Star.
London, England, 1823-10-06 00:00:00

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

GUILDHALL

Saturday Mr. Emboli!, of Wood-street, Cbeapside, along with
Mr.riseman, his clerk, again appeared before the sitting Alderman.
Tey were attended by Mr. Aso:Altus, and a Solicitor. The charge
against them, as we stated in our Paper of Saturday, was for unlaw-
fully detaining a parcel in its transit, which had been sent from
Mr. Botterill, seq. of Ostend, to Messrs. Brown, of 57, Cheapside,
and which contained 5211. in bills of exchange, Scc. Mr. Harmer
attended as before for Messrs. Brown and Captain Page.
Captain Page, and William Lawrence, his porter, were again
called up, when, in addition to their former testimony, they stated
that Mr. Botterill made himself a party to the transaction, by as-
suring Captain Page, that he (Mr. Botts ill) was ready to give him
11 any security that he might deem sufficient to exonerate him from all
hazard respecting the parcel.
Mr. ADOLPHUS wished to know the specific charge made against
his clients ?

Mr. Hamra replied that he charged Mr. Wiseman with having
obtained the parcel under false pretences, and he had evidence to
shew Mr. Uotterill was concerned with him in detaining it. The
only difliculty he found in his case was that he was not prepared
with legal proof of the contents of the parcel.
Mr. Anon raus then inquired if the goods for which the remittance
was sent, had been delivered to Mr. Bonenll, sen 2 to which a reply
in the negative was given. They were East India bonded goods,
and lay in the King's Warehouses, and were now bona fuk the pro-
perty of Messrs. Brown.
Mr. Anotenus submitted that he saw no crime with which his
clients stood charged. A parcel was brought to them, which they
detained upon a plea of right ; a presumption that it was their own
property, offering security at the same time to the actual holder of
the parcel, that he could not suffer loss. Neither was the transac-
tion one in which Messrs. Brown were at all concerned. It lay en-
tirely between Captain Page, and Mr. Botterill, jun. and Mr. Wise.
man. The property had passed from Mr. Botterill, of Ostend,and,
therefore, was no longer his; nor did it belong to Messrs. Brown,
as they had not delivered the goods for which it had been sent in
payment. Captain Page, if he deemed himself aggrieved, might
have his remedy in a Civil Court, but it certainly was no case for
the decision of a Criminal Court.

Mr. Payne, the Chief Clerk, delivered his opinion at some length,
and with great precision, on the law of the case. lie agreed with
Mr. Adolphus that he saw no legal offence with Which the defend-
ants could be charged, and, therefore, it was not a proper subject
for the consideration of the Bench; adding, that the Alderman's de-
dining to act in the affair would not prevent the parties from apply-
iog to the Grand Jury, if they persisted in proceeding criminally
against the defendants.
The sitting Alderman (Saloum), said be felt that it was not in
his power to interfere in the case, as it certainly did not come within
his jurisdiction. But he could not divest his mind of the ..pinion
that it was a eery improper step in Mr. Botterill or his clerk to de-
tain the property in its transit, in the manner stated, whatever sup-
posed right they might have in its contents. If such a practice
were followed up, and every person were to take the law into his
own hands, there would at once be an end to all security in mer-
cantile transactions. The more honourable way, in his opinion, would
be to return the parcel to Captain Page, whom all parties admitted
to be the real owner of it. The case was then dismissed.