The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

314.   JAMES TOWNSEND was indicted for feloniously forging, on the 26th of April , a certain order for payment of money , as follows, that is to say,

"April 26th, 1802.

"Messrs. Snow and Company,

"Pay to  T. Cavendish, Esq. or Bearer, one thousand pounds, for HENRY CAVENDISH," with intent to defraud   Henry Cavendish , Esq.

Second Count. For uttering and publishing the same as true, knowing it to be forged, with the like intention.

Third and Fourth Counts. The same as the First and Second, only charging an intention to defraud   Robert Snow ,   William Sandby , and   John-Deane Paul .

Fifth Count. For uttering and publishing as true, a like order for the payment of money, knowing it to be forged, with intention to defraud   Michael Grayhurst and   Susannah-Ann Grayhurst .(The case was opened by Mr. Knowlys.)

  JAMES HARVEY sworn. - Examined by Mr. Jackson. Q. You are clerk to Messrs. Grayhurst and Company? - A. Yes, Michael and Susannah-Ann Grayhurst.

Q. Look at the gentleman at the bar, and tell us if you saw him at Mr. Grayhurst's shop on the 26th of April last? - A. I did, on Monday, this day week.

Q. Where is that shop? - A. No. 65, in the Strand.

Q. What was his business at the shop? - A. When he first came in, I was not present; I was called up to shew him the things that he asked for.

Court. Q. What sort of a shop is it? - A. A silversmith, jeweller, and watch-maker.

Mr. Jackson. Q. Did you shew him any thing? - A. I did; there were two or three articles shewn him before I came in; I was called to state the prices to him.

Q. What had you shewn him? - A. A silver tea-pot and a plated tea-urn; the next articles I shewed him were a dozen knives and forks, a dozen deserts, and a plated bread-basket; he was then asked if he would like a coffee-urn to match the tea-urn; he asked me what a coffee-urn was; I pointed to it, and shewed it him; he said he would have it; I don't know that there was any thing else; he desired me to cast up the whole of them; I did so, to the amount of thirty-nine pounds, as near as I can recollect; he was in a great hurry.

Q. Did he offer to pay you for them? - A. He doubled up a piece of paper, and walked up and down the shop; the whole of the time that he was in the shop, he appeared to me very much deranged; he appeared to stare at me very wildly several times; after I had added up the amount, and told him what it came to, he presented a piece of paper to me, solded up; he desired me to take it to where it was addressed, to bring the goods and the balance to Millington's coffee-house to Sir Thomas White; he then left the shop.

Q. You of course looked at the paper that he gave to you? - A. Yes.

Q. What was it? - A. A draft to Messrs. Snow and Company for one thousand pounds.

Court. Q.Did you look at it before he left the shop, or afterwards? - A. I looked at it before he left the shop.

Q. Look at that paper? - A.This is the same.

Q.Is there any drection upon the draft where Messrs. Snow resided? - A. No.

Q. Had you any conversation with him upon that subject? - A. No.

Q. What did you afterwards do with that draft? - A. I took it to a neighbour's, Mr. John Sommers, and desired him to present it; I told him the circumstance that I have stated before you, my Lord, and added, that I thought the person was deranged.

Q. How far does Mr. Sommers live from you? - A.Just across the street; I returned again to Mr. Grayhurst's shop.

Q. When did you see the prisoner again? - A. About an hour after I came back; I understood he had been there while I was gone to Mr. Som

mers's; I was called into the shop, and saw him there.

Q. Who were present then? - A. Mr. Sommers was in the shop, and   James Inglish , and Mr. Paul; a conversation took place between Mr. Paul and the prisoner; he is a partner in the house of Snow and Company; some conversation had taken place before I came in; I heard the prisoner say, I supposed (to Mr. Paul,) if I told you that Mr. Cavendish gave me a thousand pound check, I mistated it; he, did not give me the thousand pound check, he gave me only a fifty pound; he then stated that a man on horseback rode after him, overtook him on the way, and gave him this thousand pound check.

Q. Did he state for what purpose he gave it him? - A. No; Mr. Paul stated to him that it was a serious circumstance, or something to that effect; Mr. Paul asked him to walk with him to the house; I imagined he meant his own house; he said, he would go with him; he said so readily; then he went away with Mr. Paul, and I saw no more of him.

Cross-examined by Mr. Fielding. Q. It struck you very early that he was deranged and wild? - A. Yes.

Q.These articles are not all plate, but several of them plated? - A. The best part of them.

Q.When it was recommended to him to have a coffee-urn, he did not know what it was? - A. No, he asked the question.

Q. I take it for granted, you were more and more convinced of his derangement? - A. Yes; then he pointed at some candlesticks, and said, I will have them.

Q.And then, with a flourish, he gave you a check for one thousand pounds? - A. Yes.

