Star.
London, England, 1821-10-16 00:00:00

was not so drunk but he knew what she was well
enough. Aware that she should meet a protector at
the watch-house, Mrs. Osborn sheared no unwilling-
ness to go; but Cottle, who mistook her coolness for
impudence, would use force, aml dragged her with
much violence the whole of the way. Osborn, the
constable, having finished his sepper, had just taken
his magisterial cliair for the night, and was not a
little surprised that the first prisoner brought before
him should be his own wife. Mrs. Osborn, being
under no alarm for the issue of the charge, had pre-
sence of mind enough not to appear to notice her
husband, who on his part also kept his countenance,
and proceeded to the hearing of the charge with all
the assumption of dignity as if the prisoner had been
a perfect stranger to him. The watchman detailed
his accusation with much minuteness, said the pri-
soner was conducting herself in a very disorderly
manner, that he knew :ter to be a common street-
walker on his beat, that she had the impudence to
come up to him and tell him he was drunk, and on
his attempting to bring her to the watch-house, she
offered so much resistance that he was obliged to
bring her by force.—The prisoner was then formally
heard in her defence, and from her statement, corro-
borated by the evident intoxication of the watchman,
Mr. Constable decided that she was the aggrieved
party, and recommended her to prefer her charge
against the watchman for the assault, in thus impro-
perly taking her into custody. This was accordingly
done in due form, and Cottle was ordered eff to the
Compter ; but before his departure, to his great sur-
prise and mortification, he saw his prisoner claim the
constable of the night for her husband, give him the
key of the street door nut of her pocket, and affec-
tionately desire him not to stay out later than there
was occasion.—Cottle, in his defence before the Ma!
gistrate yesterday, stated that be was very subject to
the cramp! and it was a touch of this disorder which
had occasioned that reeling about which Mrs.Oshorn
had mistaken for intoxication ; and said his taking
her to the watch-house was occasioned by the abusive
language she used towards him.—The general cha-
racter of Mrs. Osborn, who is, it seems, a very iaof-
fensive woman, and her husband's testimony as to the
state of the watchman at the time, rendered this in-
genious defence altogether-nugatory. As there was
no personal harm done to his wife, the constable was
not anxious on his own account to press for any fur-
ther punishment upon the prisoner. The Alderman,
however, considered it to be highly necessary to make
an example of him. Reference was accordingly had
to the new Police Act passed last Sessions, Ist and 21
Geo. l\ cap. 118, which gives authority to any two
Justices, upon proof of any misconduct or delinquency
upon the pal t of any constable, •patrol, or watchman,
to suspend the individual, giving notice of the same
to the persons by whom he was appointed, and the
individual •so suspended is thereby rendered incom-
petent -to hold such office for ever after. Mr. Alder-
man SCITOLEY • did not think proper to act upon this
Statute, btit deemed it more advisable that the Com-
mon Council of the Ward should he made acquainted
with the circumstance, and requested to attend before
the Alderman at a future hearing, for which the pri,
soner was remanded.

Bow-.STREET.—Yesterday John Smith, 2 most noto-
rious thief was charged before Sir RICHARD MIME,
with stealing from the person of Thomas flail a
pocket-b.:ok containing one sovereign, one shilling,
and one sixpence. The witness, who is a respectable
tradesman residing in Gerard-street, Soho, stated that,
on Saturday night last he went into a public-house
in Long Acre, and called for a glass of liquor, and
took out his pocket-book, which contained the above
stated money, to pay for it ; at this time witness ob-
served the prisoner standing close to him, and in a
minute after felt his pocket-book move in his coat
pocket; he immediately turned round and saw the
prisoner draw his hand in the direction from his
pocket, and the prisoner immediately ran out. Wit-
ness missed his pocket-book, and pursued him crying'
"stop thief." Some watchmen succeeded in stopping
him. Two watchmen of St. Martin's corroborated
this statement. About twelve months ago the pri-
soner was apprehended with three others on a charge
of highway robbery on the Edgeware-road. He was
armed with a loaded pistol, &c. and committed for
trial at the Old Bailey sessions, when, owing to some
doubt as to identity, the prisoner fortunately escaped
the capital charge; he was, however, sentenced to six
months' imprisonment as a rogue and vagabond, in
having the pistol in his possession with intention to
assault some person. Subsequent to the expiration
of his sentence he has repeatedly been in custody for
felony.—He was fully committed.
MARLDOROUGII-STREET.--STEALING COFFIN IK-
sCHIPTIONS.—Howe, a grave-digger of St. .LlTllees
Parish, and Wyatt, one of the sextons, were charged
with stealing 60lbs. weight of lead, composing the
inscriptions on coffins. Gook, a constable on duty
at the watch-house, detected the grave-digger leaving
the church-yard on Sunday night, with as much lead
as he could well stand under, and he took him into
custody. The ponderous load turned out to be coffin
plates wrenched from.coffins. Wyatt came forward
to prove for his friend, the grave-digger, that the
lead was his perquisite, and by virtue-of his em-
plovment'he had consigned it to the grave-digger.
—The defence of Howe was, that in digging graves
the shovel was impeded by the lead separated from
coffins which were totted. But appearances nega-
tived this assertion, as some of the plates were of
dates as recent as 1817, and, instead of rotting off
the coffins, the metal had been wrenched off the de-
positaries in the vaults.—The prisoner was remanded
for another hearing.
QUEEN-SQUARE.—Yesterday, Rebecca Bissel was
charged by her landlady, Mrs. Mills, with stealing
several articles of silver plate. It appeared, that on
Thursday last, when the complainant missed her
property, she mentioned the circumstance to Bisset,
who immediately thereafter left the house, and was
not heard of until Saturday night, when a letter was
received from her, inviting her husband, an industri-
ous, honest shoemaker, to meet her the following
evening •in St. Margaret's Church-yard. As Bisset
could not read the letter, Mrs. Mills was applied to
for that purpose; and she then proeured Betts, the
constable, to go along with her to the place where
Rebecca Bisset expected to meet ber own husband.
She 'was apprehended and taken to the watch-houte,
where she confessed everything charged against her.
She repeated that confession before the Magistrate
yesterdahandmeutioned the various pawnbrolit rs with