The Sun.
London, England, 1850-10-28 00:00:00

EXTENSIVE SWINDLING.

BATH, SATURDAY.—George Rowland Hill, a man
about 31 years of age, who had succeeded in swind-
ling a large number of the most respectable tradesmen
of this city out of goods to a considerable amount,
was placed upon his trial this morning at the quarter
sessions held at the Guildhall before Mr. Jardine, the
Recorder. The greatest interest has been excited in
the case amongst the trading community, in conse-
quence of which the court was crowded in every part.
Mr. Hodges conducted the prosecution, instructed
by Mr. Williams, solicitor, and also by Mr. W. G.
Gray, as solicitor to the Wilts and Somerset Trade
Protection Society. Mr. T. W. Saunders and Mr.
F. T. Allen, instructed by Mr. Cheshire, solicitor, of
Cheltenham, defended the prisoner.
There were four indictments against the prisoner,
each containing several counts, in which he was
charged with obtaining goods by false pretences from
Messrs. Reynolds and Holman, linendrapers, of
Union-street; Mr. Clement, ironmonger, of Burton-
street; Mr. Hayden, cabinetmaker, of Stall-street;
and Messrs. Gully, ironmongers, of New Bond-street.
The first case proceeded with was that of Messrs.
Reynolds and Holman, from whom the prisoner was
charged with fraudulently obtaining carpeting, &c.,
to the value of between 701. and 80/. The following
are the particulars of the prisoner's transactions, as
gathered from the evidence, which was very volumi-
nous :

The prisoner, in the latter part of 1849, came to
Bath, and opened shop as a cabinet maker in Bal-
lance-street, where he employed several workmen, and
appeared to be carrying on a flourishing business.
Having thus succeeded in making himself known, in
the early part of June of the present year he COl3l.
menced his fraudulent proceedings. Going to the
shop of Messrs. Reynolds and Holman, he represented
to them that he had been employed to furnish a house
for the Rev. Mr. Dangerfield, at Stroud, in Glouces-
tershire. lie said the job would amount to between
5001. and 600/., and that he was to be paid as soon
as the work was completed, which would be in five or
six weeks' time. He also told the prosecutor that he
should require carpets and druggets, window-cur-
tains, &c., to the amount of 601. or 701, and asked
to be allowed to have such goods as he might re-
quire to be paid for as soon as the Rev. Mr. Dan-
gerfield discharged his account. Upon the representa-
tions made by the prisoner Messrs. Reynolds and Hol-
man allowed him to select et that time carpeting to the
value of 221. In two or three days afterwards a letter
bearing the Stroud post-mark was received from Hill
by the prosecutors, in which he stated that the
carpeting was not sufficient for his purpose,
and that he must have some more of the same
pattern, or, if they had not more of that, he must
have the required quantity in a new pattern, and he
would send back that first had. Having no more
carpet of the first pattern, Messrs. Reynolds and
Holman sent a bale of another pattern, but that first
sent was never returned, and subsequently other goods
were obtained by the prisoner, amounting altogether
to between 701. and 80/. From Messrs. Gully, Hay-
den, Clement, and other tradesmen, the prisoner suc-
ceeded in obtaining goods to a very large amount
upon the same representation of having to furnish a
house for the Rev. Mr. Dangerfield, and very inge-
niously contrived to make some of his victims
Julyto Inspectorstroud
to Dunne,make of theuinquiries,
e 58,
andat Bath
re-
ferences, by which he became the better enabled to
obtain the property of others. Suspicion was at length
theepo naturexlciietee-df'oarcned in ;
went
and extent of the fraud became at once
apparent. No such person as the Rev. Mr. Danger-
field existed, and the prisoner himself occasionally
went by the name of Dangerfield, in order to effect
his purpose. It was alsodiscovered that he had had sales
at Tetbury and other places for the disposal of furni-
ture. On proceeding to Cheltenham the officer disco-
vered a large quantity of furniture of every descrip-
tion, including a great portion of that obtained from
the tradesmen of Bath, besides between 100/. and
2001. worth not identified. At the railway station
were several articles directed in the prisoner's hand-
writing to persons of different names, and to be left
there till called for. A watch was set, and after a
while a cartload of the goods was fetched from the
station. The cart was followed, and the prisoner se-
cured as he was receiving the goods at a place called
Charlton Kings. Here a bale of carpet belonging to
the prosecutor was found in an unoccupied house,
where it had been deposited by a brother-in-law of
the prisoner, named Thomas Window. On the bale
was a direction to Window in the prisoner's hand-
writing. In another unoccupied house, next door to
where Window lived, more property was found, and
in a loft which the prisoner's wife had taken for the
purpose were discovered two or three waggon loads
of furniture of every description stowed away. On
his way to Bath the prisoner said to the officer, " I
am glad it is stopped, for I don't know where it
would have ended if I had gone on with that Win-
dow." Further discoveries clearly proved that the
bu prisonerbusiness
inß
actedt uponh
was pa re
colourableconcert ed
affair plans,
for promoting
and
that
the fraud.
The jury found the prisoner Guilty, whereupon
an arrangement was entered into between the counsel
on each side that judgment should not be pressed for
on the other cases if the prisoner pleaded guilty to
them, and so enabled the property obtained by him to
his
sentence, re-
be returned to the owners.
ferTrehde
toLtehaernseedrionßsecorder, is Pa
d,andsinß en
said he should
character of the offence of which
the prisoner had been convict
inflict upon him the utmost punishment the law would
g
Hill is „give of Gloucestershire, and well
months
ohnavridc tleadboonfr a felony, and
palolrotwed.
foTrhseevpernisreaerrsw. as then sentenced to be trans-
known in Stroud and Cheltenham. At the Gloucester
jury has returned a true bill against the
hem
pwrriisnodnoewr,, hisfor wooifnes,piarisidey.his brother-in-law, Thomas
sseensTstiehonencsge dirnatnolnd3i n 8