Star.
London, England, 1825-10-31 00:00:00

POSIT OFFICZ CASIL

Mr. SHEPHERD opened the indictment against • the
prisoner Austin, which charged him with secretl sied
embezzling a letter containing notes, value . end
bills of exchange to the amount of 531. 1 ls. 6d.
Mr. ATTORNEY-GENERAL stated the case to the Jury.
He said that the offence was of a capital nature, and
one, therefore, of the highest importance to the,prisOner,
as his life would be forfeited should the verdict of
guilty be pronounced against him ; and the case weal
sot of less importance to the public, that protectioal
should be afforded to the safe transmission of propent
from one individual to another. The Jury would there,
fore, no doubt, feel the necessity of attending to -the
evidence with the utmost circumspection and Impaifl
tiality, as it regarded the interests of the prisoner aqd
the public. The facts, he said, were :hardy these:. .I
Mr. Gardiner, a traveller in the employ of Mr. Pike,
hop-merchant of Oxford, being at Wimbourne oh the
Bth of July last, was desirous of making a transmission'
to his employer, and he accordingly enclosed notes and
hills of exchange to the amount of 781. Amongst the
notes there were three for five pounds each, one of them
on the Wincauton bank. The letter he took himself,
and delivered to the post-mistress. According to the
regulations of the post. this letter ought to have soot
direct to Oxford ; but by the mistake of the pest-mistress; I
it' was evidently put into the London bag, and,. DO'
doubt, arrived on the afternoon of the same day at the
General Post-office. On that afternoon the prisoner heirs'
at the Post-office, attending to his business as a sorter
et the Manchester division, which was the next to the
,Shrewsbury, in which this letter would be 'placed ;•and
although the prisoner would have no business at the
Shrewsbury division, yet he should shew that the
prisoner, under pretence that he knew a person residing
lat-Tetsworth, and wished to see what letters were sent
to him, frequently went to that division, and had there-
fore the facility afforded him of taking the letter in quo.
tion ; whether he did avail himsellof the opportunity, and
take the letter, the Jury would de:ermine from the fol-
lowing facts:—The prisoner was foimedy acquainted
with a person named Charles Wallace, who having. been
an insolvent and in prison, the acqpaintance was inter-
rupted. Shortly previous to 9th July they accidentally
met, when the prisoner, after asking Wallace what he
was doing? took his address, and promised to call on
him. Early in the morning of 9th July, the prisoner
called on Wallace, and asked him if he would go and
change some notes for him ? he consented, and the
prisoner gave him three country notes of 51. each, one
of them on the Wincanton bank ; he got payment at
the town bankers, and gave 15 sovereigns to the psi.
soner. They then walked to Cornball, and there the
prisoner gave him two other SL no:es, one on the
Bank of England, and then asked him to go into
Thomas's, and purchase French coin ? He went in, and
Mr. Thomas objecting to the 51. bank note, Wallace
went over to the Bank, and, by writing his name and
address on the note, obtained five sovereigns ; and
having purchased seven Napoleons and six francs from
Thomas, he gave those to the prisoner. He told the
prisoner he had put his name and address on the bank'
note, at which the prisoner expressed great regret, and
begged, if any application was in consequence made to
him, that he would not mention having it from him.
The prisoner, on the same day, asked Wallace to go
to one Fuller, a watchmaker, it Clerkenwell, and get from
him a watch he had to be cleaned, but Fuller refused to
deliver it. In about a week, Wallace received a letter
from Mr.Freeling, requiring information respecting the
`Bank note; this letter Wallace shewed to the prisoner,
who begged him to write an answer, that he made no
memorandum on the notes he took, and could not, there-.
foie, give any information on the subject. He wrote
accordingly to that effect; but this not satisfying. Mr.
Freeling, he sent for Wallace to come to him; and as
tie did not attend, he was taken into custody, when he-
at first told the same story, but at last admitted every
thing, and the prhoner was apprehend.d at a place
where lie had appointed to meet Wallace. That to ckn
-'l3 the evidence of %Veneer, Mr. Thomas would be

called ; also the Clerk who paid the Wlncanton note i
and Mr. Fuller, the watchtbßlFcr ;..and it would , f;e,
provertihat, • ort pristinerPS `person were found a
diary, :hewing he had bad transactions with Wallace,
iatvd a Napoleori, and sit Irani*. If these facts satisfied
thr•Jdry cif-the prisoner's' guilt, tbeY Veduld say
so by.theirk-verdict. If they- could 'entertain I doubt,
;hey would give the 'prisoner the benefit' cif • it, and'
acquit him. *- • • •
The'

.t •

facts opened by the Arroassr-Gzsziat were fuWy pried ;
and.l4ol,l3th the WitnelS Wallace underwent a severe and acute
eross-examination, by Mr. Bannasca, the prisoner's Conine% yet
Ise was nut shaken in the main facts of the Cabe. And after a
up by Mr. Justice Nei the Jury &hod a
lleediet d Getilty; but strongly recommended the prisoner tonicity
lace nentof his previous good character.
Jlireksrd . lirgtions Ayer was convicted of forging the acceptance
Ainbrose Caddon, to a bill of exchange for 251. The prisoner
lecritied an' excellent character, and was strongly recommended to
Arany by the Jury and the prosecutor.
and, his wife were indicted for stealing some trilling ar-
ticles from their lodging-roomiertsmale prisoner put in a written
paper, confessing her guiltoun rtlig that her husband was inno-
cent, and entirely ignorant of the transaction. The Jury, however,
acquitted her, and found him Guilty. The prisoners formerly
bed In great credit and respectability in Hatton-garden, where the
lupaband practised as an attorney.
Akk Chapman, aged.sti years, a silversmith, was charged with
rapevii Sarah Davis, a child under ten years of age. The offence
look place three years ago, with the full consent of the child, as
Idle stated-in Court, •and her father having failed to prove that she
Arks order ten at the time, the Jury found the prisoner—Not
Gpiley.
. • .
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NEW COURT.
Moms Butcher, B. Alin:oral, and John Ball, were
Charged on two indictments, with stealing 800 bricks,
the property of his Majesty ; and Hobert Adams was
indicted for receiving the same. Butcher and Alls-
worth were empinyed at the new buildings in Downing-
street; A.ilsworth as a foreman, and Butcher as a la-
bouier.. The bricks in question were stated to be the
property of his Majesty, as they were to be used in
rrbuilding the Government Offices. The particularsof
this case hare already appeared in our report of the
proCeedings at the Queen-square Police Offide.
The prisoners received a most excellent character, particularly
Adaths, for whom twenty-two witnesses appeared.
Thb COMMON mniasativ, in his summing up. commented upon
the conduct of officers in preventing persons making a statement
which might be used in their favour, or further the ends of justice.
He felt some surprise that a person of Mr. Adams' respectability,
should mitchase bricks from labourers in so clandestine a manner.
The Jury consulted together two hours, and then returned their
verdict, finding Allsworth Guilty, but acquitted the others.
Ambrose Uliter, late a clerk in the Sun Fire Office,
was charged on three indictments with embezzling
various sums of money, amounting altogether to 5,0001.
received by him on account of his employers.
The prisoner pleaded Guilty ; on which the Recoil.-
DU informed him that the plea would be of no set vice
tcp him, and advised him •to withdraw it; the prisoner,
who seemed deeply affected at his awful situation, with
tears in his. eyes, declared his conscience would not al-
low him to withdraw the plea, and it was accordingly
recorded against him. .
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