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

EXTRAORDINARY CASE.

It will be remembered that, about the latter end of
January last, a person named Benjamin Bannan, appa-
rently in respectable circumstances, was, through the ac-
tivity of Superintendent M`Donald, of the police of this
town, (who was, it appears, ,a maker of machinery, and
to.whom be had accidentally been introduced, and em-
ployed to make a press for dies,) apprehended at Swansea,
and committed for trial. The prisoner was committed to
Warwick Castle, and was brought up for trial before Mr.
Baron Gurney on the Ist instant. By the calendar it
appears that he is 28 years of age, and he was indicted,
first, with feloniously making, at Birmingham, in May,
1840, certain dies that would make the impress and appa-
rent resemblance of the obverse and reverse of a shilling;
and, secondly, with having feloniously begun to make
such dies. _ _

Mr. Waddington, counsel for the crown, stated that at
the time alluded to, the prisoner went to Mr. Carter, a
die-sinker,, at Birmingham, stating that he lived at Bland-
ford, in Dorsetahire, and asked him whether he made
dies for whist counters, as he wanted such for a club there
to which he belonged. The reply was in the affirmative,
and the prisoner then said he should want some also for
the Exeter whist club, and gave Mr. Carter a paper de-
scribing what he wanted—the obverse side of the one
counter to be the head of Victoria, as in the silver shilling
coin ; that of the other to he the wreath and figures of
the shilling coin of 1840; and the reverse to be respec-
tively, " The Blandford Whist Club, established 1800,"
and "The Exeter Whist Club, established 1800," (the
dies making, if put together, a perfect shilling.) Mr.
Carter made some objections as to the legality of the
transaction, but the prisoner said the same had been done
in the reign of George the Third, and he would send him
some of the dies. Mr. Carter mentioned the matter soon
after to the solicitor for the Mint in Birmingham, who
referred him to Mr. Powell, and who, wishing the person
to proceed, to see what he would do, authorised Mr. Car-
ter to go on, which he did. The prisoner wrote to Mr.
Carter, stating that the dies he had mentioned had been
destroyed before be returned home, the club not intend-
ing to use them again; and that he had seen Mr. Wyon,
of the Mint, who told him there could be no objection
about the dies, as they would come into respectable hands.
Mr. Carter's name was not to appear on the dies, as was
usual. The prisoner had also ordered two seals, with dif-
ferent initials. Many letters were subsequently received
from the prisoner by Mr. Carter, showing his desire to
have the 'obverse precisely the same as the shilling of
1840,—also referring to another order for seals,—the rim-
ming to be precisely the same as on the coin. In Sep-
tember Mr. Carter saw the prisoner in Birmingham, and
showed him unfinished impressions of the dies, without
the rimming—to which the prisoner objected, insisting
upon having them the same. The impressions were for-
warded, but prisoner never got the dies. After various
communications from the prisoner, who expressed him-
self well satisfied with the wax impressions, the prisoner
by letter complained of the order not being executed,
spoke of 20,000 plated on German silver being made if
approved of, and wished the collars to be done with great
exactness. Mr. Carter refused to send them without the
money. Another person afterwards came for the dies,
but Mr. Carter did not give them up. The prisoner was
subsequently taken on another charge in London, but re-
gained his liberty, and he afterwards became a bankrupt,
'but did not, as was expected, surrender; and nothing
more was heard of him until September, 1843, when he
again tried to get possession of the dies,—then writing to
Mr. Carter from Liverpool, stating that he had been
made a bankrupt; that he had received a part of the mo-
ney from the club ; that Mr. G. Andrews, a member of
it, was there; and that he (prisoner) wished to know the
lowest price he could buy them at, in good preservation.
He subsequently wrote that they must all fit the same
collar, and that there had •better be two collars in the
event of one breaking. He afterwards wrote that Mr.
Andrews (who was pleased) had furnished him with 4:30.
He then applied to a most unfortunate person for him to
have lighted upon—a Mr. M'Donald, who was a maker
of machinery, but also superintendent of police, at Liver-
pool, in December, about a press, which was then in pro-
nicTaotiohnimMrt.heMp'Driosonnaeldr
mDelmsuebin, of the firm of Miller
and araevdses'h receivediisnname from consequenceasconsomebodynoofr a,
oeof
and Connor. He paid him £7 in all on account, and
gave orders about it. M'Donald communicated all this
to Mr. Powell, of the Mint, and received a warrant,
searched for and couldn't find him at Liverpool, but
found him on the 22d of January, passing under another
name, in a private lodging-house at Swansea. The
learned gentleman urged that the making of the dies,
under these circumstances, though not actually by the
hand of the prisoner, was a making by the prisoner, as in
the case of uttering a forged instrument by the hand of
an innocent person, or even the forging itself by the hand
of an innocent person, and the so placing poison, &c.,
which was afterwards taken, and cited " The King v.
Giles." He then called the witnesses, who substantiated
the facts stated in this opening.
Mr. Serjeant Adams, for the prisoner, submitted that
upon this state of facts the indictment could not be sup-
ported, for the prisoner was charged with making what
was innocently made by another person by direction of
the Mint. The act said " make or mend," or " begin to
proceed to make or mend"; but not " cause or procure
to be made." Had the prisoner been indicted for a mis-
demeanour the case would have been different, as every
step towards a felony was a misdemeanour; but being
indicted for the higher offence, rendered conviction im-
possible.
Mr. Waddington said it was clear the facts would sup-
port the indictment, and cited the case of " The Queen
v. Magean and others," before Mr. Justice Patteson,
1840-41. If his learned friend's argument were correct,
the statute would only apply to persons who made such
implements with their own hands. Carter was here an
innocent agent, and his act was the act of the prisoner.
who employed and instructed him. At all events, the
court would reserve the case for the investigation of the
judges. _ _

The learned Judge said he should let the case go to the
jury, and if the learned Chief Justice and himself should.
on consideration, entertain any doubt, the point would
be reserved. He remarked that Carter had made the
dies, not by the desire, but by the permission, of the
Mint. As to the prisoner's motive, what could an un-
known whist-club want with 20,000 counters !

