Police.
The Times, 1824-12-01T00:00:00

GUMDItALL.-..ROoytEity Diett-N-GTHSE EXECUT:O)t.-..A fimmc..leokinsg lad, apparentlv-about 15 years of age, named pdreesd Norman, was brought u~ Yesterdlav before the Sitting magistrate, Mlr. Aldlerman VItNABLES, chargea with picking a pocket in the Old Bailey, during the execution of Mfr. leauntleroy. Mir. Joseph Mlee, aL gentleman from Wellhigb~rough, in Northl- armntonshire, stated that he badi been drawn by curiosity to witness the'execution that morning, and was; in the crowvd at the top of the Old Bailey, nearest NXewgate-street, when ha felt a motion at his pocket, sad on turning round saw the prisoner, wvho was standing elos behnd him, witli his silk handkerchief in his hand. He col lared himn instantly, when the prisoner pasged his biand bebbiid himn, and dropped the handkerchief, which he (Mlr. MaIe) picked up close it the prisoner'6 heels. He securei binm, andl gave himn in custody. Fromn the careless Indifference and apparently hardened behaviour diisplayed by thie prisoner, who sneered and even smiled whilst Air. Maee was g~iving his evidence, thie Aldepn,an concluded he munt be an old thief; buit on Inquiring, noneof'the officers knew biis. When iasked, what he hadl to say, he replied, in a very pert tone, "Inever took, she handkerchief, and never saw any thing abDut it." On in- quiiring who and wliat he was, he replied, he lived with hf i father, a watch-jeweller, NO. SCm, Welllngton.street, Goswell-street, who, he said, was the heuseheeper there. As WVellington-street is a very re- putable xtreet, and in a respectable neighbourhood. the =resne' story was considered ficiitiouis, and the Altderman directel imt be pDlaced on one side, and Lock, the officer wrho bad imum in custody, wras sent to iniquire, and if his story were true, to deslire the attenid.. sacs of hi-, father. The prisoner beard these di-rections giveni wth- out exhibiting the slightest symptoms of shame or concern. To the surprise of every one, Lock, on his retuirn, was necompa.. nied by an elderly gentlemnan of most respec-table apuearance, who ackcnowledged in a tone that was scarcely audible frori his emoation, that the ,risoner was his son, andl that the account he had given was true. M1hen put in possession of ttime facts by the Magistrate, he ex. pressed in feeling terms his horror and surprise. The boy lived and workedwith him; he had a comfortable home, and every thing he wante 1, and'he never hieard an accusation agalnst his hoinesty. Alr. Alder-man VTr. IABLSrr seemed to feel deeply- for the oldf gen- tleman's situation. Ile wouild not question him veycldosely ; hut Mlr. Norman's regard for truth drew from him an acknowledgarent that the boy had latterly been somewhbat more irregular in his con- duict than hieretofore. Ile would, saidI he, with a deep-drawn sigh, go to the execution this morning against my inclination, and this is the consequence. Mfr. Alderman VENAaLES said he knew, from the manner ini which the boy behaved at the bar, and from the circumstances of the robbery on the very spot, and at the very momnent when an unfortu- nate fellow-cretLre was suffering the dreadful senitence of the law, a v-ictim to his crimies, that this was not hiis first deviation fromn vir-. tue. 11 I am sure," said the worthy Alderman, " it is impossible, and that he muist have been associating with bad comnpany. Look at him yourself, Sir. and see how hiardened and uluconcerined he stauds at this very mnoment." Time old gentleman turned towards his son, and with a lookc of un- speakable anguish, conftessed the justice of the Alderman's remark. Every one in the room wvas similarly affected, except the prisoner: two or three femnales joined thieir tears to those of the aeflcted father. Mr. MAle's evidence was repeated to the old ge-ntlensan, and wyas so Iclear that he silently acknowledged, when appealed to, that the Alderman had no alterniative hut to commiit his son for trial ; and he was taken froni the bar apparently whiolly unmoved by any thing' thatt had passed. AfAstLaosouoHSTS.ETr...Yesterday a gentlem-an of fortune, namei .Johnstone, residing at Alelton-51owbray, in Leicestershire, applied to Mir. C0ONANT, the sitting mnagistrate, for a redress of the following grievance to which he had been subjected. Ilie saidt that he hws been stoppinig in town for some days pasat at Stevens's H-otel, in Bond-street ; and having occasion suiddenly to proceed upon urgent huaine)3. into Leicestorshire, he went that morning to onle of the coach-offices in Piccadilly, near the Recent-circus, called the Regent-street coachi-office, whiere he inquired for a coach going to Lcicester. Hie was told that there wast a coach going to start from thence at half past I o'clock, and that the fare to Leicester was 30st. Mir. Johnstone accordingly bookedl himself