The Sun.
London, England, 1866-02-27 00:00:00

ROBBERY BY A CLERK.

A respectably dressed man named Loosemoro, late clerk
in the employ of an extensive provision merchants in
Gracechurch-streot, pleaded guilty to a charge of stealing
a cheque for £2,500, the property of his employers. The
prisoner had been in the service of the prosecutors for 13
years, and they strongly recommended him to mercy. The
prisoner had lost the money in Stock Exchange specula-
tion. His salary was £250 per annum.
The Common Sergeant said, in consequence of the re-
commendation cf the prosecutors, he should only sentence
the prisoner to 18 months' imprisonment with hard labour.

NEW COURT.
(Boforo Mr. Commissioner Kerr.)
THE GREAT SEIZURE OF COUNTERFEIT COIN.

Alfred Hall, licensed victulaler, 25 ; Charles Goldsmith,
24, upholsterer ; George Linton, 3J, tinman ; Henry Mills,
20, smith ; 'William Hayes, 45, sailor; Ann Winter, 17 ;
and Robert Cummings, GI, labourer; were indicted with
having in their possession a large quantity of counterfeit
coin, woll knowing the same to be counterfeit, and with
intent to utter the same.

The prisoners all pleaded not guilty.
The prisoner Hall, it will be recollected, was the land-
lord of a public-house in White Lion-street, Seven Dials,
and from certain information the police proceeded to the
house, and on entering the top room the prisoners were
found sitting round the table, and when the police entered
the woman threw a packet into the fire which the con-
stables prevented from being consumed, and on being
opened it was found to contain six counterfeit shillings. The
room was searched, and the base coin mentioned in the
indictment was found in different parts of the house. The
prisoners endeavoured to escape, but the police prevented
them and succeeded in taking them all into custody. Cum-
ming, the elder prisoner of the batch, is well known
to the police, and had for a long time, by his clever-
ness, eluded bringing himself within the law on
the charge of coining. Ho was ono of the associates of
the late celebrated "Jim, the Penman," who took so large
a share in the bullion robberies on the South-Eastern Rail-
way, and later still ho was one of the prisoners convicted
of robbing the Bank of England note paper from the mills
of Messrs. Portal. He had been but a short timo re-
leased from a sentence of six years' penal servitude, and
altogether he;was looked upon as rather a celebrated crimi-
nal. Ho seemed to bear his age remarkably well, for on
the present occasion he did not seem to bo a day older
than when he was before the judges on the occasion last
referred to.
The evidence was published at groat length in the
columns of The Sun when the prisoners were examined
at Bow-street.

The same witnesses having been examined,
Mr. Ribton asked if there was any case against Ilan.
The Commissioner—A man must be held responsible for
what is in his house.

Mr. Ribton—Perhaps your lordship will tell me what
points you think tell against him ?
Tho Commissioner—There is the repeated warnings,
and the finding of a large quantity of baso coin therein.
Mr. Ribton-1 should like to know what there is against
him.

The Commissioner—Well, then, there is the question,
what amounts to possession, the repeated warnings of the
police as to the nature of the people using his house, the
discovery of the coin, the conversion, as it may turn out,
of the facility of getting rid of the base coin by the hole in
the floor of the tap-room.

Mr. Crawford then summed up the case against the pri-
soners Hall and Winter. Ho contended that Hall must have
known the character of the persons meeting in his house,
and that he did so was evident from that which he had
told tho police, viz., that had ho turned them out ho
might as well have shut up his house at once. A man
who gets a license from the magistrates for keeping a pub-
lic-house is bound to carry out the law as much as is
within his power, and the question for the jury remained
had Hall conducted himself in a way to satisfy them that
he had done everything tho law required of him. As far
as the female Winter was concerned she might have been
the dupe of others, therefore ho should not press the case
with undue severity against her. With respect to the
other prisoners they were undefended, he should therefore
leave the case as it stood against them.

Mr. Ribton then addressed the jury for the prisoner Hall.
He said it was ridiculous to make Hall responsible for
everything people may have in their pockets when they
entered his house, which was ono of public entertainment.
Had the articles been revolvers, and a law forbidding men
carrying these weapons about had been in force, was he
to be held liable for the offence other peoplo committed ?
Ho trembled to think of the danger that might ensue from
a ready acceptance of such a dangerous theory, but he felt
certain no man would bo found to occupy a jury-box and re-
turn a verdict of guilty against such a man. Hall was serving
in the bar when the men came in, and it was preposterous
to say that he was liable for the conduct of every man or
woman that might enter his bar for purposes of refresh-
ment. Such a theory would be preposterous in the case of
a publichouse ; but, in his estimation, it was ten times
more preposterous in the instance of the landlord of a
publichouso in not a very aristocratic neighbourhood.
The learned Commissioner summed up tho case to the
jury.
The jury returned a verdict of acquittal against Hall and
Goldsmith, and a verdict of guilty against the whole of the
other prisoners.
Sentence deferred.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.—This Day.

THAMES.

TEAR-UPS.—Bonjamin Turner, aged 21, and William
Jeffries, 16, apparently able-bodied and healthy fellows,
were charged with tearing uy their clothes in the Poplar
Union-house.

Mr. Meyrick, superintendent of the casual ward, said the
prisoners were admitted to the casual ward last night, and
had a bath each, supper, and a bed, and this morning a
piece of bread. They tore up all their clothes, which had
been fumigated. The only things which they did not de-
stroy were their neckerchief; which they knew would not
be supplied to them again by the union.
Turner said he got his living by singing. He had been
out of an engagement for some time. He would work if
he could get it.
Jeffries said he could not obtain employment. He was
willing to work and to labour hard if he could obtain
any sort of work,
Mr. Paget thought that the prisoners could have obtained
work if it had been diligently sought for. They were all
able-bodied, free from illness, and young, and ought not to
be a burthen on the ratepayers. He sentenced the prisoners
to be imprisoned for one month and kept to hard labour.
THE CATTLE PLAGUE.—lnspector Allison, of the K
division, applied for a summons against William Peck, a
drover wearing the badge No. 473, for driving two cows
along the High-street, Bow, on the 22d of the present
month, without a licence from the Commissioners of Police.
Inspector Allison explained that the Order in Council
prohibited the removal of cattle for more than 500 yards
without a license, and that Peck had driven two cows
along the High-street at four o'clock in the afternoon
contrary to the order in Council, dated February 6, 1866.
The penalty to which Peck was liable was £2O. He had
received directions to summon every offender. Anothor
drover, who had offended in a similar manner, was sum-
moned by Inspector Honey to appear on Thursday next.
A summons was granted and ordervd to be served on
Peck forthwith.