The Sun.
London, England, 1857-10-21 00:00:00

IMPOSTURE AND ITS VICTIMS.

A case exhibiting the heartless manner in which
the poor are plundeted through ill-placed confi-
dence was heard before the Todmorden bench on
Friday last. A man named Howorth, residing at
Hollingwood, near Oldham, a beerseller by trade,
had persuaded a number of poor people that he
could " get rid of their property out of Chancery"
more readily and upon better terms than the law-
yers, and by means of this fiction was extracting
money from their pockets, The police having as-
certained that there were grounds for a prosecution,
procured a warrant for Howcroft's apprehension,
and on Wednesday went to his residence and ap-
prehended him on a charge of obtaining money
under false pretences. They at once proceeded to
search the house and found a large quantity of
wills, pedigrees, and other documents, belonging to
several families, who had employed him to get
their money out of Chancery. The whole of the
were brought to
prisoner,
was taken before
Todmordendocum documents, ,
i with i t the
h e the e
A. Ormerod, E4q., and remanded till Friday, when
he was again brought before the same magistrate,
and further remanded till Monday, and admitted
to bail, himself in 1001., and two sureties in 501.
each. We give the evidence below :
Ann Cunliffe—l am a single woman, residing at
Hanging-dirch, in Langfield, near Todmorden. I
am 57 years old. I have known the prisoner, John
River Burdett Howcroft, three years will be next
Whitsuntid .4 I first became acquainted with him
by going to his house at Hollingwood, near Old-
ham. It was in consequence of a message that I re-
ceived which caused me to go over to see Howcroft.
When I went I told Howcroft who I was and why
I had come. I told Howcroft that I had heard
he had a will concerning the Wycoller Estate, and
that it (the estate) belonged
_to the Ounliffes of
Todmorden. He said he had one, and he read it
to me. The will said, as ho read it

" Henry Cunliffe, of Colne Waterside Bools-
wortb, Edge of Frarnden, Wycoller Hall and
Estates, Marsden and Bromley, belong to Cun-
liffes, and no other name but Cunliffes shall have
that property."
I asked Howcroft how much I must give him for
his advice. He did not charge anything„ but said
I must give him what I had a mind. I gave him
2s. When I gave him the 2s. he said, "If you
bring me another 9s. I can get you Wycoller for
that." I said I irould bring the 9s. I came home
and told my brother James, who is since dead. In
about a fortnight after I had paid the 9s. there
came a letter by post to my brother James, from
Howcroft, saying he wanted 6s. Bd. for open-
ing the County Borough Court. I saved up
10s., and went off to see Howcroft. Before this
I had paid the 9s. to Howcroft, at his own house.
This was in about a month after I first saw him.
I told him I had brought the 93., which, with the
2s. previously paid, would make lls. to get Wy-
coller with. He said he could get it. He said he
was working under the government, aid was doing
as well as he could to get poor people their money
for a little. He then said he should be down at
Todmorden on a stated Friday morning, by the first
train, and would want to see my brother. It was
on a subsequent occasion when I paid him the 6s.
3d. I paid this in his own house about a fortnight
after the 9s. I told him I had come to bring him
the 6s. Bd. to open the County Borough Court
with. He said it was right. He then told me
about my brother meeting him at the Queen, in
Todmorden. I and my brother James met How-
croft at the Queen, in Todmorden, on the Friday
after I paid the 6s. Bd. That was the time which
Howcroft had fixed. When I got to the Queeu
Hotel I found my brother and Howcroft together.
My brother was poorly and unable to raise much
money, and asked Howcroft how much more he
would want to eat Wycoller with. Howcroft said,
" It will take 3/. to gat the estate with, but you had
better bring your cousins in, as they would join at
the property, and they might as well join at the
expense to help toget it." We gave him no money
that day. Re said he could get us the property,
and many a time since then he has fixed from time
to time that he would get us the property, and those
days have now passed. Howcroft said the second
time I wentto his house, when I paid him 93. that
besides the sstates there was in money 70,3001. 11s.
Bd., and that we should have to go to draw it. He
said the money belonged to the Cunliffes, and was
left to the people who left the estate, with the sub-
sequent interest of the property. After the inter-
view at the Queen we set about and saw our
cousins, as Howcroft had recommended, and had
a meeting. About three weeks before Todmorden
fa;r, in September, 1856, I went over again to
Howcreft's house. He told me to get the names
of our cousins and all their children on to paper,
so that the children could get the money if aught
happened their parents before the money came,
and for the names to be sent to him. We did this,

