The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-04-09 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

witnesses on the part of the pro=ecution had been examined,
his Lordship expressed his opinion that no ancient custom
of the kind referred to had been made out, and the jury
under his direction, found the defendants not guilty of
the matters contained in the indictment.

ACTION TO RECOVER MONEY RECEIVED BY AN AGENT
ON ACCOUNT OF A PUBLIC COMPANY.
CAMPPELL V. POWNALL.—This was an action brought
by the plaintiff, Duncan Campbell, against Wm. Pownall,
the defendant, to recover £322, the balance of an account
for goods sold and delivered, abd on an account stated.
The plaintiff is a proprietor of water-side carts, in Liver-
pool, and a member of the Old Carters' Company, an as-
sociation consisting of persons in the same line of busi-
ness. The defendant had been secretary to the company.
His duties were to keep an account of the work done each
day by the carters employed, and to collect the cartage
accounts from the merchants when due ' • and the amount
now sought to be recovered was the balance of a larger
sum which the defendant had collected during his secre-
taryship. The defence was, that Pownall was dealing with
the company and not with the plaintiff individually, and that
therefore he had mistaken the person against whom he
might proceed for the recovery of the money. The jury
found a verdict for the defendant.

NISI PRIUS COURT.—FRIDAY.
The court was opened shortly after one o'clock.

ASSAULT.
ALDERSON V. WAISTELL AND ANOTHER.—This was
an action brought by the plaintiff against the defendants,
Thomas Waistell and Henry Waistell, his son, for an as-
sault. The plaintiff and the defendants are farmers, at
Birkdale, in the North Riding of the county of York, and
were in the habit of tending their sheep upon a piece of
common land, at Birkdale, which they enclosed with
" bield walls," so as to prevent the sheep from straying,
and to protect them from the snow. On Sunday the 4th
February, a nephew of the plaintiff was tending sheep in
one of the " bields," when the elder defendant's son
came up, and said his father would have one of the plain-
tiffs enclosures, and drove a number of sheep into the
place. The plaintiff and his nephew attempted to drive
the defendant's sheep out, and then the elder defendant
struck the plaintiff on the temple with a large stick. He
then got a large stick from Henry Waistell, and knocked
the plaintiff down. The younger defendant next threw a
stick at the plaintiff; and the elder defendant, seizing the
plaintiff by the legs, threw him into a ditch.
The principal witness for the plaintiff was a strapping
young fellow, 19 years of age, who diverted the court and
jury by the stupidity of his answers to the questions put
to him.

•••
Mr. DUNDAS, for the defendants, said the younger de-
fendant bad certainly been included in the case, for the
purpose of preventing him being made a witness for the
father • who the learned counsel contended, was perfectly
justified in using violence in order to get possession of
the sheep.
The jury found the younger defendant not guilty, and
returned a verdict of guilty against the father ; damages,
£lO.

