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Mass: 3l% 2LSBB;3_ ff WL *E LlA D US &. ...
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EBX&L I '¦ ¦ op • WILMAMJAXH'EJR. 'The-g...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Mass: 3l% 2lsbb;3_ Ff Wl *E Lla D Us &. ...
Mass : 3 l % 2 LSBB ; 3 _ ff WL * E LlA D US & . ______ ^ 9
Ebx&L I '¦ ¦ Op • Wilmamjaxh'ejr. 'The-G...
EBX & L I '¦ ¦ op WILMAMJAXH'EJR . ' The-giredt'judicial inquiry of'the -presentyear —* -un- ' dotflrte'dly one of the'inost interesting and remark- ' abletrieisever-known—^ comnieneeti on Wednesday , ' on ' th e < morning of tiHiieh - day a large crowd' aasemJ bled in the OldiBaiiey before-seven o ' clock , though ' 'the proceedings < were not to commence before ten . [ The doors of the court were opened at nine , when all the places wereat once ^ lled by a-numeroua assemblage , including several persons of'high'raiik , anaong r whom were observed—Prince 'Edward o'f ^ Saxe-Weimar , the Earl of Derby , EarLi & rey , the Marquis ^¦ P A n ~ l „„«— . j-1 . ^ . : T ^ .. ** 1 . * - * . (? T ' ¦•¦^ ayv + lts-h T ? . ot » 1 i r \ -P 1 I-Iavi ' ft
—Fadwiftk . That ' oill bore-upon tt'the ^ ceep ' tanee of'Ballmer ' s -nidther—Satfah "Palmer , . fifee wa & , ' ah ' , »"< wo' man of considerable'wwaltb , * anfl therwectptaxux , ^ being 'believed to'be'genuine , was -a se ^ urlty'dn'whftai money < coulu be'readily advanced . sPalntfeiKfflrgeu ' 't ! ie * U 5 eept-i aace , "a nd this , » if -ttdt the beginning r 4 t , •^ raS'one'tt ^ 'tlfe r « arly'transactions'Of that-nature-in which money was uJtttaini « d shy bills tliseounted by Palttter , those bills rbearfng-his mother ' s « igaature , forged » by himself ; "axid he would show * that-he'was at length -involved in such ' uperil and emergenoy" that , as -the proseeution suggesteo ' - —but it w > tild be for the jury to" form their conclusion upon * the facts—he had 'recourse to a desperate expedierit in "order to avoid the consequences . 2 & t the end of . 1854 'Palmer had a large -sum of 'money . ! On the I 29 th of September in that year his wife died . ^ He'had-: * n dM 8 UTance'upon , her life for about 13 * 000 / ., and , W ' . reeeivinelthat- sum .-he maid- off Kr > nw » i / ir"his-Twrtafmy » Mwlnw !
- ¦ hsectttifer orCkJobeV aceep ^ ee ' YornsOtf / . ^ r ^ rttlnir Ihat 1 fhe * wwi * a man of 'means and w-eultb , 'but'BtSll "Pratt $ ©_ ; Mffleo < fend- iheTMOBie-rwithoutBomemore-tangibleWui j-rtty ' ih-an ^ thfe : mere personal securi ty of' Cooke . banner [ 'represented 1 thfs as a transaction in-which ' Codke required ktte ^*» mey , = anu that might very * rell have'been * ihe M'f tcAt . ' He ( the -AttoTney ^ General ^ haXi no means df asrcertamimjnowhow'tfre matter stood , ibdt'he would give Biltatei' the' benefit' 6 f supposing his ' statemenfto bettue , 'ttrid'that he'had the acquiescence'of Codke in'the ; pro'pdeal Which 'he "made 'to 'Pratt . Cooke was engaged 'Upon'the * turf , sometimes ' winning ; and sometimes losing , hpurchasinghorses / anii'perhaps selling'them also , ana ifc rmightwell be f that af this'time he required a loan of ' 000 / . As an additional'security'to ^ Pratt , Palmer pro-¦ posed 'the < afsBignmerit by Gooke' of'twoTPace-horses'belonging to ' him —Polestar and another , whcwe 'name twnillri 'he tw » nf »» ftAr m * ntinn »' r" Tho nAoiirnfn ^ f - ** rao
Hji . iiugicsojr j ' L 1 IB l-ftlrtlll \ JL . A-JUl'Ca . ll , Hi * - . _ rc «* . 4 - v i .. » . ** . ** bigh , Lord -W-. 'Lennox , Lord G . G . Lennox , and ; Xord ! H . Lennox . The Lord-Advocate of Scotland sat by the side of the Attorney-General during the . trial . A large body of the City . police kept order . . At five minutes toiten o ' clock , the judges—Lord-Chief Justice Canjpbell , Mr . Baron Alderson , and Mr . Justice Cresswoll— -took itheir seats on the bench , -accompanied by theiLord Mayor and several of the ^ Aldermen and Sh eriffs . William Palmer was almost immediately afterwards ; placed in . the dock . 'He was dressed in black , and did jnot'appear to have -suffered much in bodily health by 'his confinement > He did not e 2 £ hibitany appearance of trepidation , but walked < with a firm stepfto the front of the bar . IHei is . described in the caleiidar-as being thirfcyone years old , but he appears much older . ; Mr . Knight , the deputy clerk of arraigns , then read : the first indictment , which ' charged the ; prisoner with the
