Old Bailey, Saturday, Dec...
The Times, 1824-12-06T00:00:00

John Cl'arke 'was indicted for retting fire to his dwelling-house. with intent to defraud the County Firc.offlce; a second cotnt etate4 his intention to be to injure bis landlord; and a third, to injure his. lodgers The trial oceiTfied the Court from 10 o'clock in the morning unt til 7 in the evening; but as we have alread5 detailed the particulars bf the accusation, it will not be necessary here to repeat more than an outline ofthem. The most material witness for the rosecution was a woman named &ophia Wood, who t&ed that she lived with. in aboat 400 yartds of. the prisoner5s house in Dor,lngton-street. Coldbshtheiwads On the night of the fire, shortly before 8 o'clock, 'she was goig, she sai-d, to the Cheshire Cheese publie-house,which is opposite the p onerS' shop, for some beer; hut before she went into the public.house, hef attention vas attracted to a bonnet in the winloiv of Mrs. Pearson's shop, which is next door to that of the prisoner. In crossing over to look at it, she ob- served the prizoner' she said," come out and look up and downt the street. Iie theA ret?rn'ed into hiia shop, and she observed a sudden glare of light in it. The next novement she bebeld the prisoner lean over the counter vith a lighted piece of btown Taper, or something like itb iin f is hand, and the flames instantly burst fsrth in that pakt of the shop, upon which she called out " Fire! " andI when she wen( home she tol( ill r. Bird'that she had secn. In addition to this woman's testishony, it app. red that the prisoner gave various contradictory accouints of the origin of the fire. 1e told Air. Acland, surveyor of the County Fire-office, on the fol- lowing day, that he was alone in his shop when the fire burst out roim untder the stairs with great, violence, upoII which he jumped over the counter, and the 'shock was so great- as to deprive him- of his senses. He told Mis. Pearson the next evening, that he was st3ntding behind the counter reckoning some money, and a spa.rkc fronr- the candle mnst have dropped on the salt- petre, whichliexfi,6ded ahd gaYe him a drcadful blow on the side, andjisow J6. got out he copild scarcely say. He told a person named I.loyd, -wfife 'tt- Mrs. Burgess s on the night of the fire, that a carboy of turpetitioe having burst in the cellar, he went down with a candle in Gne hand, -and a canister of gunDowder in the other, and the gunpowdter blew. up. And in a fortnighst afterwards, lie told a neighboiur of the'nalne of Webster, that the reason why he did not algtris hiis; - lodgers tvas' because an cxplosion took.place which npocked- hbin down, ant he was carried away by two gentlemen, itsen3ible. Besides this, two or three witnesses deposed as to the scanty state of the stock In the shop inmediately preceding the fire. On tile other band, it appeared that Sophia 'Vood had been living vith another wornan's husband, named Bird, for the last four years, who had lately taken the benefit of the Insolvent Act; that she had described herself as histwife In her depositions at the policc-office: and that she had not (except to Bird) stated to any one that she had seen Clarke set his house on fire until after Mr. Barber Beaumont had seen her several times on the subject; but, on the contrary, she said to another woman, in reply to an observation of hers while loosing at tIie fire from her own window, that "she did not think Mlr. Clarke the knil of person who wouldl set his house on fire," although she now denied having said any such thing. It further appeared, that a little girl, a customer, was in the sliep wien the flames burst forth at that part of it which was next the stairs, and a person who was- passing by called out to the prisoner to save his papers, upon which he leaied over the coumster,and wrenching his desk offi, he ran over widh it to the public-house, and returned with the latdlord and atnother person. He entered tile shcp &gain to try to save some of his stoc;; bht ne presestlyafterwards staggered out nearly in a state of insensibility, and was taken over to the public- house, where his forehead was bathed in vinegar, and his h andis washed. One of his hands was bleeding and swollen, and he conti- nied insensible for more than half an hour. Upon his recovery, his agitation was so great as to affect his intellects, and lie hardly recovered his composure the following day. Hence the in- consistency in his accounts of the tire. Besides this, it was proved by several of the parties from whom lie purchasetl goods, and others who had been in his shop either on the evening of, or immediately before,tie fire, that he hadl considerably increased his stock latterly, ntd that his shop was quite filleti with goods. He had been lateiv in treaty for the disposal of the lease and good-will of his premises (in consequence of his bad health), and hc had been offered more for them than would, when addled to the value of his stock (which was to,be taken by the tenant at a valuation), exceed the sumn for which he had been insured. Under such circumstances, he could have no intcrested motive for comnmnitting the crimenlaid to his charge. He received the very best character from a hostof respectable trades. people. The Jury stopped the learned Judge in hiz summing up, and re- turned a verdict of Not G,uilty. Mlr. Baron HULLOCE directed that AMr. Clarke should he dis. eharvroi -nrm-1,,; OLD BAILEY, SATuRDAY. DEC. 4.