The Sun.
London, England, 1845-10-16 00:00:00

LAMBETH.

STEALING RAILWAY PARCELS.—John Wilkinson, alias Wil-
liam Chambers, a waggoner, in the service of Messrs. Pick-
ford and Co., the extensive carriers, who has been in custody
for some days past on two charges, the one for stealing a box
containing a quantity of plate and jewellery, and the other
for a parcel containing a dozen of shirts, was placed at the
bar before Mr. Henry for final examination.
Mr. Swan, a solicitor, attended on the part of Messrs. Pick-
ford and Company, to prosecute.
In addition to the evidence given upon the former exami-
nation, and which appeared in the Morning Chronicle, the
following was adduced :
Mr. William Taylor, a professor of music, residing at No.
12, Arlington-street, Sailer's Wells, deposed that in the
month of June last Mr. Arrowsmith, a friend of his,
residing at Belmont-row, St. Heliers, Jersey, on leaving
town, had placed in his care six silver handled knives, six
silver forks, six silver teaspoons, and four silver salt
spoons. They were all of the King's pattern, and bore Mr.
Arrowsmiths's crest. Besides these articles there were two
gold chains, two gold rings, and a pair of gold ear-rings,
On Monday, the 6th instant, he packed all the property he
had mentioned in a wooden box, on the outside of which he
nailed the card now produced by the constable, and delivered
it at the office of Messrs. Pickford, in the City-road, to be
conveyed as directed, to Jersey, to Mr. Arrowsmith. The
whole of the articles which he had packed in the box were
now produced, with the exception of one ring.
Charles Franklin, shopman to Mr. Fletcher, a pawnbroker,
of York-road, Kennington, stated that on Monday evening,
the 6th instant, at about seven o'clock, the prisoner entered
his master's shop, and put down on the counter six silver-
handled knives, six dessert silver forks, six teaspoons, and
four salt- spoons, and asked him, witness, to lend him 25 shil-
' rings on them. Witness asked him if they were his own,
and he replied no, but that he had been sent by a Mr. Hop-
kins, 16 or 17, Kent-road, to pledge them for money to pay
his rent. The witness suspecting all was not right, sent for
a constable and gave him intocustody.
Mr. HENRY, at the conclusion of the witness's evidence,
told him he had acted exceedingly well in the matter.
Police-constable James Bevan, said that on the evening
before mentioned the prisoner was given into his custody by
the lasts witness. He asked him where he got the property;
the prisoner said a man gave them to him in the Kent-road,
and asked him to pledge them for him. Witness asked him
if he knew the man, and he replied that he merely knew him
by sight but not by name, but that he lived at No. 16, Kent-
road. He then offered to go there to see the man, but the
prisoner said it was no use, as he was not to be found there.
When about to search the prisoner at the station-house, he
said, " I have got some more here that the same man gave
me," and took from his trousers pocket the two gold chains,
gold ring, and a pair of gold ear-rings, he then produced.
While conveying the prisoner to this Court on the
following morning, he said, "I shall tell the truth
about this when I get before the magistrate. I
stepped my foot upon the box and broke the lid in. I
did not know what to do with the property, so I
thought I would make away with it in the best manner
I could." On searching the prisoner he (witness)
found some letters which he did not particularly examine at
the time, but on looking them over subsequently he found
in one of them the card produced, which was addressed,
" John Arrowsmith, Esq., Belmont-row, St. Heliers, Jersey,"
and which the witness, Mr. Taylor, identified as the card-he
had placed on the box.
George Seymour, clerk to Messrs. Pickford and Co., said
he remembered receiving a box addressed to Mr. Arrow-
smith, at the City-road Basin, on the 6th of October instant,
from Mr. Taylor. He sent it immediately to the Castle in
Wood-street, to be forward( d by the van to the Southampton
Railway.
Mr. Simmonds, clerk at the warehouse of Messrs. Pick-
ford, in Wood-street, Cheapside, said he remembered re-
ceiving the box in question and entering it in the way-bill
for the Southampton Railway. He also saw it put into the
van, of which the prisoner was the driver, and Trindall the
gnarl.
