Star.
London, England, 1826-01-11 00:00:00

CORONERS' INQUESTS.

DREADFUL CATASTROPHE CATASTROPHE.

Monday, at twelve o'clock, Mr. CARTER, the Coroner
for Kent, and a most respectable Jury, assembled at
the sign of the Eagle and Lamb, Damn), to inquire
into the circumstances which led to the melancholy
death of Mr. Edward Topham, who was accidentaity
shot by his uncle.
Mr. Samuel Whittaker deposed, that he had known
the deceased for set eral years; he was brought up by
his uncle, Mr. S:ephen Topham, of that town. Tuesday
sennight witness was on a visit at tl:e above Gentleman's
house :the deceased was Oleic On the following day,
witness, the deceased, and his uncle, went into a pad,
dock at a small distance from t!.e house, with theit
guns, for the purpose of shooting pigeons, which .were
'to be let out of a cage. After same preliminaries,
Shooting commenced, and several of the birds were
shot.. The deceased was in th;!'act of opening the cake;
"hen a pigeon escaped, and the uncle discharging'his
,piece before the deceased was 'mit of danger,-lodged'
the contents in his head ; the deceased instantly cried
out, Oh, my dear uncle, you have killed me." Wit-
ness ran towards the deceased, and prevented him from
failing on the ground. The unto:mitre uncle appeared
horror 'struck at what be had done, and ran; in a state
of.distractton, towards the house, to alarm his domes-
tics ; in the meantime witness supported the deceased,
wbo was perfectly insensible,. till the arrival of one of
Mr.Topham's set vants, when they carried the deceased
into the house. Surgical assistance artived in a short
time, and everything was done for the deceased, but of
no avail, as he expired in about two hours and a half
after the calamity occurred. Witness is thoroughly
convinced that it was purely acciden'al.
Cososza—To your knowledge, were ther deceased and his uncle
always on good terms ?
Wit"— -Certainly ; they were remarkably partial to each other.
rhat distance was the deceased from his uncle when

Juror—At wl
Ithe piece was discharged
Witness—About 15 paces.
A servant of Mr. Tepham, sen. was called, bet his evidence
only went to confirm that of the last witness, as to his master and
the deceased being on good terms.
The Jury, after consulting about ten minutes, brought in a ver-
lact of—Accidental Death, with a deodand of on the piece.
The deceased was the son of the late Colonel Topham, and a
promising young man of 19 year. of age.
An Inquest was held at the Carved Red Lion, Isling-
ton, on the body of T. Manton, who was drowned
while passing under the Tunnel, on Friday night, when
the Jury returned a verdict of Accidental Death.
Yesterday an Inquest was held at the Old Bell, Friar-
street, BlackfriarF-road, on the body of Joseph West.
The decea-ed was crossing the road nearly opposite the
Surrey Theatre, when he was accidentally run over by
a hackney-coach, by which his ribs were fractured, and
he sustained other serious injuries, of which he died in
a few hours.—Similar verdict.

A shocking a:xi lent happened about nine o'clock on
Monday bight, in St. Giles's, owing to the slippery state
of the pavement. A poor Irishwoman, with an infant
in her arms, was proceeding along High-street, when,
on reaching Tottenham.court-road, she attempted to
cross, but, on gaining the middle of the carriage-way,
her foot slipped, and she and the child fell to the ground
with such tome, that the child was thrown some dis-
tance, and before the mother or any other person could
pick it up, the wheel of a h.irkney-coach that was going
up tle road passed over it, and it was killed. The
coachman pulled up as soon as possible, and rendered
every assistance ; but it being quite clear no blame was
attached to him, he was permitted to go about his bu-
siness. An Inquest art on the body yesterday morning,
,and a verdict of Accidental Death returned by the Jury.
Last weeklas Mr.G.Crocker, ship-builder, of Bideford,
and his apprentice were standing on the upper stage act
a large brig, now nearly finished in his building-yard,
adjoining Potters Pill, an altercation took place between
GUILDHALL •
them respecting some work, which was not to the bath- •
was again brought up before Mr. Alderman Bunn yee-
terDda.yDeali ;
faction of Mr. Crocker, who became irritated at the in' for fival examination, upon chsrgei of having robbed his em-
solence of his apprentice, and said he had a great mind 'doyen to a considerable extent, and was fully coMmitted for trial.
to throw him off the stage, He had no sooner used the BOW-STREET.
expression than the apprentice clasped him round the
Was. Gm. gerridge, who, our readers may renumber, was some
waist, and exclaimed, " Will you? then we will go to- days since remanded on a charge of embezzling ,Ci ne, the property
gether ;" and immediately jumped down with him a of his employers, Messrs. Jenkins and Abbott, Solicitors, in New
uepth of SO feet, up to their shoulders in mud. By Inn, was yesterday brought before Mr. Hain, the sitting .lagis-
ropes and tackle they were, with considerable difficulty, . .
true, charged with forging the indorsement of Mr. Charles Nedum
James, an Burden clerk of the same Gentlemen. Mr. Harmer,
releasedfrom their perilous situation. accompanied by Mr. Butler, attended on the part of the prosecu-
Five or six fellows are now infesting the Western ton. The following witnesses were examined:
Counties,especially on market:days, imposing what they Mr- William Brown wu first callet—l am clerk to Messrs.
call smuggled goods, in handkerchiefs, watches, seals, Fitton,Onde rticit
tar
feorrsttlae Giwi cesterr Mr. Henry
Hutniaper WiltowHi the
&c. on the unwary, which are not worth one-tenth part aciaed
an county
attaahawnt,intha ofaGloucester,
n is
fd. yeare ith,lvl2u,. t-Valliarne.
of the burn given for them. 1 Barnes, which was sent down by Messrs. Jenkins and Abbott, u.

