The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — 1842-12-06 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

THE DUBLIN PUBLICATIONS. CURRY AND CO.  DETECTION OF SHEEP-STEALERS, AND SUICIDE OF THE SHEPHERD.—A circumstance has just occurred in Hertfordshire which goes to proves what has always been asserted by the chief constable of the county, that when farmers are in the habit of having sheep stolen the shepherd is generally connected with the thieves. On the forenoon of Friday, the 25th of November, information was brought to the head constable at Hertford that two wether sheep and a ram had been stolen some time during the previous night from the farm of Mr. Cheffins, near Ware. Captain Robertson immediately despatched Inspector Dunn, of the rural police, to the railway to London, and directed Inspector Barnes to go on the high-road to Smithfield, with instructions how to proceed. At Enfield, Barnes met a light cart belonging to Humphrey, a butcher of Hoddesdon, driven by a lad named Welch, who, being closely interrogated, admitted that he had been employed by Humphrey to convey two wether sheep and a ram to London, and stated that they had been delivered to Mr. Mossman, a salesman. Being convinced from the description given of the sheep by Welch that they were those stolen from Mr. Cheffins, Barnes returned to Hoddesdon, and took Humphrey into custody, in whose possession 15s was found, which he admitted having received from Mossman, but refused to give any account of the sheep sold to him. Barnes then proceeded to London, taking with him the shepherd of Mr. Cheffins, and from information received from Mr. Mossman, who rendered every assistance to the police, the inspectors were enabled to taace the two wether sheep to the yard of the Ram public-house, in Smithfield. The skin of the stolen ram (it having been almost killed) was also traced and recovered from the fell-monger, to whom it had been sold, and both that the sheep were subsequently identified by Mr. Cheffins as his property. The shepherd on being shown the skins in London, evinced symptoms of uneasiness, and desired to be allowed to go home. He accordingly left London at 10 o'clock on Monday morning, but did not reach his master until 12 o'clock at night, having in the meantime, as is supposed, given information of the discovery of the sheep, to others of the gang, with whom it was now found he was connected ; and at 3 o'clock on Tuesday morning it was discovered he had committed suicide.—Hereford paper.  Our Mess. Coombe Abbey. The Commissioner.  " Our Mess" has arrived at a conclusion : it has been a smartly written, well sustained story, replete with character, anecdote, and humour. It will not he fair to tell the denouement. The description of Frescatis, and the terrible scenes enacted there, are powerfully narrated. Madame de Roni's grand entertainment is capitally hit off, nor is the account of Mons. de Roni's leg-of-pork dinner without merit. The illustrations, of which there are four, are cleverly executed. We are promised two new tales, from the pen of Harry Lorrequer, to begin the next year,—" Burke of Ours," and the Loiterings of Arthur O'Leary."  " The Commissioner" is also concluded. This tale, for singularity and eccentricity has not been equalled since the Tale of a Tub and Gulliver's Travels appeared ; not that we for one instant place it on a footing with those incomparable works. It contains many very smart hits at the follies and vices of the day, and although the incidents are exaggerated beyond the possibility of occurrence, there is food enough for laughter, stuff enough to stare at, and wisdom enough to remember. The illustrations have been excellent throughout, of which the present number contains four. " Coombe Abbey" has reached its eighth number, the story progresses with considerable interest, the incidents and characters happily exhibit the manners of the times at which the story is fixed. This work, we believe, is from the pen of a lady.