Q. I believe you looked upon it as the act of a madman, and returned the things that he had bargained for to their places? - A. Yes, there were but few of them taken out, and those were returned to their places.

Q. In fact, you did not consider that any sale had taken place of these articles? - A. No, I did not.

Q. The note was thrown down, saying, send the goods and the change to Millington's coffee-house? - A. Yes.

Q. Of course, when he went out of the shop, you looked upon him to be a madman? - A. I did.

Q.And you did not expect, when you went to Sommers, that the draft would be paid? - A. No. I never expected it would.

Q. I believe you made use of the word to Mr. Sommers, that you would have it presented for form's sake? - A. I don't know that I exactly said for form's sake; I said, it must be presented, as it was given to me.

Q. During this conversation, his manner was wild in general - here and there, there was a connected sentence? - A. Yes.

Q.And he came into the shop, I believe, about an hour afterwards? - A. Yes, the third time.

Court. Q. Did you make out any bill of these things? - A. NO.

Q. How came you to expect the draft would never be paid? - A.From the manner in which he gave it me, and the general tenor of his conduct in the shop.

Q.What was there to prevent the draft being paid - it was not a draft of his own? - A. It was a supposition of my own, which I stated to Mr. Sommers.

  JAMES INGLISH sworn. - Examined by Mr. Cliston. Q. You are foreman to Messrs. Grayhurst? - A. Yes.

Q. Do you remember seeing the prisoner in their shop at any time? - A. Yes, on Monday last, between nine and ten o'clock in the morning; the prisoner came in, and asked the price of a silver tea-pot; I was in the shop when he came in; from the manner of his behaviour in coming in, I thought it was necessary to call Mr. Harvey up, to have more assistance in the shop; there were a number of goods shewn to him, and, as the things stood in the glass, he said, what is the price of these candlesticks? as soon as he was told the price of them, he said, I will have them, without examining the articles, to see whether they were good or bad; after looking at a number of articles my attention was taken to see that he did not commit any outrage, that I did not pay much attention to the things that were picked out; I recollect the tea-urn, and the coffee urn, and the tea-pot, and several other things; after they were looked out, he desired them to be cast up; they were cast up by Mr. Harvey.

Q.Did Mr. Harvey inform him of the amount? - A. He did; he then gave him a piece of paper, which appeared to be, when it was opened, a draft of a thousand pounds upon Mr. Snow's banking-house; he ordered then the goods and the change of that draft to be brought to Millington's coffee-house; upon which he took himself away.

Q. Did he say who they were for? - A. I think he desired them to be left in the name of Townsend, in the care of Sir Thomas White; after he was gone, Mr. Harvey said, this man never intends to have the goods, let us put them away; then Mr. Harvey went out of the shop with the draft in his hand; while he was absent, the prisoner returned; he asked me if it was gone to the banker's; upon which I told him it was; he said, good God, and away he went immediately.

Q.Did you see him at any time after that? - A. Yes, an hour, or it might be two hours, I cannot say exactly the time the prisoner returned again; he asked if the draft was paid; a gentleman from

the banking house, I believe his name was Paul, was close by the prisoner at that time; upon his asking me whether the draft was paid, Mr. Sommers said, that gentleman will best inform you, which was Mr. Paul; Mr. Paul asked him how he came by the draft, and he said, that he went down to Mr. Cavendish, and he gave him a draft of 50l. and that was all he would give him; he said, that going down the road a man came galloping after him on horseback, and gave him a draft of 1000l. and he said, good God! the old gentleman is in his dotage sure.

Q. Did the prisoner say he had said this upon receiving the draft, or did he say it in the shop? -- A. He said it in the shop.

Cross-examined by Mr. Raine. If I understand you right, from the time he first came into the shop, his conduct was so strange, and he looked so, that you thought it right to call for Mr. Harvey? - A. Yes.

Q. Did you mean by that, that he stared widly? - A.He did, and walked about the shop.

Q.Was it the stare of a man out of his mind, as you judged? - A.It was, or I should not have left off serving him, and gone out of the shop for fear he should commit any outrage.

Q.And when he was gone, you so little considered this a serious bargain to a man in his right mind, that you said the things should be put in their places again? - A. I did, and they were.

Q. And many of the things that he took a fancy to, were not even taken from their places? - A. They were not removed from their places.

Q.Did you happen to hear him ask what the coffee-urn meant? - A. I did, which struck me more that he was mad; I shewed him nothing after the tea-pot, for he walked up and down in that agitation, that it appeared clear to me the man was mad, and I went to the door for fear he should commit any outrage; I don't suppose the whole time of his being there was more than six minutes.

Q. From the whole of his demeanor, were you not satisfied that he was out of his senses? - A. Yes.

Court. Q.You did not know the reason why the note was not given back to him? - A. NO.

