr. Wild stated that the prisoner bad been recom-
mended to him by Mr. Pearse, the coach-builder of
Long-acre, for whom his father had worked for twenty
years past. He had first been employed in the capacity
of a check-taker, and was last night, for the first time,
promoted to the post of money-taker at the pit door.
About half-past nine it was discovered that he bad left
his post, and on examination it was found that he had
taken with him all tlze money that had been received
up to that time, which, according to the number (229)
of checks which he had passed, amounted to 11/. 9s, It

o v

uailltane

theaire went up eafi
tell them where he could find the prisoner, he should
himself be taken into custody. , The young man skid
he believed he would find him at the White Hart, in
Fetter-lane. The officer accordingly went to that house,
and found him drinking there in company with several
other persons.
Mr. Wild said he understood that the prisoner had
been led away by getting drunk with some of his compa-
nions, and he wished him to be leniently dealt with.
Mr. HALL said there was but one course to pursue,
which was to send the prisoner for trial. He had no
power to inflict a light punishment. People were too
ready in giving characters to persons without knowing
whether they deserved them or not, as appeared in the
present case. It was certainly a cheaper mode of re-
lieving a person, to get him employment by giving him a
character, than to give him money. But it was a prac-
tice which could not be justified. The Magistrate asked
the prisoner how he lad been employed' previously to
going into Mr. Wild's service ? The prisoner (crying)
—I was a lawyer's clerk for seven years and a-half, then
a light porter, and subsequently a waiter at a cook-shop.
Mr. HALL-It is a case which I must notice. The
prisoner, whose character I fear has been rather loose,
runs off with money entrusted to his care the very first
night he is employed. I should recommend you, Mr.
Wild, both for your sake and for the sake of others, to
follow it up. To do so will have a good effect, whatever
may be your own feelings.
The Magistrate then directed the evidence to be
taken, and said he should send the prisoner to the Old
Bailey for trial.
The, officer who took the prisoner in Fetter-lane, stated
that on asking him what he had done with the money
which he had taken at the pit door, he said, "Oh, it's in
my pocket all right enough ;" but on searching him he
found only 8/. 19s. 6d., instead of ill. 9s. The remain-
der of the money had been spent in drinking, or made
away with by other means.
Mr. HALL said, to make the case complete the attend-
ance of the check-taker and the person who opened the
box from which the 229 checks were taken would be ne-
cessary, and the prisoner was locked up for the present,
in order that they might he forthcoming.