The Sun.
London, England, 1844-08-02 00:00:00

SUMMER ASSIZES.

HOME clECUlT—Guildford, Aug. 1.
The commission for the county of Surrey was opened
on Wednesday evening, and this morning, at eleven
o'clock, both Courts were opened for the dispatch of
business, Mr. Baron Parke presiding on the Civil side,
and Mr. Baron Gurney trying the prisoners.
• The gaol calendar is light, there being only thirty-
six prisoners for trial, and a great number of these are
cases that have been transferred from the sessions to
the assizes. The cause list is very heavy, eighty-two
causes being set down for trial, of which ten are special
jury cases, which are likely to occupy a good deal
of time.
The business disposed of yesterday was of no public
interest.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
(YESTERDAY.)
MANSION-HOUSE.

Sir JOHN KEY stated that he had received a commu-
nication from the Duchess of St. Alban's, on the subject
of frauds which no doubt were extensively practised by
some persons in Ireland, who enclosed fictitious declara-
tions, purporting to be signed by magistrates, to people
of rank in England, whose names and addresses appeared
in the Red Book, accompanied with letters entreating
relief. Her Grace had received one of these letters ;
and would have sent a remittance for the service of the
writer, had not her steward intimated to her that Lady
Key had received a letter in precisely similar language,
with the exception of the names of the writer, and the
ship in which the writer stated she had been wrecked,
and of her address, as well as of the address to which the
relief was requested to be remitted. The correspondent
of Lady Key called herself Margaret Cope, Black Rock,
Dublin ; and the same person subscribed herself to the
Duchess of St. Alban's, as Ellen Willoughby, of Red-
bourne, and begged that her Grace's answer might
be transmitted to the care of Mrs. Hensler, No.
46, Meath-street, Dublin. In both letters were
inclosed certificates, written in the same hand, stating
that each lamentable account was strictly correct, and
that the poor woman was an object of great compassion.
The appeal was strengthened by the assurance that the
applicant was anxious to get out to her hu-batid on a
distant station, but was detained by the sickness of her
child, and the, failure of resources in a strange land,
where no sympathy existed. Sir John also stated that
he had received a letter from Sir George Thomas, from
Weymouth, stating that Lady Thomas had been favoured
with a like application from a person, who subscribed
herself Margaret Wilson, and desired that an answer
should be directed to the care of Mrs. Cronan, 36, Mar-
rowbone-lane, Dublin.
From the following letter, which Sir John Key read,
it appeared that the imposition had succeeded :--
"Lady Cockerell's compliments to Sir John Key;
having observed iii the Morning Post of this day that
Lady Key had been imposed upon by a woman, who had
written to her Ladyship in the name of Margaret Cope,
supplicating pecuniary assistance, Lady C. begs to in-
form Sir John that she has received a similar letter,
which she has no doubt is from the same person, though
signed by another name, as he will observe by the ac-
companying letter inclosing a certificate, which by her
desire. Lady C. returned to her on the 23d of July, with
a Post-office order for 2/, to be paid to her in Dublin,
as Lady C. thought it to be a case of urgent distress.
" Hyde-park-corner, July 27."
Sir JOHN KEY added that Lady Key having, at his
request, refrained from sending a remittance to the ap-
plicant until he should make inquiry into the case, was
favoured with another epistle from her correspondent,
senxlpierietsinsigngastshisetapnaeneg.s
lieof wfettanret,d
tahnadt sstoililnmgeonrieoeuasranepsltalyn
would, if not most powerfully exposed, prove very suc-
cessful. He had himself ascertained at the War-office
that there was not a syllable of truth in the whole his-
tory before be had received the foregoing
.evidence.
Sir J. KEY then stated that he bad received the half of
a 51. note for James Thomson Irvine, who had lost all
his property at Hamburgh, when Bonaparte confiscated
the property of the English merchants trading in that
country, and who had since that period been struggling
amidst the most awful misfortunes to support his chil-
dren, whose mother was in a lunatic asylum. The bene-
volent person who had sent the inclosure said that when
he should see that it had been received, he should remit
the other half of the note ; and he requested Sir John
would acknowledge the receipt in the Morning Post.
Joseph Ady, who became so notorious some years ago,
by his correspondence with people in all parts of the
world, whom he informed he could communicate some-
thing to their advantage, upon the payment of a
certain sum of money, and finally referred to the un-
claimed Dividend Books at the Bank, on a wild-goose
chase, appeared on Wednesday before Sir PgeenteerraLllyaurie,
ihnyctohnasteqtnednefceatoigf
indefatigable Magistrate.ummonsw hic hlt hadw
abse been sent to him
ex-
pected. that Ady would not appear. Indeed many have
thought that the sentence at the Old Bailey had induced
heimtoehangethe line of business in which he had so long
been engaged ;
but at the proper hour he walked into

the public room, and took his accustomed station before
the Alderman.