  JOHN SOMMERS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. Q. What are you? - A. A tailor, in the Strand.

Q.On Friday, the 26th of April, did James Harvey deliver to you a draft to take to Snow's banking-house? - A. Yes, he did.

Court. (To Harvey.) What reason had you to employ Sommers to go with this draft? - A. Mr. Grayhurst was out of town, and he has often employed Mr. Sommers, when he has been in town, to present a bill for him, or any thing of that kind.

Mr. Knowlys. (To Sommers.) Q. Is that the draft you were employed by Harvey to take to Mr. Snow's banking-house? - A. The same.

Q. Did you present it for payment? - A. I did.

Q.Was it paid or refused? - A. It was refused and stopped.

Q. Did you see the prisoner at all before you had presented it? - A. I did not at all, to my knowledge; I was at Mr. Grayhurst's shop when the prisoner came in, and Mr. Paul followed him.

Q.Did the prisoner say any thing when he came in? - A.When he came in he asked, with a very quick voice, and a vacant look, if the note was paid.

Q. How did he know you had any thing to do with the note? - A. He did not know any thing at all about it; I was sitting in the middle of the shop, and he might suppose I belonged to it; I at that time saw Mr. Paul coming to the door; I told him, that gentleman, now coming in, would give him every satisfaction; I immediately addressed myself to Mr. Paul, and said, this is the gentleman, sir.

Q.You had not seen him yourself before? - A. No.

Q. Therefore, your saying this is the gentleman, was merely supposition? - A.From the description I had had of him, I knew he was the man; Mr. Paul immediately took the prisoner again, and entered into conversation with him; Mr. Paul prefaced his observation, by saying, it was a delicate and unpleasant business, for the draft that was sent to the house that morning, was suspected to be a forgery; to the best of my recollection, Mr. Paul asked him if he had the draft from Mr. Cavendish; the prisoner immediately answered, yes; but in a moment, he asked Mr. Paul, did I say I had it from Mr. Cavendish, I beg leave to correct that, for I had only fifty pounds of Mr. Cavendish; says he, upon my way back, on some common, which he mentioned, I don't recollect what common, I was overtaken by a man on horseback, who gave me a 1000l. draft, he said, good God, the old gentleman is in his dotage, sure.

Q. Was that reflection made, as applied to Mr. Cavendish, giving him a draft upon the common? - A. I understood him so; Mr. Paul then asked him for his address, he immediately took a card out of his pocket, and under the printed words of his name, he wrote his address; the prisoner observed, that as the note was stopped, the business had better rest there; that he approved of Mr. Paul's precaution in stopping the draft, if he was not satisfied. Mr. Paul said, then I dare say you will have no objection to go to the house, meaning their banking-house; the prisoner immediately consented; I followed him all the way up, and saw him safe into the banking-house.

Cross-examined by Mr. Fielding. Curiosity took

you over to see if the man was come back? - A. Yes.

Q. And you were the person that he addressed? - A. Yes.

Q. And while the conversation was going on between Mr. Paul and him, he heartily approved of what Mr. Paul had done? - A. He did.

  HENRY GUBBING sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. Q. You are a clerk in the banking-house of Messrs. Snow and Co.? - A. Yes.

Q. Do you recollect a draft being presented at your house, by a person of the name of Sommers? - A. Yes.

Q. Does Mr. Cavendish keep cash at your master's house? - A. He does.

Q. Had he at that time to the amount of 1000l. at your house? - A. I dare say he had.

Q. Is that the writing of Mr. Cavendish? - A. I think not.

Q.Have you any doubt that it is not his handwriting? - A. I don't believe it is.

Cross-examined by Mr. Raine. Q. Did you ever see Mr. Cavendish write? - A. I don't remember to have seen him write.

Mr. Knowlys. Q. You have been in the habit of paying his drafts? - A. I have.

Q. For how long? - A.Upwards of twelve months.

Mr. Fielding. Q. What Mr. Cavendish are you speaking of? - A. The Hon. Mr.   Henry Cavendish .

Q. Look at that draft, and tell me if it was paid at your house the same day as the draft of Mr. Cavendish? - A. This draft was paid the following day.

Q. Do you believe that to be Mr. Cavendish's hand-writing? - A. I do; it is a sort of handwriting that I have been used to.

Q.Before the draft for 1000l. was presented at your house, did you see the gentleman at the bar? - A. Yes, about ten minutes before.

Q. Relate exactly and minutely all that passed between you and him before the 1000l. note was presented? - A. He came into the house, and enquired whether a draft of 1000l. had been presented for payment.

Q. Did he mention whose draft for 1000l.? - A. I enquired of him whose draft for 1000l. and he replied Mr. Henry Cavendish's; he then went out.

Q. Did you take any means to satisfy him whether it was or not? - A. He did not give me time, he went away immediately.

Q. Then you did not tell him whether the draft had been paid or not? - A. I told him no, it had not been presented, and then he went out.

