The Sun.
London, England, 1845-08-11 00:00:00

CUSTOM-IItIUSE ROBBERY.
T(IA3IES POLICE.
Edwa'd Lewis and Bonham, Custom-house
weie hers in the employ id the Crown, and 11' Slain Silo'
land, the landlord of the Wheatsheaf public-house, i°
Anthony-street, St. George's in the East, who was fer.
merly a Custom-house weigher, were brought be:ore,
Mr. Broderip, charged with stealing one gold watch 200
four silver watches, the property of the Messrs. StiorY'
goldsmiths and jewellers, 9 and 14. Cornhill, and lienrY
Osto-ne, landlord of the Crooked Billet public-house c'e
Tower-hill, was charged with feloniously receiving the
property, well knowing it to be stolen. This prosece;
tion was inslituted by the Crown, and Mr. Walter'
Solicitor of Customs, and Mr. Ballantine, the barrister,
conducted it.
The prisoners having answered to their names, Lewis'
who was described in the p, lice as a solicitor le
the Borough-road, etat.d that he was intoxicated wilt
he was taken into custody, and wrongly described hinfsei;
Mr. Joseph Savory stated that he carried on busiee%
as a goldsmith and jeweller, in partnership with I'l
brother. In June, 1812, he had occasion to expert*
case of clocks and watches to the East Indies, and
afterwards received information that on the reeeio'
the case one gold watch and four silyer ones were 113°,5;
ing, and he had to pay for them. The value of 1"-t
watches was 451. The clocks arrived safe in the Et°
Indies.
Mr. John Faris, clerk to Messrs. Savory, was cr6;
ployed to ship a case of clocks and watches on the 2''
of June, 1542. There was one gold watch and four se'
ver watches in the case, which were placed on the te.9o
of two very large clocks, which were enclosed in A
case and a wooden one outside. He attended the user;
Customs examination at No. 1 shed of the West Int
Dock. The case was opened and inspected by the prq.j..--
Custom-house officers, and the tin case was re-solder;
and the outer case screwed down in his presence.
recollected a Mr.'Scanlen, a gentleman connected wit
the Customs' department, being present, but had no re'
collect'on of the prisoners.
Mr. George Cliff Lowe, also in the employ of A'reesta;
Savory, gave similar evidence. Ile was sure the watehe
were in the tin case when it was re•so'dered. • tea
Henry Richard Turn r, an accomplice was adellt
as evidence for the Crown. He said he lived at No. it
Dempsey-street, Stepney, and was a Custom-Ig,
weigher, and filled that situation in the month of. Jul,:
1842. At that time he was stationed in the West Diu.'
Dock. He recollected a case being brought to 14%,
shed for examination by the searchers. There who
present himself, Benhaee Lewis, and Stickland, *be
was then a Custom-house officer, and then acted as t
shipping officer. He was occasionally absent from the
shed during the day. During one of those abseeesic
Bonham and Lewis were in the shed, and Sticklend
efl
outside, on the watch. He saw Lewis and Bonhate erg
gaged in securing a case of clocks and watches abeeto
be shipped for the East Indies. There were some sere is
flat
on the outer lid, but they were not used again a
was opened, but knocked in with a hammer and a o°t.
4
He was asked by Bonham to lend a hand,
bqp
did so. After the case was fastened du he
again he took it out for shipment, bet I
could not recollect whether it was taken to .1-`e'o
shed or No ,
. 3 shed. Atter he had been absent about ,et
minutes he returned to No. 1 shed, and a brown Peliy
parcel, containing four or five watches, was proclueetseis
Stickland ; one of them was a gold watch and the ntuieo
were silver ones. He knew them to have been st,.eor
from the case, and an observation was made about slop
ing them, but as there were five there was more nd,
one for each, and it was arranged they should be e.:k.
The watches were packed up and left in a desk ie stied
land's office ie the shed. Next morning witness
Lewis waited upon a Jew named Moss, in
street, St. George's-iii-the-East, and made a proP(74—
to him to buy the watches. Moss said he would el°
ip
to the dock and look at them and after he had dello/
he offered 161. for the lot, which was refused ; an veal
was asked, which the Jew declined giving. Stielt,";.ea
Lewis, and Bonham, were all present when Moss nuercli
161. for the watches. Two or three days aftereelibl.
