The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1851-12-09 00:00:00

side of the Atlantic, after a sojourn there of four years
where he met with great success, and will make his firs•
appearance on Thursday next.
ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE.—THE EQUESTRIAN COM
A.NY.—The co•--' -C American and Fr,'

ornbined company at .rencti
artistes have exhibited during the week some of the most
smrprtsing feats of horsemanship we have ever witnessed,
the entertainments being diversified with gymnastic exer-
cises soirees comique. Our limits will not permit us to
notice the whole of the numerous " scenes in the circle"
brought forward, but we cannot omit mentioning some of
the leading features. First of all, then, gallantry calls on
us to speak of Madl'e. Clementine Soullier, (at present,
the only lady rider we have noticed in the company)
whose tasteful posturing and complete command of her
steed deservedly gained for her the flattering title of

The G_•m of the Ring." The elegant attitudes and
manly form of the celebrated American equestrian, Mr.
M'Cullum, add much effect to the manner in which he
performs the most classic poses, and certainly class him
a% the most graceful master of the menage. Messieurs
Frautz and Jean Debach exhibit some extraordinary feats
of double riding, as the " Sons of Olympus," and the
former performs wonderful evolutions with a monster
globe, placed upon his feet, while he is lying on his back
on a horse in full gallop. Mr. Rylands is well known as
au expert equestrian juggler. M. Leon Faucher is a
drring and impetuous young rider, whom we would fain
see making use of a little more caution before attempting
his very hazardous leaps, as it would save him from much
heedless danger. The Brothers Elliott are very enter-
taining in their gymnastic exercises, and in their peculiar
pose, entitled, "The Revolving Barrels," they are highly
amusing. We must not pass over in silence the extraor-
dinary performances of Mons. Hernia), (the Hercules of
the company, with cannon balls weighty enough to sink a
seventy-four. He throws them up in the air and catches
them with his back,—with one immense one on his head,
anp one on each shoulder, he performs a juggler's trick
with ten balls in his hands, and afterwards accomplishes
almost impossibilities with a cannon ball, placed in a
sling, and held by his teeth. Mr. Edwin, the attentive
conductor of the circle, exhibits the perfection to which
animals may be trained, by the docility of the handsome
leopard steed " Prince." Mr. Kemp, the active clown,
introduces what he curiously terms his "comic corpus
cularities," to the especial delight of the juveniles, and
his novel feats in artillery practice would puzzle the most
eminent engineers in her Majesty's service. Mr.
Doughty, the Buffo Grotesque, provides an endless fund
of amusement, what with his concerts on the most
unlikely instruments of music, his jokes, and serio-comic
speechifying. We hope, in our next publication, to have
the pleasure of recording more lucrative patronage
to this really talented company, for with the expense of
such an extensive establishment, the attendance so far
can hardly have constituted paying houses. A day per-
formance
is announced for Saturday next•

CHARGE OF FORGERY AGAINST A LIVER-
POOL SHOPKEEPER.

An examination of a very serious character, in which
the reputation of an old and hitherto unimpeached citizen
is involved, took place on Friday, in the private room of
the Sessions'-house, before Mr. Mansfield.

Mr. John Deane, druggist, Castle-street, well known
for many years past throughout the town, was apprehended
in the morning on the charge of forging a bill of exchange
for £154 16s 3d. The following evidence was adduced at
the inquiry in support of the accusation. Mr. Daven-
port and Mr. Owen appeared for the prisoner:—
_ _

Mr. Gilbert Wintir Moss examined.—l am a banker,
of the firm of Moss and Co., Dale-street, Liverpool. I
know the prisoner. He has, to my knowledge, kept an
account with our bank for the last three or four years.
I produce a bill of exchange for £154 16s. 3d., drawn by
John Deane upon John Ainlev, broker, &c. Leeds, pur-
porting to be accepted by John Ainley. and payabl.e at
Glyn and Co.'s Bank, London, It is a bill of four
months, drawn 25th July, 1851. The prisoner paid this
hill to ns across the counter at our bank, on the 30th
July, 1851, and the proceeds went to his credit. On being
sent to London, the bill was 'dishonoured. In conse-
quence of the prisoner's account not being in a satisfac-
tory state, he was written to for the account, and pro-
ceedings threatened if the balance was not paid up. He
then placed the bill now produced to his credit. Prisoner
owed about £l3B when he brought the bill.
John Sullivan examined.— I am an officer of the Liver-
pool detective police. According to instructions, I went
on Monday last to Leed, to make inquiry for one John
Ainley, a broker. I got the assistance of a Leeds officer,
and with him went to ail the brokers and furniture-brokers
in town, to the parish-office, where I saw the burgess list,
and got the address of three persons bearing the name of
John Ainley, brit could not find any person of that name
who had transactions with Deane, of Liverpool. There
was not one broker of that name, as far as I could dis-
cover, in Leeds. I brought one of the John Ainleys
down here, the oldest, and he is now present. When
I took the prisoner into custody, I told him my errand
and showed him the bill, and asked him if it was his. He
said it had been his ; it was his writing. On arriving at
the detective office, prisoner was asked if he knew the
person named John Ainley whose name was on the bill,
and he replied he did, and that he was a share-broker.
When asked if he knew where John Ainley kept his place
of business at Leeds, prisoner replied that he did not ; he
believed he had gone to America about three months
ago. In reply to the question whether he had had any
communications from Ainley, the prisoner said lie had a
note from him left at his shop in August; and lie had
addressed letters to him, "John Ainley, broker, Leeds."
but had not sent any since August.
John Ainley, the person brought by Sullivan from
Leeds, was examined to show that he was well acquainted
with the town, and brokers there. He is a writing-clerk
in that town, and has been thirty-six years in the same
office. He never knew a broker of the name of John
Ainlev living in Leeds.