Q. Did you tell him that of your own recollection, or did you refer to the book to ascertain? - A. Yes, I referred to the book; he came in the second time, and did not speak, but sat down on a stool by the sine of the counter, and pulled off his hat, wiped his face, and seemed agitated; then he got up and went out; I had not missed him from the counter a minute, I dare say, before the draft arrived.

Q. Did you afterwards receive that paper? - A. Yes I did.

Q. How soon after the draft had been presented did that paper come? - A. About three minutes after the 1000l. draft was brought in.

Q.Did you know who brought it? - A. I don't know his name, the man who keeps a small shop.

Q. Is it Williams, who keeps the chandler's shop in Devereux-court? - A.It is his son I believe.

Q. Did you see the prisoner again afterwards? - A. Yes, I saw him come into the house with Mr. Paul.

Q. Did you hear what passed after he returned with Mr. Paul? - A. NO, I did not; a constable was sent for and he was secured.

Cross examined by Mr. Raine. Q. The second time that this gentleman came into your shop, he sat down, wiped his face, and seemed in a state of agitation? - A. Yes.

Q. And went out again without enquiring after this or any thing else? - A. Yes.

Q. That appeared strange to you, did it not? - A.It looked odd certainly.

Mr. Knowlys. Q. Did you at all expect that the person who came there was at all deranged? - A. I had not time to form an opinion, he was there so short a time.

Court. Q. What did he first ask you? - A.Whether a draft of 1000l. had been presented.

Q. Had you given him any answer before you enquired whose draft he meant? - A.No, he had got the door in his hand when I asked him whose draft he meant, and he said Henry Cavendish.

Q. Had you asked him that before he had the door in his hand to go out? - A. That was the only enquiry he made; whether a draft had been presented of a 1000l. I asked whose draft, he said Mr. Henry Cavendish's.

Q. Then you had given him no answer before you asked him whose draft? - A. No, I had not: I reserved to my book and said no; it was then that he had the door in his hand and went out.

  JOHN DEAN PAUL sworn. - Examined by Mr. Jackson. I am a partner in the house of Messrs. Snow and Company.

Q. What is the firm? - A.   Robert Snow ,   William Sand by, and   John Dean Paul .

Q. Do you recollect on Monday last a draft for 1000l. being presented at your house, by a person of the name of Sommers? - A. Yes.

Q. Look at that? - A. This is the draft.

Q. Had you property to that amount, in your house, belonging to Mr. Cavendish? - A. I had.

Q. Are you acquainted with Mr. Henry Cavendish's hand-writing? - A. I am.

Q. Is that his hand-writing? - A. I believe it not to be his hand-writing.

Q. I believe, in consequence of some conversation you had with Sommers, you stopped payment? - A.Mr. Gubbins came to me with this draft, to ask me if I thought it was Mr. Cavendish's hand, and whether I would have it paid, I told him I thought it was not his writing, and I would not have it paid.

Q. The paper you now have in your hand is a draft for 50l.? - A. Yes.

Q. Is that his hand-writing? - A. Yes, I believe it is.

Q. Did you pay that? - A. Yes.

Mr. Fielding. I will just take the liberty, for form sake, of asking did you ever see Mr. Cavendish write? - A. I have seen him write often.

Mr. Jackson. Q. After you had stopped payment of the draft of 1000l. what then? - A. At the moment I was questioning Sommers, a boy brought in the paper which I have in my hand.

Q.In consequence of what the boy stated to you, where did you go? - A. I first went to Mr. Grayhurst's shop, in order to ascertain that that was the person who brought the draft, I then went to Bow-street to consult with Townsend, and then I went home.

Q. In consequence of what the boy had told you did you go to Devereaux-court? - A. I did sometime after.

Q. How soon after? - A. I should suppose rather more than an hour; I went into a chandler's shop in Devereaux-court, and there I saw the prisoner at the bar conversing with a woman, who seemed to keep the shop; from his conversation with the woman, I conceived he might be the man in question; I asked the woman if the boy was within who had brought a note to our house, upon which the prisoner left the shop.

Q. How close was he to you at the time? - A. Quite close; it is a very small shop; I followed the prisoner.

Q. Had the woman made you an answer whether the boy was within or not? - A. She said the boy was not within, and then the prisoner left the shop; I followed him and kept him in fight, and I fancied he saw I observed him; I still followed him; he crossed the way, as wishing rather to avoid me; he then passed up between the New-Church, in the Strand; I still followed him; he soon after stopped and looked in at a print shop; I did the same, until he went on again; he soon after turned into Mr. Grayhurst's shop, which confirmed me in the belief that he was the man I wanted.

