The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1835-07-14 00:00:00

BOROUGH SESSIONS.-FRIDkY.

&mous Ronnua V.—Richard Callister was placed at the
bar, charged with having, in November last, extracted from
some hales of goods lying in the warehouse of Mr, Robinson,
of Seel-street, a box of foreign insects, two blankets and a
counterpane, the property of Mr. Walker, the lecturer on
astronomy, who had (teposited theta, along with other goods of
considerable valor, on the premises of Mr. Robinson, until he
had fixed upon a war,house of his own for their reception. It
appeared from the statemebt of Mr. Waite, the prisoner's
counsel, and other witnesSeS, that Mr. Walker was aon anger
in the town, rued was about to commence business here. With

this view, and until he could find a warehouse suited to his pur-
pose, he had a number of bales of goods, of a miseel aneous de-
s..ription, deposited in the warehouse of Mr. Robinson for
safety. The good were placed there in November lust, and
were not removed to Mr. Walker's premises until the 22d of
June, and the bales then appeared tohilV3 been undisturbed,
and in the same condition as they were when first placed in
Mr. Rohinson's warehouse. On examinintr- the contents, how-
ever, it turned out otherwise, for every bate had been opened,
and goods taken front them to a very serious extent, and of con-
siderable value, silll,lngs t which were the articles named iu the
indictment. The prisoner was employed in the warehouse of
Mr. Rubinson, and had assisted on two different occasions in
removing the goods in question. .From circumstances that
transpired, suspicion felt upon the prisoner, and Andrews, a
police officer, was despached to apprehend hint, who found
the prisoner at his dwelling. On searching the house he found
the box of insects, the blanket and counterpane, which was
sworn to by Mr. Wa!ker, as being a portion of the stolen pro-
perty. The officer asked Canister how he became possessed of
the box of insects, and be answered that he had gut it from
Mr. Robinsou's warehouse, as his share, and that the other
men had also taken theirs. At another tone Canister stated

that he had merely taken the box of insects to show some one,
and that it was his intention to have returned them. On being
questioned as to his possession of the blankets and counterpane,
he persisted in saving that they were his own property, and that
he had had them since the time of his marriage.
This being the evidence for the prosecution, the prisoner was
called upon fur his defence. He acknowledged to having taken
the insects, but not with a felonious intention, as he meant to
have returned them. The blankets and counterpanes he said
were his own, and called witnesses to psve ,tee fast, and like.
wise to speak to his general character.
Mts. Callister, who said that she was in no way related to the
prisoner, although bearing the seine Willie, deposed to having
washed for the prisoner for six or seven years. She had washed
the blankets and counterpane produced in coin t many times,
and r onldspeak to having done so twelve months beck. She
knew the blankets hy a particular mark in the corner, and the
counterpane by a piece of worsted 'whiLli run through a part
of it.

