The Sun. — 1852-07-31 (London, England)

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.  NORTI.-,!ERN CIRCUIT.--Neu;custle, July 29. Th;s morning the Learned. Judges of this circuit opened the commission at Newcastle, stud heard Di. vine Service at the parish church, after which, at one o'clock, Lord Chief Justice C'nphAl, proceeded to try town prisons a tne Town-hall. The town calendar contains the names of 20 prisoners. (.harr,(l with an attmpt to murder; the rest are ordinary sessions cases. George Gideon, Ann Gibson, and Margaret Bell were indicted tor stealing and receiving eight 51. BAnk of England notes, the property of Thomas Marshall. _ _  The Hon. Adolphus Liddell prosecuted, and Mr. Ovi-rend defended the prisoners. It appeared that the prosecutor is a grocer in Newcastle, living with h;s brother; whose house is next door to his shop. On the 6h of June last the prohecutor had eight Si.B ink of England notes and 40 sov.-reigns, which he put in his inside waistcoat pocket. He was 110 t out of doors, except in the back yard, and went to bed, sleeping in the same room with his father, and placing his clothes on a chair. They did not appear to have been disturbed next morning. About 12 o'clock next morning, having occasion to pay a debt of 381, he felt in his pocket for his money, and counted out 28 sovereigns, intending to niche up the amount with notes, but his notes were gone. At first ho suspected the prisoner Margaret Bell, who lived 6.3rvant with his brother, and had her boxes searched. Finding nothing, he then fancied be h,..d lost them out of doors that morning, and advertised them. Eventually his suspicions attached more strongly to Margaret Bell, and, on her obtaining leave to go to Carlisle, he had her apprehended there at the station, believing that she had got the money out of his clothes while he was asleep. The other female prisoner, Gibson, is her sister, and they were all three taken into custody at the same time. When apprehended, Ann Gibson endeavoured to pass a key to her husband, who threw it away. This key was found to open a secret drawer in a chest in his house, in which was found two Si. Bank of England notes, one of which was identified, by a mark upon it by the prosecutor, and by its number by his brother, who bad paid it to him, as one of the notes he had lost. The chest also contained a quantity of new women's wearing apparel. The prisoner Bell said she had found the notes in the back• yard, which was an innyard, and did not know to whom they belonged. Mr. OVEREND, for the defence, contended that the evidence favoured the presumption that Bell's story was true, else why had she not taken the sovereigns out of the same pocket ? and the prosecutor's impression was that he had lo,t the notes. Ifshe found them, not knowing to whom they belonged, and afterwards conceived the intention of appropriating them to her own use, he submitted that that was not stealing in law, and the other prisoners could not be guilty of receiving.  HIS LORDSHIP, in summing up, told the jury that even if the prisoner Bell's statement were true, and she found the notes as described, and, having the opportunity to make inquiries respecting them, made none, but appropriated, this was stealing, and the other prisoners by their conduct exhibited a guilty knowledge of the offence. The jury found all throe prisoners guilty. They were sentenced to he imprisoned eaoh 18 calendar months, with hard labour.  OXFORD ClRCUlT—Shrewsbury, July 29. CRO t'N