Q. Did you follow him into the shop? - A. I did; upon coming into the shop, I found him conversing with persons in the shop, and asking why the draft was not paid, upon which, one of Mr. Grayhurst's people seeing me come in, said, here is the gentleman who will tell you why it is not paid; upon which I said, to the prisoner, there are some suspicious circumstances about this draft that I shall be glad to have explained; I said, considering him as a gentleman, I wished he would sit down, and let me converse with him upon the subject; he said readily, I will give you any information in my power, upon which we both fat down in the shop; I said, will you be so good, Sir, as to tell me how you came in possession of this draft? he said, I was sent by the Duke of Devonshire to his cousin Mr. Henry Cavendish, for the purpose of soliciting relief for Mr.  J. Cavendish, a prisoner in the Fleet, which is the name the draft is made payable to; he stated that Mr. Cavendish gave him two drafts, one for 1000l. and one for 50l. that the 50l. he had paid into his bankers, Messrs. Biddulph and Cocks, and the 1000l. was the note in question; very soon after this he corrected himself and said, I mistated to you that I got the 1000l. from Mr. Cavendish, I only got 50l. from Mr. Cavendish, a man on horse back came gallopping after me, whom I do not know, and said Mr. Cavendish has relented, and sent 1000l. more; upon which he took up his hat and was preparing to go away; he said, I am not in want of money, when you have satisfied yourself of the truth of the draft, I conclude you will pay it; he was preparing to go away, I felt determined he should not go away without being further questioned, I then asked him if he would be so good as to go with me to the banking house, and enable himself to judge of our reasons for refusing it; to this he readily consented; we went together from Mr. Grayhurst's to the banking-house, and in going along conversed on many subjects, particularly as to Mr. Cavendish's habits of life, in which conversation he was perfectly clear; he gave me an account of Mr. Cavendish and his habits, which led me to conclude he knew something of him; he also told me some of the particulars of the causes of the imprisonment of Mr. Cavendish, who is in the steet, by which time we got to the banking-house, I put him into the back room, and told him I must be under the necessity of detaining him; I sent for a constable, and then for a Bow-street officer; he said it was very inconvenient to him to be detained there; he had business in the city which would suffer by his absence, and requested I would let him go; he was then taken to Bow-street, and there left.

Q.During the whole of your interview with him, from the time yousaw him in Deverea uxcourt till you left him at Bow-street, did it ever occur to your mind, that, from his general department, he was a man labouring under any derange

ment of mind? - A. No, certainly not, on the contrary I thought his general deportment that of an innocent man, or rather of a man who made himself appear innocent.

Cross-examined by Mr. Fielding. Q. After he had told you he had received them both from Mr. Caveadish, he corrected himself? - A. Yes.

Q. When you went home from Mr. Grayhurst's shop, he entored familiarly and reasonably into a full conversation with respect to Mr. Cavendish, and the young man in the Fleet? - A. I led him into conversation to amuse him as we past along, to find how far he was acquainted with the family.

Q.And he communicated his knowledge of the family without any reserve? - A. Yes, and with a great appearance of innocence, as I thought.(The thousand pound draft read.)

  RICHARD WILLIAMS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Cliston. Q. Where do you live? - A. In Devereaux-court.

Q. How long have you known the prisoner? - A. Four or five years, or longer.

Q.Was he at your shop on Monday last? - A. Yes.

Court. Q. Was it your shop, or your mother's? - A. My father's.

Q. Were you there when he came in? - A. Yes; he asked for a pen and ink, and a piece of paper, which I gave him, and he wrote some lines.

Q. Look at that paper? - A. That is the paper; he desired me to take it up to Mr. Denne's, the banker's; I took it, and left it there.

Q. Did the prisoner say for what purpose you were to carry the note? - A. He desired me to stop the note from being paid, for he had sufficient cash in his hand to pay it.

Q. Did he say any thing more to you? - A. No.

Q. Did you see him afterwards? - A. No; he seemed to be in a great flurry when he gave it me, in great haste.(The note read:)

"Sir, April 26th, 1802.

"Please to return the check to the bearer, as I have sufficient cash at home to pay you.  J. TOWNSEND."

Mr. Fielding. Q. And that you were to carry to Mr. Denne's? - A. Yes.

  SARAH WILLIAMS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. Q. Do you serve in your fatehr's shop, in Devereaux-court? - A. Yes.

Q. How old are you? - A.Fourteen.

Q. Do you know Mr. Townsend? - A. Yes.

Q. How long have you known him? - A. Not long.

Q. Did you see him in your shop last Monday? - A. Yes.

Q. Were you in the shop when he first came in? - A. Yes; when he first came in, he asked me, is he come back, is he come back, is he come back, three times.

Q. Had any body gone out of your shop, to your knowledge? - A. No.

Q. What did you say to him? - A. I told him I did not know any thing at all about it; he asked me if he had got the note.

