Mayor's Court, Thursday.
--
James McGiffin, an old, gray-haired man, and his two sons, Stephen and
Nicholas, were charted with stealing from their employer,
Mr. N. Tinsley Pate, one canal boat, valued at $1,500, and a horse worth $750. The only witness examined was
Mr. J. S. B. Tinsley, the manager of
Mr. Pate's farm, at which the McGiffin were employed; and at the conclusion of his testimony the
Mayor unhesitatingly dismissed the parties.
Immediately thereafter, their counsel,
Messrs. J. Leeds Carroll and
Daniel Ratcliffe, demanded the warrant upon which their clients had been arrested, remarking that it would hereafter be seen whether felonious charges should be permitted to be made against respectable gentlemen with impunity.
John, slave of
Robert Lumpkin, and Mat, slave of
George T. Ratcliffe, were charged with burglariously entering the dwelling-house of
Mr. George Lee on the night of the 7th instant and stealing six thousand dollars' worth of wines, brandies, and other groceries.
Eight or ten days after the robbery was committed,
Mr. Lee, in company with offices Moore and Perrin, searched a room occupied jointly by the accused, and found in it a large number of jars, demijohns, jugs, decanters, &c., in three of which were wines and whiskey similar to what had been stolen.
Colonel Waiter D. Blair, from whom
Mr. Lee purchased his liquors, compared the wine found in these negroes' room with a decanter full which they failed to get, and pronounced it identically the same article.
He said that it was part of a lot of very rich imported wine, which had been on hand ten or twelve years before the war; was brought here direct at great cost, and an article possessed by no one else at this time.
Several other gentlemen had, he said, bought some of it from him, but as no one else had lost any, it was plain that the wine was a part of that which had been stolen.
John, when the search was made, stated the Equors belonged to Mat, who was then absent from the city; out when Mat returned, he denied that they were, and offered evidence to prove that John claimed the ownership.
In this room was a collection of
crockery ware, boxes, clothing, &c., equal to the stock kept by a well-to-do merchant, and John himself sported a splendid magic-case gold watch and chain which could not be purchased in old times for less than three hundred in gold.
The case was continued for further investigation.
William. McHarris, a free negro barber, was charged with receiving twenty-one linen towels.
which were stolen from
Samuel W. Dorsay.
For the last two months
Mr. Dorsay has missed some of his towels, twenty-one in number, and suspecting where they were, he procured a warrant to search Dorsay's shop, where he found exactly that number, corresponding in every particular with these he had lost.
Mr. Barrell appeared as counsel for the accused, and claimed the discharge of his client on the ground that he was not the proprietor of the shop, and, also, that there were thousands of towels made from the same staff, which rendered it impossible for any particular person to claim these which were in possession of another.
William B. Cook. iron fodder on Eighth street, is said to be the owner of the barber shop, and employed Dorsay as a workman in it. It was alleged that
Cook supplied everything necessary, for carrying it on. The
Mayor continued the case till the title of ownership can be established.
Little, slave of
William Gray, was charged with stealing one wrapping, a lot of packet handkerchief three ladies dresses, one veil, four spires, a lot of under-clothing, &c., and three dollars worth of jewelry, the property of
Mrs. Bronaugh, from
Caroline county, After a brief examination, during which the offence was not fully made out, Lindes was discharged.
Several other cases were docketed, but the above embrace all which were worthy of mention.
