The Sun.
London, England, 1851-10-06 00:00:00

WORSHIP-STREET.

Sarah Homer, Catherine Connell, and Mary
Tucker, three stylishly-dressed women, were on re-
examination charged with being engaged in a sys-
tematic plan of shoplifting.
The particulars of the first case gone into, in
which it was proved that the prisoners had stolen two
rolls of lace, consisting of between thirty and forty
yards, from the shop of a draper named Hunter, ap-
peared in our paper last week, and Sergeant Lang-
don, after intimating that a still furthar portion of
the property found in the women's possertion, had
been since identified by a tradesman then in atten-
dance, called
Calvin Lenny, assistant to Mr. John Gibbons, a
draper at Kingsland, who stated—About half-past
four in the afternoon of Friday se'nnight the priso-
ners Homer and Connell called at our shop, and
asked to be shown some riband velvet. Connell made

the request, and I placed a box containing an assort-
ment before her, but of which she only purchased a
yard and a half. Their appearance was respectable,
and they were therefore asked if they would like to
luok at some silk ribands, to which they assented, and
on a quantity being exhibited to them, they purchased
a portion of that also, but only about a couple of yards,
and then left. About eight o'clock the same evening
the detective officer called with a quantity of property
stated to have been discovered in the prisoner's pos-
session, and I immediately identified six rolls of
riband and a roll of riband velvet he produced among
the other articles as my employer's property, and
which must have been stolen from the boxes that had
been placed before the prisoners for their inspection,
as it had not been sold, and I had seen the property
safe just before they called; hut the robbery had been
effected with such dexterity that I had not the slightest
idea of its absence until the officer called and showed
it me.

-- ---
Mrs. Harriette Kemp, the female searcher at the
Kingsland station, proved finding the property so
identified in the prisoner's possession ; and it having
been stated by a City detective officer that he had
followed one of the prisoners some time since for a
long distance while engaged in similar practices, but
that she ultimately succeeded in eluding him a consi-
derable way out of town, the prisoners, who offered
❑o observations in answer to either of the charges,
were ordered to be committed until that day week for
the completion of the evidence against them.
LAMBETH.

Wnz. Wardell, a middle-aged man of respectable
appearance, was placed at the bar before the Hon. G.
C. Norton, on a charge of attempting to obtain 201.
from the South-Western Railway Company by fraud
and false pretences.
Mr. Cornelius Stovin, the manager of traffic of the
South-Western Railway, and Mr. W. F. Godson, the
superintendent of the Waterloo station, were in at-
tendance for the prosecution; and Mr. Games ap-
peared on behalf of the prisoner,
Mr. Joseph llaydon, the banker and magistrate at
Guildford, in whose service the prisoner had been,
was also present and on the bench during the inves-

tigation. -
Mr. Stovin was the first witness examined, and
stated that on the 23d of last month he received a let-
ter from Mr. Haydon, at Guildford, complaining of
the alleged loss of a portmanteau, which letter he
handed to Mr. Godson, for the purpose of having
the necessary inquiries made respecting the missing
article.
Mr. Wm. Frederick Godson deposed, that on the
23d of September he received Mr. Haydon's letter
from Mr. Stovin, and in consequence set on foot all
the necessary inquiries respecting the alleged missing
property, but without being able to hear anything
about it. On the 26th the prisoner came to the Wa-
terloo station, and said he was the bearer of a letter
from his master to Air. Harding, the secretary. In
reply to his (Mr. Godson's) questions the prisoner on
this occasion said that he had been a passenger on the
railway on the 19th ; that he had given his luggage,
two carpet bags and a portmanteau, to a porter at the
Vauxhall station when he got into the train, but on
reaching Guildford the portmanteau was not forth-
coming. He then asked him what was the last time
he saw the portmanteau, and the prisoner replied at
the Vauxhall station, where he saw the porter put it
into the boot of one of the carriages, and complained
that the guard to the train had not stopped at Guild-
ford sufficiently long to make the necessary search.
Witness asked him if he thought he should be able to
point out the porter at the Vauxhall station who had
taken the luggage from him, and he said he thought
he should, and went to that station for the purpose.
Mr. NORTON—Are you aware, Mr. Godson,
whether he has pointed out any one at that station as
the person who received the portmanteau ?
Mr. Godson—l am not aware, Sir. My impres-
sion at that time was that the prisoner's representa-
tions were correct, and that he had lost the portman-
teau, and that it would be found on further inquiry.
He (Mr. Godson) sent Kearney, an officer belonging
to the company, and who had been engaged in
making the necessary inquiries on the subject, to the
prisoner, to procure from him a description of the
property alleged to have been lost and an estimate of its
value, and that officer brought him the document he
now produced, and in which the prisoner made a
claim for 201., the alleged value of the property he
had lost. On Friday afternoon witness went down
to Guildford, and finding the prisoner in the service
of Mr. Haydon, the banker, he gave him into the
custody of Sergeant Goff, of the Metropolitan police.
In his cross-examination by Mr. Games the wit-
ness admitted that the document put in was a mere
written statement by the prisoner of the value, and
he (the prisoner) had made no actual demand for
the money.
Mr. Joseph Haydon deposed that he was a banker
and magistrate at Guildford, in Surrey, and that on
Friday, the 19th of last month, the prisoner, whom
he had engaged as an in-door servant, came down by
train to undertake his situation. In a few days after-
wards he learnt from the prisoner that he had lost a
portmanteau, containing his wearing apparel and
other property, on the railway, and that though he
had been frequently to the Guildford station about it
he could get no tidings of it. Believing his represen-
tations to be true, he (Mr. Haydon) wrote a letter to
Mr. Stovin, requesting that attention should be paid
to it, but finding that nothing had been heard by the
prisoner on the subject, he wrote a severe lettter,
addressed to Mr. Harding, the secretary, on the
26th ult., and sent the prisoner to town with
it. Some days after he received a letter from Mr.
Godson, stating that as the missing property had not
been found it was necessary to have a description of it
and an estimate of its value, and requesting that this
might be done by the owner. He (Mr. Haydon)
took this note to the prisoner, in his pantry, and re-
quested him to make out a list of the articles, with
their value, on the fly-leaf. The prisoner said there
were two 51. notes, numbers unknown, and two
sovereigns, in the portmanteau, besides two coats and
other property, and commenced writing them down.
Witness told him he had better not overvalue the
goods, and asked him if he thought 201. would cons-
! pensate him for his loss? The priioner replied he
thought it would, and signed a statement to that effect.
This statement the prisoner handed to him, and he
(Ur. Haydon) gave it to the officer.

