The Sun.
London, England, 1844-11-21 00:00:00

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS.

The Court sat yesterday for the purpose of disposing
of the remaining case of felony, which stood over
from yesterday.
Thomas Cunningham, aged 17 years, and John
Byrne, aged 14, were placed at the bar upon an in-
dictment charging them with stealing a pocket hand-
kerchief, value 55., the property of Christopher Brown.
It appeared by the evidence, which was very length-
ened, that the elder lad, who had all the appearance of
a hardened thief, stole the article named in the indict-
ment from the prosecutor's pocket, and handed it to
the younger prisoner, whom he induced to go with
it to a well-known " fence," or receiver of btolen
goods, where it was sold, and the elder lad kept the
produce.

The police and officers of tke prison stated to the
Bench that Cunningham was a notorious thief, and
had ben several times before convicted.

The ASSISTANT-JUDGE said ke trusted what he
was now about to say would become well known. It
was idle to expect anything like a diminution of crime
while that worst and most dangerous of all classes,
the receivers of stolen goods, escaped with compara-
tive impunity. The transportation of some few; of
them for fourteen years would do more good than the
punishment of dozens of juvenile offenders, and most
certainly, in all cases which came before him, he
should inflict this punishment upon receivers when it
was possible. He should, in the present instance,
sentence Cunningham to ten years' transportation ;
and, as Byrne was evidently his dupe, he should only
sentence him to one month's imprisonment.

FARNBOROUGH PETTY SES-
SIONS.—TUESDAY.
(Before Viscount SYDNEY, and Messrs. WARD and
BERENS.)
A young and good-looking woman, named Jane
Butcher, was brought before the bench, in custody of
Sergeant Leverick, of the R division of police, upon
the charge of ill-using her illegitimate child, twelve
months old, and with having threatened to destroy it.
The sergeant stated, that on the previous evening
he was sent for to the cottage of the prisoner's father
at Kestor, and upon going in he found the prisoner's
mother in fits, and her father, who is a hard-working
labouring man, was in the utmost distress of mind,
on account of the prisoner's conduct. It appears she
has had an illegitimate child, and ever since its birth
she has treated it in the most cruel manner, fre-
quently beating and ill-using it, and threatening to
destroy it. On this night, after making use of very
violent language to her mother, she threatened that
she would do for the child before morning, and rushed
out of the house, taking the poor infant, who had
nothing but a shift and night-gown on, with her, and
as they believed, with the intention of drowning, or
otherwise making away with her. He immediately
proceeded in search of the prisoner, and fouud her
lying with the child in the naked state above described
upon a dunghill, and he took her back to her father's
house.
Lord SYDNEY asked the prisoner's father and sister
whether they would take upon themselves to swear
that they, or the child of the prisoner, were in danger
of any personal violence from her ?
They both appeared anxious to screen the pri-
soner, notwithstanding her brutality, and they said
they should not like to send her to prison.
The Noble CHAIRMAN said, that as that was the
case, the Bench could not take any proceedings, and
the prisoner must be discharged. He, at the same
time, observed, that there could be no doubt the pri-
soner's conduct had been very bad, and he cautioned
her to be very careful, for if anything happened to
the child through her neglect or ill-treatment, she
would most assuredly be tried for her life.
The prisoner left the bar laughing, and when she
got outside the court she put her fist in her sister's
face, and with an oath declared that she would "give
it her before she got home." The officers separated
them, and requested the virago to be quiet, threat-
ening to take her again before the magistrates if she
did not, and she then walked a short distance, when
she suddenly stooped down, and picked up a large
flint stone, which she was about to throw in her
sister's face, when the constables seized her arm, and
conveyed her again before the magistrates.
The sister was then sworn, and deposed to the
threats made use of by the prisoner, and also declared
her belief that she was in danger of receiving some
violent injury from her.
The BENCH immediately ordered the prisoner to
find sureties to keep the peace, at the same time ob-
serving that so violent and dangerous a person was
not fit to be at large.
The prisoner's sister asked what was to be done
with the child ? It had been under her charge all
night, as the prisoner would not take it, and would
not give it any nourishment.
The Berrcii said that as the child was of such
tender age it must go with the mother.
The prisoner snatched the child from her sister's
arms, and at the same time tore off a little cloak
that was upon it, and threw it upon the ground, say-
ing it belonged to " them," and she would have no-
thing of " theirs."
The sister tried to put the cloak upon the poor
child, saying that it would perish with cold, but the
prisoner with the utmost violence resisted the at-
tempt, and it was not until the sergeant of police said
that the child was now under their charge, and in-
sisted that the cloak should be put on, that she al-
lowed it to be done.
The prisoner was then removed, and was eventually
conveyed to Maidstone Gaol.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE
(YESTERDAY.)
MANSION-HOUSE.
THE FRENCH FRAUDULENT BANKRUPTCY.—This
case, which has created very great interest in this
country and abroad, as being the first application
under the Convention Act, was again brought for-
ward, upon an application to the Lord Mayor to
grant a warrant to arrest Jaques Besset, a French
merchant residing in London, accused of the French
crime of " fraudulent bankruptcy."
Mr. E. James applied as counsel for the pro-
secuting creditors, and, narrated that the Court of
Queen's Bench held the warrant bad upon the ground
of a defect in the statement of the crime and the
direction to the gaoler, and had made no decision as
to the substance of the crime itself. By granting a
warrant, the Lord Mayor would afford an opportunity
of initiating proceedings de novo, and thus clear away
a difficulty only occasioned in the first instance by
the illegality of the instrument upon which Besset
was committed to the custody of the keeper of the
gaol. The necessary documentary proofs recognised
by the French law were ready, and the Learned
Counsel submitted that there could be no valid ground
for refusing the warrant under all the circumstances. ,
The LORD MAYOR intimated that he would attend
proper
to any
to witnessescall. the Learned Counsel might think
Mr. Jean Elme Vincent Dubois then produced the
original warrant against Jaques Besset, which charged
that individual with " fraudulent bankruptcy," a com-
plex offence, committed by more than one person.
Witness knew Besset, and that the warrant, signed
by a competent authority, had been issued
against him upon the depositions and documents of
correspondence proved before the Tribunal of thii First
Instance, in Paris.

M. Alphonse Dost Noel, a French votary, stated
that he wall acquainted with the French law, and the