Star.
London, England, 1823-09-22 00:00:00

OLD BATLEY _SESSIONS.

Saturday, Samuel Harritt was indicted for stealing ail
watch and seals from the person of Richard Lamb.
The prosecutor deposed, that on the evening of the
Ist of July he was going through Hammersmithchurch-
yard, where he joined company with a woman who was
walking in the same direction in which he was proceed-
ing. Whilst he was conversing with her, the priioner
came tip and seized the prosecutor's watch ; and, not
withstanding his resistance, took it from him. The wo-
man and the prisoner then walked away. The prose-
cutor did not lay hold of the prisoner, nor did he call
for assistance. Whilst the prisoner and the woman were
yet close to him, the prosecutor met a man named
Walker, to whom he told what had happened. Walker
knew the prisoner, and spoke to him, but the prosecutor
did not even then attempt to seize the prisoner, who
presently ran off with the woman, and the prosecutor
lost sight of them. The prisoner was afterwards appre-
hended. The prosecutor was not drunk, and did not
know the woman to be a common prostitute.
The RECORDER here remarked, that the. witness had
told a very extraordinary story.
The prosecutor underwent a cross-examination by
Mr. BRODRICK, in the course of which he was guilty
of the most flagrant prevarication.
'use Jury exhibited.an inclination immediately to ac-
quit the prisoner ; but the RECORDER having requested
them to hear another witness,
Richard Walker was examined, and deposed that on
the evening of the Ist of July he saw the prosecutor in
Hammersmith church-yard, in company with a woman
who was well known in Hammersmith as a common
prostitute. He heard the prosecutor say, whilst he was
walking with the woman, that he had lost his watch,
but he did not accuse the prisoner, who was following
him, with having stolen it. The prosecutor and the
woman walked together into the village. The church-
yard is surrounded by houses.
The Jury now observed that they could not give cre-
dit to any part of the prosecutor's statement, and ac-
quitted the prisoner.
Mr. I.3aconicit prayed the Court to direct the prose-
cutor to be indicted for rerjury, which, however, the
Court refused to do.

Nicholas Bullock was indicted for stealing a handker-
chief from the person of Turner.
George Waddington, a constable, deposed, that. he
saw the prisoner lilt up the prosecutor's coat-pocket in
Pickett-street, Strand, and then pass the prosecutor
through Temple-bar, and go up Shire-lane. The witness
asked the prosecutor whether be had lost anything ?
and the prosecutor, after searching his pockets, said he
had lost his handkerchief. The witness then followed
the prisoner up Shire-lane, and when he came up with
him, said, " Nic, I want you." The prisoner said—
" What for, George?" The witness re:7!ied, that it was
for taking the prosecutor's handkerchief, and searched
the prisoner's pockets, but did not find the property.—
The prisoner then said, " You see, George, I've not got
it." Witness tcplied, "It won't do, Nic : come along
with mc." Whilst the prisoner was being conveyed to
the watch-house, the handkerchief dropped from the
bottom of his trowscrs. _

The prosecutor identified the hal,ikertliief.
The Jury found the prisoner gni' ty, and the Court
sentenced Wina to be transported for lik.
John Gavell was indicted for having fraudulently em-
bezzled the sum of one shilling and eight-pence, with
intent to convert the monies to his own use._

Mr. Joseph :Mule sta-ed, that he was an inspector of
letters at the General Post Office. He knew the pri-
soner at the bar. He was ensplo)ed as a letter-carrier
by the Postmaster- General. It was the prisoner's duty
to receive letters, and if the postage, was-paid upon them,
to mark it on the outside, and he would be charged
with it the next morning. The prisoner had been in the
Office since March, 1818. His walk was in Wardour-
street, Soho, and its vicinity. The letter'produced ought
to have been sent in the pai..l bag the same day on
which he received it. Tire letter in question was ad-
dressed to " J. It. Hopland, l'rivate, 10th Reprient,
Light Dragoon Lancers, Calcutta, or elsewhere.'
The prisoner being asked if he had anything to ask
the witness ? said that the letter in quation was a ship
letter, and ought not to have been put into the bag with
the other letters. This the witness positively denied.
NVm. Hopland said he lived in Poland street. On
the Bth of January last he wrote a letter to his son at
Calcutta, and on the Saturday following he delivered
the letter to the prisoner, and paid for the postage.
Some months after he met the prisoner in Poland-street,
and upon questioning him about it, he said he could not
be answer able for packets. Witness paid two shillings for
the postage, and received some halfpence in change.
James Austin was an assistant inspector of letter-car-
riers. On the 23d of May last, in consequence Of infor-
mation, he went to the prisoner's department, and
searched his drawer. Ile found the letter in question
in that drawer, and several other letters. The letters
were deliverable in the neighbourhood of the prisoner:
he found as many as 56 letters; out of this number, six
were letters upon which the postage had been paid :
witness himself delivered several of these letters so found
in the drawer, to the places where they were directed ;
all letters not delivered (the directions not being found)
were always entered in a book.
The prisoner here repeated, that the letter in question
ought not to have been put into the general bag.
The COCRT recalled Mr. Hopland, and asked him
whether he had given the letter to the prisonet as post-
man, or had merely entrusted him with it? The wit-
ness answered, that he gave the letter to the prisoner,,
because he had always thought him to be a very trust-
worthy man.
The COMMON-SEILTEANT, upon referring to the Act.
of Parliament 5 Geo. HI. c. 25, s. 19, under which the
prisoner was indicted, thought it would be impossible,
upon this evidence, to convict theprisoner, be not hav-
ing been employed by the prosecutor in the capacity of
a carrier fur the Post Office..