and sent the names. He said he should want a
shilling a piece for enrolling the names—a shilling
for every name, whether children or parents. We
met Howcroft at the Queen, at Todtnorden fair. It
was arranged that the other cousins should pay him
as far as we had paid, and then go on altogether.
We reckoned up that my three sisters and myself
had paid, with our expenses, lls. each. On that
day 21. 17s. 6d. was paid to Howcroft for enrolling
the names, and a sovereign for his day's work, so
that we paid him 3& 17s. 6d. on that day. He said
that he could got as the money in the following
month. At this interview he made the money a
good deal more than he had told me at his house.
He then said it amounted to 200,3691. 14s. Bd. He
said be could get it ns in the.next month of Octo-
ber. He told us we should have to go to London,
arty, and that an aunt of ours,
urn would bave to go with us,
whotwo loutive
dofaetvße
Blackburn
would go with us. My
and that he (Howcroft)
three sisters and myself on that day paid 25., which
would make 135., andthis equalled the amount,
and was part of e thet
31.17s.Since then I have
many a time
rlowcroft at the Queen. I have
m
not paid
hem next m atriry:eTe saw him resince ; I have not been
abl©. T
was at Portsmouth ;
he did not require any money from anybody that
day. Ido not recollect what I said to him, or he
him any
said to me on that day. This was about the time
he should have brought the money, and we went
expecting to have drawn it. The next time I saw
him was at the Queen, about November, as well
as I can recollest. He always told *Us that he
would get us .the money. He fixed one day
after another, but always something turned up that
the money had not come. Sometimes he said the
money had not come because the war had prevented
it. On the Ist of January, 1856, he came to the
Queen ; I met bim, and three of my brothers, and
three sisters, and some of our cousins. Howcroft
was present. It was arranged that four of us
should go to Wakefield on the 14th of February, to
receive the checfsres for the money ; two of them
were to receive the cheques, and two to see that
they did right. I saw lOs. paid to Howcroft,
which was half-a-crown a piece for the four names
being set down. The names were 'set down on a
paper which Howcroft had. We offered him 155.,
but he returned 55., saying he would only have
103. When the names were set down at the Queen,
the figures containing the larger sum were put down
on the corner of the paper that we signed on, and
we had some words about the amounts, and I
asked how it was that it was otore than what he
bad told me at Oldham 1" He „id,," It is the
Irish estates that made the difference. I should
net have pa'd Howcroft any of the money, except
from the statements that he made to me from time
to time that there were the estates and money be-
longing to us, and that he could get them for us,
and except he had read the will. On one occasion,
whne we met at the Queen, my cousin, John Can.
liffe, said to Howcroft be would like) to see the
will. Howcroft answered, "Faithless Thomas,
cannot you believe me ? You must come and look
if you cannot believe." John asked Howoroft how
much be would charge. Howcroft said, " I will
let you look at it for 21. ; but if you 'will come to
my house and bring something with yon, I will let
ybu look at it for less." He brought the will next
time he came to the Queen. He threw the will
down on the table, and left it with us. He left the
room, and when he returned they give it him back,
Fhomas Barker was one who read the will. John
Cuuliffe, Thomas Barker, William .Law, and John
Greenwood were the four who paid 2s. 6d. each,
who were called the cornmittee-uren for going to
Wakefield to draw the cheques. The, will, as read
at the green by Thomas Barker, was not the same
as the will which Howcroft had read to me at his I
house.

Cross-examined by Howeroft—l w:as about five
times at Howcroft's house. I cam e once on a
rainy day. I should have had to walk all the way
back but for you ; you asked me if I -was for walk-
ing, and I said I had paid you all my money except
4d., and that I should walk to Little-borough, and
you asked your wife to
pay my fare. She gave me
Is., and you gave me 4id. [ paid lei= 9s. on that
_day.
Question—Did you ever pay me anything at all ?
Answer—Yes, I did. I gave you Is. more that
day than I expected, and it was for re ading the will.
I do not recollect the day of the mo trth when you
read the will. You never gave Me km:lf-a-crown at
your house on a wet day. I never r eceived a re-
ceipt or note for any money I paid yc In. I never
received any bill at the Queen, shown ig the days
of the months at the meeting. We sai timed up the
15s. amongst us to go back to Wakt 'field. You
gave the 54. back to John Cunliffe; an d he did not
give it back to me. I had nop-,4subr4 cribed any-
thing towards the 155., nor was the sc. paid back
to me. I do not know how the 6d. in the 2/. 's.
6d. was got at, but it was for enrolling tho names,

and 1/. for your day's wages. You gave the women
a glass a-piece out of the 31. 17s. 6d.—a 4d. glass.
isoner—l do not wish to ask any more ques-
tions.
Upbn this evidence the prisoner was remanded.
—Leeds Mercury.