The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-01-22 00:00:00

1827. Towards the end of 1829, he spent several months in
White Cross-street Prison, from which he was released un-
der the insolvent debtors' act. At this period his•clothes
were in pawn, and he was in such a state of utter destitution,
that he excited the compassion of the governor of the prison,
who generously advanced him upwards of four pounds to re-
lieve his clothes, receiving his written obligation to repay the
same when demanded. At an after period, when he was dis-
covered to be living at an elegant house in Connaught-terrace,
and driving his carriage and pair, the governor sent to him
for the money, which he refused to pay, alleging as his reason
that he was freed from it by the statute of limitations. From
the time he left White Cross-street Prison, he acted as shop-
man to the tallow-chandler previously mentioned. The third
was an attorney in very poor circumstances, who, in 1831,
went through the Bankruptcy Court. He was one of the di-
rectors and the solicitor for the notorious Equitable Loan
Company, which was blown up in 1838. The fourth was an
apothecary, and had a small shop in the neighbourhood of
where the first-mentioned of the four resided. In 1832, he
spent several months in the Queen's Bench Prison, where he
was in a state of the utmost destitution, and was known by
his fellow-prisoners under the name of " Poor Jemmy."
The four individuals, of whom we have given some ac-
count, are believed to have been the sole originators of this
precious concern. They subsequently admitted as managing
directors, a journeyman blacksmith, along with the porter of
the establishment; and the two latter, in conjunction with
one of the four, signed all the policies and annuity bonds.
The ex-tallow chandler, in his capacity of house agent, had
the disposal of the premises in Baker-street, London, which
were fitted up for the office of the company. A few tables,
chairs, &c. were scraped together in the best way the parties
could, and the sign was put up, of the Independent West
Middlesex Assurance Company, of which the sole partners
were the individuals already alluded to, or possibly one or
two.others in like desperate circumstances. Prospectuses
were issued, by which the company professed to be consti-
tuted under various acts of parliament; and an imposing
array of names appeared as directors, many of which were
chosen as being identical with those of well-known and
highly respectable gentlemen in London. Suspicion was at
an early period excited, by the low rates at which tha com-
pany transacted business ; and it soon became known, that
the individuals who were put forth as directors, were not the
well-known gentlemen of the same names however,
from the disgraceful state of the law of libel, those who
knew the real state of matters were afraid to speak out ; and
our contemporary, the Scotch Reformers' Gazette, has the
credit of being the first journal that exposed the concern, for
which the proprietors have been landed in several actions of
damages, and put to great trouble and expense.
At the outset, Messrs. Coutts and Co. were announced as
the bankers of the concern ; but they soon ordered their
names to be withdrawn from the advertiseniento. The com-
pany then out forward the Bank of England, who, after
making enquiry regarding the parties, ordered the account
to be shut. The Western Bank of Scotland, who had been
announced as the Scottish bankers, were obliged to threaten
proceedings before they could get their names withdrawn.
Notwithstanding these adverse occurrences, and in the face
of the exposure made in Glasgow, the company still went on ;
and their gains, from what has transpired, must have been
considerable. It appears, by a search made at the Enrol-
ment Office, Chancery-lane, London, where all annuity
bonds are registered, that, down to the month of November,
1840, the sum of £§B,ooo had been paid into the concern for
the purchase of annuities. The money received in the shape
of premiums for fire and life assurances must also have been
large; and, although no correct approximation can be made,
it does not seem improbable to estimate their total gains at
somewhere about £200,000. _ _ _

Tbat money was flowing at a rapid rate into the exchequer
was soon made manifest by the altered circumstances of the
concoctors of the scheme. The ex-tallow-chandler and house-
agent built nine splendid houses as an investment at Maida
Hill, to the west of London, in one of which he took up his
residence, keeping several male servants, and driving into
town in his carriage. fie further purchased variou,
ties in different parts of the metropolis, at a cost

