The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1839-11-19 00:00:00

HIGHWAY ROBBERY.

A tall, red-haired man, in a good top-coat, named Wm.
Cooper, was charged with having robbed an Irishman of £5,
under the following aggravated circumstances :
Faral Kileen said, that on the afternoon of
_the 30th ult.
he was standing on the quay .of the" Clarence Dock, intend-
ing to take his passage for Ireland; when the, prisoner and
another man came up and spoke to him. They said they were
looking for a man who was to do a job for them, and asked
him to accompany them. He went with them: The pri-
soner walked first. The other man, when they were coming
out from the dock,. stooped down, and picked up a paper,
containing a watch chain, three seals, and a ring. • Witness
then proceeded to say—The paper had writing upon it. The
man asked me if I could read. I said I could a little. I read

the paper. There was written upon it, " Lord Derby,: three
gold seals, chain, and a wedding ring, .f 35 1,15." , 1 looked
at the seals, chain, and ring. I handed them and the paper
back to the man who pretended to have found them. The pri-
soner stood until we got to him. The-other man chewed him
the seals, chain, and ring. He told the prisoner that he had
found them, and that I was with him and was entitled to one
half. The prisoner looked at the paper and read it. He
said "There will be a great reward offered for them." The
prisoner's companion then said, " You'had better wait until
to-morrow morningawhen we will go to the Reward-office to
get the reward." • I paused a little. The other man then said,
" What will you take for your chance F.' I said, " I do'nt.
know." He said, " I will give you ten shillings." The
prisoner said, " Let us walk on here below," pointing to the
brick crofts. We walked there and got behind a kiln. The
prisoner then said to the other man, - " Show me them
again." He did so. I put my finger under the chain.
I was looking at them. The prisoner asked me if I had ten
shillings—if I had the other man Would give me a sovereign.
I took out a purse containing five sovereigns. I .held the
purse in my fingers whilst I felt in my..pocket for another
purse, in which I had some silver money. Whilst I was
doing so, prisoner snatched my purse and the five sovereigns,
and his companion struck me a blow under the right ear and
knocked me down. I tried to get up. I staggered and fell
down again. When I recovered' myself a little, I saw them
running on the Canal-bridge. I attempted to call after
them. I was so much hurt that I could not call loud.
The prisoner and his companion escaped. On Friday
last I gave information at the North Dock station. On Sa-
turday morning I saw constable John Pearson in Vauxhall-
road. I informed him, and, described the prisoner and his
companion. This morning, between twelve and one o'clock,
PearsOn brought the prisoner to ine. That was the first time
I had seen him since 1 was robbed. - I said, ".That is one-
of the men." The prisoner made no answer. 1 coo. sr.- se;
he is theanan who matched the purse out of
.ray, hand. The
seals, chain, and ring are now produced. . I kept them till
to-day, when I gave them to Pearson. . .
John Pearson said, lam a constable.. On Saturday morn- -
ing I was on duty in Vauxhall-road. The witness Kileen
informed me that he had been robbed onWoclnesdaY, the
30th October last, and described thotnien. I kneW:Jhem '
from his description. I and Kileen then went in search, but
could not find them. A little after twelve o'cluek. this.thern-
ing I met the prisoner in Ben Jonson-street, in ecitili',E.ny
with two others. I took him into custody. I said, I want
you. He said, " For what ?" I said, for knocking an Irish-
man down, and robbing him of £5. He made no .axiswer. I
then took the prisoner to the platie where the witpeess..Kileen
is lodging. Kileen saw him, and said, "You are the roan
who snatched my purge and money." Therarrisoner -Made no
answer. I produce the seals, chain, and ring. (These were
of brass, of that description used by a duffers.").
The prisoner, on being cautioned, said, "I never struck
nor knocked down the man, and never had a farthing of Ms
money." He was committed for trialadt the ses-ions. ' ' l'' ''' •
STISIPTiIous tIIARACTERS.. ; ~' •. ~.,;;.:
t
Two men, named Richard Webster and James', uons,,ancL t
.. . . ~,
a boy named Edward 1-f!•g'ocs, all well known to the poriaer,......
were placed at the bar on the following charge. Pcilice•-ecrn-'-`
stable Cearns stated, that, about half-past eight o'clock-a:lira
Saturday, while he sv,as on private business in Paradise-street,
he noticed the prisoners and another man not in custody
.loitering about in a very stiSPleions manner, iiif3hOP- doors
and street ends, and knowing them to be thieves Orel rtncl, ,
another officer watched theta for a considerable time.:. alicy,
a short time afterwards divided, - two of them.. stationing. ,
themselves at the bottom of King-street, and two at the bot-"
tom of Hanover-street. Not being himself on duty at the'''
time, he told police-constable Reed to look after.theaua.lso,
and did not lose s'p'at of them himself. a,Tli9;jawa4,.,after
some time, and sLol at the end of Dukea.sereetdane. Note
doubting but they were bent on committing feloO,'-itariehiL•
portunity offered, as they were well-known theiveS, he tend
the other offcer apprehended.them. Webster rnade.resistarve,-
but was eventually secured. IFr= • the badness of the: pri-
soners' characters—all of them I:riving before been iiiipiigoried
—they were committed to the House of Cdrrection-forthree -
months. , •_ . _ .. . _ .