'liabilities , fie employed'for thafrpurpose , with ^ regard ito a . great portion of those liabilities , a gentleman named Pratt , a solicitor in London , who was > in 'the habit of discounting 'bills , and whose name •^ rouia be ! argely ' mixed up 'with subsequent transactions . Out 6 f 'the 13 , 000 / . Pratt received some 8000 / ., and "he disposed of it in the payment of various liabilities in reapeet to 'bills which were in ^ his own ( Pratt ' s ) hands . "Wright , ; a-solicitor -at Birmingham , who had also advanced money ' to the prisoner , received 5000 / . more , and ; thus ! j 000 // of ¦ debt was disposed of ; but Palmer was still'left with con- ^ siderable liabilities , and among others the bill already ¦ mentioned of 2000 / ., which had been discounted by Padwick ,: remained unpaid . This brought them to the close 6 f 1854 . ; Iu the course of that year the ^ prisoner eififected ' another insurance on the ; life of his ' brother , or rather an ' insurance was effected by him in his brother ' s name . He corresponded with Pratt on the subject of effectingthis insurance , and . a policy was " immediately obtained ' .
• accordingly'prepared , ^ nd ifterwartis executed'by'Codke hin fevourof Pratt , as cdllateral security'ftn : the 5 ( 10 / ., an'd that "being so , Cooke was entitled to ~ the-money' « . ' € ., « o much as could be realized upon the security , because thewhole of f the ' i 50 W . was not to be'hail on the terms specified by ' Pratt . Thie arrangement was ihat < Pr « tt -should give for tlt e acceptance ' of ' 5007 . nat three 'months , and the assignment'bf the two horses , a sum of 8761 . in money and a wine warrant 'for 65 / ., theTemain-! ing ' - ^ 0 / . being absorbed by the discount for three'months . ( 50 / . ) , and the expenses ,-which were' 10 / . ; and , at i » ll events , ' Cooke was entitled' to the 376 / . and the amount of the wine warrant . Palmer contrived that 'the 3 T 57 . and the warrant should'besenttohim , anu notto'Cooke . IHe-wrote'to'Pratt , desiring ' him to- ' forward'bbth to "him at'the post-office at 'Doncaster , as'ff' Cooke "were 'in the 4 own , which he was not , and by that means'he contrived toiget the cheque and' the warrant into 'his own ' harios . ? P » att'accordinglyseilt down'the cheque , 'which'was upon ihis bankers
Palmer ' . pleaded-Not Guilty in a firm voice . He was next arraigned upon the coroner ' s inquisition for the like offence , aud to this he also pleaded Not . Guilty . A jury was then empannelled to try the case . There were very few challenges on the part of the prisoner . Mr . Mason , one of the jurymen , when he -was about to be sworn , begged to be excused from serving , on -the ground that . he entertained " a feeling of prejudice , " he described it . He was . therefore allowed to leave the box , and another juryman was called in his stead . The Attorney-General , Mr . JE . James , Q . C ., Mr . . Bodkin , Mr . Welsby , and Mr . Huddleston , appeared for the Crown , instructed by Mr . Reynolds and Messrs . Chubb , TDeane , and Chubb . Mr . Serjeant Shee and Mr . Grove , Q . C ., who were specially retained , with - Mr . Grey and "Mr . " Kenealy , were counsel ' for the prisoner . They . were instructed by Mr . John Smith , of Birmingham . All ^ 1-v ^ h -vw . « X w-v - * M ^ m -h n ¦ irif ll 4-1 % S " h ^>« PA /\ r % S \ V \ /\ T * V » / % i iuh \/ ivub
on his brother ' s life , and it was assigned over to'Pratt . On the strength of that policy , which remained in'the ? hands ofPratt , who paid the premiums . 'Pratt-discounted i : bills for Palmer at the rate , in-some instances , of 60 'per cent . The policy was for 13 , 000 ^ , and it was retained ; ( by Pratt as collateral security ; for the bills he had discounted . Those > bills , . ' on the * whole , amounted to about 12 , 500 / ., and they "were discounted in'the' course . of that year . There were even two bills discounted as early -as ; June , 1854 . They were held over from month to month ,: the interest of 60 per cent , being paid from month to month to keep them alive . In "March , 1855 , two bills of 2000 / . were discounted , with the proceeds of which . Palmer bought two race-horses— . Nettle and Chicken , names which would be heard of again in the course of the inquiry . Those bills were renewed in June , and they became due respectively on . the 28 th September and the 2 nd October . They were then renewed again , and they next became due on the 1 st and 5 th January , looo tne xotn dui ¦ aiscouniea ior