This closed the case for the prosecution.
Mr. OWEN having commented on the evidence brought
against his client, Mr. Superintendent Clough asked the
magistrate to remand the prisoner for seven days, which
was done. Bail was tendered, but refused.

EXTRAORDINARY GAS EXPLOSION
41.

On Sunday morning, the residents in the neighbourhood
of Clarence-street, Brownlow-hill, were alarmed by a
loud report, as if from the discharge of a cannon, and
followed by a rumbling noise, which continued for some
moments. It was afterwards found that the report had
been caused by an explosion of gas in the house of Mr.
Thomas Smith, formerly head waiter at the Adelphi
Hotel, and now living at No. 4, in Clarence-street, at the
corner of Franceys-strset. It seems that, during the
night, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, the latter of whom is in a
delicate state of health, were annoyed by the offensive
smell of gas, but on applying a light to the pipe in their
bedroom, no aperture could be discovered. Mr. Smith
subsequently went down stairs, and then, in his estima-
tion. all was right. However, as soo❑ as his son entered
the front room of the house with a candle, at eight o'clock
in the morning, he observed a blue flame arise, and was
then knocked down, fortunately receiving but slight
injury beyond the scorching and discolouration of his hair
and eyebrows. The gas, being suddenly ignited, exploded.
The extraordinary result of this explosion was, that the
whole of the front and back parts of the house, which is
three stories high, were driven outwards, the floors of the
room separated from the walls, and the wall, windows,
and doors of the small kitchen, which is in the rear of the
premises, forced against the back entrance, so as to pre-
vent the possibility of ingress or egress. Singular to say,
but few, not more than two or three, of the windows
were broken, and the gable end of the window looks as
firm as ever, although the effects of the explosion are
slightly visible in the cellars. The window curtains in one
of the rooms are scorched ; and the ceiling of the upper
back bedroom fell, but the apartment was fortunately un-
occupied. There were many persons sleeping in the
house, besides Mr. Smith and his family, and amongst
others the clerk of Mr. Sowler, the barrister, who had
taken rooms there for the present assizes, and would have
entered upon them yesterday. Mr. Sowler himself had
accompanied Mrs. Sowler to Southport on the Saturday
afternoon, and was, therefore, unacquainted with the
accident until his return to Liverpool on Sunday evening.
Those who were sleeping in the house were nearly thrown
out of their beds, as if by an earthquake, and it is really
a miracle that any one of them escaped with their lives.
In the house adjoining, occupied by :Mr. William Shaw,
warehouseman to Messrs. Hughes and Ronald, the shock
was severely felt, but no other perceptible damage was
occasioned than the splitting of the entry wall. This
neighbour, with other assistants, hastily secured some
props, by which the house was supported, and every
assistance was at once rendered to the inmates. Ulti-
mately, the greater bulk of the furniture, &c., was
removed without much damage. The back part of the
house was also subsequently propped up by planks and
substantial supporters, and additional props were placed in
front, under the order of Mr. Dowling. The street was
also barricaded, and policemen placed to prevent the pub-
lic from approaching too near the ricketty building. It
is stated, that although the burners were turned off, the
metre was not, and hence, probably, the immense amount
of gas necessary to produce such a result, as above de-
scribed, found an escape.—Albion.

EXTENSIVE ROBBERY OF IRON.—On Tuesday, two
men, named Josiah Owens and Patrick Gilligan, were
examined, charged with stealing seven tons of iron cast-
ings from the Old Dock quay. It appeared that a large
quantity of iron casting, belonging to Mr. Maw, founder,
Seacombe, had, some time since, been deposited on the
quay. On the Ist October, the prisoner Owens brought
a man with him and broke up the iron, which they carted
off, and disposed of,—a portion to Mr. Fowler, founder,
Concert-street, and the remainder to Mr. Bickerateth,
marine-atora-dealer, Park-lase,—Seat for trial,