The Sun.
London, England, 1841-04-14 00:00:00

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT

OLD COURT.
(Before the RECORDER.)
Louisa. 'Valentine, a respectable looking female of
middle age, was indicted for stealing a jacket of the
valti:e of thirty shillings, the property of Edward Cooke.
Mr. Phillips appeared for the defence.

The prosecutor stated that, on the 25th March, he
sent his wife to pawn the jacket in question, and on her
return the duplicate was placed in a small box on the
mantle-shelf, and it was missed the next day. The pri-
soner was present when his wife returned, and she was
aware of the place where the duplicate was deposited,
and no other person could have taken it.
The witness upon cross-examination said that he was
sure no person was in the room but the prisoner, ex-
cept his brother, a youth fifteen years of age. His wife's
name was Valentine, but the prisoner was no relation to
her. His wife's father was at present in London, but
he did not know where he lived. He said that he ' never
heard the prisoner was married to his wife's father, and
more, that such a circumstance wasnever.hinted to him.
He was not aware that the prisoner had been on the
look out for him to charge him with bigamy. The pri-
soner had never asked him to give the address of his
wife's father. He could not say how the prisoner came
by the name of Valentine. The witness was then fur-
ther cross-examined at some length, and he prevaricated
very much, and made several contradictory statements.
Charlotte Cooke, the wife of the prosecutor, con-
firmed his statementin some particulars. Upon cross-
examination she swore that she had never heard that the
prisoner was married to her father ; and she said also,
that it never struck her as an odd circumstance that
the prisoner should go by her father's name, and she
denied that she had heard of any intention on the part
bigamy.
said that
of the prisoner
inquired
di nfdnire th
ehrer.fatherfather,
andfor
prisoner
and she told
herha d
father some
whendocuments
sh
inquiring after him, she
a ns saw him,
ee nsgali Edi
ilteaotdiail
di m
not; woman
.w want
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her. The witness likewise swore that she did not know
where her father resided.

A boy named Cooke, a relative of the prosecutor, was
then called, and in cross-examination he said that the
person who had been alluded to by the witnesses ai the
wife's father was at that time living with them, and had
done so ever since he had returned to England, and that
they had been with him that morning. Another cu-
rious fact also came out. It appeared that the pawn-
broker in the case expressed his opinion that the pri-
soner was the person who had redeemed the jacket, but
he said that at the time she did so she appeared to have
lost several teeth ; and when the prisoner was taken
into custody several loose teeth were found in a
purse in her pocket. The prisoner's mouth was
subsequently examined, and it was found that
she had no necessity for any false teeth, and
that her mouth was quite perfect, and the
loose teeth found in her pocket were accounted for by
the prisoner's statement, that they had belonged to her
first husband.
The RECORDER, upon hearing the contradiction that

was given to the positive statement of the two first
witnesses, called them into the box, and asked for an
explanation, and they admitted that the father had told
them not to say where he was or that they were in com-
munication with him. _ _

Mr. PHILLIPS said that the prosecution had been
got up for no other purpose than to avoid an indictment
for bigamy against the father.
The RECORDER having expressed his opinion that,
under the circumstances, the Jury would not be justi-
fied in returning a verdict of guilty, they immediately
acquitted the prisoner. His Lordship then ordered
that Cooke and his wife should be committed for wil-
fully imposing upon the Court, and it was understood
that a prosecution would be instituted against them.

NEW COURT.
(Before the COMMON SERGEANT.)
John Porter, who was convicted on Wednesday last
of having robbed ;his employer, Mr. Roberts, of Chester-
field, was brought up to receive his sentence, which the
Learned Judge in passsing said would be lenient, in con-
sequence of the Jury so strongly recommending him to
mercy.

He was sentenced to three months' imprisonment.
These Sessions concluded this day.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

MANSION HO USE.
A man named John Read was brought before Mr.
Alderman PIM, charged with having acted in a most
insulting manner towards his Royal Highness the Duke
of Cambridge, on Monday night, as his Royal High-
ness was leaving the Mansion-house in his carriage.
City policeman No. 455, stated, that a crowd of
people were witnessing the departure of the Lord
Mayor's guests, on Monday night, from the Mansion-
house, and, just as the Duke of Cambridge got into
his carriage, the prisoner walked up, and cried out to
his Royal Highness, " D—n your eyes, I should
like to punch your head. You have robbed me of
28 shillings a-week." The manner in which the lan-
gusge was uttered was exceedingly violent, and witness
took the fellow, whom some of the bystanders seemed
well disposed to kick about the streets, into custody.
A person who stood near the carriage of the Duke
of Cambridge, confirmed the evidence of the officer, and
said that the conduct of the defendant seemed to be
rather the conduct of a madman than of one possessed
of reason.