Stickland said he would buy up the other shares for
rtael
each, to which they agreed, and witness, Lewis' pp'
Bonham, received the money of Stickland. It was the
derstood that Stickland had found a customer 01
watches, and received 201. for them. tia
John Haynes, inspector of the detective forcer 5, , 00
that he went to the Crooked Billet public-hour 0e
Tower-hill, on Friday evening, and waited till thit.);ol
the landlord came home, whn he told himro.°eoi
what he was, and cautioned him against rnaltiese
statement that might criminate himself. ,A there
Mr. BRODERIP stopped the witness and sal" kips
was no occasion for him to do anything of the
jt
Police officers appeared quite to mistake their deTteii
was the duty of an officer when he apprehends, bob
person to state the nature of the charge agants,"4
and then leave his prisoner free to speak or be Well°
he thought proper. It was not necessary g per
caution at all, and it often caused the loss of stolen
perty an defeated the ends of justice. borlie
Haynes then stated that he asked the prisoner 0* msti,
if he had not sold a watch to a person named Ye,°
and he said he had. Witness told him he bad the feseoer
it in his pocket, and that he must have it, and the Pr.itsbito.
immediately took the watch off the guard and gave Watch'
He then told the prisoner that his wife had a gola fob
and that as she was ill he had no wish to execute his teaer
warrant, if it were delivered to. him. The P;:-biltl,
immediately fetched a gold watch and gave it
He then asked if he could give a satisfactory ac
seta
of how he became possessed of the watches, and 'e.51041
that he had bought five of them at one time. He II" 00
him where the others were, and he said he bad sold ekii,„
to Mr. Taylor, his solicitor, who lived at No. 2, CacYre,
street, Holborn. Ile asked him where the others weAs
and he said he did not think he had but four, altbellp
he at first said he had five. Witness asked bilnleol
he bought the watches of, and he said he bought eii:eps
of a man who occasionally used his house when be, lie
the Lamb in Conduit-street, Holborn. lie asked
lie
for the man's name and address, and he replied test.
did not know either, nor could he give a descriptionso
him, but would consider about it. He then left hielt
went to the Wheatsheaf in Anthony-street, bePlieg
Stickland, and told him he was charged with steilwelc
watches, and he said he knew nothing about itt.
Stickland into custody. After he had locked Stle.,;get,
in the station-house he returned to the Crooked ,red
and found Osborne was out. He immediately bl,-atia
cab and returned to the Wheatsheaf, where he '-
Osborne, and took him into custody. e off'
John Robinson, book-keeper to the Messrs- P!i cer
said the gold watch and the silver watches produce"sebes
responded with the number and description of wi'beolt
manufactured by his employers, and inserted ie
in th e year 1842.
Haynes said the numbers of the three watebe-d be
responded with those in Messrs. Savory's book, 3noiee'
expected to produce the others at a future exciel„.. sloes
After several hours had been spent in the invest'F'
Mr. Walford applied er a reman. defences
The prisoners were f
then calledd upon for their ...sefe
and their legal advisers directed them to be quiet; ogthf
Mr. Clark addressed the Maeistrate at great Os'
in support of an application that Strickland an yea°
borne should be admitted to bail. rle said theYli
the
persons of good character, that Osborne had gig,epot
fullest information to the officer, and that it wfe
likely, if he thought the watches had been dishonest Jog
tained,he would have kept one himself, and given ill °s
be
to his wife. There was no proof that the ifi n
ate-seeore
purchased were those stolen from the case, and :re.-1
,
had not attempted to get out of the 'way.o..ceeri
to Stickland, there was no evidence against him,
.„'eeree
that of the accomplice Turner, which ought to be
with great suspicion. noose;
Mr. Ballantine, on the part of the Customs' °r` e,
the application, which was founded on a false beelsi
was re ady to give his reasons, if Mr. Clark wish! VIP
they would affect his clients most seriously, slid
r,
always dangerous to say any thing about charaeL'd beet
Mr. Broderip said, as the application for hail htl.botO
opposed by counsel on behalf of the Crown, be -
remand all the prisoners till Thursday next. ader.
The prisoners were then remanded. It wes-rol e$
stood that other charges of robbery will be prole' tad 0
the next examination. The disclosures have cry
great sensation at the Custom lion-e.

Mn. PITT'S LAST MOMENTS.—" I ha
serve that I had read an account of Mr. PitesPlaPsetiiinieodnifte:ibr:
Gifford's life of him, and that his dying words, praYing,, the
t
giveness through the merits of his Redeemer, or woe"' a, oP'
effect, together with the whole scene of his death-bei to he
peared, as I thought, too much made up, and too forh'a foto
true; leaving the impression that the author, and thoseitity so
whom he gathered his information, had considered it a n.eliji•
make the close of a great man's life comfortable to their.; tbsi
ous feelings rather than to facts and reality. Wh°
says it of him ?' asked Lady Hester. ' Dr. Prettyeea
rather
Sir Waltar Farquhar." Oh 1 it's all a lie ' she repliedjr•
- fit;
indignantly ; Dr, Prettyman was fast asleep when
died ; Sir Walter Farquhar was not there ; and no° ;Seep
resent present but James. I was the last person who saw him era'
James, and I left him about eight o'clock, for I saw hi aka bite,
filing as if he wanted to speak, and I did not like to tha'houh'
worse.' After a short pause she resumed :—" What :herd'
Mr. Pitt make such a speech for, who never went tn: a be
in his life? Nothing prevented his going to church oTri-efer
was at Walmar : but he never talked about religion, anuffeste
brought it upon the carpet.' "—Memoirs of Ladli
Stanhope.