Unstamped paper

Guildhall. - Yesterday, James Hawley, John Jackson, Daniel Gulston and Charles Priest, journeymen printers, were brought up before sir Richard Carr Glyn, in custody of Smith, the officer, on a charge of having printed a considerable number of Moore's Almanacks on unstamped paper.

The prosecution, in this instance, was instituted by the worshipful Company of Stationers, and Mr. Rivington, who attended as their solicitor, stated, that the company, though not possessed of any exclusive right, were very extensive publishers of Almanacks; and that the four prisoners were pressmen in the service of the printer employed by the company, in which capacity they had the opportunity of taking impressions of the Almanacks surreptitiously, whereby not only was the company injured, but the revenue also greatly defrauded. This practice had at length come to such an extent, that it was felt to be absolutely necessary to put a stop to it by legal means; the more especially, as there was little doubt but that the paper also, upon which such impressions were taken, was procured by dishonest means.

Mr. Thorne printer, Red Lion court Fleet-street, deposed, that the prisoners were his pressmen, and employed wholly in a room set apart for that purpose, in printing Moore's Almanack for the Stationers' Company; and that they were not authorized by him to take any impression of that Almanack otherwise than upon stamped paper delivered to them for that purpose.

Mr. Woodfall, a printer, said, in consequence of information they had received, he went to Mr. Thome's, accompanied by the stock-keepers of the Stationers' Company and an officer; they found the four prisoners at work in the same room; they proceeded to search them, and found on Jackson and Hawley several copies of the calendar sheet of the Almanack on unstamped paper, and a considerable quantity was also found hid in a drawer in the room. The prisoners when questioned confessed having printed them. Several quires of the Almanack on unstamped paper were also discovered at the lodgings both of Jackson and Priest.

Smith produced the copies found at Mr. Thome's, and upon the prisoners Jackson and Hawley; and the sheets found on searching the lodgings were also exhibited by the officer employed, amounting together to nearly 20 quires.

The prisoners acknowledged having printed them. The impressions were upon paper of various descriptions, and some of it Mr. Thome stated to be part of the same kind as another work was being printed upon in his office.

Sir Richard Glyn said, he considered the charge as completely proved against all the prisoners; but as there appeared to be different degrees of guilt, he should feel it his duty to make similar distinction as to their separate punishments, and accordingly sentenced them to hard labour in the House of Correction, Jackson and Priest for the whole term of three months, Hawley for two months, and Gulston, as the least offender, for one month only.