Mr. Cain, iron merchant, of Shaw's-brow, said that, Canister
had been in his employ as warehouseman from the 21st of Fe-
bruary till May, and be had always borne the nest of characters.
During that time is much as £350 had passed through his
hands, and he had uo reason to believe but that the prisoner was
sober and honest. John Griffiths, Mr. Earle, and William Eilis
also Came forward to speak to the prisoner's character, the latter
of whom said he had known him to be a person of good character
for 27 years.
The lleeerder, in summing up, told the jury that the case was
fully made out against the prisoner, as to his having taken the
box of insects, but it would be for bem to say whether or not
he had done so with a felouious intent. Souse-doubt seemed to
exist as to the blankets and counterpane, althougn Mr. Walker
seethed to .tietertain that they were his property. But leaving
them out of the question, it was evident that the prisoner had
possessed himself of the, box of insects, upon which charge the
prosecutor was content to stand.
The jury found the prisoner guilty, but strongly recommended
him to mercy, on account of his previous good character.—The
Recorder, addressing the prisoner, said,—You have been recom-
mended to mercy on the strength of the character you have re-
ceived, which I hope is true, although I have reason to doubt it.
Yoti have acknowledged to having taken part iu the crime of
robbing Mr. Walker, and therefore it is the charioteer alone
that has saved yon. I shall therefore act upon the recommenda•
tiou of the jury, which I do by sentencing you to be imprisoned
for the term of six months, and kept to
,hard labour. The
Recorder called for Andrews, the police-ollicer, and inquired
whether he bad searched any. of thu houses of the other parties
engaged in the robbery.—Audrews replied that he had not, being
prevented from so doing by the press of business caused by the
sessions.—The Recorder thought that this was nut a sufficient
reason, as Mr. Walker had been deprived of a very considerable
property, and said there was as much reason to search the houses
of the other men as that of Callister. He hoped that steps would
be taken to bring the offenders to juitiCe. 'The officer promiied
to attend to the suggestion of the Recorder.,.'
CAsa OF STABBING.—Thornas Bell was indicted for having,
on the 16th of May last, inflicted a severe wound upon the per-
son of Mr. Joseph Greenwood, of this town. It appeared from
the evidence adduced, thitt.on the 15th of May the prisoner met
with a person known to Mr. Greenwood, whom he entered into
conversation with, and inquired from him whether Mr. Green-
wood had still possession of a timber-vard,,and he was answered
in the affirmative. On hearing this, Dell declared that he should
not have it long, as he would have his blood, and give him a
journey to the next world. Mr. Greenwood was apprised of
this threat, but did not attach much importance to it at the time.
On the next day he was met by the prisoner, who ran to;rards
him, exclaiming " You d—d Yorkshire thief, you have caused
Roger Whitehead to be sent out of the country. and I will do
the same for you." -Ile then made a furious attack upon Mr.
Greenwood with a knife, with which he inflicted a very severe
wound upon Mr. Greenwood, who lost several pounds of blood.
lie was carried borne in a state of insensibility, and remained
in a very precarious state for a length of time afterwards : and
it was a matter of doubt, from the testimony of medical men,
whether Mr. Greenwood would ever recover the use of the hand
which had received the injury from the stab.—The jury found
the prisoner guilty, and the recorder sentenced the prisoner to
he imprisoned six months.

• ASSAULT CASE.
William Horrocks, the elder, and William Horrocks, the
younger, were indicted for an assault upon William Kirby,
sergeant of the mace for this borough, while in the execution
of his duty in making a distraint upon the goods and chattels
of the elder defendant, for rent due to Mr. Morris, an attor-
ney, of Wigan.
Mr. CoTTINGH AAI conducted the prosecution, and Mr. VEN-
A IMES appeared for the two defendants.—Mr. Cottingham, in
stating the case, said that his client, William Kirby, in virtue
of his office, had received authority to distrait) upon William
Horrocks for rent; and he accordingly went to the house of W.
Ilorrocks, accompanied by three other men, and acquainted
him with the instructiuns he bad received. The elder llorrocks,
on learning his et rand, toll Kiebv that Mr. Morris was not his
landlord, and that he owed hint no rent; Kirby answered that
he had nothing to do with that, as it rested between Mr. Mor-
ris and himself, anti that he (Kirby) would be compelled to dis-
train upon his effects. On this, the elder Ilorroeks declared
that if any man attempted to place bards upon his goods, he
would "fetlock out his brains with the kitchen poker." He
then retired for a few moments to another room, but directly
afterwards-returned with a poker and suiting the action to the
word, levelled a blow at the,head of Kirby, which he was for-
tunate enough to ward off, or it might have cost him his life
as it was, the blow from the poker broke in his hat crown, and
fell upon his shoulder, and llorrocks was about to follow it up
with another, when the poker was wrested from him by ono of
assistants.
William Kirby, the prosecutor, said he proceeded to the
house of Mr. liorrocks, in Love-lane, to make a distraint upon
defendants' effects, and that he was violently assaulted by the
elder prisoner, and that he and his men were at last ejected
from the house. On this, he stated the ease to the ma-
4,sistrates, who granted him a warrant, and they afterwards
broke open the door of the defendant aNd made the distraint.
The remainder of his testimony was merely a corriboration of
the circumstances related by his counsel, and which it will be
unnecessary to repeat.
Mr. VENABI-KS contended that the prosecutor was acting il-
legally in making the distraint.--The jury found the elder llor-
rucks guilty of the assault, and the Recorder sentenced him to
pay £lO. or be imprisoned.
The business of the Sessions concluded on Saturday after-
noon.

SINGULAR IMPRISONMENT.—Ta 1301, King Edward 1.
ordered the Countess of Buchan to be placed is a wooden cage
iu the shape of a crown, and shut up in one of tire towers of
Berwick Castle, for crowning kobert Bruce, at Scone. She was
attended by two Englishwutnen, and remained six sears in this
confinement.