jown' m'Lonuon , with a receipt stamp affixed ¦ to : it , as-required by the Act of Parliament when cheques are sent into the country , availing himself of the opportunity now afforded by law to strike out-the word " 5 bearer , / ' and to write "toorder , " the eflfecfrof which was to necessitate the endorsement of Cooke ^ on the'back of the instrument . It was not intended by Palmer that the proceeds should find . their way into . Codke ' s bands , and he accordingly forged the name of Jdhn Parsons Gook « on the back of the cheque . He : then paidilt irito his bankers at Rugeley , and the money , having'been paid by the bank in London , went to his ' credit in ' own account . -At this period one of the bills 'for -three months would be due in about ten days ; 'and itJwould appear that ,-in order to supply the money ,-he had' commit ted the forgery of Gooke ' s endorsament . > He f . (* Attorney-GeneraL ) wiahed this -was ithevonjy transaction in which Cooke had been mixed « p with thefprisoner , "but there was another to which it "was . necessa ry to refer . iuc jjiuuuo uiG iueoi
*^ ^ * ^ . £ ^ 11 <« lic ? 'Wltlicaoco , mirii uic \ ja . ^ u | # . medical . men , having been ordered out of court , The Attorney-General rose to open the case on the part of-tho Grown . He said the jury were empannelled to discharge ' . the most solemn duty which man could be called upon to perform—to sit in judgment upon a case In which theissuee of Hfeand death were in their hands . He 'Wasrsurehe need not bespeak their most anxious and 'earnest attention to such a case ; but there was one duty which ) he felt It incumbent upon him to fulfil . Tho peculiar circumstances Of the case had given to it a ; profound and painful interest throughout the whole country , and there was scarcely a man who had not come to some conclusion on the issue which they were now / about to decide . 'Every point connected with it "frassseized'upon with eagerness and avidity , and there wao'ficarccly a society in which its merits had not been discussed ; and , standing there as the minister of justice , who had no interest and no desire save that justice should bo impartially done , he felt it incumbent upon him to pmy that thoy would not allow any preconceived
. un April , a was 2000 / . at three months , which would become due on the 22 d July , and it was renewed so as to become due on the 22 nd October . On the 23 rd July , a bill for 2000 Z . was discounted at three months , which would become due on the 25 th October . The Attorney-General then gave a list Of other bills , with their amounts , and the days on which the } ' fell due , and said that in the month of November , 1855 , when the Shrewsbury races took . place , there were in the hands of Pratt the following bills : — One bill ,. due 25 th Oct . 1855 , for £ 2000 „ 27 th Oct . „ 2000 Two bills , due 9 th Oct . ( together ) 1600 One bill , duo 13 th Sept . for 1000 „ 1 st January , 1856 , for ... 200 j 0 fith „ „ ... 2000 „ 15 th „ „ ... 2000 making altogether 12 , 500 J . ; but aB 1000 / . -was paid over ito Pratt , tho vroal 'amount of debt due in the month of November was 11 , 000 / ., and every one of thnao'ltilUi hum tlin fnrrroi ! -nnramtnuftnulf < thtt nfiftnner ' fl
; < ji me uranceon cne -faimer ^ fl-DrDther not having been realized , Pahnersuggested to ^ or induced a , person . named Bates to propose his life to be < insured . There was no doubt he-had persuaded Codke to-assist him in this transaction , withtheviow of enabling him , by representing Bates as a man of substance and wealth , and . producing a policy on his life , to get ; further . Advances upon that . policy as a collateral Becurity . He ( the Attorney-General ) would . put it no further . than that , for he did not suppose , that'Cooke was e , party to any other transaction . It seemed that , on the 5 th of September , TJates , the . prisoner , and : Cooke were together at Rugeley . Bates was a person who had formej » Jy beenin better circumstances ,. but had fallen into decay , and had been induced to accept employment 'from Palmer as a sort of hanger-on , or superintendent * of < hia stables . He was a healthy young man , and Palmer proposed to him to insure his life ,. producing at-the .-snme time the ordinary form of proposal . Bates rather ' ¦ declined the notltm of such a thing . Palmer pressed him , and said , "Oh , you'had better do it—it-will'be for your 1 _ £ \ A- 5 - A- < M ~ . !*_ ... r f * % 1 ^ Am m ^ «* A it saie