Thomas Trindall deposed that lie lodged in the same
house with the prisoner, in Bond-street, Vauxhall, and was
also guard to the van which the prisoner drove. On the
evening of Monday, the 6th inst., he left the Cattle in Wood-
street, in the van, and accompanied the prisoner to the
Southampton terminus, Nine Elms. Finding he could not
unload the waggon at once, he left it for a short time to get
a cup of tea, leaving the prisoner and Mr. Atkins, the check-
ing clerk, with it. He returned in about ten minutes, when
he found the prisoner was gone, and on unloading the van he
discovered that the box addressed to Mr. Arrowsmith was
missing. The witness did not see the box at all, nor did
he see the prisoner again until he found him in custody at
this Court.
John Atkins, a clerk in the employment of the Messrs.
Pickford, produced the way-bill of the prisoner's van on the
evening of the 6th inst., in which was a box for Jersey, and
found that the latter was missing.
This concluded the evidence in the first case. In the
second it was distinctly. proved that on the 27th of last
month, a brown paper parcel containing 12 shirts, and ad-
dressed to "Captain G. T. M. Purvis, R.A., Rev. Mr. Har-
rion's, Fereham, Hants," had been delivered at the booking-
office of Pickford, in Regent-circus, by the servant of Mr.
Lodge, of Bond-street, to be forwarded to Captain Purvis.
The parcel was taken to the Nine Elms station, from where
it had been stolen, and when apprehended, a duplicate for
seven of the shirts was found on the prisoner. He was also
wearing one at thetime of his apprehension and three others
were found at his lodging, as well as the brown paper which
formed the wrapper.
The prisoner, who declined saying anything in defence,
was fully committed for trial on both charges.
ATTEMPTED IMPOSITION ON TIIE SOUTII-EAS:IERN RAIL.
WAY COMPANY.—Eizabeth Chapman„ a middle-aged female,
was brought up in custody of Mr. Henningham, the superin-
tendant of police on the South-Eastern Counties Railway,
on a charge of attempting to defraud the directors and com-
pany of that railroad of half-a-crown.
Joseph Lane, ticket-collector at the Bricklayers' Arms
terminus, deposed that the prieoner came by the 11 o'clock
train on the night before, and on collecting the tickets as
usual, he asked her for hers, and she replied she had none.
He then asked her where she had come from ? And she re-
plied from Staplehurst, and be then requested 3s. 4d. as her
fare. She replied that she had paid once, and had lost the
ticket, but said the amount she paid was 2s. 4d. Witness
told her that there was no such fare on the line at 2s. 3d.,
and asked her what she had done with the ticket. She re-
plied that some person asked her for it, and she had given
it up. She refused to give her name or address, upon which
witness felt it to be his duty to hand her over to Mr. Hen-
ningham.
Henry Edzergton, guard of the train by which the pri-
soner had travelled, recollected the prisoner getting into the
train at Staplehurst.
The prisoner, in reply to the charge, said she had paid ten-
pence to come from Staplehurst to Tunbridge, and intended
at the time to get out at the latter place, and stop there that
night, but a gentleman in the train had told her he should
pay the difference for her to Deptford, where she resided,
but this he had neglected to do.
Mr. Henningham said that the company had been
p tio n
very
in different parts of
much imposed upon by persons of the prisoner's descri
who, after being employed at hopping ,
the country, took a ticket, as in the present instance, for a
short distance, and with it travelled to town.
Mr. HENRY asked what was the wish of the company in
the present instance?
Mr. Henningham replied that it had been imposed on so
often, that the officers had made up their minds to punish,
for the future, all persons attempting the fraud.
The prisoner was convicted in the penalty of 205., or, in
default of payment, to ten days' imprisonment.
Q UEEN-SQ UA RE.
CONSPIRACY.—TRE ROYAL BELGRAVE LYING-IN INSTITU-
TION.— Maria Locke, the wife of the manager, surgeon, ac..
coucheur, &c., of the Royal Belgrave Lying-in Institution,