Mr. LAW, Who was Counsel for the prosecution, en-
deavoured to shew that the evidence fully supported the
indictment, and I.he Act of Parliament upon which it
was framed.
The COMMON•SERJEANT was, however, of a different
opinion. The prisoner was a letter-carrier in two points
of view—first, for the distribution of letters in the morn-
ing; and secondly, for receiving letters as bell-man in
the evening. The witness HopFand had given the pri-
soner the letter because he thought it would be safe in
his hands, and gave it to him in the same manner as a
Gent!anon woeld have given. it to his servant. In his
opinion, thetefore, the prisoner had not received this let-
ter in the course of his employment and intrustment as
a letter-carrier. The Act of Parliament was a severe
one, and care should be taken not tp inclwle those who
did not come within its meaning.

The Jury fousa a-yardiet of Not guilty.
The COMMON-SIRJKANT told the prisoner, that he
might consider hirnsef a eery fortunate man. If he had
been found guilty, the Court would have felt itielfbound
to pass a severe sentence upon him. There was nothing
more cruel than such robberies upon individuals.
Two lads of a respectable appearance, of the names
of Grant and Ilsby, were indicted for picking the pocket
'of Mr. C. E. Jackson, of a silk handkerchief.
The prosecutor was in Baitholomew Fair on the 4th
of September, and was walking along, when he was in-
formed that two boys had picked his gocket of his hand-
kerchief. Colson, an officer, who happened to be in the
Fair, saw Ilsby draw the handkerchief from the prosecu-
tor's pocket; Grant was then in his company; and had
been so for some time. Witness had observed the lads
following the prosqcutor for a considerable time, and
when witness saw Ilsby take the handkerchief, he told
the prosecutor that he had been robbed. The prisoners
were afterwards secured.
Cross•examined.—He was in the Fair not for business
but merely out of caravan. Ile did not make a trade
of attending fairs. He had often appeared as a witness
in criminal cases; he might have been in a dozen cases
in the present year.
Reardon, another officer, corroborated this evidence.
In his defence, Ilsby said that Colson, in taking him
to the watch-house, had said-4g If jou'll give me some-
thing, I won't proceed against you.
Colson positively denied this assertion, and stated that
he never spoke to the prisoner at all while taking him
to the watch-house.
Two witnesses who were present at the time, and who
happened to be in Court, proved this fact.
Several witnesses were called to Ilsby'scharacter.

The Jury found both prisoners Not Guilty.
The COMMON-SERJEANT warned the prisoners against
appearing again at that bar: if they did, they would be
severely dealt with.
Mr. Wontner, the keeper of Newgate, said that the
prisoner Grant borp a very bad character.

POLICE INI'ELLIGENCR

GUILDHALL

Saturday, Captain John AiTeitchbuiveasbronght before Alderman
SMITH, charged with having cotrunitted an assault uponMr.Brown,
Marshal of the Fleet Prison. It appeared that the Marshal had
been a short time ago obstructed in the performance of his very
arduous duties by some of the unruly prisoners in the Fleet, amongst
whom was the brother of the defendant, who is related to Sir Ed-
ward Knatchbull. On that occasion, Mr. Brown having been as-
saulted by Mr. Knatchbull, the confined debtor, a complaint was
made to the City Magistrates,and the assailant ordered to End bail.
I Two persons were procured to offer their responsibility; but they
were refused, on the ground that they had taken the benefit of the
Insolvent Act, and had not since paid their creditors. The Captain
thought proper to attack Mr. Brown in the lobby of the prison, and
to assault him without any provocation.
A man, named Allen, a waiter at the Star and Horse-shoe, near
St. Dunstan's Church, Fleet-street, was dreadfully stabbed with a
knife, in the fleshy part of his arm by his wife, who suspected him
of infidelity. The unfortunate man was instantly conveyed to St.
Bartholomew's Hospital, where his wounds were pronounced to be
of that serious import as to render his life very precarious. The
wife has since been apyrebended, and she is now cot:ft:led in Gilt-
spur-street, Compter, till the fate cf her husband is more certain.

