The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-12-09 00:00:00

1,),;

s.
Samuel M'Cullock
pr. tentioii .. . 25
John P-“" 25

John rattinson ;-„
James C. Hatto4% o 3
gdward Mine . 25
William Hurry 25
John Richardson
P. E. Weber .
Mrs. Cardwell. 25
Mr. Benjamin Frankland 25
Edward Lister.
Mrs. Backhouse
Mr. James Davies
James Ingram
R. S. Henderson
A.' Henderson
William Statham
Wm. Wrenshall, jun 25
James Judson • 25
R. L. Millar
Robert Cain
Mrs. Phillips 25

Total £23,075

by each Member of the Com-
ined

I TTEE.
Brooks, Chairman.
Deputy-Chairman.
Mr. Joseph Langton
Charles Lawrence
Andrew Low
James Moon
John Moss
Lewin Motley
W. Nicol
W. Rathbone
Christopher Rawdon
Henry Sandbach
Charles Smith
Thomas Thornely
Samuel Turner
Joseph N. Walker
Thomas Winstanley
John Wooßright
W. Wordley
John Wright.

ES ASPINALL, Treasurer.
DEANE,
Secretaries.
S. HARVEY,

LIPERPOOL SESSIONS.

The intermediate sessions, recently appointed to be held,
commenced on Tuesday last, before James Clarke, Esq., Re-
corder.

The following gentlemen were sworn on the grand jury:—
Richard Dawson, Esq., Foreman.
Thomas touch, ,Isaac Cooke,
George Quayle, John Shand,
Wm. Alexander Brown, - • James Houlbrook Smith,
Robert Wilson, , John Goodwin,
James Brownell Boothby, Josh. Robinson I'im,
John M‘Laurin, Thomas Martin,
John Davidson, William Ridyard,
John Wright, jun., William Field Porter, Esq.,
George Dickson, And _