Mr. Haldane, a gentleman in the commission of the
peace, who had written to Sir Peter Laurie on the subject
of oae of Mr. Ady's circular letters addressed to Mr.
William Haldane, in Scotland, soon after the death of
the latter, attended upon the occasion. He produced
the circular, which was as follows:
L.B. page 3.
" The undersigned is able to inform you of something
he believes considerably to your advantage, on receipt of
five shillings for his trouble by post-office order on
Whitechapel or otherwise.—Respectfully,
" JOSEPH ADY, accountant, No. 5, York-
street, Charlotte-street, mile east of
Whitechapel Church, London.
" June 23, 1844.
" No letters received unless post-paid."
The above letter contained the following blank re-
ceipt :
" Received this day of 184 ,of
pounds, shillings, pence, for information
received, which fee I promise to return if no benefit
result, and in case of any difficulty the Right Hon. Sir
Peter Laurie, Knight, and late Lord Mayor of London,
will see justice done to any client of mine, without any
fee or charge whatever. " JOSEPH ADY."
Mr. Goodman (the chief clerk) observed, upon look-
ing at the communication, that Mr. Ady had acted with
a great deal more caution than he had manifested in
days gone by.
Sir PETER LAURIE—He has derived advantage from
his experience, but I shall certainly wech him narrowly.
Well, Mr. Ady, I thought you and I were never to meet
again? Ady—Well, what is all thi4 about? What am
I come about? What have I done now?

Sir PETER LAURIE—It is to me personally you are
responsible in this matter. When you were sentenced
to transportation at the Old Bailey, and that sentence
was subiequently commuted to imprisonment for twelve
months, upon condition that you w..uld not annoy the
public again, you gave your solemn assurance that you
would adhere strictly to that condition. How is it, then,
that you not only continue• the practice, but you au-
daciously use my name for the purpose of assisting you
in your attempts at imposition? Ady—lmposition! No,
no; I have done no harm.

Sir PETER LAURIE—I never in my life heard that vim
had (Line the slightest Avid.—(Laughter.) On the very
day this gentleman (Mr. 11.ildane) wrote to me I re-
ceived this letter from Ireland:—

" Macroom, Ashgrove, July 24, 1844.

"Sir,-1 have lately received two or three letters from I
Wm. Joseph Ady, of York-street, Whitechapel, London,
acquainting me that he can give information to me as
the heir-at-law of the late William Ashe, by which I
can procure a sum of money, and has referred me to you
in one of his letters.--(Laughter.) I am well known in
the County of Cork, where I reside, and take the liberty
of applying to you to know whether I may rely on Mr.
Ady to transact the business—(A burst of laughter)—
and to give me any further information in your power.
I beg to apologise to you for taking the liberty, and I
hope you will excuse the trouble I give. I also beg to
inclose the raper he sent me in one of his letters.—l
have the honour to be, Sir, with great respect, your
obedient humble servant, " RICHARD ASHE.
" Sir Peter Laurie."
Now I trust that the newspapers will convey my an-
swer to all who correspond with you and take for
granted that you are authorised to use my name, or the
name of any of the Court of Aldermen, that I know you
have perpetrated a vast deal of mischief, and caused infi-
nite misery, by making statements to poor people in dis-
tant counties wholly destitute of truth.
Ady—No, no, people mistake.
Sir P. LAURIE—I think you have had quite enough to
do with me to believe that you ought to be cautious of
mentioning my name at all. In my mayoralty the
Court of Aldermen found it neces-ary to caution the
public against you, when you referred falsely for your
character, integrity, and responsibility to Sir William
Heygate, to Alderman Copeland, who, you said, would
be security for you to the amount of 1,000/., and to our
late respected chief clerk, Mr. Hobler.—(A laugh.)
Ady—Well, well.
Sir PETER LAURIE—I wish to know from you now
whether it is your intention to continue to use my name
in your letters in this manner ? Ady—No, I'll promise
you I won't use it any more.
Sir PETER LAURIE—You'II find the law too strong
for you. Recollect the result of your trial.
Ady—Oh, they were all false witnesses. Not one of
them was to be believed.—(Laughter.)
Sir PETER LAURIE—The arts you have resorted to
would be most ludicrous, I admit, if they did not cause
heart-burning and sorrow. Why, Sir (to Mr. Haldane),
he told every body at last that his name was James
Laurie.—(Great laughter.)
Ady, who did not show the least inclination to smile,
should
irtelpaenayt e
letterd that
ofhe
his,
would
dnho
et usea
l soS
di te•
cll'ae
rt ee rd
autr ihee' s
use the same sort of respect towards the other Alder -
men. . .

Sir, P. LAURIE—Very well. Remember this pledge.
If you violate it, the course I shall take will prove most
disagreeable to you.
Ady (nodding to Sir Peter Laurie)—l promise you I
won't break my promise. I sha'nt use your name at all
on any account.
The defendant then suddenly walked away amid-t
laughter.