The Statesman.
London, England, 1810-10-20 00:00:00

POLICE.

t-

MANSION-HOUSE.
A charge of an extraordinary and rather alarm.
ing nature to commercial" men came beford the
Lord Mayor yesterday.
Mr. Yarrow, a reputable cheesemonier, N0..81,
Broad-street, was brought up for examination, on
an accusation of receiving and purchasing, know.
lug them to be stolen, a number of ponderous
ledgers and other books of accounts, which were
taken from the counting-houses of a Mr. Eastlield
and a Mr. Corney, situate in chambers nearly ad-
ljacent to Mr. Yarrow's house. The circumstances
were as follow :—A boy, about 14, servant to
Mr. Eastfielel, and who bad access to several other
counting-houses in those chambers besides that of
his master, had stolen those books, and sold them
at 4d. per pound (the usual price of waste pa.
per), to Mr. Yarrow, who, like all other cheese-
mongers, is in the habit of purchasing old account.
books and waste paper, for the purpose of wrap-
ping up goods sold in his shop. The books having
been missed, and the boy detected, he discovered,
upon being questioned, where he had sold them.
Mr. Eastfleld and Mr. Conley immediately repaired
to Mr. Yarrow, and upon stating what they hail
heard from the boy, he directly acknowledged that
he had been in the habit of buying such books, and
chewed them to the room where his waste paper
was kept, to see if they could God any of the books
they missed. Here they found a number of ledgers
and other account-books ; some entire, others with
only a part of the leaves torn out, and many co.
vers of ledgers wholly atript of their former con.
tents, and amongst the collection both of these Gen.
tlemen found ledgers of the present and two pre-
ceding years, recently in use, and some of them
almost blank, with only a few of the . leaves in.
scribed. Their names were on every written page,
and the books scarcely soiled on the outside. They
therefore felt it their duty to bring Mr. Yarrow be.
fore the Lord Mayor, to answer for his conduct in
purchasing such books from a buy without even ex-
amining them, or considering the serious conse-
quences that might result therefrom to the owners.
Mr. Yarrow, a respectable old man, who has
kept his shop fur above 30 years, stated in his de.
fence, that the boy, Gwinn, came to him a consi-
derable time since, and asked if he would purchase
old account-books as waste-paper. He answered
that he would, and if they were clean and in good
order, give a good price for them. The boy then
asked what that price would be, he answered four-
pence per pound if weighed with the covers, and
five-pence if weighed without ; the boy went away,
and in a short time afterwards brought him several
old ledgers and other comiting-house books, for
which he paid him at the rates above-mentioned.
For a whole year, the boy continued to bring such
books from time to time, and the Defendant bought
them in like mauner, and amongst others, the books
now in question.
The Long MAYOR expressed his surprise that
the Defendant should have purchased from such a
boy bucks of this nature, the importance of which,
as a man of business, he must have known, with
the names of the owners, men close in his very neigh-
bourhood, written in every page, and some of them
nearly blank, and others containingsuch recent ac-
counts as those of the present and last two years.
The Defendant said, he could not read writing, and
therefore could nut discover those particulars. it
iudced never occurred to him to examine the books,
as he was constantly in the habit of hying such, and
as the buy tiad sold them to him in his master's
name. lie acknowledged, however, that his
wife could read and write, and usually kept his
books. Both Mr. Eastfield and Mr. Corney said,
they were • satisfied that Mr. Yarrow had pur.
chased these books with no dishonest inters.
tion, although with a ♦ery reprehensible degree
of inadvMency. Many of the books they
had lost contained unadjusted accounts, which
could now only be restored with great diffi-
culty, trouble, and expeuce. Many of them con-
tained bankers' accounts, and had not these thefts
been_discoxered and checked even thus late, the
consequence might involve their concerns iu
inous confusion. They should, however, feel
great reluctance in prosecuting Mr. Yarrow ; but
feeling that the boy would not have thought of
such thefts, if he had not been encouraged to it by
some experienced accomplice; and lie totally de-
nied having any other encouragement but the price
he obtained from Mr. Yarrow.

The Lotto MAYOR replit.ll, that however le-
niently those gentlemen felt disposed towards Mr.
Yarrow, the matter was now publicly brought be.
fore him, and was a subject of too much impottance
to the commercial interests of the City of London,
to be passid over lightly as a mere venial error.—
Mr. Yarrow, to say the b'est of his conduct, was
guilty of a most criminal negligence in purchasing
such books from such a boy, under every ground of
suspicion; and eveis reputable as his character
might have been through life, his conduct in this case
hid every appearance of encouraging this ignorant
boy to a species of theft that might ruin his mas.
ter. Some example must therefore be made, in order
to put a cheek to a species of traffic so pregnant
with mischief to commercial men. And persons in
the Defendant's, and every other line of busi-
ness, must be•taught the necessity of due circum-
spection, in purchases of this nature, which other.
wise must open a door to the must serious injuries
in the concerns of mereauti!e men, and every pub.
lie effice. His Lordship therefore felt it his indis-
pensable duty to hold the Defendant to bail, to
take hii; trial at the next Quarter Sessions, for the
misdemeanour, on the evidence of G win ; and also
to bind over Mr. Clancy and Mr. Eastfield to pro.
secute; which was accordingly done.
Lawrence ;rood and his wife were again brought
lip for further examination, touching the burglary
and rubbery in the count►ng-house of Alderman
Atkins. Wood was committed fur trial, but the
wife was discharged.