Star.
London, England, 1824-12-11 00:00:00

NEGOTL4TION WITH THLEVEL

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It will be recollected that a report was given in last
Men.day's STAR of the trial of Bridger Lidbetter, who
was on Saturday convicted at the Old Bailey of taking
money under pretence of effecting
.the recovery of a
large quantity of silk goods which bad been stolen from
a warehouse in Wood-street. Without giving any opi-
nion on the merits of this case, which is left for the de-
cision of the Judges, it is to be hoped that the prosecu-
tion will have the effect of deterring police-officet% and
others from interfering between tlse thief and the party
robbed, as has been too much the case of late years,
particularly in instances of bankers pacels stolen from
coaches, some of which having contained notes to very
large amounts, the bankers have consented to sacrifice
a part in order to get back the remainder ; and it is said,
that recently as much as 10001. were given for the pur-
pose of obtaining a valuable packet of c wintry notes.
It is time that a praitice so comparatively safe for the
thieves, .and so shamefully profitable to the officers,
should be suppressed.
' It was enacted by Statute of the 4th Geo. I. C. 11,
" that whoever shall take a reward under the pretence
of helping any one to stolen goods, shall suffer as the
felon who stole them, unless he cause such principal
felon to he apprehended and brought to trial, arid shall
also give evidence against him." It was upon this evi-
dence that Lidbetter was indicted, and it is remark-
able, that although the Act was passed above 100 years
back, it is not known that there has been a single in-
stance of an indictment upon it since the days of the
famous Jonathan Wild, on account of whose practices
this law was made, which ultimately was the means of
terminating his career of crime on the scaffold. Al-
though the name of this celebrated character is very
familiar to every reader, it may not, perhaps, be alto-
gether uninteresting to give a few particulars respect-
ing one who in the commission of crime adopted a
course of so much artifice and novelty, as placed him
beyond the reach of the then existing laws.
Wild was born at Wolverhampton, in 1682. Being
of profligate and extravagant habits, he repaired to
London, deserting his wife and child: having been
thrown into the Wood-street Compter for debt, he there
became acquainted with some of the most notorious
thieves of the day, who initiated him into the mysteries
of their profession. On his enlargement from prison,
he opened a little public-house in conjunction with an
infamous woman who was his associate in gaol: this
house became the resort of felons, for the purpose of
their disposing of their booty. Wild had the faculty of,
gaining the confidence of these people, of penetrating
into their secrets, and having once become acquainted 1
with their proceedings, they were conscious that their'
lives were in his power, and they looked upon him with
a kind of awe.

Wild having been put to some difficulty, in conse-
quence of an Act that was passed for the punishment by
transportation of the receivers of stolen goods, origi-
nated a method for facilitating the disposal of plunder,
which was, in fact, to :sell the stolen property to the
party who bad lost it. His plan was to apply to per-
sons who had been robbed, affecting to be much con-
Icerned for their misfortune, and stating that suspected
property had been stopped by an honest broker, his ac-
quaintance, and that he thought there was some proba-
bility of their restitution being effected; but he failed
not to plead for some reward being given to the broker
for his trouble and disintere.tedness, at the same time
exacting a promise that no disagreeable consequences
should ensue to his fliend, who had imprudently ne-
glected to apprehend the supposed thieves. People
were in general pleased with the prospect of regaining
any part of their property, without the trouble and ex-
pense of prosecutions.
Wild received no gratuity from the owners of stolen
goods, but deducted his profit from the money which
was paid to the imaginary broker : in this way he went
on for a considerable time, and amassed a good deal
of money, without danger of Prosecution. His business
increasing, instead of applying to persons *ho had been
robbed, he opened an office, to which numbers resorted,
in hopes of recovering their effects. When persons
made application, they were informed that a fee of half
a crown was required, in consideration of the advice
that would be given to them ; and the particulars of
the robbery, and the reward that would be given in the
event of the goods being recovered, having been duly
registered in a book, the parties were desired to call in
a few days, when they might expect agreeable informa-
tion being afforded.
Upon their so calling to know the success of his in-
quiries, it was often intimated to them that some trace
of the goods had been discovered, but that'the robbers
declared that mote money could be raised by pawning
them, than by returning them for the proposed reward,
and it was artfully hinted that the most safe and expe•
ditious method would be to make some addition to the
reward. When it was ascertained how much would
actually be given, the party was desired to call in a few
days, when the property was usually ready for delivery.
Wild derived much advantage from examining persons
who had been robbed, thereby becoming acquainted
with particulars which the thieves had concealed from
him, and was enabled to detect them if they kept back
any part of the spoil : being in possession of the secrets
of the most notorious rogues, they were under the ne-
cessity of complying with any terms which he might
choose to exact.

Wild accumulated money so fast, that he began to
assume an air of dignity, dressing in laced clothes, and
wearing a sword. So much did his business increase,
that he found it necessary to open an additional office,
in the management of which he employed a Jew named
Abraham, who served him with great industry and
fidelity. At these places property to an immense
amount was from time to time recovered wliich had
been stolen. Wild was extremely indignant if the thieves
presumed to conceal a robbery from him, or if they did
not make him acquainted with the whole amount stolen ;
and he frequently carried his resentment so far, as to
be the means of bringing them to justice. Atjeugth the
time arrived when the long career of iniquity which
Jonathan had run was to terminate; he was arrested for
assisting in the rescue of a thief, and committed to
Newgate ; and being detained by several warrants, he
was ultimately indicted and convicted upon the statute
before mentioned for an offence which he committed
during his confinement in Newgate. After sentence of
death had been- passed upon him, he was desirous of
committing suicide, and actually found means to pro-
cure a quantity of laudanum, which he took at about
two o'clock on the morning of his execution ; but means
having been taken to remove the.effects of the poison,
he was conveyed to Tyburn, and suffered death on the
24th of May, 1725.
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