Star.
London, England, 1821-11-06 00:00:00

INSOLVENT DEBTORS' COURT•

John thornier was opposed on the ground of having
fraudulently contracted a debt of £1.5. The insol-
vent had been before the Court on a former day, and
his case was then postponed, in order that certain
witnesses might be examined, and documents pro-
duced. It appeared that the insolvent had given a
bill to. a Mr. Wrowell, one of his creditors, to the
amount of £l5, and at the same time stated that it
was sure to be taken up. The bill was drawn by a
man of the name of Reeves, and accepted by one
Matthews, both of them not men of property, but semis
ef straw. Reeves admitted, when the case was on a
former day before the Court, that so far from being
able to pay 1:15, he could scarcely raise 15d. and
Matthews was an insolvent.
The Collar was decidedly of opinion that it was a
deception practised upon Mr. Wrowell, and was a
debt, therefore, fraudulently contracted. The insol-
vent was ordered to be imprisoned eight months at
the suit of his detaining creditors.
Thomas Pond, who had been already three times
before the Court, now again applied for his discharge.
The schedule which he now produced, and which he
stated himself ready to swear to, he had never read
since it had been drawn up. He would venture to
say it was correct: It was not drawn up by an attor•
ney, but by a friend of his of the name of Smith,
who had done it from his own dictation. It appeared
that the evidence given by the insolvent on his exami-
nation was at total variance with the allegations of
his present schedule, particularly touching a mort-
gage upon some land and a house, which the insol-
vent sated had not yet been paid.
On a former day, the insolvents petition had been
dismissed on account of the manner in which he bad
conducted himself before the Court, and the ill-ad-
vt,ed answers he bad given • to questions put to him.
To-day, although be had undergone along imprison-
ment, there appeared to be but little improvement in
him, and his manner seemed to be extremely offen-
sive to the Court.
The COURT, in dismissing the petition, observed,
that it had seldom witnessed such audacious beha-
viour. This was the fourth time of the prisoner's
appearance before it, and insolence seemed to have
been rooted in him. The order for hearing the case
was dismissed, and the officer of the Court directed
to take notice of the opposing parties in this case, in
order .that the insolvent might be recollected, if he
again applied for his discharge.

