The Express. — 1867-02-26 (London, England)

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT. (THIS DAY.)  (Before the Recorder.) Charletllin !lion, 38, a respectahle•looking MAD; described as a needle manufacturer, pleaded guilty to two indictments charging him with forging bills of exchange, one fur 751. and the other for 42/. lffs., with intent to de• fraud the Metropolitan Bank. The prisoner. who appeared to be in a dreadful state ci mental distress, read a long and most affecting statement, in which he represented that he and his family had been in a respectable business for more than half a century, at I Studley, in Warwickshire, and that he had fallen into difficulties, and the dread of bankruptcy had driven him to commit the acts to which he had pleaded guilty, in the hope of tiding over his difficulties. He said that the Tres• sure upon him was so great that he was driven to meditate suicide, and he had passed many nigh tt wandering about, not knowing what to do to relieve himself from He implored the court, for the sake of his wife and his innocent children, who had been reduced to a state of destitution by his being placed in his present position, to deal mercifully with him, and give bins an opportunity of endeavouring to regain the position lie had formerly occupied. The Recorder sidd it was certainly a very painful cave, but the duty of the court was perfectly cle:kr. It did not appear that he had only been guilty of a single act of forgery, but, on the contrary, he appeared to have endeavoured tepees off no less than four forged hills, and lie also seemed to have defrauded another bank hi a JJJ ilar manner only a short time before this transaction. ruder these circumstances the court had no alternative but to sentence him to be kept in pemil servitude for six years. (Before the Common Serjesust.) SINGULAR ItIBBERY FROM A POST LErTLlt•Ii°C. Charge, Loud, 25,• well-dressed young loan, was charged with stealing eight post letters, the pronerty of her Majesty's Postmaster-General. Mr. Metcalfe mid Mr. Patteson conducted the prosecu• tion.  The circumstances of this case were somewhat peculiar. It appeared that on the 16th of February the attention of the persons hexing the charge of the :coition district poet-office, at Islington, %vas directed to the fact of some sticky substance, apparently birdlime, being placed inside the letterbox, apparently with the object of arresting the letters in their descent. A constable was accordingly set to watch, and, w lade he was so employed the prisoner came up to the letterbox, And stood, lounging about, at a abort distance from it. Several persons then came up and dropped letters into the box, and the moment they had left the prisoner sidled up to the box and stood with his hack to it. and while in that position he was observed by the officer to put his hand into the slit of the letter-box, and lie then walked away. The constable followed him and stopped him, mud asked him to go back to the post-office. He at titst objected. hut on the constable insisting upon his accompanying him be begged to be forgiven, and mid that if he was taken into custody it would be his ruin. The prisoner was then searched, and eight letters that had only been posted just before were found in his pockets, and they had all sticky matter upon them, similar to that which was fouud w the letter-box.  The jury found the prisoner guilty, and it appeared that he had previously been convicted of obtaining good• by false pretences, and sentenced to imprisonment. The Common Serjeant said the prisoner had been con. victed of a very serious offence, :old one that was calculated to do very great mischief. As a caution to others, he felt it his duty to sentence him to five yea.' penal wrtitude. William Edwards and Frederick Janes Kerby, two post letter carriers, who had pleaded 4uilty to westing letters entrusted to them for delivery, were brought op for judgment, and also sentenced to five years' penal servitude.