James Kearney, a constable employed by the rail-
way company, said that, from inquiries he had made,
he had ascertained that the prisoner did not posiess
such an article as a portmanteau on the 19th of Sep-
tember. Having communicated the result of his in-
quiries to Mr. Godson he attended, by directions of
that gentleman, at the house of Mr. Haydon, and re-
ceived from him the prisoner's written statement of
the alleged value of the goods.
Mrs. Ann Steers, of 20, Gregory-street, Pimlico,
deposed that the prisoner had lodged at her house
from the 30th of July to the 19th of September, when
he left to go, as he told her, to a situation at Mr.
Haydon's, the banker, at Guildford. He told her he
should go by the five o'clock train on the evening of
the 19th, and he took with him his luggage, consisting
of two carpet-bags, a small basket, and a hatbox.
Mr. NORTON—Can you take it on yourself to state
positively that he had not a portmanteau? Witness—
Certainly, Sir. I never saw such an article in his
possession, and I am sure he had not such a thing on
that day. _ .

Mr. NORTON—Had you received a letter from the
prisoner a few days after he left your house ? Wit-
ness—Yes, Sir ; that is it.
Mr. NORTON—In that letter I find the following :
—" They say one misfortune seldom comes alone, for
coming here my portmanteau got misplaced, and I
have not got it yet. I told you that I had sent it to
the station-house, and I found it quite safe there; but
I suppose it was put into the wrong carriage. I think
Mr. Haydon may be in town to-morrow, and, if so,
perhaps he will be making inquiries about it at the
station, and may call upon you. If so, please to say
that I had a cab from your house, for I have charged
him 2s. 6d. for it, and I should not like for him to
find me out in a falsehood. If you should be asked
what luggage I had, I had two bags and a portman-
teau." Now, in the first place, I want to ask you,
Mrs. Steers, whether you are certain that this letter
is in the prisoner's handwriting ? Mrs. Steers—l am
certain of it, Sir.

Mr. NORTON—Then, the next question is, was it
true that the prisoner had a portmanteau as well as
two bags ? Mrs. Steers—lt is not true. He had no
portmanteau.
George Barker said that on the 19th of last month
he was sent for to assist the prisoner to carry his lug-
gage to the Vauxhall station, and did assist him. His
luggage consisted of two carpet bags, a small basket'
and a hatbox. He had no portmanteau. Had he had
one witness must have seen it, as he saw him off by
the seven o'clock train.

William Saddington, the guard of the train by
which the prisoner travelled, said that on the evening
in question he had no portmanteau whatever between
London and Guildford, and he assured the prisoner of

it. The prisoner declared that he had one ; that he
came to the Vauxhall station in a cab, and carried the
portmanteau himself from the vehicle and gave it in
charge to the porter, who, he said, put it into the boot.
He also said that the portmanteau had two railway
tickets on it, one belonging to the Dover and the other
to the Brighton line.
Sergeant Goff deposed to the fact of the prisoner
having been given into custody, and taking him up to
town from Guildford; and
Bent, the officer principally engaged by the South-
Eastern Company, said he was at the station-house in
Kennington-lane on the night before, and gave the
charge against the prisoner. He (Bent) heard the
inspector read over the charge to the prisoner, and he
did not deny it, but said he should explain it on the
following day.
On this evidence the prisoner was remanded, and
Mr. Norton having refused to accept bail for his fu-
ture attendance he was sent to prison.