In the Court of Common Pleas, yesterday, the
whole day was occupied with the bearing Counsel in
an action brought by Mr. Taylor, of the Blue Posts
public-house, near Bruton Mews, against Mr. Stone,
the landlord of the adjoining premises, to recover
damages for building up a wall which intercepted the
light from the windows of the public-house, and for
piling up manure so close to the premises as to pre-
vent customers from continuing, as formerly, to fre-
quent the tap. A question also arose upon a right of
way at the rear of the house. The ground be-
longed to Earl Grosvenor and Colonel Berkeley. The
evidence of the witnesses was conflicting; those on
the one side stated, that the passage in the rear, on
which the alleged nuisance took place, was a public
way, while the witnesses for the defendant maintained
that the right of way was only occasionally exercised
by the plaintiff, and then by courtesy. The Jury
fcand a verdict for the plaintiff, generally, upon all
the counts.—Damages £lO.
At present there are residing id the village of
Lasswade, near Edinburgh, and within five minutes
walk of the bridge, fourteen persons, whose united
ages amount to 1213 years ! Six of whom ate above
ninety !
Tuesday last, two beautiful little birds, kingfishers,
were caught in the neighbourhood of Alresford by a
little boy, who, it appears, secured them in the act of
fighting, and while they were so intent on their en-
gagement that they did not perceive his approach.
The ship Brailsford, on her passage from Bombay
to England, in lat 29.26. S. long. 40. 2. E. caught a
large blue female shark, 12 feet long, on opening
which there were found no less than 77 young ones
alive, each about a foot long, and weighing from one
half to three quarters of a pound.
A laughable circumstance took place last week,
War the market-place, Shrewsbury :—As a soldier
was carrying. the dinners belonging to his mess from
the baker's, one of his companions coming behind him,
called out " Attention !" when this well-disciplined
soldier dropped his hands, and, at the same time, the
dinners of his unfortunate comrades !
PIERNAMDUCM—Extract of a letter, dated Sept. 22.
—B4 Some disaffected persons assembled at Guiana, a
small village, fourteen leagues from hence, about
half way from this place to Paraiba, and have se-
duced some native troops, and deceived a number of
country people, collecting them since the, 29th ult.
first with the words, King and Constitution,' and
ultimately under the pretext of a strong party in this
town. The Government used every possible measure
of conciliation, but at the same time were prompt in
their measures for the internal quiet and external de-
fence of the town. Those disaffected persons at length
sent their ultimatum, which was, that his Excellency
the Governor, now President of the Government,
should embark with the European troops; that they
would pardon the native troops: if this was not com-
plied with in 24 hours they would stack the town.
Accordingly, they attacked yesterday a post near
Olinda, which is three miles north of the town, and
another at the village of Affogados, an equal distance
to the southward. They were repulsed at each point
of the town, several killed, and deserters and others
taken prisoners. There were twenty militia at the
latter post, who defended the bridge until reinforced.
The European regiments were in the town, with the
exception of a party stationed at Olinda. It was not
necessary for the main force of the town to be en-
gaged. All the Europeans are arrived., and are put
on permanent duty. The small part of the force ne-
cessary to repel the attacks of yesterday, and the ar-
rival this day of the transport No. 2, supposed to
have troops from Lisbon, wall, no doubt, restore con-
fidence, as it is evident that there does not exist any
party of consequence in the town willing to join the
disaffected who menaced the' place. We have not
had any doubt as to what the result from their su-
tacking the town would be, and do not fear any re-
stewed attack.*

POLICE.

