The Sun.
London, England, 1835-01-02 00:00:00

UNION-HALL.

Yesterday Charles IVilliana, a tall thin man, blind of an
eye, wearing a black curly wig, and following the " profes-
§inn" of a strolling player, was charged on suspicion with
stealing a small cart drawn by two dogs, together with a
large deal box, containing a number of dresses for theatrical
representation.
John Prateli a young man who described himself as a
member of the theatrical profession, and the prisoner entered
into a speculation together, owing to the decline of the drama
in London, to start off to the cutlntry and try their fortune
there. As their finances were not- ;:.! a very flourish-
ing condition, they determined on travelLZ in the
most economical manner, and to this end procuis.::l a
small cart and two dogs to draw the whole of the thea-
trical paraphernalia, and also a supply of provisions,
to obviate the necessity of paying for extravagant break-
fasts and dinners at the different inns on the line of
their route. They visited several places in Surrey, and
although their efforts were not what might be termed
" crowned with complete success," yet they managed to
keep the wolf from the door, and, taking all things into
consideration, as the complainant expressed it, had a very
fair run of business. They then crossed into Kent ; and,
with a determination to get up some of the most sterling
dramas, engaged three or four other actors, and to do the
thing with spirit, hired a room at one of the principal inns
for the performance, instead of going to a barn, and pro-
ceeded to bill the town from one end to the other. These
exertions on their part put them to additional expense, and
when the night of performance arrived, they had the bitter
.disappointment of playing to empty benches ; the money
taken on the occasion not being sufficient to pay for the hire
of the room, putting out of the question the expense atten-
dant on concluding engagements with the two actors who,
were to do the first line of business, besides the musicians
and other extras. This failure was a blow given to their
theatrical speculation that they could not possibly recover,
and in their hurry to leave a town where they met with
such discouragement, the prisoner took advantage of the
state of confusion into which matters were thrown, and,
harnessing the dogs to the cart; shouldered the deal box,
containing all the stage properties, bundled it into the
vehicle, and started for town, leaving the whole of his thea-
trical brethren in the lurch. The complainant gave instant
pursuit to the runaway, but the latter contrived to get into
town, where all trace of him was lost, until within the last
few days, when he was discovered in Royal Tent-court,
Kent-street, where he had taken up his abode at one of the
fourpenny lodging houses in that quarter of the town. In-
formation was given to the police of the circumstance, and
the complainant having persisted in pressing a charge of fe-
lony against the prisoner, be was taken into custody. The
dog-cart and deal box, which he was accused of stealing,
were brought to the office also.
The Magistrate, on hearing the nature of the charge,
said that it appeared to be a squabble between two unsuc-
cessful actors as to which was entitled to the cart and its
contents.

Prisoner—That is all, Sir ; this is done out of spite be-
cause I did not stop in the country to share the obloquy
cast upon us by the country bumpkins, who termed us a
set of " diverting vagabonds," and I was glad to get back
again, as it was "no go" to stop any longer, and I was in
dread of starvation. " Here I am," added he, " once more
in London, and no power on earth shall ever induce me to
go into the country again on a theatrical speculation."

Complainant—Deliver up my box and the property in
it, and I have no wish to proceed against you.
Mr.; prisoner here requested that the box might be
opened. The moment the lid was thrown up the interior
exhibited some taudry theatrical dresses, an old suit of
armour, and some other trifling articles. The complainant
rammed his hand into the box, and taking up a rusty old
garment exclaimed " This here Roman toga is my property,
and I'll swear to it. I've worn it scores of times in
character, and I can prove I bought it second-hand of old
Flart in Holywell-street."—(Laughter.)
Prisoner—That may be yours ; but you tell a crammer
if you mean to say that all the dresses in the box are your
own. You know well that I borrowed most of them before
we started from town. _ _ _

•
Here a scene of recrimination took place between the
parties, when the Magistrate discharged the accused, ob-
serving that it was evident there was a joint ownership in
the property, and that they ought to have eettled their dif-
ferences without bring the case to a police office.

LIVERPOOL COTTON MARKET, DEC. 31.-
Our Cotton Market to-day has been a little more active ; the
sales amount to 2,500-bags, and at an advance of /d. per lb.
upon last week's prices on American descriptions.