The Sun.
London, England, 1870-04-29 00:00:00

LORD KINNAIRD AND THE HAWKERS

The hawking fraternity, from the method of their
avocation, do not, it need hardly be said,
stand in the highest public estimation.
It must, however, be a black class in-
deed that is without a champion. Lord Kin-
naird's wholesale strictures on the hawking
system have brought into the field of discussion
two correspondents in its favour, who have
at least a right to be heard on the subject. "A
hawker of twenty years' standing" terms his lord-
ship's reasoning superficial, and observes that
the class of trade under consideration is,
it is proved by long experience, en incalculable
benefit to all classes of domestic servants and country
housekeepers living possibly seven or ten miles from
shops. He contends that because there are a few
" black sheep and rascals in a society,the whole class
should not be designated as unprincipled gentry,'
a public nuisance,' and so forth." The second
letter bears somewhat the aspect of a testimonial.
The writer says he personally knows several respec-
table hawkers who are bringing up their families and
educating them for the "battle of life." It is' this
combative principle probably that his lordship thinks
the housekeeping part of the community have a little
too much of.

THE CIRCULAR AGAINST THE LETTER CARRIERS.
The Daily Telegraph expresses regret that the Post-
master-General commits himself to a defenceof the cir-
cular issued against the letter-carriers, Good Friday
meeting; and characterises Lord Hartington's argu-
ments as rather amounting to a somewhat unfa'vourable
specimen of reasoning in a vicious circle. It says that
Lord Hartington might rest assured of two things.
The public of this country is not desirous
of seeing the free statement of grievances suppressed
anywhere, the sufferers being driven to underhand
means of gaining their object. There is, it observes,
a general conviction that the letter-carriers might be
better treated with much advantage both to them.

A very singular and painful case of juvenile crime
has just been investigated by the magistrates at Rich-
mond. Three boys, the sons of a surveyor named
Herring, have been convicted of stealing jewellery,
the property of their next door neighbour, valued
at more than £5O. No reason is given for the. ex-
traordinary proceeding, but the boys arranged their
plans with due deliberation, the older one, a lad of
10, saying he would dispose of the things
at a jeweller's in Richmond, tellins the shop-
man that his father and mother were dead, and had
left him the jewels. Their scheme was facilitated by
the house on the other side of the one to be robbed
being empty, and accordingly one of them watched
in the road while the others got in through
a trapdoor in the roof and secured the booty.
The theft was soon discovered, as was the
thief's mode of ingress and egress; but so little did
suspicion attach to the guilty parties that Mrs.
Herring, the mother of the boys, was told by her
neighbour what had happened. The poor mother's
feelings could not have been very enviable,
when the same afternoon. she found some of the
missing property in her own house. The boy who
was first apprehended, Sidney Herring, aged 13,
confessed his crime, but said he had donee it alone.
However, his brothers incriminated themselves,
though the eldest pleaded not guilty, and was conse-
quently committedfo'r trial. The other two were sen-
tenced to a mouth's imprisonment each and five years at
a reformatoiy.' The father, who was told he must con-
tribute to their support, said his children had had a
good schooling. Such a precocious development of
criminal ingenuity is as strange as sad.

AN INGENIOUS FRAUD.

A. curious case, which shews the easy„credulity of
" interested friends," comes to us from Fifeshire. A
labourer at Markinch set afloat a rumour that ho had
lately fallen heir to £9,000 through the death
of a brother who had emigrated. The un-
assuming manner of the legatee deceived many,
and plenty of " friends" gathered round him at
the news of the windfall. Fie was courted and
caressed, money was offered him abundantly,
tradesmen were eager for his custom, and credit was
easily had. At length, when the time for taking
possession of his fortune arrived, his remarkable want
of alacrity in going to see the lawyer who was
alleged to be managing his affairs, excited suspicion,
and finding people not so ready with their
advances as heretofore, he suddenly decamped from
the district, leaving his "friends " to mourn his loss.

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