- -
An Inquest was held on the body of R. Dennis, a
Billingsgate porter, aged 70, who resided in L aye-court,
Petticoat-lane, and who, not hiving been seen for seve-
ral days, his room-door was forced, when he was found
dead, stretched on a miserable bed, with one side of his
face, and great pirt of his tongue gnawed away, sup-
posed to have been by rats; but, on looking under the
bed, a cat was di,covered, which had been a great fa-'
vourite of the decea•ed, but which, impelled by hunger,
had thus disfigured its benefactor. It being the opinion
of a surgeon that death arose from natural causes, the
Jury returned a verdict accordingly, and the cat was
immediately destroyed.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

No. 8, New lon, solicitors. It was in a letter, lend r.r
£3.3 4s. 6d. in pursuance of a rule of Court, and for £9 16.. 101
costs. A levy was made under the attachment, and the money
paid. On the 24th of February, 1823, I remitted to Jenkins and
Co. by the post,* draft, which I believe to be the one now pro-
duced. It was for the sum of £SB Bs. 4d. which, without the
stamp, was the amount of the money payable to them. That
letter now produced I believe to be the one In which I transmitted
it. By the return of the post, I received, on the 46th of Februaryb
a letter acknowledging the receipt of the remittance.
Mr. Jenkins, a partner in the firm of Jenkins and Abbott, was
nest called. The letter marked A, never came to my hand; I
can swear to that positively ; it was never brought- to the account ;
the bill for 581. 85. 4d. has never been brought to our account; we
had an articled clerk named Charles Nedum James. The indorse..
ment on the bill is not his h ind-writing ; I believe the indorsement
' to he the hand-writing of the prisoner Kerridge. The letter marked
1B (that received by the last witness) is in the hand-writing Of the
prisoner; he was not entrusted to indorse any bills which had
been paid to the firm.
Mr King, a Gentleman holding the situation of cashier ha 104
office of Messrs. Jenkins and Abbott, appeared. According to the
course of the office, any bills which are transmitted to the find
would come into my hands, whether they were received by chi
principals or any of the clerks ; this bill produced never Caine inter
my hands ; the amount of it was never taken into account; i kiwis;
the band-writing of Charles N. James, who is an articled clerk td
Messrs. Jenkins and Abbott ; time indorsement on the bill is not
his; I know the hand-writing ut Kerridge, the prisoner, and I
believe it to be his.

Mr. Tewsley—l am a clerk to Mrs.'s Jottes, Lloyd. and CO.
Bankers, Lothbury; they are avent. t.,r Wilton Aid Co. Gluticeit..
ter. CM the 6th of March, 169.3, that bring the day nil witic!a it
would become due from the time for which it %Vas drawn, thy bill
produced WWI presented. The person who presented it presented
a check for .£7 Ils. at the same time.

Jame a Ellery called.—l am one of the General Postmen, em-
ployed in the Post-office ; I was in that situation in the mouth of
February, 1823. The house of Messrs. Jenkins and Abbott, No.
8, New Inn, was in my walk as a postman of the early delivery. I
remember the prisoner ; I dellveted hint letters frequently ; I have
likewise delivered him letters before I reached the elfin when I
have met him, which were'directed to Messrs. Jenks and Abbott.
The letter marked A. appears to have passed through the General
Post-office. I have, when I have met him, delivered him letters,
which he has returned tome, and told me, I might carry them to
the office.

The last witness on this charge was James Gardiner, a very ac-
tive officer of this Establishment—l searched the lodgings of the
prisoner, at No. 5, Princes-street, Waterloo-road, Commercial-
road ; I found the letter marked at, in a drawer, in the back room
on the first flow.

The cue on the part of the prosecution being now closed,
Mr. Heim called on the prisoner to state whether be wished to
urge anything in his defence at present ?
The prisoner said he had nothing to urge; but he bad hoped,
that as he had freely confessed everything, and had given up the
papers, Messrs. Jenkins and Abbott would nor, from a recollection
of his long services, have been induced to take such a proceeding as
the present against him.
HALLS said, those were topics on which he could hear no
remarks. He had a certain duty to perform, which, however un-
pleasant to his feelings, was indispensable.
Mr. Hsrmrr, as the solicitor of Messrs. Jenkins and Abbott
said, his clients felt hurt at having au imputation like that which
had fallen (rent the prisoner cast upon them. They had been so
contimsally and so extensively robbed by the prisoner and other
persons, that they felt bound to prosecute, as a duty they owed to
the public and themselves.
Mr. HALLS said, the most distant imputation of unkindness could
nut attach to them. They had trusted a man in their employment,
and he had betrayed that trust. They ought, therefore, for the
sake of the public and themselves, to bring him before a Jury.
How, in fact, were men in extensive practice, i;ke the prosecutors,
to be safe from ruin when the very persons they employed confi-
dentially were their worst enemies?

The parties were then bound over to prosecute.
A second case of embezzlement of a cheque, for the amount of
19.01. was proved against the prisoner. Messrs. Jenkins and Abbott
were concerned for the plaintiff, in a case of Payne and Perron,
and in it their client was successful. The action was finally settled,
and the cheque in question paid to the prisoner. For this be never
accounted either to the partners or to the cashier.—The prisoner
was that fully committed for trial at the approaching Old Bailey
Sessions.—We understand that this unfortunate man has a wife
and six children.