Q. Did he explain to you who he meant? - A. No.

Q. What did you say to that? - A. I did not say any thing; then he went away.

Q. Did you see Mr. Paul? - A. Yes.

Q. Did he come into your shop? - A. Yes, just at the time Mr. Townsend came in.

Q. Was he near enough to hear Mr. Townsend ask you this question? - A. Yes, and when Mr. Townsend went out, Mr. Paul went after him.

Court. Q.(To   Richard Williams .) Did he tell you who that paper was to be delivered to? - A. No, but that I was to take it to Mr. Denne's, the banker's.

  AARON GRAHAM sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. Q. You were one of the Magistrates of Bow-street when this gentleman was brought there? - A. Yes.

Q. Is that the examination signed by him? - A. It was written by me, and signed by him in my presence.

Q. Were the contents read over to him before he signed it? - A. I read it over to him myself, and asked him if he perfectly understood it, and whether he had any objection to sign it; he said, he perfectly understood it, that it was true, and therefore he could have no objection to sign it.

Q. Had you, at that time, the least suspicion that he was a man who had not his inte lects about him? - A. There was one part particularly; that, in which he says, Mr. Chesterman overtook him upon the road, and delivered the note to him; to which I called his particular attention, stating to him, that the truth or salsehood of tha would be so easily proved, as he assured me he knew Mr. Chesterman, and there was extreme danger in admitting such a knowledge of the gentleman, unless it was true that he actually did know him, and delivered to him the note; but he was so consident, and behaved in such a manner, that convinced me the impression was strong on his mind that the fact had really taken place the preceding day, and therefore I really did believe that he actually was in a deranged state, for that reason.

Q. That was the only reason for your thinking so? - A. No; he afterwards walked about the room singing and whistling, shewing evident signs beyond what I have now stated of a deranged mind, or such a degree of insanity as to throw one off one's guard, and make one believe he was innocent.

Cross-examined by Mr. Raine. Q. If I under

stand you right, your notion was, that he was at that time acting, as is very common for a madman, under mistaken impressions? - A. Yes.(The examination of the prisoner at Bow-street, read:)

"   James Townsend , of Bedford-row, Bloomsbury, says, that yesterday morning, the Duke of Devonshire sent him to his cousin, Mr.   Henry Cavendish , of Clapham, to request he would send fifty pounds for the relief of his kinsman, Mr   James Cavendish , a prisoner in the Fleet. Mr.  H. Cavendish gave the prisoner fifty pounds, saying, he would not advance another farthing for Mr. J. Cavendish; the prisoner was riding home across Clapham-common, where he was overtaken by a welldressed man, calling himself Ch sterman, who was well known to the prisoner, and who said Mr. H. Cavendish had relented, and sent an additional thousand pounds for his kinsman, and delivered the draft in question to the prisoner, which he sent this morning by a person belonging to Mr. Grayhurst's shop, where he had purchased forty pounds worth of goods, which were to he paid for out of the note; the prisoner defined Mr. Grayhurst to send the plate to Sir   Thomas White , at Millington's coffee house, Holborn."

  JAMES CAVENDISH sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. Q. Do you know the prisoner at the bar, Mr. Townsend? - A. I have known him since the middle of last April; he was recommended to me as a man of honour.

Q. Had he, to your knowledge, or by your authority, made any applications for pecuniary assistance among your friends? - A. He had.

Q.Were you aware, before the Monday on which this business happened, of any intended application by him to Mr. Cavendish, of Clapham? - A. Yes, I did, in consequence of a letter I received from the Duke of Devonshire.

Q.Were you aware, from any thing the prisoner had told you, that he meant to make application to Mr. Cavendish, of Clapham? - A. He told me some days before that he had made an application to him.

Q. Did you see him on Monday morning, the 26th of April? - A. I did, about eleven o'clock, or between eleven and twelve.

Q. Tell us what conversation happened respecting this business of Mr. Cavendish? - A. I asked him if he had obtained any money from Mr. Cavendish, and he said he had not received any money from Mr. Cavendish, but Mr. Cavendish does not say but what he will assist you at a future time.

Q. At the time that you saw him on the Monday, did his manner at all strike you as being particular? - A. He seemed to be in a great hurry, as he generally was when he came to me.

Q. Was that all that struck you on that day? - A. Nothing more; I had been accustomed to see him conduct himself in that way, always in a great hurry, and wishing to get away.

Q. Had you any suspicion of his being incapable of doing business from derangement? - A. If I had suspected him to be incapable, I should not have taken the liberty of sending him with a letter to the Duke of Devonshire.

Cross-examined by Mr. Fielding. Q. I take it, unless you had supposed he was in his right mind, you would not have commissioned him to apply to any of your relations? - A.Certainly not; he was recommended to me, in a very strong manner, as a man of humanity and honour.