quired if he bad seen IA illiams since Monday. Booth
replied, " I have not ; but the subject on which I had
some conversation with him will not do." Beeston said,
" Well, Booth, you know best yourself, bur Williams
made £3,000 by getting goods out in that way, which he
has melted : I know it can be done, and it will be a good
thing." Beeston then invited him into a public-house in
Oldhall-street ; and Brocklehurst went with them there.
It was there agreed, that. when Booth went upon duty at
Green's, be should meet Beeston at the Wagon and
Horses. Booth ;Neat there as appoint-d, and found Bees-
ton and Brocklehurst together, and they had some drink,
which Beeston paid for. A landing-water, named Wm.
Nia, was also there. Beeston went out to try to find
Williams, but returned in five or ten minutes, saying, he
could not find him. Booth then said he must go, and
Beeston promised to meet him at his station the next day ;
but he did not see any of the defendants till the 25th.
After " siming off" at the Custom-house, in the after-
noon of that day, Booth and Richards went into Nuttall's
public-house, adjoining, where they had something to
drink, which Booth was in the act of paying for when
Williams came in, and insisted upon paying for the liquor
himself. As Booth was leaving, Williams called him back,
and said he had bought forty-four bags of foreign coffee,
and he wanted to know if they were sent to his station he
would let them go without paying duty. It appeared, that,
in the summer of 1813, Mr. Syers, merchant, of this town,
imported several thousand bags of coffee from La Guayra,
which were deposited in Drinkwater's bonding ware-
house, Tower-gardens. Of these, Mr. Syers sold
sixty-four bags to Messrs. Wren and Co., who again sold
forty-four to the defendant Williams, ten of which he
wished to remove, as part of the scheme, to Green's ware-
house, in Dundee-street. Williams had not been known
before to be in business by Messrs. Wren and Co. To
this question from Williams Booth replied, that he could
not then stay : whereupon Williams appointed to meet
him, near Nut tall's, at five o'clock the next day. During
this conversation Brocklehurst was standing at the op-
posite side of the street. On the 26th witness communi-
cated to Richards what had passed between him and
Beestoa and Williams; and, in consequence, information
of all the circumstances was given, first, to Mr. Brown,
the superintinding locker, and, subsequently, to Mr.
Bulteel, the acting surveyor, who gave certain directions
to Booth and Richards for the purpose of securing the
offenders. In pursuance of the directions they bad re-
ceived, Booth and Richards stationed themselves in
South John-street near Nuttall's, where Williams had
proposed the meeting. Williams was there first, Brockle-
burst standing on the other side of the street. Booth
then told Williams that he could not do what was
wailed without the knowledge of his partner, Richards,
to which Williams made no objection, and they went
into Nuttall's. Brockleburst being still in the street, Wit-
hams wentand brought him in. Brocklehurst then said to
Booth, "Are you aware that I come from Manchester ?"
Williamsproducedapaper,whichhesaid wasa delivery order.
He was going, he said, to pass a "removal sufferance"
for forty-tour bags of coffee, from Drinkwater's ware-
house, and he would get out ten bags the next day, and
give Booth and Richards £5 if they were got out without
payment of the duty, and would remove the remaining
thirty-four the day following. They were all to have a
share of the profits. Brocklehurst said he would pay the
officers well for any similar transaction ; and both he and
Williams stated, that it was Beeston who had put them
up to it ; and that the pay of the officers was small, but
they might make a fortune in the course of a few months
by getting goods out of bond without paying duty. Booth
and Richards consented to do what was proposed. On
the 27th they were on duty at Green's, Mr. Bulteel being
stationed at the back of the office, so that he could bear,
and, if he choose, see, all that passed within. At half-
past three in the afternoon Brocklehurst came alone, and
said a " removal sufferance" could not be got out in time
to get a cart-follower, but the coffee would be removed
the next day. This took place in the office, in the
presence of Richards, and in the hearing of Mr. Bulteel ;
and, immediately after, Brocklehurst invited them to God-
frey's public-house. Richards went there first; and when
he returned Booth stepped there and found Williams as well
at Brocklehurst. Williams said he could not get a re-
moval sufferance in time for a cart-follower, but he would
remove the coffee next day. They left together, Williams
going across .he street whilst Brocklehurst and Booth
stood in conversation together at the top of Dundee-street.
During that time Mr. Bulsteel passed from the ware-
house, disguised by wearing spectacles, whereupon
Brocklehurst inquired who that gentleman was? After
that Williams and Brocklehurst joined, and they went
away together. On Friday, the 28th, Mr. Bulteel was
again concealed in the warehouse, as was another officer
named Brown. About half-past two in the afternoon
Brocklehurst came alone, and said, " the ten bags of
coffee are coming, and they'll be here in a few minutes ;
proposing, at the same time, to Booth and Richards to
take something to drink. They went to Godfrey's for
that purpose, Richards first and Booth afterwards ; and
directly after their return a cart came up with a cart-fol-
lower named Higgins, (since dead.) bringing the ten bags
of coffee. Williams came with the cart, and, in order to
deceive Higgins, said he would remove the coffee next
day. Higgins got his receipt from. Richards for the
coffee, and then went away. Brocklehurst, at this time,
was standing at the top of the street, about twenty yards
from the warehouse. Williams then said he could only
find three sovereigns at that moment, but he would pay
the remainder the same night at Nuttall's, where he
would meet Booth and Richards along with Brockle-
hurst, and the following day the remaining thirty-
four bags should be removed. Williams then placed
Three sovereigns upon the desk, and followed the
cart, which had gone away. The bags had never actually
been in the warehouse, because, after the signature of the
cart-follower's book, they were supposed to be in the cus-
tody of Booth and Richards. The cart having gone away
Booth went to the door and saw Brocklehurst at the end
of the street; he joined him, and whilst they were together,
they saw Mr. Bulteel coming down Great Howard-street,
following the cart. Mr. Bulteel had no spectacles on,
and, on seeing him, Baocklehurst said, " That's the same
gentleman I saw here yesterday; he's a superior officer to
you ; I should know him a quarter of a mile off; and if I
thought he was following the cart 1 would go and bring it
back." The cart was then going in the direction of Old-
hall-street, towards which Mr. Bulteel was going. The
three sovereigns were wrapped up in paper, on which
Booth and Richards placed their initials; and, in the
meantime, the cart was followed by Mr. Bulteel along
Oldhall-street, Chapel-street, Exchange-street East,
Dale-street, and North John-street, into South John-
street, where the coffee was about being deposited in Rig-
maiden's 'warehouse, in Cable-street, when the officers
stepped in and seized it.
Mr. Serjeant MURPHY addressed the jury in favour of
the defendant Brocklehurst, contending that he was alto-
gether innocent of any guilty concern in the transaction;
that he was merely in Liverpool attending to his own busi-
ness, part of which was with Williams; and that he was
of unblemished character.