for that coach, anid paid IL, and was told that the remaining l0s. lie miust pay a.t the Swan-with-two..nccks, Lad-lanie, when the coach got there. At half-past one o'clockr, Alr. Jobnastene was punctual in his attendance at the office, but whien he arrived he was told that the conch had go'ne on to Lad-lane, and he mnust follow it. MIr. Johnstone did accordingly take a hackney-coach, and p-oceeded to Lad-lane, when he wvent into the office and tendered the 1Os., the remainder of his fare, but he was told that the stum to be patid was Isv. instead of l0s. Although Mr. Johnstone c-onsidered this a gross extortion, yet, as lie was anxious to get to Leicester that night. anti being told at the office in Piccadilly that the coach he was to go by would arrive there at II o'clock that night, lie did not hesitate to pay dhe 15%., and then asked if the coach was about to start ; but now, for the Airst tiine, lie was told that indeedi there must be somne miistake, for there was no -oachi to start for Ljeicester before fire o'clock in the evening, minzd that Mfr. Johnstone couldl not of course reach that town before seveni o'clock in the morning. M1r. Johnstone expressed great sur- prise airli Indignation at suchi treatmeiti, znd desired his money to be immiedliately returnedl, as he shiould not go by their coach at all ; but here he received as little satisfaction as before, for they posi- lively refuseil to return himn a farthing, and he might get hiis mioney or Isis passage as he could. In this situation he had iso alternati"ve but to retbmr again to Stevens's Hotel, and decfer his jounecy at a very great inconvenience to hiim. IMr. CONTANT saidi that it was a very gross case of misconduct, hut it was of such it nature thlat a magistrate had into authority to interfere. Alr.Jolinstone's reimiedyvmusttbeby action. Mr. Johnstone expressed great disappointment at thils result, as he hial not time to adopr those means of redress, andc he supposed he MUst lose his money. Mirs. Sarahi Bell, an elderly respectable-looking femyale, who said that skec resides in Somiers-town, applied for tue advice of the Ammgis- irate to relieve her fromn the infleenice of somic extraordlinary spell that buid been cast around her by two " Vita Catholics," from' whicih she found it impossible to extricate herself by any efforts of her own. She suff'ered, she said, the most dreadftul torture, by, night and day-, fromn the procceedings of those vita Catholics, and noti a moment's sleep sould shie have,and lierpains, particularly in the liead, were be- yond atll enclura-nce. ir yti, the Magistrate, a,sked her whiat s;he meant bv " Vital Cathiolics." Ilie never heardi of them. Was it ally particular sect of Catholics?1 Mtrs. Bell said, that she really did not kniow what to miake of' themn; but she knewv they were 4"vital Catlsolics,'" and lmkely to be liar ruin,. unlless thec Magistrate assisted her. Mr. DyEti asked who these " vital Catholics" were that she com,- plained of. Mirs. Bell said that one was a Mfr. Feicerv. an Irishmiian, and the otlher wats a girl namedAMary, thiat once lived as servant wvithi ler. Mir. DYEPis asked if' those persons were now living in hier house, or how could they possibly liave any influence over her ? Mlrs. Bell said, no, thiej dfid not reside iiilier houise, nor does Slite ever see thetri. AMr. lienery, shie said, is in prison, antI blc sdoes not know where the girl is, but they uinite together as " vital Catholics" to hioldI her under a certain spell that she cannot get rid of. Tire Magistrate asked was Sir. Henerv of an y profe&ssioa? she said he was ba~th a stirgeomi and an officee in the army, andI could hiold -nov body be pleased %pcll.bound, with time assistance of Miary. Mir. DYERm, seeinig that the poor woman must be laborurirg uinder sonie extraoirdinarv dlelusion, said, that all he could do for her would be to give her a letter to the clerk of St. Pancras parish, who hiad a peculiar remedy to counteract those sorts of'spells. Mlrs. Bell satA slie was very Ltouchi obliged ; and the Magistrate wrote a note to fhse clerk oif the worithiouse, requesting thit somne me-ans might be aidopted by the tparish) offiters or surgeor, to relieve the poor woman's mind, and see that shie was taken proper care of, with whbich Mlrs. Bell depiarted apparently much gratified. UNIOX-RALI,-SCAI1CITY OF WATER5 AT A FIREs t\x GttA. VEL-L.ANE...Yesterday, whets the msagstrate, B. .7. CmRAmNDERS, Esq., entered the office, Mr. Hall,sieifotsae, informed bill, that a fire broke ouit PA. tue house of Alr. Thompsorn, at blasckasmith, in Gravel-la-ne, between 12 andl I o'clock that merning.. He Was promptly at the spot, with a num-ber of ttisc officers belonging to the, establisihment;. and although upwards of a dozeen engines had atr- rived in the lasse, yet not one of them couild