The Sun.
London, England, 1842-10-05 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

INSOLVENT DEBTORS' COURT, Oct. 4.

IN RE JOHN CUNNINGHAM.

The insolvent was a lieutenant in the 11th, or
Prince Albert's Own Hussars, and was son of Mr.
Cunningham, the well-known and wealthy West-
Indian proprietor, residing at Clifton. The debts in
his schedule amounted to 17,2661. 10s. id., of which
5,5331. 4s. were without consideration.

In his examination he stated that the nominal
amount of his income was 4601., being 1601. for his
pay as a lieutenant, and 3001. from his father. In
1839 he became of age, and owed in 1841 3,000/.,
which was paid off by his father. He was then
quartered at Hounslow Barracks and at Hampton,
and while there kept a pack of hounds, a stud of ten
horses, two of which he ran at Epsom races; and
drove a coach and four. One of his opposing cre•
ditor's (Mr. Stevens) debt was in a great measure
contracted for expenses in carting about a stag to the
different places of meeting for the hunt. He had been
in the habit of borrowing from money-lenders, and
in March, April, and May last he raised 2,161/.
in the following manner—by a bill for 1,0001., dis-
counted for 700/. ; another for 500/., discounted for
380/. ; another for 250/., discounted for 1901. ; and so
on. Upon application being 'made to his father to
pay his debts, the reply was he must sell out his com-
mission, and pass through the Insolvent Court ; and
in consequence his commission was sold, and all his
property, even to his regimental clothing, handed over
to the provisional assignee of the Court, and he was
taken in arrest.

Mr. Commissioner HARRIS commented severely
upon the usury exhibited through all the transactions,
and then, turning to the insolvent, said he had
blighted his hopes for ever; his commission was
gone, and himself sunk from the position in life of his
father ; nevertheless, the provisions of the 78th clause
of the Act was inapplicable to his case, and the Court
felt bound, therefore, to discharge him.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
(YESTERDAY.)
MANSION-HOUSE.

A able-bodied fellow, named John
Williams,big, wass brought before the Lord Mayor,
charged with having obstructed the pavement by
collecting a mob and selling counterfeit sovereigns.
A policeman observed the prisoner in the midst of
a number of people, some of whom evidently acted
as blinds to the fellow, while he sold what he called
" good sovereigns" for sixpence and a shilling a piece.
Those who were in Co. with the prisoner pre-
tended to be enraptured with the purchase of sove •
reigns which they made, and pretended to buy
more. The number of fools gathered together was
still greater than the number of rogues, and men of
business were obliged to walk out in the carriage-
way to please the idle vagabonds who blocked up the ,
pathway. The policeman, who exercised his office
mildly, had followed the sovereign seller to the extent
of his beat, and finding that the nuisance was by no
means abated, and that it was likely, if permitted to
continue, to work double injury, took the prisoner
into custody. The prisoner handed over fifteen of
the counterfeits to the officer, whom he informed that
he had been in the habit of disposing of such articles,
and of course without considering that there was the
least offence in carrying on such a business.
The Counterfeits—On the obverse was a very good
likeness of the Queen, and on the reverse a Hano-
verian soldier on horseback, trampling a dragon, with
the words "To Hanover." _ _ _

The LORD MAYOR remarked that mischief might
be done with the counterfeits amongst the ignorant.
The policeman said the prisoner, in walking round
amongst the mob recommending his sovereigns, cried
out that he did not care whether people would have
them or not, and that they were all good sovereigns.
The LORD MAYOR—WeII, Mr. Williams, what
have you to say to this charge of collecting a crowd
for the sale of counterfeits• ? Prisoner—Say, my
Lord! Why, I get my living by counterfeits.
The LORD MAYOR-4 have no doubt of it, but you
have gone too far here.
Prisoner—For the last si▪ x or seven years I have
got my living by selling articles of the kind, and no
more than a dozen people near me at all.
The LORD MAYOR_You are fined 51. for causing
the obstruction.
The prisoner laughed at the idea of paying 51., and
was committed to hard labour for one month.
A 3roung man, named Aka Weeks, was charged
with having had in his possession a gallon of foreign
brandy, upon which duty had not been paid. The
vessel in which the brandy was contained was made
Of tin, and fitted to the chest. as closely as a waistcoat.
A tide-waiter saw the defendant go ashore at Fresh
Wharf from the City of London, Calais steamer, and
suspecting that he was charged with liquor, intimated
as much to him. The defendant denied that he had
anything of the kind about him, and resisted the
officer, who, however, secured him and stripped him
of his treasure. The defendant expressed a wish to
throw the officer into the river.
'flu. to the CiiNtcmir, said th Ccm-iiiii,,-
sioners were determined to go for the large penalty
of 100/. in this case, as the defendant had resisted the