Mr. RAMSHAY, on the part of Williams, urged, that
the coffee had never been in the warehouse in Dundee-
street, and, consequently, the allegation in the indictment,
that Williams had conspired to obtain it from that ware-
house, could not be sustained. He contended, further,
that the evidence of Booth the chief witness, could not
be relied on, as, in the first instance, he was a participa-
tor, and next, that he had already received, and probably
expected, promotion, for the detection and conviction of
the other parties.
Mr. JAMES addressed the jury for Beeston in an ener-
getic speech, in which be strongly contended, that the evi-
dence against the defendant was too insufficient and trivial
to warant a conviction, especially when it was considered
h'w carefully the case had been fostered and supported.
He had not yet been dismissed from bis situation in the
customs ; and the learned coun-el besought the jury to
consider the fact that upon their verdict would depend
whether he was reinstated or not. His previous character
as an officer of long standing was freely admitted to have
been irreproachable on his cross-examination of the wit-
nesses for the crown.

Three witnesses were called for Brocklehurst, who
showed that he had dealings in Liverpool with Williams,
and that his character was good in all respects.
Mr. STARKIE having replied,

The JUDGE summed up at considerable length, remark-
ing, that the evidence against Beeston in the second count
of the indictment was very slight ; but he left it to the
jury to say whether the evidence brought the charge home
to him in the more general allegations of the first count.
The jury retired to consider their virdict ; arkd after an
absence of a quarter of an hour, they returned into court
with a verdict of guilty against Williams and Brockle-
hurst : Beeston not guilty.

ACTION OF DEBT.

GOSLIN v. BIDDER.—This was a special jury case, in
which the plaintiff sought to recover from the defendant
a sum of money, for the use and occupation of rooms and
furniture. for goods sold and delivered, and for money
lent. The defendant pleaded to the declaration, first, that
he was never indebted in the manner and form stated ;
and, secondly, that he had paid the demand. The plain-
tiff denied these pleas, and issue was joined.
Mr. Watson and Mr. Hoggins conducted the plaintiff's
case ; Mr. Knowles and Mr. Segar that for the defendant.
The plaintiff is a railway contractor, and the defendant
is Samuel Parker Bidder, resident engineer of the Preston
and Wyre Railway and Dock Company. Money had been
advanced, it appeared, at various times in 1840 and 1841,
by the plaintiff to the defendant, during his residence at
Fleetwood, in sums of £lOO, £490. £l2O, £l5O, and sev-
eral smaller amounts ; in addition to which the defendant,
after his marriage, occupied a house of the plaintiff's, in
Queen's-terrace, Fleetwood, at the rent of £3O per an-
num. The court rose after the examination of the first
witness on the part of the plaintiff, and the remainder of
the investigation promised to be very long and excessively
uninteresting.
The court adjourned at eight o'clock.