MAP I.BOROUG 11-STR TZ ET.
No less than five applications were made on Saturday to Mr. Co-
NANT, for orders to visit William Poole, who is confined in the [louse
of Correction; four of the applications were refused, and the fifth
was granted under rather curious circumstances tarmer-like
looking countryman, who said he had just arrived all the way from
the county of Warwick (and who had evidently not stinted
in liquor upon the road) approached the bench, and said he wanted
an oriler.to see his broiler, William Poole, who was confined in
the House of Correction. Mr. CONAWT kohl that was the fifth
application of the same nature that day. and it Could not be granted..
" The fifth," said the eountryinan, "bless me, what a number of
friends my rove of a brother must have ; and here has he been
writing to me that he has'nt a friend in the world, or nobody to see
him, for the three months he has been in prison." " Three months,"
said Mr. CONANT, " why he was only put in last week !" "Oh, I
beg your Worship's pardon, he is there three months, and his time
is up next Wednesday." " You must certainly be mistaken," said
Mr. Circuit, ov for it is not above a month since the penalties were
inflicted." " I don't know, your Worship," said the countryman,
"that may be; hut I was at the trial three months agn, and it was
a month before that that he stole the sheet." -" Stole what sheet?"
said Mr. Conawr, " Why, your Worship, you know its for steal-
ing a sheet he is in." " Stealing a sheet,' said Mr. Conamr, " ille
not in for penalties about that coat case?" " Oh, your Worship, I
know nothing about no coals. My brother was sentenced at the
Old Bailey to three months imprisonment for stealing a sheet from
an old woman in Westminster.
It now struck Mr. Conant, that there must be two porions of
the name of William Poole in the same prison, and on examining
the books this was found to be the fact, and the order was granted.

LAM BETH-STREET.
',aeon, apprehended by Mr. Downes, Chief Constable, and
Mr. Lines, the Beadle, was charged as a common utterer of coun-
terfeit coin. He was detected in offering a base shilling to a poor
widow, who, having a very large family, bad lately been put into a
small shop by the subscriprion of a few neighbours; and on bim
were found nine other shillings from the same die. He is suspected
of having for a great length of time, dealt largely in this way, and
was remanded till Thursday, to give an opportunity for further
complaints against him.

The steeple of the New Church, at Chelsea, is to have
a very fine peal of ten bells.
DREADFUL CATASTROPHIL—Extract of a letter re-
ceived by a gentleman in New York from a friend who
went passenger in the brig Ann, Harrison master, which
sailed from 'Philadelphia for London in May last :
" On our passage over, the first night out, when about
fifty miles from land, the wind changed, and came
a•head, blowing pretty fresh—the captain had just quitted
the deck and turned in, at midnight, whet we were
suddenly alarmed by a heavy crash. All hands flew to
the deck to learn the Cause, which proved to be that we
had run foul of a large sloop ; great consternation pre-
vailed on both sides, the sloop calling for a rope and
to lower our boats, and we hailing her to stand by, as
she had stove in our bow, and we were sinking. We,
however, on sounding the pumps and examining more
closely, found we had not suffered so much as we as
first feared. Efforts were then made to beat towardt
the sloop, but our rigging was too much injured tg, get
to windward, unfortunately no .small boat was attached
to our brig, and, the jolly-boat and deck were lain-
bered with cotton: every exertion was, however, made
to get the boat out, but we were fast drifting to lee-
ward, as their cries became more faint. 'We sheared
lights, which were not answered. At length one
dreadful and piercing shriek of despair seemedseemed to
have announced the climax of their sufferings, and
the absence of all• hope—after which, not a sound
was heard. By the time our boats were in the tackle
for lowering, their fate seemed to be sealed ; with this
little hope of success, and a dangerous sea running,
it was considered too huardous to man the boats,
lest they should be swamped, and thus increase the
cal lit,}. The captain thirefore determined on laying
to, during the night. for• the small chance of seeing
them in the morning, or picking up anything that
might lead to a further knowledge of the unhappy suf-
ferers, but not a vestige was to be seen, nor could we
flatter ourselves there was the least possibility of their
being able to make sail for the land. This occurrence
for many days cut $ gloom co all on board, and every
one became nervous at the sight of a sail after sunset."