Alderman Prait inquired whether the defendant
ri as not drunk at the time ?

It was stated that the man had no symptom of in-
toxication about him.

Alderman PIRIE—WeII, defendant, what can you
say for yourself ? This is a very serious charge against
you ? Defendant—l don't know anything about it,
your Lordship. I am sure I don't recollect saying a
word.

Alderman PIRIE—Pray, what is your trade, or busi-
ness ? Defendant—l am nothing but a poor birdcatcher,
my Lord.
Alderman PIRIE—And what brought you into the
City ? You did not expect to catch birds at the Man-
sion-house, did you ? Defendant—lt's all strange to
me. 1 don't remember saying a word to anybody, and
I found myself sitting all at once in the station-house.
Alderman PIRIE—WeII, I must make some inquiries
about you, before I part with you. Let him be taken
back to the Compter, and let particular inquiries be
made into his character and habits. I've known many
of these birdcatchers to be very bad fellows.
The prisoner was then remanded.
A woman, named Rachel Jacobs, who stated that she
was a native of Germany, was charged upon suspicion
of having stolen a can of milk, the property of the
owner of a milk walk. The case was rather remark-
able for the defence.

A policeman stated that the can of milk was left by
the milkwoman at the door of a house on the preceding
day, and the prisoner, who was passing by, delibe-
rately took it up, and walked off with it as if it be-
longed to herself.

Alderman Pxniz—What do you say to the charge,
prisoner?

_
The prisoner said, in very indifferent English,
that as she saw the can lying in the street without an
owner, she took it up, for fear somebody that was a
rogue might take it.—(A laugh.)
Alderman PIRIE—And where did you intend to
take it ? The prisoner—To what they call the station
or the watchbouse. In Germany we are obliged to
pick up everything we find in the street, and bring it to
the authorities. We durst not do otherwise. I never
meant to steal it. I never stole anything since I
was born.

Alderman PIRIE—How did it happen that this can
of milk was left in tho street unguarded ?
The milkwoman said that she had been in the habit
of leaving it in the same spot for a great length of time,
and the policeman was expected to keep his eye upon it.
The policeman said that when he apprehended the
prisoner she had a pair of new shoes in her possession,
and 11s. 6d. in silver, and upon inquiry he found that
both shoes and money were her own.
The prisoner—Yes ; but if I found them in the
Etreet I would have brought them to the station.—
(A.laugh.)

A fcmal3 of respectable appearance here came for-
ward, and said that she lodged in the house with the
prisoner, who was as honest a worrian as ever lived, and
who was going to a situation immediately. It was
quite impossible that the idea of stealing the can of
milk could have entered into the imagination of the
poor woman.

_
Alderman PIRIE—I don't suppose she had any
notion of stealing ; but tell her that she must be very
cautious how she picks up things in our streets.
The prisoner then received her shoes and money and
departed, evidently surprised at the trouble to which
she was put for taking care of a can of milk.

WORSHIP-STREET.
OPPOSITION TO CHURCH-RATES.—Yesterday no less
than ninety-eight inhabitant householders of the small
parish of St. Mary's, Stoke Newington, were summoned
to this Court for non-payment of Church-rates.
The Churchwardens and Overseers were in attend-
ance, with Mr. Yardley, the Vestry Clerk, to sustain
the claim, and the Court was crowded with defendants,
most of them respectable looking tradespeople, and a
few of them members of the Society of Friends. The
latter, upon entering the Court, had their hats lifted
from their heads by the officers in the raual formal
manner, it being equally contrary to their religious
principle to uncover themselves in the pre-
sene`d of the authorities as to pay Church-rates.
:inf lof late, however, the resistance to the rates had
been merely passive. la this same parish of Stoke
Newington, in wh;.el a great number of the Friends re-
side, summotrees were issued to them half yearly, and
followed by warrants of distress for the levy of the
rate, but the whole proceedings were conducted as a
mutter of course, and in an apparently amicable way,
and at a fixed time a piece of plate of sufficient value
to cover the rate and additional costs thus incurred,
was placed out for the parish offieers, who, in execu-
tion of the warrant, seized and conveyed it to Friend
Savory, the silversmith in the City, who paid the value
of it. Last year, however, many of the Friends joined
the other Dissenters in more active opposition, and
attended here with legal defenders for that pur-
pose, but their objections were found to be
against the validity of the rate, and that being
a question which a Magistrate is not empowered
to decide, the cases were referred to the Ecclesiastical
Court, but the proceedings then commenced were after-
wards settled without that expensive process.
The Vestry Clerk began yesterday to open his case,
hut was stopped by objections, on the part of several of
the defendants, to the short notice which they had re-
ceived ; and, in order to obviate any such objection, the
whole of the cases were adjourned for a week, with the
exception of one, in which the defendant paid the rate
to avoid further trouble.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE.