proper-
s has been

ascertained, of upwards of £20,000. The ex-footman pur-
chased an elegant house in Connaught-terrace, where he lived
in considerable splendour, and drove his carriage and pair.
In Glasgow, premises were purchased for the use of the
concern, in Ingram-street, and several sums of money
were lent out upon heritable securities, a portion of which, it
is hoped, may be made available for the behoof of the suffer-
ers in this quarter. Between three and four thousand pounds
is understood to be about the amount received by the com-
pany here in the annuity branch of their business, included
in which, is a sum sunk for the behoof of the children of the
late John Tait, editor of the Liberator newspaper. Their
transactions in Glasgow, however, which at one time were
large, fell off from the period of the exposure to which we
have alluded, and, although the office was still kept open, it
is believed that money did not come in. Persons who had
effected fire insurances went off to other offices, glad to es-
cape with only the loss of the premiums. The unfortunate
individuals who had sunk money upon annuities were differ-
ently situated ; but down to a late period, for the sake of
preserving appearances, the annuities were paid. On Tues-
day last, the office was finally closed,—the individual who,
for some time, has acted as agent, and who is understood to
be the son of the ex-footman, having hurriedly taken his de-
parture from Glasgow, He is said to have stated to a gen-
tleman, whom he chanced to see before he walked off, that
he had received no money from London since last September,
and it is quite certain that he had received none here, as no
new transactions had for a long time been entered into.
Although the Independent West Middlesex Assurance
Company displayed the utmost eagerness to procure busi-
nessf their conduct was different when losses by fire took
place, or when individuals died who had their lives insured
with the concern. At Dublin, a life policy fell due, and pay-
ment was refused ; but, upon legal proceedings being insti-
tuted, the claim was settled ; and the agent in Dublin was so
annoyed at the conduct of the company, that he. abandoned
the agency. At Johnstone in the neighbourhood of Paisley,
a fire occurred in the premises of Messrs. Allan and Watson,
cotton-spinners, who were insured with the West Middlesex,
and payment was refused of the claim of about £1,600, on
various unfounded pretences. Legal proceedings were, in
consequence, instituted, and funds, which the concern had
in Scotland, were fortunately, arrested, else a different result
might have ensued. After a protracted and expensive liti-
gation, and within a few days of the time fixed for the trial,
the Middlesex abandoned the case, and allowed decreet to be
passed against them—and Messrs. Allan and Watson ulti-
mately recovered the whole of their demand, and the ex-
penses incurred. We give these merely as examples of the
manner in which the Middlesex proceeded ; and might quote
numerous cases, of a similar nature, from all parts of the
country. in which actions are, at this moment, pending.
The Middlesex Company professed great indignation at
exposure which was made regarding them, and actions of
damages were commenced at their instance in the Court of
Session. They first raised two actions against the proprietors
of the Reformers' Gazette, and four against the agent in
Glasgow of the County Fire Office, Messrs. Allan and Wat-
son, &c., all of which were dismissed. The actions were
then repeated in another form, and certain of them were ex-
pected to have gone before a jury in March. Had these
been proceeded in, we are informed that the disclosures that
would have been made are of the most extraordinary charac-
ter, both in regard to the principal actors in the scheme, and
to the manner in which they proceeded in getting up the pre-
tended company. Although in possession of much curious
and startling information on the subject, the nature of which
may be readily guessed at from what we have just laid before
our readers, we deem it right for the present to defer going
further into detail. It is evident that the parties implicated
had in contemplation the speedy bursting of the nefarious
bubble which they sent afloat ; and their whole object for
some time has been, by raising actions of various kinds, to
maintain a certain description of reputation, tinder cover of
which they might secure as large an amount of plunder as
possible. In November last, the Stamp Office gave instruc-
tions to proceed against them for the duties due in the pre-
ceding month of May. Whether the parties were not pre-
pared for flight, and paid the amount, we are not aware ; but
we may be tolerably certain that it has not been settled,, if
they could possibly avoid doing so. We trust, that, even in
the present uncertain state of the law, means will be found to
punish the guilty authors of this plot ; and, at all events, that
parliament will speedily direct its attention to some measure,
by which the public may be protected from the frauds that it
is clear can be practised by persons assuming the designation
of joint-stock companies.

FOREIGN AND COLONIAL MISCELLANY

The. Cassel Gazelle says, " English lawyers are at present
in Hanover, discussing the claim which the king makes to
some crown jewels, now in the hands of the Queen of En-
gland. It is reported that the king intends to institute a
suit at law against her Majesty for their recovery."
The health of Sir J. Carnac, governor of Bombay, is
stated to be very indifferent. By the last accounts from that
presidency, he was about to take a trip to sea, and it is ru-
moured that if this measure does not produce the desired
effect, he will eventually proceed 'to the Cape ; he was about
to proceed to Baroda.

THL BANK DEBT OF AMERICA.—Senator Walker, in a
letter to the people of Mississippi, says :—" The loans now
made by all the various banks of the Union, exceed by the
last official returns five hundred and twenty millions of dol-
lars, upon which, (exclusive of exchange and other shaving
operations) is extracted, at the average rate of seven per cent.
interest, an annual interest of thirty-six millions seven hun-
dred and fifty thousand dollars ; being an annual interest
nearly equal to all the specie in all the banks in the union ;
thus exhibiting an annual interest of one hundred per cent.
upon all gold mid silver held by the banks.":—New York
paper.
The Brussels papers mention that the Senne, which runs
through that capital, has been deeply flooded, as well as the
Sambre, and most of the rivers in Belgium, in consequence
of the sudden thawing of the snow.
The Gazette de Cologne publishes a letter from Vienna of
the Bth, mentioning that the Arehduchess of Parma and th-e
Duchess of Angouleme were both dangerously ilk:: -.The
Archduke Frederick was expected back in Vienna from Syria
on the 15th.
GALE AT ROME.—A gale of wind, according to the Diario
di Roma, blew with such violence in the Pontifical city on
the sth instant, that it caused the great bell at the Roman ,1
College to sound. Its force seems to have been limited to a
height of about 160 feet from the level of the sea, as during
the whole time there was a complete calm at the summit of
the astronomical observatory.
Extract of a letter from Lima, August 20 :—" The Peru-
vian government, endeavouring by all means in its power to
subject foreigners to the same charges as natives, has deci-
ded, in virtue of the constitution of Huancayo (a constitution
drawn up under the constitution of the bayonets), that fo-
reigners purchasing landed property or houses in Peru thereby
become Peruvians. Pushing its arbitrary measures still
further, it has ordered all prefects and courts of justice not
to adjuge to foreigners the real property to which they may
have rights, by virtue either of mortgage, or a decision of
court, unless they shall have renounced their national rights,
and accepted the qualification of Peruvian citizens."