Q. It was not from any accidental intimacy between you and him, but from the recommendation of other? - A. Yes.

Q. Was it by the recommendation of one, or two, or three? - A. By the recommendation of one.

Q. His constant way was to be in a hurry? - A. Yes.

  WILLIAM HARE sworn. - I am clerk to Messrs. Biddulph and Cocks.

Q. Did Mr. Townsend keep cash at that house? - A.Yes, he has for several years.

Q. Look at that draft for fifty-pounds - was that paid in by the prisoner at the bar? - A. Yes, it was on Monday, the 26th of April.

Q. How early in that day? - A.About eleven o'clock, just in the bustle of the day.

Q. Did he leave it with you, or did he leave any cash? - A. I paid him five pounds, the other forty-five pounds was placed to the credit of his account.

Q.Did you observe any thing particular at that time more than at any other time? - A. Not that day particularly, but at other times latterly I have; he has been particularly enervated; his hands shook a great deal.

Q.From his behaviour, had you any idea that he was deranged at all in his intellects? - A. I cannot say my observation went so far as that.

Q. That draft was afterwards honoured at Mr. Cavendish's bankers? - A. Yes.(The draft on Messrs. Biddulph and Cocks read:)

Mr. Fielding. Q. The draft was paid into your house? - A. It was.

Q.You have observed of late years an alteration in this unhappy man? - A. Not much of late years, but within two or three months different from what I observed before.

Prisoner. Having the honour to be in the hands of gentlemen of such dishinguished talents, I should deem it extreme arrogance to say any thing in my own behalf.

For the prisoner.

The MARQUIS of TOWNSEND sworn. - Examined by Mr. Fielding. Q. I believe the unhappy man at the bar had the honour of being known to your Lordship? - A. Many years.

Q.Has your Lordship observed any recent con

duct in him from which you considered him as deranged? - A.Certainly: On Saturday, the 17th of April, between ten and eleven o'clock, Mr. Townsend, with another person, was shewn into the room where I was, and there seemed a strange wildness in his manner; he came in a hurry, and in a very wild manner; I told him I was going out of town, but asked him to have some refreshment, which he accepted, and I left him; I thought his conduct very extraordinary and different from his usual manner.

Mr. JOSEPH HIGGINSON sworn. - Examined by Mr. Raine. Q. You are a merchant? - A. Yes.

Q. I believe you were acquainted with the gentleman at the bar for many years? - A. For many years; we were at College together.

Q. What were his habits of life - polished or otherwise? - A. A man of education, accustomed to fashionable society, and perfectly discreet in his demeanor: On Sunday, the 18th of last month, I went to dine with the Rev. Mr. Maule, who is chaplain to Greenwich Hospital, and we were sitting after dinner, Mrs. Higginson, Mr. Maule's family, and I; when, about five or six o'clock, Mr. Townsend entered the room, much to my surprise, as I knew he had not been invited, and was scarcely known to the family; and his manner surprised me still more, for, without addressing himself particularly to any of the company, or apologising for his extraordinary intrusion, he laid hold of a small table, which stood in a corner of the room, pushed it forward, set down, and said he would dine there; Mrs. Maule expressed her concern that the dinner had been removed some time, and, being neither hot or cold, it would be unpleasant, but said, there was cold meat in the house; he answered, in a hurried manner, that that would do, but that he must have potatoes; the servant was desired to bring up the cold meat and potatoes, but on returning with the cold meat, he said there were no potatoes; on which Mr. Townsend surprised me, by desiring him to go to the Sceptre tavern for some; I expostulated upon the impropriety of giving such trouble, upon which he made use of an oath, saying, d - n it, I have credit there, let them charge it to my account, or I will pay for it. In the interval, before dinner was brought up, Mr. Townsend had some conversation about our friends at Bath, which appeared incoherent; he said, he had just returned from Bath, and had been overturned in a gig at Reading, and bled five times, which led to the conversation, and his answers appeared very unsatisfactory and incoherent; when the ladies departed to the drawing-room, to whom he was very inattentive when present, he still surprised and mortified me by the indelicacy of his conversation with Mr. Maule, a respectable clergyman, with whom he was scarcely acquianted; I had never observed such conduct in him before; his conduct was so eccentric, so extravagant, and so wild, that I considered him under temporary derangement, or that it must be the effect of continued intoxication; I took him in my carriage part of the way home, when he left me. The next morning he called upon me, when his conduct was very unusual and extraordinary, for, when he came into the room, he neither inquired how we got home or any other circumstance; then he looked at the tea-table, and expressed a wish to have such a tea equipage; and, among other things, he told me that the Duke of Devonshire was to bring him into Parliament, and that he expected to get the agency or receivership of his Grace's rents, so that he expected they would produce him a thousand pounds in the course of the year. I then began to think him an object sit to be confined, which idea was corroborated by what I heard; and I even consulted my friend, Dr. Hamilton, and eminent physician, on the subject: On Friday I saw him again; Mrs. Higginson had asked me permission to give orders to the servants to deny him, on account of his wild manner, and accordingly had been denied on the Thursday, but on Friday I was called down, and found him there; he addressed me in a very abrupt manner, desiring me to write to my friend, Sir   Michael Smith , Master of the Rolls in Ireland, or to Judge Chambre, and several others of rank at the bar, who he knew I was intimate with, to speak to Lord Redesdale, to procure him a commissioner of bankrupts appointment in Ireland. I knew he was settled in England, and had left the Irish bar several years; I expostulated upon the absurdity of such an idea, and he said, he could attend to the duties of his office, and still live in England, which confirmed the suspicions I had he was deranged; and, on Monday, the 26th, I made application to Mr. O'Brien; I did not know any of his relations in England, and not withing to take upon myself the responsibility of confining him, I went to Mr. O'Brien's house, but he not being at home, I left a card, informing him I had called respecting a mutual friend, but that the subject was of too delicate a nature to state on paper, and therefore requested an interview with him as soon as he could favour me with it, or words to that effect; I did not receive any answer from him till Tuesday night, and on the following morning I waited on him, and then, for the first time, to my astonishment, learnt he was confined upon a charge of forgery.