(LLOYD'S.)

VESSELS SPOKEN wyrn.—The Alchymist, of Falmouth,
27th ult., lat. 42, lon. 35, by the Blundell, arrived in the
Downs; Africa, of London, 3th inst., lat. 48, lon. 7, by
the Royalist, arrived at Plymouth ; Funchal, Cadiz to
Newfoundland, 31st ult., lat. 37, lon. 23; Fame, of
Boston, 10th inst., off the L;zard, by the Gondola., arrived
at Falmouth; Eliza Ann, Sierra Leone to Whitehaven,
20th ulr., lat. 30, lon. 39. A brig, No. 3,271, 10th ult.,
30 leagues W. of Scilly, by the Hartly, arrived at Fal-
mouth ; Agememnon, Algiers to Ancona, off the former
place. A steamer, supposed the Iberia, going into Vigo,
9th inst. ; Dutch barque Mozambique, outward bound, and
her Majesty's ship Acorn, from Cape of Good Hope, with
a vessel in tow, by the Oriental, steamer, arrived at Fal-
mouth ; Lady Bute, in December, in the Straits of
Sunda ; Henry, Tull, Clyde to New Orleans, 22d ult.,
lat. 28, lon. 41, by the Tartar, arrived in the Downs;
-Richard Mount, from Mauritius, lat. 5, lon. 19, by the
Eleanor ; Satisfaction, Bonny to Liverpool, 26th ult., lat.
32, lon. 39, and supplied with provisions by the Helena,
arrived off Portland ; Undaunted from St. Übes, 17th
ufolrt.,Rnioea
jranFeliorroe,s2,6tihn
Fthebe.,RoinvetrhePlEalqau;atoArn;telAoppoel, Jersey
Janeiro to 10, Rio
Cowes, Ist ult., lat. 4, lon. 28; Arcadian,
TydeedtoinHthaelifßaxiv,e6rth;
Ainnanta.,mlaatr.gsaroe.thlear,LßlabllabytotlTteriLesitlye:
9th silt., lat. 18, lon.
11114:6.
ins
shtNC.
arrived
amberwell,
a
Gd
Monarch,
cci2hv
a3,e2r:;Lpa oir
Bahamian,
ael;.rtp,
at
joomeo
rli
sat
ehttlyoe,
tBCO mPßebi
oao jf•
aloteohi
ou 11,1 t .o1,1)2et1
Liverpeol to Calcutta, 14th inst., lat. 5, lon. 22 ; Grace,
from Liverpool,
Glendower, arrived sthin instthe.,
Rive lat.
r 46, lon. 14, by the Owen

oLlCE.—Y.es-
iWobolywtihceh took
c kthe
Deptforde h a nagned the watching
THE ROYAL DOCKYARDS'
otefrdtbaya
Rmooyrnalin
place, the old constabulary being supplanted
tropolitan police, At Deptford the duty will be performed
Dg'ocakt)s,aixrd°s)calot
by two inspectors (Mr. Jenkins, from the E, and Mr. Re
binson, from the G divisions), seven sergeants, and twenty_ constables. At Woolwich Mr. Felthain, of the 't-
end Mr. Field, of the L divisions, have been appointed a;
inspectors, with seven sergeants and thirty men under
them. When the introduction of the metropolitan police
into the Dockyards of Plymouth, Portsmouth, and Pem-
broke will take place is not yet decided upon, as it is con-
sidered it will be necessary to pass separate Acts of Par-
liament to enable Government to carry out its purpcee