USES OF THE TELEGKAPH. 



from place to place, finally apprehended, tried, convicted, and 

 executed. 



One night at ten o'clock, the chief cashier of the bank received 

 a notice from Liverpool, by electric telegraph, to stop certain 

 notes. The next morning the descriptions were placed upon a 

 card and given to the proper officer, to watch that no person 

 exchanged them for gold. Within ten minutes they were pre- 

 sented at the counter by an apparent foreigner, who pretended not 

 to speak a word of English. A clerk in the office who spoke 

 German interrogated him, when he declared that he had received 

 them on the Exchange at Antwerp six weeks before. Upon 

 reference to the books, however, it appeared that the notes had 

 only been issued from the bank about fourteen days, and therefore 

 he was at once detected as the utterer of a falsehood. The terrible 

 Forrester was sent for, who forthwith locked him up, and the 

 notes were detained. A letter was at once written to Liverpool, 

 and the real owner of the notes came up to town on Monday 

 morning. He stated that he was about to sail for America, and 

 that whilst at an hotel he had exhibited the notes. The person 

 in custody advised him to stow the valuables in his portmanteau, 

 as Liverpool was a very dangerous place for a man to walk about 

 with so much money in his pocket. The owner of the property 

 had no sooner left the house than his adviser broke open the 

 portmanteau and stole the property. The thief was taken to the 

 . Mansion-House, and could not make any defence. The sessions were 

 then going on at the Old Bailey. Though no one who attends that 

 court can doubt that impartial justice and leniency are adminis- 

 tered to the prisoners, yet there is no one who does not marvel at 

 the truly railway-speed with which the trials are conducted. By 

 a little after ten the next morning such was the speed not only 

 was a true bill found, but the trial by petty-jury was concluded, 

 and the thief sentenced to expiate his offence by ten years' exile 

 from his native country. 



I take the following illustration of this from a recent article on 

 the subject which appeared in the " Quarterly Review." 



The following is extracted from the telegraph book preserved 

 at the Paddington station : 



"Paddington, 10.20A.M. ( Mail train just started. It contains 

 three thieves, named Sparrow, Burrell, and Spurgeon, in the first 

 compartment of the fourth first-class carriage.' 



"Slough, 10.48A.M. * Mail train arrived. The officers have 

 cautioned the three thieves' 



" Paddington, 10.50 A.M. Special train just left. It contained 

 two thieves : one named Oliver Martin, who is dressed in black, 

 crape on his hat ; the other named Fiddler Dick, in black trousers 



G 2 83 



