Star.
London, England, 1825-01-12 00:00:00

POLICE INTELLIGENCE:
MANSION-HOUSE.
tett te rday, during the transaction of the business of the Justice-
room, the LOUD MATO% was waited upon by a deputation from
the religious body called the Freethinking Christians, at the head of
which were Mr. Coates and Mr. Fearon. The deputation handed
to his Lotaihip the amount of a subscription raised amongst the
members of their sect in London, for the benefit of the Spanish and
Italian Refugees. The subscription amounted to 641. 6s. 6d.

BOW-STREET.
Canas-Srretarro.—The greater part of Mr. Mnistruais time for
the last three days has been occupied in the investigation of a charge
of child-stealing, of an extraordinary nature.
On the Bth of August last a poor woman, of the name of Burke,
the wife of a • labouring man, then living in Church-street, St.
Giles's, was delivered of a male child, and in seven or eight days
after she was on her way with her infant to St. Giles's work-
house to obtain medical assistance, when she was accosted by a
woman of respectable appearance, who asked her several questions
about her state of health, the age of her child, &c. and asked her to
take some porter, observing that it would refresh her. Mrs. Burke
accompanied the stranger to a public-house, where they had some
porter, and the latter having ascertained her residence, gave her
sixpence ; said she knew a Lady who belonged to a charitable insti-
tution for relieving persons in her condition, and she would speak'
to that Lady in her behalf, and call again on a future day. She
kept her appointment, and it was agreed by them to go to the Lady
on the following Friday, the twentieth day of August. The
stranger treated her with the greatest kindness, and staid upon that
occasion and ironed a cap for Dirs. Burke and the child, and also,
brought some flannel and other things for the use of the infant.
She was on that occasion about an hour and a half in the room. On
the 20th, the stranger came, and after remaining some time there,
she and Mrs. Burke, with the infant, started to go to" the Lady's."
When they arrived in Gate-street, Lincoln's Inn-fields, the stranger
said she thought Mrs. Burke must need rest and refreshment, and
proposed going into the Sun public-house, which they did. The
stranger c..lled for a pint of porter, and then proposed to have some-
thing to eat ; gave Mrs. Burke some money to go out and purchase
bread sod cheese and onions, directing her which way to go and
find a shop. Mrs. Burke left the child in the arm' of the stranger,
and when she returned, in a few minutes, with the provisions, both
were gone. The pour mother, thus strangely bereft of her only
child, became almost frantic, and ran-to this Office and related the
occurrence to the Magistrate then sitting, who humanely ordered
hand-bills to be widely circulated, at the expeme of the.establish-
ment. and an officer to make all poasible search for the delinquent
and the child. All was unavailing, however, and no trace was ob-
tained of either, until (we understood) the 21st of Deeember,
when Bits. Burke, who sells stay laces and other things in the
streets, was stantlieg in Newgate Market, and saw the person now
accused, whom she immediately fixed upon as the person who stole
her child. Mrs. Burke continued to follow her until she went into
a shop, when she also entered, and directly accused her of stealing
her child. A crowd having collected, several persons took part
with the accused, and wert so far as to give Mrs. Burke in charge
to an officer, and she was conveyed to the Compter for the night,
and before the Sitting Alderman, at Guildhall, the following morn-
ing. The Alderman, after hearing the charge of the accused, and
the answer of Mrs. Burke (who was then of course the defendant),
discharged the case altogether. Subsequently, namely, on Fa iday
last, Mrs. Burke and her husband came to this Office, and upon the
information, on oath, of the former, a warrant was issued by Mr.
Alisssitax, against the accused, for felony in stealing the child. On
Saturday she was brought here, attended by several of her friends.
Her name is Marta Ectgington, and she has been many years in the
situation ;of housekeeper to a highly respectable person of the
name of Evaes,who is a'surgeon's instrument-maker in Old 'Change.
After a lengthened examination, the defendant was admitted to
bail till the evening, wham the case was again gone into, and depo-
sitions of witnesses were taken. Mr. Itliasisto.t. afterwards or-
dered her to be brought up for re-examination en Monday night,
when two women,nanied BarrX and Delaney, the former the land-
lady, and the latter a lodger in the house in Church-street, where
Mrs. Burke lodged at the time of the transaction in question,
swore that, to the best of their knowledge. they believed the pri-
soner to be the person whom they saw in Mrs. Burke's room, once
when she ironed the caps, and again on Friday, when the child
was stolen.
Mr. PHILLIPS addressed the Magistrate in behalf of his client
with muck earnestness. lie was not usm il:ing that the case should
go to a Jury, but he urged the propriety of the prisoner being ad-
mitted to bail. Her health and that of her son, who was a delicate
child, might be endangered by her being committed to Newgate.
Four respectable persons then coffered to give bail..to the amount
of £5,500, but Mr. alit:sum. rejected this proposition.
Yesterday morning (the prisoner having been placed in the watch-
house for the night) the parties again attended, when offers were,
made to give responsible bail to the amount of twenty thousand
pounds, if that would obtain her liberation until trial. This, how-
ever, Mr. Mitisitur.e refused, and she was fully committed, but with
liberty to remain at a watch-house until trial.
It seems that the waiter who complained to Sir RICIIAItra Maxie
on Monday, respecting the want of generosity in a Gentleman
whose lost pocket-book he had restored, gave a very incorrect state-
ment of the affair. The Gentleman alluded to, Mr. G. F. Bonham,
waited upon Sir R. Brant: yesterday, to complain of the statement he
had seen in some of the 14.pers, and to give a flat contradiction to
the greater part of it. The pocket-book, instead of containing 37W.
as the waiter alleged, contained nothing except a few receipts and
private memorandums; and Instead of his having picked it up in
the street, be had taken it from a table in the tavern called 'John
O'Groat's House, in Rupert-street, in which house he was an occa-
sional waiter on this day on which Mr. B. accidentally left it there.