The Sun.
London, England, 1867-01-08 00:00:00

STEALING A LETTER.

James Mitcham, 38, letter-carrier, was indicted with
stealing a post letter, the property of the Postmaster-
General.

The evidence was of the usual description. A test letter
was made up, containing GO postage stamps, all of which
had been previously marked. The letter was duly posted
and traced until it came into the prisoner's possession. It
was never delivered at the address, and the enclosed was
afterwards found in the prisoner's possession.
The jury found the prisoner guilty.

In mitigation of punishment it was urged that the pri-
soner had been induced to commit the offence by the
pressure of circumstances. Also that he had served his
country as a soldier during the late Crimean war in su h
a manner that he had been awarded a pension of 4s. Bil.
week, which pension he would lose as the consequence of
the conviction.

The Recorder, in passing sentence, said it was a most
painful matter to find a person who had conducted him-
self so well on former occasions standing in the dock
convicted of an offence which was invariably visited with
very severe punishment. However, taking into conside-
ration the loss the prisoner was sustaining by the stoppage
of his pension, he would, in that particular instance,
depart from passing the present punishment inflicted for
robbing the Postmaster-General, viz.-- a term of penal
servitude, and, under all the circumstances he should
sentence the prisoner to 18 months' imprisonment, with
hard labour.

_ -
POLICE INTELLIGEACE.—This Day.

MANSION-HOUSE.

James Wren, aged fifteen years, was charged before the
Lord Mayor with stealing a bag containing twenty-five
cocoa nuts, value Gs., the property of Mr. Plumridge, 20,
Botolph-lane.
From the evidence it appeared that about five o'clock
yesterday afternoon a foreman of the prosecutor's missed
the bag in question, and shortly after three boys came
up and told him that it had been stolen by some
other boys. They directed him to St. Mary's Hill,
and there he found the prisoner and three other boys en-
gaged in dividing the nuts. The prisoner had the bag on
his hand, and, when he charged him with stealing it, he
let it drop, and ran away, but ho followed and overtook
him. Thu other boys escaped. The prisoner said he had
got the nuts from his companions, and knew nothing
about them being stolen, upon which he was given in
charge. He repeated his statement to the officer who took
him to the station, and one of the city police officers said
that the prisoner had been in custody before on a
charge of stealing a tarpaulin, but there being no prose-
cutor the case was dismissed. The prisoner gave a correct
address, and it appeared that he was living there with his
mother and stepfather, but that the latter knew nothing
about him.

The mother of the prisoner said that he worked at a
printer's at the Barbican, but had been out of work for
some time. He had never been iu trouble before, and it
was his younger brother who had been before the court
previously. _

The Lord Mayor said that the prisoner was in a better
position than hundreds of poor boys in London, for he
knew how to get his living. He would sentence him to 14
days' imprisonment.

. .
Sarah Law was charged with assaulting John Piper, a
porter, living in New-inn-yard.

From the evidence of the prosecutor, it appeared that the
prisoner had boarded and lodged with him, and left him
owing a ss. He had endeavoured to find her at her lodg-
ings but without success, but he traced her last night, at
12 o'clock, to a house in Montague-court. He saw her on
the stairs. While he was talking to her the landlady made
her appearance, and the prisoner "pitched into her." He
interfered with a view to separate them, upon which the
prisoner struck him a violent blow over the eye, which was
the assault of which he complained.
The prisoner said that the prosecutor was in the habit
of persecuting hor in the street, and last night he came
into the house in Montague-court, when the landlady gave
her some bread, as she was almost starving. The prose-
cutor saw her on the stairs and attempted to throw her
down, but she caught hold of him and flung him down the
stairs, which caused the mark on his eye.
The Lord Mayor said this was a case in which he could
give the complainant no assistance, and discharged the
prisoner.