The Sun.
London, England, 1846-07-08 00:00:00

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT

OLD COURT.

f(Before the COMMON SERGEANT and Alderman W. HUNTER.)
George William Draper, 23, a young man of respectable
appearance, lately a clerk in her Majesty's Stationary-office,
was indicted for uttering a forged cheque for 54 with intent
to defraud.
Mr. Doane conducted the prosecution, and Mr. Clarkson
defended the prisoner.
The charge was clearly made out against the prisoner. He
produced the cheque in question to a person named Wells,
and asked him to give him change for it, and he did so; but
upon the cheque being presented at Messrs. Currie, the
bankers, it turned out to be a forgery.
Mr. CLARKSON, on behalf of the prisoner, said he could not
hope to escape a conviction, from the evidence that had been
proved against him, and he could only urge in mitigation,
that the prisoner is a very young man, and that he had held
a respectable situation in the Stationary-office of her Majesty,
but in a moment of thoughtlessness he absented himself from
the office for the purpose of going to Epsom races, and for
this he was suspended, and ultimately lost his appointment,
and he then committed this offence. He had previously
borne a most excellent character, and no charge had ever
been made against him until this time.
The jury returned a verdict of Guilty, and the prisoner
was sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment, and hard
labour.

Ferdinand FVeiginer, 21, a German, was indicted for steal-
ing 477 fitch skins, and 731 squirrel tails, value 501., the pro-
perty of Adam Joseph Gayer; and Lemon Cohen, a Jew, was
indicted for feloniously inciting and procuring the other
prisoner to commit the robbery.
Mr. Clarkson conducted the prosecution, and Mr. Ballan-
tine defended the prisoner Cohen.

It appeared from the evidence, that the prosecutor resides
in Liquorpond-street, where he carries on the employment of
what is called in the fur trade a chamber master, his occu-
pation being to make up the different skins for wholesale
houses, and several persons were in his employ for that pur-
pose, among whom was the prisoner Weiginer. On the 22d
of June Mr. Gayer received a letter, which afterwards turned
out to be in the handwriting of Weiginer, requesting him to
come to a place ;near Balham-hill to receive a parcel of
furs, and which was evidently sent for the purpose of getting
him out of the way, for very soon after he was gone Weiginer
made an excuse to get a young woman, who was also in Mr.
Gayer's service, to leave the house, and he then packed up a
large quantity of furs, and took them away in a cab.
In consequence, however, of some information that
had been received, he was pursued, and taken
into custody, and the who'm of the property
was recovered. With respect to the other prisoner, it
was shown that he was in communication with Weiginer,
and on the Sunday before the robbery was committed he
went to a person in the fur trade, named Houghton, and told
him that he would get him a quantity of skins on the fol-
lowing day that were worth 501. or 601. for 161. or 18/. ; but
he said he should expect 51. for himself out of the
transaction. Houghton, it appeared, pretended to enter into
the transaction, and made an appointment for the next day,
and he then immediately gave the information which led to
the d.tection of the other prisoner in the way stated.
The Jury returned a verdict of Guilty against both pri-
soners.

(The Commox SERGEANT inquired if anything was known
of Cohen's character independent of this transaction.
A person got into the witness box, and said he Dad no
doubt that Cohen had for a long time been the occasion of
extensive plunder being practised upon the chamber masters
in the fur trade, by inciting their servants to rob them. He
had hiinself prosecuted him severel years ago, and just as
the case was coming on the prisoner's friends contrived by a
stratagem to get the witnesses out of the way, and Mr.
Phillips who was his counsel, insisted upon the trial proceed-
ing, and the consequence was, that as there was no evidence
he was acquitted.
The COMMON SERGEANT sentenced both• prisoners to be
transported for ten years.
Alfred Moody, a lad apparently about 18, was indicted for
a burglary in the dwelling-house of Robert Crooks, and
stealing three brooches and other articles his property.
It appeared that the prosecutor and his wife went to bed
on the night of the 2d June, leaving a window at the lower
part of the house partly open, on account of the excessive
heat which prevailed about that time. It would seem that
the prisoner obtained admission to the ho,use by means of
this window, and he must then have gone into the prosecu-
tor's bed-room, where he and his wife were in bed, and stolen
the articles in question, which had been placed in a pin-
cushion upon the dressing-table.
The jury found the prisoner guilty, and he was sentenced
to be transported for seven years.

POLIC INTELLIGENCE.
E
MANSION-HOUSE.
Mr. Woods, an extensive fish salesman of Billingsgate
market, was summoned before Alderman Gibbs, " for
having," according to the words of the summons, " un-
lawfully sold to William Perkins, on the morning of
Saturday, fifty mackerel, in Billingsgate market, the
same being bad, unwholesome, and unfit for human food,
against the statute," Szc.
Mr. Goldham, the clerk of Billingsgate Market,
attended, the question being one in which the public,
especially the poorer classes, were stated to be seriously
interested.
The defendant having alone made his appearance at
the bottom of the table when the names of the parties
were called by the officer of the Court,
Alderman GIBES asked why the complainant was not
present ? and no answer having been returned, desired
that the summons should be dismissed.
Ate. Woods hoped that the Alderman would not con-
clude the proceedings without hearing a statement of the
facts, for the vindication of the great body of the sales-
men, and the protection of the public. Ho had been
accused of having sold bad fish, and it was in his power
to prove at that moment that the complainant had
actually substituted fish for that which had been sold,
and returned with the fish so substituted, in the- hope-of-
obtaining back the money with which the purchase had
been made.