officer.
The clef:indent was then committed in default of the
paent of the fine.
tfessrs. Morris, coal merchants, were summoned
by the Lightermen's Protection Society, at the Three
Georgehilm
Crowns, Dowgate-hill, for the violation of the Act 7th
4ca75, by which persons using
tollregister them.
Mr. h C
m of Wire and Child, said
barges and 8 t
are cdo,
opl
l.e
the
firm
r
the defendants were charged with being the owners
of, and with having navigated a barge without regis-
tering their names and places of abode, and the name
of the vessel in tile books of the Watermen's Company.
The beadle of the Watermen's Company Proved, by
referring to the book, that the terms of the Act had
not been complied with.
The defendant stated, (and no doubt was enter-
tained of the truth of the statement) that they con-
sidered they had done all that was necessary by hav-
ing the number of the vessel entered.
Mr. Child said, the Society merely sought a nomi-
nal conviction as they were convinced the defendants
erred unintentionally.
Messrs. Dalton, also respectable coal merchants,
were charged with a similar violation of the Act. They
pleaded guilty, and pleaded ignorance of the law.
The Loan MAroa said the defendants must have
fallen into the error from the want of knowledge of
the provisions of the Act, and that a nominal convic-
tion would answer in both cases.
Mr. Child said the Society he represented wished
for nothing else in the cases of such defendants. He
then read the clause of the Act, which he trusted
would in future be particularly attended to, as it was
of much greater importance than it appeared to be
in relation to the trading matters carried on in the
Thames. The clause stated that " if any such lighter,
barge, or other craft, shall be worked or navigated
without being registered, or without the number and
names being painted and legible, the owner or owners
shall, for every such offence, forfeit and pay any sum
of money not exceeding 40 shillings."
WORSHIP-STREET.
Martin and Thomas Cosgrove, brothers, two
wretched-looking country lads, who appeared in a
starving state, were brought before Mr. Broughton,
charged with being houseless vagrants.
Police-constable N 159, stated that he found the
prisoners wandering about the Kingsland-road at
three o'clock that morning, and on being questioned
they told him that they had no place of refuge, having
been refused admittance into the workhouse, and that
they had walked from Manchester, and arrived in
town on the preceding day. They appeared quite ex-
hausted from fatigue and hunger, and he immediately,
proceeded with them to the workhouse, but the per-
sons on duty there refused to admit them, and he ac-
cordingly conveyed them to the station-house.
Mr. BROUGHTON put several questions to the pri-
soners, in answer to which they said that they had
been employed at a cotton factory in Manchester,
where they respectively earned 6s. 4d. and Gs. per
week, but during the late disturbances they were
forced to turn out with the rest of the hands, and al-
though most anxious to resume their work they had
been unable to obtain any since that time. Some
months ago their mother left Manchester in order to
seek a situation in London, and having no other
friends in the former place they begged their way up
to town, for the purpose of joining her, but they were
reduced to such a state of weakness when they reached
Shoreditch that they were unable to proceed a step
further. The only food they had had to appease the
cravings of hunger since the preceding morning was a
pennyworth of bread, which was given to them by
the kind-hearted policeman to whom they communi-
cated their distressed situation.
Sergeant Godfrey said that on their arrival at the
station-house he dispatched an officer with them to
Mr. Coste, with a request that he would grant them
an order of admission into the workhouse, but he re-
fused to do so.
Mr. BROUGHTON said that he was at a loss to con-
ceive upon what grounds their applications were re-
jected, they being clearly entitled to relief as casual
poor who were found in the parish in a state of desti-
tution. They must be taken back at once to the
workhouse, and if any demur was made about receiv-
ing them, he should require the parish officers to ap-
pear before him and show cause for their refusal.
The lads were then supplied' with food by order of
the Magistrate, and the policeman was directed to
convey them to the workhouse.

The cherished:quackery of the hour, seems to be
the trying to persuade us, that millers and bakers are
making dear bread. And if we had had such fools
within our borders as plagued our fathers of fifty
years ago, we should have had a mob set on to sup-
port " the altar and the throne" by breaking open
mills and scattering flour into ditches, as was my
luck to see about the enlightened period alluded to.—
Letter from Colonel Thompson.