The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-28 00:00:00

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
(YESTERDAY.)

MANSION-HOUSE.

A man, named Benjamin Lambourn, was brought
before the Lord Mayor, charged by the Directors of
the Commercial and General Life Insurance Office
with having forged a bill of exchange for the pay-
ment of 1501., with intent to defraud the Company.
Mr. Humphreys, for the prosecution, stated that in
March, 1843, the prisoner applied at the Commercial
and General Life Insurance Company for cash for a
bill of 3001., and obtained it, upon the understanding
that the bill should be reduced by quarterly payments,
and that upon each reduction a new bill should be
given. Reductions had taken place, the quarterly
payments having been made until the amount of the
debt was 1501., when, upon failure of payment of the
regular instalment, it was discovered that the last
bill was a forgery as to the acceptor and some of the
indorsers.
Mr. Frederick Lawrence, Secretary to the Com-
mercial and General Life Insurance Company, stated
that in the month of March, 1843, the Company re-
ceived from the prisoner a bill of exchange of 3001.,
drawn by Richard Lambourn, and accepted by Thos.
Ratley, of No. 7, Ivy-terrace, Hoxton, and indorsed
"Benjamin Balls, Richard Lambourn, Samuel Long,
Joseph Donovan, and Benjamin Lambourn" (the
prisoner). That bill was renewed for the smaller
amounts as the instalments were paid, upon several
occasions, each bill bearing the same names as drawer,
acceptor, and indorsers. On or about the 7th of
September inst. the prisoner brought the present
bill for 150/., as a renewal of the preceding bill. It
purported to be drawn by Richard Lambourn, and
accepted by Thomas Ratley, payable to the drawer's
order three months' after date, and purporting to be
accepted and indorsed as the former bills had been.
That bill came to maturity on the 10th of Deeember
inst., and was dishonoured and noted. The full
amount of the bill was due to the Company, Henry
George Ward, the Member for Sheffield, and others.
The LORD MAYOR—Have all the bills the Com-
pany received from the prisoner bore the same in-
dorsements ? Witness—Yes, the same names.
Here the prisoner, upon being asked whether he
wished to ask the witness any questions, replied in
the negative, but he wished for a remand.
The LORD MAYOR said he should be ruled by the
nature of the evidence whether or not to grant an-
other remand.
Thomas Ratley, of No. 7, Ivy-terrace, Hoxton,
head waiter to Messrs. King and Brymer, of Corn-
hill, stated that he had accepted bills for the prisoner,
but it was a long time ago. He had not, to the best
of his belief, accepted a bill so lately for the prisoner
as two years ago. The acceptance to the bill pro-
duced was not in his handwriting, nor had his name
been written by his authority.
The prisoner—About the middle of the year 1843
were you not confined by illness to your bed ? Wit-
ness—l was.
The prisoner—That's all the questions I wish to
ask you.
Samuel Long, of No, 93, High-street, Marylebone,
licensed victualler, stated that about March, 1843, he
indorsed a bill for 300/., at the request of the pri-
soner, at his own house. The prisoner subsequently
requested him to renew the bill, but he refused to do
so until he should see the old bill. He accordingly
went to the Company's offices, where he saw the old
bill, erased his name, and accepted a bill for, he had
no doubt, 275/, for the prisoner. Witness never in-
dorsed any other bill for the prisoner. The indorse-
ment, " Samuel Long," upon the bill produced, was
not his handwriting, neither had he authorised any
one to write it.
Joseph Donovan, fishmonger, of 292, Oxford-
street, stated that at the prisoner's request he in-
dorsed in the beginning of the year, 1843, a bill for
300/. He afterwards went in company with Mr.
Long to the Company's offices, and saw the old bill,
from which he erased his name, and he indorsed a
bill for 2751. Subsequently he cut his name out of
the bill for 275/., and he had never indorsed a bill
since that period for the prisoner. The signature,
" Joseph Donovan," to the bill produced, was not his,
nor had it been sanctioned by him.
Mr. Humphreys said that no doubt the signature
of the drawer was genuine.
The LORD MAYOR—The case is complete. I can
see no ground for granting a remand of the prisoner.
The prisoner—Mr. Balls, whose name is on the
back of the bill, my Lord, is not in the Court.
The LORD MAYOR—It is not necessary ; here are
two of the indorsers, who swear that their names have
been forged. Besides, I am not trying the case. I
commit upon the evidence I have just heard.
The prisoner—l was told that if I would make up
a certain amount of money, the Company would
exonerate me from a prosecution.
• The Secretary to the Company most positively
denied that any proposition of the kind had been
made upon the part of the Company, or that he had
made any such intimation to the prisoner.
The LORD MAYOR (to the prisoner)—You mean
that you were given to understand by somebody,
that if you did as you say, you would not be prose-
cuted? The prisoner—Yes, my Lord.
Mr. Goodman (the Chief Clerk)—Do you
wish to sign the statement you have just made ?
The prisoner—No; I don't see any occasion for that.
The prisoner was then committed for trial.
The Lord Mayor received from A. 8., V.; and
from T. Moore, Esq., 11. ls., for the poor-box.

