The Sun.
London, England, 1860-02-29 00:00:00

THAMES

IMPORTANT PROSECUTION BY THE REONTRATE-GE-
NERAL OF SEAMEN.—William Robert James Rogers,
chief mate of the ship Theresa, lately arrived, and which
was paid off yesterday, was brought up on remand before
Mr. Yardley charged with fraudulently using a master's
certificate of competency to which he was not justly en-
titled, and which had been altered from April 1855 to
January 1859.

This was a prosecution instituted by Mr. M. Verard
Home Coleman, clerk to the marine depratment of the
Board of Trade, Adelaide-place, London-bridge, by order
of Captain Brown, Registrar-General of Seamen. The
offence with which the prisoner stands charged is de-
clared to be a misdemeanour in the 140th clause of the
"Merchant Shipping Act, 1854," and by the 518th clause
of the same Act any police magistrate can act
summarily in the matter, and sentence offenders,
to any period- of imprisonment not exceeding
six months, with or without hard labour, or inflict a
penalty not exceeding £100:

Mr. Charlet Young, solicitor, defended the prisoner, who
was residing at the time Of his apprehension at No. 16 A,
P9rtland-streot, Commercirl-road East.

Captain George Dunlop, the shipping master at the
Sailors' Home, Poplar, said the prisoner came to him at the
Home on the 3d of May, 1859, to be shipped as chief mate
of the Theresa, and then handed to him the master's cer-
tificate of competency now produced. Since the arrival of
the Theresa he had received a communication from the
Registrar that the certificate had been defaced and altered.
He sent his messenger to the prisoner, who accompanied
him to the Registrar. The prisoner was there given into
custody. The name and number on the certificate was
entered in the usual manner by his (Captain Dunlop',)
clerk, under his own eye.

In answer to questions by Mr. Yardley, the witness said,
that the prisoner would not have been allowed to have
shipped as chief mate of a ship if he had not produced a
certificate of competency. The one produced by' the pri-
soner was a master's certificate ; but many persons after
passing examinations in the higher capacity of master,
Ant out in ships as chief mates only, and that was perfectly
legal.

Mr. E. R. Coleman, the proseeutor, said the certificate
by which the prisoner was enabled to ship and act as chief
nude had never been issued to him, The certificate had
been altered in many important respects, and had never
been issued by any local marine board in the state it now
was. It was numbered 12,179 when it loft his office in
April, 1855—it was now numbered 12,176—and bore
the name of John Scott. That name had been
erased for the prisoner's name, "William Robert
James Rogers." It had also been altered in various parti-
culars. The certificate, No. 12,179, was issued to Peter
Wanless, and not to a person named Rogers. Mr. Cole-
man then produced the parchment certificate which the
prisoner is accused of altering. The erasures and altera-
tions were palpable. The name John Scott, which origi-
nally appeared an the certificate No. 12,176, is supposed to
have been erased by some chemical process. Mr. Coleman
also produced a counterpart of the original certificate, No.
12,1;6, issued to John Scott.

Mr. Yardley—You have no hesitation in saying the cer-
tificate of competency has been altered since it left your
office ?

Mr. Coleman—None whatever.

The prisoner, in defence, said he had passed his exami-
nation, and received the certificate of a properly authorised
officer at Leith.

Mr. Yardley remanded the prisoner until Monday next.

FROM THE GAZETTE OF LAST NIGRT

•
ST. JAMES'S PALACE, FEB. 23.
.The Queen was this day pleased to confer the honour of
Knighthood upon Francis Leopold M'Clintock, Captain in
the Royal Navy, LL.D.

WAR-OFFICE, FEB. 25.
The Queen has been graciously pleased to give orders
for the appointment of Andrew Buchanan, Esq., C. 8., her
Majesty's Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipoten-
tiary to her Majesty the Queen of Spain, to bean Ordinary
Member of the Civil Division of the Second Class, or
Knights Comn,tanders, of the Most Honourable Order of
the Bath.