John-Stewart, I Ralph Abraham, Esqrs.
After the usual proclamation against vice and immorality had
been read,
The RKCORDRR proceeded to deliver his charge as follows,—
Gentlemen of the Grand Jury, I am extremely ratified by
seeing your punctual attendance this morning. Ihe state of
crime in the town of Liverpool absolutely calls for the Sessions
which are now convened ; because if we look at the calendar
and consider that it is only six weeks since the sessions and ge-
neral gaol delivery. was held here, and see 70 cases submitted
• for your consideration, it is quite alarming to think that such a
mass of crime exists, and your attendance bectmes absolutely
necessary. I sav 1 rejoice to see your punctual attendance to-
day, because I find that in an adjoining district, at Kirkdale,
the Grand Jury does not attend in the way that the country
would wish it to do—so I learn from the chairman of those ses-
sions. lam a little surprised at it, because the privilege of sit-
ting on juries, by Sir Robert Peel's jury bill, having been very
much extended, enables those who before were shut out from
that privilege now to possess it. As
.you well know, you and
various classes of the community, consisting of highly respecta-
ble classes of persons, were, before the operation of Sir Robert
Peel's bill, shut out from sitting on Grand Juries. What Sir R.
Peel's bill enacted for the country at large the municipal bill
has extended to you. The privilege of sitting on juries is now
extended to a vast number of persons, who have now an oppor-
tunity of taking a share in the administration of lustice ; 'the
community may now be said to be parties in the administration
of the law. And it is a great satisfaction thit we have, when
we are surrounded by intelligent men whenever we come-to pro-
nounce sentence on the crimes brought against our fellow-sub-
jects, because their knowledge of the world brings to their minds
a degree of knowledge of men that a more retired and high de-
partment of life cannot possess ; therefore it is a satisfaction to
see the class of which I speak attending on the Grand Jury as
you are this day. 1 have looked over the depositions and I
don't find any case requiring many observations. I perceive
they denote the crime of larceny iu all its bearings ; larceny in
the streets, larceny in warehouses, larceny on the person, and
iu-shuredarceny exists in all its parts, and yoa will have to ap-
ply your minds to the various cases that have to be brought be-
fore you. I don't think any of them will entangle you in point
of fact or in point of law, but if any case should do so I shall
be happy to give you what assistance I can. Some cases will
come before you fot receiving stolen goods, and it will be proper
for you to observe whether they have been received at distinct
times or at several times, because the judges have held that if
the receiving be at four differeet times, for instance, or more
than one party be engaged in the receipt, the indictment must
be laid in these cases for separate offences. You cannot con-
vict two men of a joint receiving, but their crimes must be
viewed as distinct ; and I have given directions to the intelli-
gent officers here to draw their indictments with that view of the
subject, and I hope the cases will come before you clearly and
correctly drawn. On looking over the depositions I find many
of the prisoners say, "4 am sorry for it, I was drunk ;" and
frequently the prosecutors also are in a state of intoxication.
So lung--as such-intemperance does exist, that aloue,
_I ate
afraid, will prove a great source of crime. The learned
judge who presided here and at Lancaster during the last
assizes made this observation in both cases " that intem-
perance was the great source of crime ; that many of the
cases in the calendar were to be attributed solely to intern-
perance.". If- he had sat here to day be would have found
abundant cause for that observation; for nearly every case
in the calendar 'has grown out of, intemperance. One great
misfortune in intemperance in prosecutors is this, that when
they come into the witness-box their minds turn out to be coin-,
pletely oblivious on the subject of t4eir complaint, and their
evidence is confused and unsatisfacforv. A man at the last
sessions was asked if he knew a person who had robbed him of
50 sovereigns? His evidence was so embarrassed that I could
not rely on his testimony, and the jury were of that opinion
along with myself, and acquitted the prisoner of the crime. The
prisoner might have been guilty, or he might have been inno-
cent; but when a man puts himself in that state that his me-
mory must be imperfect, we must not trust on that account to
his evidence, however anxious we mny be to- convict. A man
who cannot detail evidence with sufficient certainty puts himself
out of the pale of the law—the law cannot protect him. When
he comes as a witness and it turns out that he has this very tin-
perfect recollection, the law cannot avail him, and he is actunlly
put out of the pale of the law. I mention this to show the evils
which result from intemperance. I am glad to see that there
is a most earnest desire to promote temperance and habits of
morality throughout the country. Every institution that pro-
motes temperance, instead of being treated with derision, ought
to be respected for its object. I think all institutions, whose
object is to recommend temperance, are entitled to the highest
consideration ; for if we keep men temperate, depend on it,
that instead of quarter sessions being required, sessions once a
year would be sufficient. One half of the crimes from which
society now suffers are owing to habits of intemperance. There
is one subject to which I would call your attention 1 find that
letters are lying before me which relate to the protection of
wrecked property, either on the Cheshire or on the Lancashire
shore, which state that such property is altogether unprotected,
unless it
aitirsepreserved and watched by the police of Liverpool.
lying before me thanking the officers for their great
exertions, to which the writers attribute the protection of their
property. This is a state of things which ought not to exist. I
wish the merchants of Liverpool would unite and see if some-
'thing could not be done to check this enormous offence. It is
. discreditable to England to think that men not pressed on by
poverty, will come down deliberately, to seize what property
belonging to others they can find, amidst misfortunes which
would melt the heart of any humane person, for the meaner
purposes of most avaricious plunder. And I do think that if
there wete a meeting well funned, with good and strong reso-
lntions to be passed, stating that these practices ought to be put
an end te—if such feelings were to be stirred up throughout the
Country,-,emanating from Liverpool, I do believe that the tone
of the people with reference to this crime might be altered. If
these observations should he acted upon, I trust the means
taken may succeed; and that they may put an end to these dis-
graceful practices. I have no other observations to make to
you, geotietnen,- and dismiss you to your duties.
- The Grand Jury then retired to find true bills.
We, are obliged to omit our report of the cases tried for want
of el a 'e, untitour next ptiblicationr--