The Sun.
London, England, 1832-11-20 00:00:00

On Sunday morning, about 8 o'clock, Parish, one
of the City police, while passing along Fish-street-
hill, saw Skipp going forward with a bag, but sud-
denly missed him. The officer communicated with
Evans, the street-keeper, who joined him in the
look out, and they were not long watching, when
they secured the three prisoners, one of whom had a
coat, and boots and shoes in his hag, the second a
large dial, and the third some figs, nutmegs, &c.
In the shoe of Cain were found a counterfeit sove-
reign, half sovereign, and half-crown. Ths prison-
ers were locked up, and inquiry was immediately
made about the property found under such suspici-
ous circumstances.

The LORD MAYOR observed to the prosecutor
that it were much to be wished that a watchman
was kept upon premises of the kind, for the pro-
tection of the property, and that the neglect of
adopting such means of security, threw too much
upon the Magistrates and the police.
The gentleman to whom the adjoining premises
belonged, paid, it was stated, 17s. 6d. per week to
an old Irishman to watch their warehouse, but he
happened not to be very attentive when the thieves
were mounting up to the skylight. Upon being
asked by the Lord Mayor how it happened that he
allowed the housebreakers to go on with their work,
he said that he watched the premises of the gentle-
men who employed him, but he had nothing what-
ever to do with the skylight.—(A laugh.)
The LORD MAYOR—WeII, prisoners, what have
you to say to this serious charge against you ?
Wilkes said that the charge was true, and the three
of them were in for it. He was not himself think-
ing of any thing of a robbery, when Skipp and Cain
called upon him, and said that 501. or 601. a-piece
could be made by passing down through the sky-
light. He consented to go. The skylight was
ready broken by one of them when he went, which
was on Sunday morning about 6 o'clock. The
three of them got up to the skylight. Skipp en-
tered first, for he had been in the premises before,
and the other two followed. "We let ourselves
down," said Wilkes, "by a rope and a plank, and
we searched the place all over. I stole the dial.
We broke open the desks, and scotched the place
all over, and we were about an hour and a half in
the place. We then tied up all the things, went
back through the skylight again with our bags, and
were going along quite comfortable, when the of-
ficers came across us."

The above confession cantle out voluntarily, in
answer to the questions of the LORD:MAYOR, which
were avowedly put to obtain all the information his
Lordship could get.
Alderman SCIIOLEY, who was at the Justice-
room, for the transaction of other business, seemed
to be surprised at the course pursued, and asked his
Lordship whether it was not calculated to entrap
prisoners into acknowledgments which might be pre-
judicial to them.
The LORD MAYOR said that it was his determina-
tion always to question persons charged before him
with offences ; that he considered it very great non-
sense to caution prisoners not to say any thing calcu-
lated to criminate themselves, or to induce them to
say they were not guilty, when they knew in their
consciences they were guilty. In his opinion, such
conduct was opposite to reason and common sense.
Alderman SCIIOLEY appeared to disapprove of
this doctrine.

The LORD MAYOR asked Wilkes whether he was
aware what might be the consequences of this affair
to him ?—I am sure I don't know, said the pri-
soner, with a stupid smile.
Well, Skipp, said his LORDSHIP, what have you
to say ? Is all this true ?—Skipp admitted that they
had plundered the warehouse, but declared that he
had nut seduced Wilkes, but that, on the contrary,
that prisoner had said he would join in the robbery
the moment it was mentioned to him, and no per-
suasion at all was necessary.

Cain said that it was the first bad thing he had
ever attempted. He used to work at the new Lon-
don Bridge, but had had nothing to do for some
weeks. He was asleep in bed when the two other
prisoners came to him, sent for lialf-a-gallon of beer,
and told him of " this here job," and he made up
his mind to be in it.

The officers said they knew Wilkes and Skipp
to have been in trouble before, but they knew
nothing of Cain.
The LORD MAYOR—I must send this case to a
Jury, and I would advise you to collect your friends
on the occasion. As for Wilkes's communication,
I am very glad that I received it.
Cain—Please you, my Lord, I never done any
thing of the kind before, and I don't wish none of
my friends to know nothing at all about it.
The prisoners were then fully committed for trial.