Mr.   HUGH BELL sworn. - Examined by Mr. Fielding. Q. I believe you are a merchant, and in partnership with Mr. Higginson? - A. Yes.

Q. Do you know the unhappy gentleman? - A. Yes, several years.

Q.Having been acquainted with his demeanor and conduct, have you observed any great alteration of late? - A. Yes, the most striking has not

been longer than ten days; he called on Mr. Higginson on Thursday was a week, and begged I would tell him to write to Sir   Michael Smith , to write to Lord Eldon, to write to Lord Redesdale, to get him a place of commissioner of hankrupts; his manner was so wild and incoherent, it confirmed me he was insane, and I urged my partner to take some sleps towards getting him confined. Mr. Townsend called on the Sunday morning, and then his behaviour was wild and incoherent; he told me he was going to Elstree to visit Mr. O'Connol's family, and, from the state of his mind, as it appeared to me. I lamented very much that he should think of going there at all.

Mr.   THOMAS POOLE sworn. - Examined by Mr. Raine. Q. You are an attorney? - A. Yes, and have known Mr. Townsend two or three years.

Q. Have you, of late, observed any alteration in his conduct? - A. Yes; last Wednesday week he called upon me in Serjeant's Inn, and came into the room in a very volatile and particular manner - in a very hurried manner, and said he wanted 30,000l. upon an estate, that a receiver was to be appointed, and then he was going out of the room again; I called him back, and laughed at his request, it being so ridiculous, and asked him where he was going? he said, he was going to Hampstead; I asked him if he would go with me to Hornsey, which he did. Going along, he talked of having taken a house at Camberwell, and that he was about to be married to a lady of large fortune, and many other extraordinary subjects of conversation; when we got to Hornsey, he in an unusual manner, set himself down, with his knees close to the fire, and asked what we had for dinner. and said he must have some cold roast bees and potatoes, which we had not; he found fault with the fallad, and otherwise conducted himself in a way that struck me with astonishment; the next day, when he was going away, he walked off with a favourite dog, and went on so as to induce me, at the time, to declare I was sure he was out of his mind, and that I would go after him, which I did, and got the dog back; the whole of his conversation was so indecorous, indecent, and unlike what it ever was before, that I was convinced he was out of his mind, and, upon coming to town, I communicated it to Mr. Higginson the next morning.

Mr. RODERICK O'CONNOR sworn. - Examined by Mr. Fielding. Q.Did you see that unfortunate man at your mother's on the 17th of April? - A. Yes, and on the 24th, when I thought his conduct very odd to what it was before; he asked my mother for a piece of beef that lay on the table, to take home with him in his gig, wrapped up in a napkin; he told my mother he would pray for her all the days of his life, if she would let him take the piece of beef away with him, which he did, but before he went, he invited himself to dinner the next day, and said, he would come at three o'clock, and we might dine at any time we liked; on Sunday he came after we had all dined, and he sent me into the other room to see if there was a fire, for he was very cold; the fire had been just lit, and he told my mother to come and make it up, and bring the bellows to blow it; I hardly knew what to think of his conduct.

NOT GUILTY .

Mr. Recorder. Q.Gentlemen of the Jury, I am directed by the Act of Parliament to ask, whether you acquit the prisoner upon the ground of his being insane at the time of committing the offence? - A. On that ground alone.

Mr. Recorder. Then the order of the Court is, that the prisoner be kept in strict custody in Newgate, till his Majesty's pleasure be known .

Second Middlesex Jury, before Mr.   Baron Thompson ;