The jury instantly returned a verdict of " guilty."
Sentence was deferred.—On the following day, his lord-
ship intimated that the point should be reserved, and
therefore sentence was not passed.

INQUESTS HELD BEFORE THE BOROUGH

CORONER.

DEATH FROM A FALL.-11 esterday, On view of the
body of William Brown, a seaman belonged to the barque
Flora Carr. On Saturday morning last the deceased,
who was much intoxicated, went on board that vessel,
which was lying in the river. Deceased went up to the
maintopsail yard for the purpose of letting the sail loose.
Just as he had done so and the sail fell, he also fell down
on the deck of the vessel. He was pickea up immediately,
and was bleeding from one hand and his nose. He was
taken on shore in a boat and conveyed to the Northern
Hospital. hilt died before reaching it, while crossing the
canal bridge. Deceased was 23 years of age. Mr. Edwd.
Parker, surgeon of tie Northern Hospital, who made a
post modem examination, and found extensive effusion of
blood into the cavity of the abdomen and chest, with rup.
ture of the liver and spleen, laceration of the diaphram,
fracture of the base of the skull, laceration of the brain,
icaby
Theaccidentally
deceased
&c.—The jury returned a verdict to the effect that the
fdaeictienagsefdrom diedth
the yard
thesewhilinjuries, causedted.
fell about 90 feet.

DEATH IN THE WORKHOUSE.—Same day on view of
the body of Lena Roberts, an aged female inmate of the
Workhouse. On Friday night the deceased, after going
to bed with another female, complained of a severe pain
in her arm. About 6 o'clock next morning her breakfast
was taken to her, and left on a table close by the bed, as
she then appeared to be asleep. In about an hour after.
wards she was spoken to, but making no reply, the nurse
was called, and she was found to .be quite dead. Mr.
Nightingall, surgeon at the Workhouse, said he had made
a post mortem examination, and found the cause of death
to be extravasation of blood on the brain, the result of
natural causes.—Verdict accordingly.
EXTRAORDINARY DEATH IN A SHIPPON.—Same day,
on view of the body of Thomas Whitehead. The deceased,
who was 44 years old, had, for the last five or six weeks,
been in the habit of sleeping in a shippon belonging to
Jnogh
en a
rPlyye,,
pcyoew, koenepgeorin,
gSeionttloanthde-pslha
jcpep.onTreosunterddadyecmeaosrend
lying in one of the stalls where the cows were standing.
He called to him, but received no answer, 'and on cal.mg
in a police-officer deceased was found to be quite dead.
s
tcTophHharifhueseaaersbhheejapaadubwavdrii
accordingly,
niniccstgcogiv.
nnor
horvuhpder
tili complained i
evidence
breast,
breast
rfe abwsethi "oh
bone
eho ;at.
thought
wsince
y Friday—chiefly
sprboe cfbefore,
reed:
idnget-
ting from
out manure. He was lying lengthways accross the
shippon, and right under the opening through which the
hwahyeismseednet deno w
enxteomtihneactioewes .
of Mthre.
body, said
weaeirddst,ilseutrdgeeoetnh,
was caused
arising
eiainengeafffrvueesmridoiencetnotefousteeherieeunmeffeeeocent7tqhtehaee'
ntbtrdieinena,tehinfw4alalls.l
but bow the effusion was produced
to show.
BODY OF A CHILD VOUND IN THE CANAL.—Sarne
day, on the body of a new-born male child, which was
found by Mr. P. Marrow, master shipwright, floating on
the water,f otnheSamt7uerrdkahyeafuzntoeonwhlai:ht.
theM rh.eNdyighhatditibgeaelle,
surgeon of
taken, sa'd that there were no marks of violence, and the
lungs floated on the water, but this he attributed to putre-
faction. The body appeared to have been a week in the
water. From the decomposed state of the body, he could

not say what had been the canse of death, or whether the
child had been alive or not.—Ti:e jury foamd a verdict of
fi.und de,:cl in the canal, but. how death had been caustd
there was no evid-•nce to show."

BURNING.—Same day, on the body of Henry Quin,
aged 5 and a half years. On Saturday morning last a
woman named Windary, who lives in Babel Buildings,
Bevingron--treet, was called out by a neighbour. and on
Roink heard screams proceeding from the opposite house
of a person named Harrocks. She found the door fast,
but found entrance by the window, when she found de-
ceased coming up the kitchen stair all on fire. Another
person came in and assisted in putting the fire out, but
deceased was severely burnt over the head, face, and
body. His mother came and took him away. He died
on the following day. There were three other children
in the house at the time, the .eldest of whom was but 5
years old. Deceased remained sensible for some time,
but was not able to say how his clothes had caught fire.
There was a good fire in the Icit;:he.n.—Verdict, died from
being burnt, but how his clothes became ignited there
was no evidence to show.