opinion' to 'operate upon their judgment . Their bounrten duty was to try this case according to the evidence , which 'would be brought before them , and according to . that alone . Thoy must discharge from their minds anything thoy had road or heard , or any opinion which . they might have previously formed . If theevi-i dence should satisfy them of tho prisoner ' s guilt , they would discharge their duty to society , to their own consciences , and to the oaths which thoy had taken , by I fearlesslyipronouncing their verdict accordingly . Butj if the evidence should fail to produce that conviction upon , their mindw , God forbid that tho scale of justice ; dkouldlby any prejudice he inclined nguinat a prisoner . this i
mother . Tho jury icould oasily imagine 'the pressure Which naturally -and mecesBarily prevailed upon the prisoner in consequence of 'thfe liability of 11 , 600 / ., which < he Lad not > a shilling in tho world to meet ; and the still greater pressure arising from the conviction that if tho forgery was discovered , owing to his boing unable to keop up his payments , it would bring inevitable ruin upon him , aswell as oxpose him to the peril of the law . With these transactions tho deceased Cooko ) had boon partially connected . It seemed : that in May , 1855 , Palmer waB pressed to-pay a sum of : 600 / . to a person named Sorgent . Palmer had in tho hands of Pratt at this neriod . in respect of -Home of the
. . . . . uenum , unu ih quite ; ' ana tney ; persuaaea nun to sign the form for no less a sum than 25 , 000 / ., Codko attesting tho proposal , which was filled up by Palmer—Bates referring to Palmer as his medical attendant , and to Thirlby , his assistant , as referee or friend on the spot , who would speak to the nature of tho transaction . Thia proposal was sent uj > to tho Solicitoru ' iond fcienoTarOflhJe , but that oflico was not disposed to effect tho 'insurwnotr ; und then a second proposal was sent up to anothorofflee , on the same life , for 10 , 000 / . Lord Campbell trusted that tho Attorney- 'General would not introduce any matter that did not'tiireiifly 'bear tupon ithc ohargo againdt 'the 'prisoner .
who was charged with such n crnno as . Proceeding to nnrrntc in consecutive order the ' various events connected with the alleged murder of | Cooke , tho Attorney-General adverted to thoembar-, xassed state of Pulmer ' a ilnanecs shortly before that I event . 'Owing to betting on horse-racing , the accused wash , '" ruined man ; " , in order to stavo oflThis ' diiliciiltk's and retrieve his position , he begun to raise money on bills as far back as 1853 . Tho Attornny-Gtenenal bogged tho jury not to allow tho circumstances he'was about to mention to prejudico thoir minds ; still it was ncccsBary to bring those circumstances forward . Among tho bills upon which Pulmor raiucd money in 1654 , w « s olio for 2000 / ., which Avaa didcouuted by a MJr .
bills which had been discounted , u ' balance of & 101 . to his ! credit , and he wanted Pratt to advance 190 / . to make up tho 600 / ., but he declined to do so , except upon security , and Palmer then offwrott him an acceptanceof ^ Cooke , representing Cooke tobea man of Bubstanco und good security , and accordingly tlie acceptance of CoOko for 200 / . was Hont up , and on that I ' ratt advanced the money . Thrtt ! wan bolioved to bo tho ilxst transaction with Cooke . When that bill of 200 / . became duo , Palmer failed tcproviUe it , and Cooko had 'to pay it himself after it'had become dishonoured . In August of that year a transaction took place to which it waa mooe « sary to call thttir > partlciUar attention . In that month Palmer wrote to Prattthat he must have 1000 / . next Saturday . I ' ratt declined to ndvuncoit without Becuiity , ion which Pulmor offered tho
Tho 'AttornQy-Gonornl said lie would not advance a word that'had not unimportant bearing upon the case he had to submit . lie proceeded to show that at tliis tlmo Palmer'was'pressed by I ' ratt 'for liis unpaid bills , . that'threats were hold out to 'him thatTHm . Palmer Oils mother ) would'bo sued upon the acceptances , and that ¦ the'letters convoying tho threats never readied h « r , ' 4 u consequence of Pulmer'havmg tho . postmaster of ^ Clugfiley completoly in his power . On tho 10 th o ' fiSeptonfb < ur , aud again on tho 24 th of that month , 3 tfr . Tratt , the solicitor in London , who had obtained so may advances from hlo clierits for Palmer , " wrdto to Kim , uvgonily preafting ft > r payment ofhis'lidbllitleB . On tho 2 nd ^ of OdtdborPnitt addressed another'letter to tho ? prisoner , uoklng him to muko preparation for "the payment of thfr
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), May 17, 1856, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_17051856/page/3/
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