be brought itito action, in consequence of' time want of water indeed, said Hall, two itouus elapsedl before the water was Ret on the ma-in;- anid had it not been that titers was anL uncomm-only strong antii thick party.swall to M-vr. Thoinpsoni's heuse, the whole range of buildinigs ott tha-t side of the: way muiist have beeni destroyed, as the tmaterials chiefly consisted of wvood, &c. Time fire, whiceh ragedi with considerable fuiry for up.i wards of three-quarters of an hour, was exclusively, coitfined to Alir.I Thoirpson's peiebytepr.waland Aftfer having btsrned frteaoe legth~ of time, time house was reduced to a shiell, anod the fire moat providentially went out by itself', witbout the aid (it water. After thec damnage was done, the constable saidl the water Was then let oni frotrn the Lambethm WVtter!works. Glhantion, the officer, who wais present during time coniflagration, cor- roborated the evidence of time chief coisttable, and added. thmat nmore than two hours had el'apsed front thw commnencement of thte fire ~until the water was let on. Ifedldington, the constable of Christ Chureh, saitl, that the imontent time fire burst out he repaired there wvith the parishb engine, and, for want of water from time regular rources, lie wais obliged to empty, all the neighbours' Water-huts, ac., to bring his engine into PI;lay. TVhisi supply was soon cxhusuaed, anti he,,became a spctator of the destruction of thle premises, withouit bein able to render the slightest aissistauite. When time water entered th mnain front the works, the fire was njearly extinguishmed. Thte Mlagistrate expressed his surnrnise upon hearing that there was still a deficiency of' water, amorm~ithtstensding the recent calanti. tous fires whichb had occurred, in Stiuthtwaik. Ilec then directedA thfit a sumiitnionst should be fbrthwith served upon the titmruock, whoAe dut i ws t hveattendedst timefire in question. In ashort time thetureoc epeesetlat the office, amid, in renly to ttime iniagistrate's questons,he atd,thathis namie was .lohn Pitmeredge, that he was tureok s de Linbeth Water Works, and lusat he dlid rot then apply for the reward usually given to persons in his situation upo such occasions. The miagistritte desired bins not to ailarnu 'itiosel ... tha,t no reward sliould be giveis to hirts, as ine %rai4not ei'title to any. Lie went on to sayv, that whsen lie is informed of a fire brealking outs in the district, he~ immuediately. proceeods front his residence to thec engine-hmouse at N~arrow.siall, 'which is at the dista:nce of about half a il,for the purupose ci throwing on fresth coals to the fire, in order to set time engine at wer to raise the water into time tlaaits. After having done so, and nssisted the engineer, lie titen proceeds to the place where the fire is, amnd turnis on time water. Time Magistrate observed, thatt a whole Street of houses might be consumed during.thesr preparations. NVWhat is the reason,asked the Magistrate, that other persons are.not in attendsnce at tlhe engine. house, to do tle worlk which appears to tne not to be that of a 'urn- cock ? The Turacoek said, that there 'was no individual at the ec- gise-house but the engineer, tbie stoker having met withan accident; and tme formuer being unable by hiinsclf to work the engine, which is oneof 80-horse powers he. (tbe turmcock) was nbliged to do hiis own and tie stoker'" dmtty. This it was, he said, that caused the delay. The AlAglstrate.reprobated thesystem of carrying otn the duties of Water-works in this wuy, srhich he observed, should neverbe with. out the ncatns of instantly supplying water in time eventof fires, which of late had become so fiercuent and so destrustieve Jn theircon. sequences. lie then directed thst the Directors of the Company should be made acquainted with the negligence manitested on the present occ.sion, saud refused to give the reward to the turneock. Hall stated', tiat wlteis he arrived at the above fires he perceived fotir coaches appaicstly wsitisag in readiness to carryofianyv plunder hich might be saved from the peremises. Knowing that ihis was a omuson practice at maost of the fires which omcur itn the lmetropo. ls;, he desired that the drivers sbould immeffiazteIyuve, ofr three of them complied, but a foarth refued-Pendhe (Rall) .had had taken his cosch to the Green-yard. [le nowwiihed toL know whether he shnuld give up the coach. : - - The Alagistrate was aware of the assistancrendered by,oaecfbmen to thieves, in draving up tO the vidinity of hbera a fire happened, for the purpose of receiving the aLrticles plundered from the rdins. The Secretary of State hati given strict injunctions the p;lice to seize vehicles of this description, when found vaiting neaT aconla- gration; and, unr3er these circmtances, HIll was desired to sum- motn the driver of st to attead POLICk.