.
Bow-smire—Yesterday Mr. IV.Willimns, proprie-
tor of a stage-coach plying from London to Oxford,
appeared at this Office, to a summons, in which he
was charged, on the information of William Spangle,
a common informer, with having, on the 19th of bc-
tober, carried one outside passenger on his coach be-
yond the number allowed by Act of Parliament.
The informer stated, that on the day in question,
at about three o'clock in the afternoon, he was at
Hounslow, when he observed an Oxford coach car-
rying eleven outside passengers, besides various par-
cels of (with luggage the Act allows but ten;
without luggage, twelve outside passengers to a four-
horse coach). 'Two of them were on the box, of whom
one was driving, but he did not appear to be the re-
gular driver ; there were three on the roof in front,
three at the back, three in the dickey, and one on
the step by the side of the dickey, who, he had no
doubt, was the defendant.
Mr. Horne, of the Golden Cross, Charing-cross, a
principal proprietor of the coach, stated, that his co-
proprietor, Mr. Williams, had been appointed to
drive the coach upon that day, but he could not say
`whether he had done so or not.
Mr. Williams, in his defence, pleaded thatite was
not the driver at the time spoken of; that there were
only ten passengers, and that there was no luggage
on the roof. In support of this defence he called
Mr. Purcell Albert Dyke, a young Gentleman, ap-
parently about nineteen years of age, who stated him-
seif to be a student of the University of Oxford. He
stated that he drove the coach into Hounslow from
Oxford on the day in question, and there were ten
persons only on the outside beside himself.
Sir R. BIRNIE.—But you are not the coachman,
are you, Sir?
Mr. Dyke said he drove on that day, and that Mr.
Williams was not on the coach at all until after it
came through Hounslow.
Mr. Williams.—l believe, Mr. Dyke, you occa-
sionally act as my coachman, do you not? I mean
when I rest or lay by, as we term it ?
Mr. Dyke said he did.
Mr. Williams.—Do you ever pay me anything, or
consider yourself at all as a passenger?
Mr. Dyke said he did not.
One of the informers asked Mr. Dyke if he always
took such particular notice of the number of passen-
gers as he seemed to have done on this occasion ?
Mr. Williams.—Oh! yes, I have taught him to do
that ; and he would not be half a coachman if he did
not, when there are so many of you informers about.
Sir R. Biantrt.—Your defence then is, that Mr.
Dyke was not a passenger ?
Mr. Williams replied in the affirmative.
Sir R. RIME said, such a defence was an attempt
to evade the Act of Parliament, which would not
avail with him. He had nothing to do with private
agreements, and if young Gentlemen chose to amuse
themselves by becoming the servants or deputies of
stage-coachmen, he had no objection, but he should
consider them as passengers. The Act of Parliament
was passed for the safety of his Majesty's subjects,
and it mattered not whether the passengers paid or
not, so long as there was more than the legal number.
Mr. Williams said, he could prove by Mr. Dyke
that there was no luggage.
Sir R. BIRNIE said, die informer had sworn that
there was luggage, and he never permitted oath
against oath.
Mr. Williams reminded the worthy Magistrate,
that it would be the oath of a Gentleman against that
of a common informer.
Sir 11. BIRNIE said, he must act upon the evidence
of the informer, and the defendant might appeal if
he chose; but he should be guided in his decision by
the spirit of the Statute.
The defendant was convicted in the full penalty
of £2O; and he expressed his determination to ap-
peal to the Sessions.
Sir R. BIRNIE observed, in the course of the hear.,
ing, that he wondered Gentlemen did not emulate
the skill of their coots as well as coachmen.
MA NS toN-House.—Two queer-looking little men,
were charged yesterday with having committed se-
veral outrages and disorders. It appeared, that a rab-
ble had assembled at Billingsgate to celebrate the
Anniversary of Gunpowder Plot. They paraded the
vicinity, carrying the prisoners in chairs, as repre-
sentatives of Guy Fox, demanding money from all
decent passengers, and threatening those who refused
them. Immediately on the approach of the officers,
the rabble flew off in all directions; but the pri-
soners, being tied in the chairs, became an easy cap-
ture. In defence, they said they were going to their
work, when they were met by a mob of boys and men,
who snugged them—the latter taking them up in their
arms, and confining them as above described, having
previously blackened and otherwise completely disfi-
gured their faces. A fellow, who acknowledged him-
self to be one of the party, confirmed this statement,
and claimed a prescriptive right to collect money on
the occasion from all who could afford it. He said,
though the prisoners were not voluntary agents in the
business, their complaints were soon drowned by co-
pious draughts of gin with which they were supplied
at almost every public-house they passed, till their
treasurer deserted with the stoney-bor.—The LORD
MAYOR reprobated the proceedings in strong terms,
and said, their conduct amounted very nearly to a
highway robbery. He, however, discharged the
prisoners, whose appearance in some degree bore out
Itheir story.
Haydon was charged with a robbery. The
prisoner went into the shop of Mr. Crane, fruiterer,
in Cannon-street; and, after purchasing two apples,
requested Mrs. Crane to give him a bright shilling
for a dull one, as he wished to reward his daughter
with it. Mrs. Crane took out the till to look for one,
when he dashed his hand in and took out six, with
which he ran off, but was pursued and taken.—He
was fully committed.
MA ay-LA•BONNE OFF mg.—Yesterday, a publisher]
of periodical works was brought up on a warrant, on
the complaint of a poor man, for grossly assaulting
him. The complainant stated, that he lodged at the
Green Man public-house, in Union-street, Middlesex
Hospital, and had been employed by the defendant
as a bookbinder. On Friday evening, about seven
o'clock, he (the defendant) rushed into his bed-room,
where he lay ill in bed, and seized hold of his arms,,
and calling him a d—d rascal, attempted, with great
violence, to drag him out of bed, declaring he would
shoot him if he had a pistol. He then commenced

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