Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1849-10-23

A ROBBERY OF THE MAIL.
The Richmond mail TO this place (says III
Lynchburg Republican, was robbed some tw
weeks, since between Farmville and Walker
Church in Prince Edward county. There wa
but one passenger in the Stage, and he bin,
man. by the name Of ia mes w. Luyell recently
a pupil OF the Stanton Bind lns'ilucn. Som
! day or Two alter his arrival in this place he wa
arrested al The instance OF The stage drive. upo.
| the charge Of having committed The robbery, al,
was committed 10 Jail by magistrate. The gull
OF The blind man being very improbable, and III,
! case exciting a great deal OF sympathy in III,
community, successful effIt was immcdiatel,
made 10 have The case heard again. and the un,
fortunate man was, therefore, brought before two
magistrates on Monday last, one oil waom wa.
the committing magistrate in the first instance
There were but two witnesses against lht
prisoner, viz: tho stage driver who drives frcn
! Farmyiile 10 Walkers Church, aud under v hon
the mail was lost; and the individual who drives
from that place TO Lynchburg. Tae former les
tilted, under great deal of excitement, that he
left FarDville about o'clock in the morning
oil the day the mail was robbed with the Lynch,
burg mail bag inside the stage, and the way
mail bag under his feet. Lovett was the only
passenger, and he outside with the drivcr-he
watered his horses at - bridge, and after
driving some hundred yards farther, Loyett ex.
pressed desire 10 ride inside the Stage awhile.
Witness offered TO assist him in, but Lovett re-
fused, and got OF and into The coach without
as'islance-which appeared strange 10 witness,
for blind man. He asked Lovelt il the mail
bag disturbed him, and he replied il did not -
The curtain was pinned down-Lovett bosted
The windows. He rode inside some six miles
upon the hndmost seat, when he again got out
with The driver, saying that il was too hot in,
side, and rode TO Walkers Church. When
there, letter and two way bills were picked
up in The bottom of the stage by the other stage
driver and handed witness. He placed them
somewhere in the stable, but was not certain
where-eat his breakfast, and though. no more
Of them until he returned next day to Farmville
aud learned, for the first tune, the mail was
robbed.
Upon being Intercepted, witness said, lie ne
Yer examined 10 see whether the mail was sale
during his whole triple generally carried il in
side when there were no passengers, though he
law did not justify him in doing so-he thought
The mail bag might have been thrown out al The
window OF The Stage, in broad day time, without
being noticed by him-he supposed The bag con.
lained bushe OF mail Misunderstanding a leter
and way bill in the Stage did not once excite
his suspicious tha, anything was wrong-he did
mol know what had become OF The said letter and
way bill, as he never saw Them after he laid
them dcwn-he did not look a, them when h md
ed 10 him, and could not tell where they
were from or anything about them WI.
ness being asked il he saw LoVeu have any
sharp instrument with which he could have cut
The mail bag, replied that he had forgot to state
both in his FIRST and second second examination,
that while L. was in the Stage, he asked witness
10 loan him his knie TO fix his Flu.e, and when
be got out with The driver again lie returned The
kniie-he did no: see nor hear any flute while
prisoner was in The Stage-he thought he was
very boil 10 borrow The drivers knife 10 rob The
mai! wilh-he had no doubt that The prisoner
could see, as h, had even told him the color OF
his horses and had pointed out bye.roads as he
passed along-he saw no one on The road except
negro boy, but on being examined closer, al
the instance II Loyeit, WAC said ne distinctly
heard man Tide up and continue by the side OF
the Stage for some distance, in iLdislinct CONVEX
salon with The driver-and then heard the feet OF
the horse after The driver had told him upon in
four OF Eve minutes ID convsrsa ieGH S6 him.
about trunk tha. he, (wi,ness,) had carried
down Tor the man the previous trip-wlness did
moi recolect seeing any other person-dld not
know where The mail was found after il was
robbcd-prisoner only rode abou: six niles in
the Stage.
The testimony of the other driver was OF no
importance, as he knew but little about the mat
Ter. he recolleced finding The letter and way bills,
and handing them 10 previous witness. but did
not know more about them as ne could not read
wring-and was not surprised al finding them,
as he supposed they were accidenlly throw into
the Stage with the mail bag, by the Post Master
- LII ,,,1l 49, koa
peced the letter aud way bills had fallen into the
leaves in The stable, and had been thrown out
with The manure-the (wilness) diligently search
ed tor them in The manure but found them not
Mr. Boyd the contractor, had told him 10 search
Tor lhem and find them, if possibie-he did not
suspect the mail was lost until alter his return
from LYnchburg thought the mail was all in
one bag, which was never The case before as ne
lecollecled.
The only testimony adIuced on The part OF The
prisoner, was in reference 10 his good character
and his blindness Rev. MIR. Castleman, who
happened 10 be in our town, testified TO The excel
lent character of The piisoner-had known hin
in Stanton for six years-did not doubt Tor one
m ment that he was entirely blind, was born so
and had been for many years in the Blind lns!iu
lion as such--had always heard him highly spo-
ken OF BY The professors OF The institution, as
moral, we'll disposed, and amiable young man =
did not suppose that he knew what mail Dag
was-nor could he possibly Distinguish wnHc
from black as blind man had mol The hTst iiea
OF culors, any more than deaf man has Of SOUNDS
he could tell day from night but nothing more.
Mrs Henrques, at whose house the prisoner
had taught music for some time, and where he
was arrested, testified pretty much to the same
effect She had packed mis- trunks for him.
when he left her house and was present when
they were examined by the officers, when the
prisoner was arrested, and nothing was found
10 kindle the slightest suspicion of guilt Oh his
part-wnen she told him that he was su>pi
cioned, (being the only passenser) he was much
amused, aud said if that was the case be would
mol leave next morning in the packet, as he de-
signed doing-went 10 bed and slept so soundly
that when the officers came 10 arrest him, they
had 10 wake him twce-he had no knife when
he left her house, and had none when he re
turned-his flute was locked up in his trunk
pretty much in the position shc had placed il
for him, and was in the most perfect repair
and the best she ever had seen. MIR William
L Saunders also testifes 10 the utter blindness
Of the prisoner.
MIR. Luvett was acquitted. The idea hat :
chId.like blind man, IN broad day light on Tn
main age Road, while riding the distance o
sir miles. should have borrowed the Stage tri
yer's kplle, ripped open the mail bag, broker
| omen and ransacked its contents, and then have
thrown The bag containing bnshcl OF mail mai,
Ter on, OF the narrow aperture OF the window
without being discovered or suspectei. by h'
driver, was 100 improbable tale to be believed To-
one moment When, where, how or BY whom
The m nj was robbed, is yet unknown. but tina
j. was done by man with his ey1s open canno
be questioned.
IMPORTANT INTELLIGENCE.
SAFETY OF SIR JOHN FRANKLIN AND HE
~ EXPEDITION.
Confirmation Of tie Ni'gsra' NetDs.
The highly interesting intelligence recels n,'
by the Niagara from England oil the probable