John Murray, the fourth of the same gang, and who
escaped on Saturday night, was afterwards apprehended en
another charge of being found under very 'suspicions cir-
cumstances in two parts of the town 'on the same night.
lie was also comm.ted for three months. •
FALSIFYING A WEIGHING-MACHINE TICKET.

John Robinson stood charged with a fraud, under the fol-
lowing circumstances.:-1t appeared that he had been in the
service of Mr. Harrisan, of Preeson's-row, a dealer in iron-;
and that he had oil Friday obtained a quantity of scrap iron
from Mr. Tyrer's foundry, stating that it was for that indi-
vidual, Land would he paid for when weighed and delivered.
He was allowed to take the iron in a cart, and a youth in the
service of Mr. Tyrer went with him to see it weighed; and
to receive the money. It was weighed at a machine near the
Prince's Dock, and the prisoner said the weight was 7 'e.e.t.
The boy said it was much more than that, and that it must
be weighed somewhere else: He, however, had it carted -to
Mr. darrison, who, it appeared, had agreed ~to buy it, not
knowing that anything was wrong. The prisoner wished
Mr. Harrison to take it without its being properly weighed,
but this he refused to do ; and it woe Weighed, and found to
be 18 cwt. 0 qrs. 26 lbs. Two witnesses saict.th heard the
prisoner say that he had given the machine-man ss. to weigh
it wrong. The machine did not belong to the corporation,
and the allegation that the man had so'iveighed it, did not
appear. Two tickets were produced, one of which- it -dp-
peared the prisoner had falsified.
Mr. Rushton said, that as the serveait of ,Mr. Tyrer, had,
accompanied the prisoner all the w n
ay, 'the iron Was'evei
fully in his possession. and he could not therefore SentletiNg
for trial on that part of the eliarg-e; but he should eon'tia
him, under the act, of having fraudule.tly altered tbe.ticl:4,
in 'a penalty of £lO, or three months'lmprigenment..
In default of payment, the prisoner was corm-bitted.'
A HABIT AND REPUTE THIEF.

A man, named John Buckley, was-charged with pickiag„
gentle Man's pocket of his handkerchief. The case was uroy,
ed. The prisoner had before been conidtled tive one s.
He was committed to gaol for three months.
Charles Morris, a well known thief, was charged by a po-

. .
lice constable with, in conjunction with another,bad charac-
ter, following an elderly gentleman in the street, with intuit,
no doubt, to rob him. He was consigned to gaol for three
months.