GUILDHALL.
On Monday Edward Downes Boucher, a clerk at the
Castle and Falcon Inn, Aldersgate-street, was charged
before Mr. Alderman Hooper with obtaining money by
false pretences from Mrs. Lee, a saleswoman in New-
gate-market.
Mr. Alexander, one of the proprietors of the inn,
stated that a grazier having complained to the agent at
Derby of the charges made for conveying some goods
to Newgate-market, the waybill was referred to, and the
charge therein was found to be correct, but less in
amount than was said to have been received in London.
Upon referring to the books in London, it was found
that the sum paid by salesmen was no greater than
that charged in the invoice, but upon application to the
salesmen it appeared the prisoner, whose duty it was to
collect the money, had made a practice of increasing the
charge for his own benefit, while he returned the proper
amount as all he had received. A delivery-book was
made up from the way-bills with the addresses and
amounts to be charged. It was then given to the pri-
soner, that he might make out a bill for each salesman,
collect the money, and take his receipt for the safe ar•
rival of the goods. When so signed it was the duty of
the prisoner to return the book, with the money col-
lected, to the cashier. Mr. Alexander then produced
four bills made out to Mrs. Lee, of Newgate-market, in
which he had varied the charges to the extent of 1/. 6s.
4d. in the course of a month. The prisoner had manu-
factured a spurious delivery-book, that the proper price
to be charged might not be seen when the signature was
affixed ; and in the genuine delivery-book the prisoner
used to forge the signatures of the salesmen.
George Les, in the service of Mrs. Lee, proved the
payment to the prisoner of 21. 18s. on the 16th of No-
vember, 3/. 6s. 10d. on the 23d, 61. 17s. 6d. on the 7th of
December, and 51. 19s. on the 14th of December. The
signatures in the delivery book produced were forged.
They were signed in black ink, whereas he had used
blue ink for six years past.
Charles Ford, elerk to Mr. Alexander, deposed, that
on the 16th of November the prisoner accounted for
21. 14e. 6d.; on the 2Sd, for 31. Is. 4d.; on the 7th of
December, for 6/. 9s. 6d.; an on the 14th of December,
for 5/. 9s. These were the correct charges and all the pri-
soner was authorised to demand. The four bills pro-
duced for higher amounts were in the prisoner's hand-
writing.
The prisoner wept, but offered no defence.
Mr. Alderman HOOPER said, that the prisoner having
pursued such a fraudulent course must be committed
for trial ; but he remanded him, that the depositions
might be prepared.

MARLBOROUGH-STREET.
Monday Lord Ranelagh waited on Mr. Hardwick, to
lay before the magistrate a statement of the case of se-
veral foreigners, by whom his Lordship was accom-
panied, who had been sent by the French Government
to England under remarkable circumstances.
His Lordship said, the foreigners were Spanish Car-
lists—several holding high military rank—who had been
obliged, for their own personal safety, to leave Spain,
and take refuge in France. These foreigners had been
suddenly compelled to quit France, and they had been
shipped off to England by the French authorities, and
left on the shores ofsthis country quite destitute, and ig-
norant of the English language. A paper which his
Lordship handed to the Bench explained the case of the
foreigners as follows :
" There are Spaniards who, for some years past, have
been refugees in France. For the slightest infringe-
ment of the French police regulations relative to
foreigners, they are seized, put in irons, thrown into
prison, and marched from town to town, in company
with the vilest felons, until they reach Calais, where they
are placed on board ship, and landed on the shores of
this country, not only ignorant of the language, and
without the means of even temporary subsistence, but,
in most instances, exhausted by fatigue and want of food.
Here they wander about in utter destitution, besides
suffering from a climate so much more severe
than that to which they hare been accus-
tomed. Their earnest entreaty to the French Govern-
ment for permission to proceed to Italy or Germany
disregarded, and England is consequently made
the penal settlement fur every offence against the orders
of the French police. The Spanish Consul refuses to
grant them passports under any consideration but that of
swearing to observe a form of government which they
despise, and under which their lives would not be worth
an hour's purchase. Tho other foreign Consuls in
London, by virtue of their instructions, are unable to
assist them ; therefore the refugeee or martyrs to their
political opinions remain without the means of existing
in this country, as well as destitute of the power to leave
even when a passage to a more eligible place of abode is
provided for them by private charity."

iii 3 Lordship said, that deeming it right that our
Government shouic; ...1-: made acquainted with the pro-
ceedings of the French GovernrneL, more espFiftllyr
he had reason to believe that other victims wouiu b....... fv
find their way to this country in a similar manner, he
had 'addressed a letter to the Foreign Secretary, Lord