Offence: Theft > burglary
Verdict: Guilty > lesser offence
Punishment: Transportation
124. JOHN SPEIL was indicted for breaking and entering the dwelling-house of Thomas Gibson , George-John Gibson , and John-Christopher Alterieth , about the hour of one in the night of the 26th of December , and stealing 1 cwt. of sugar, value 5 l. and a piece of cord, value 1 d. their property; also various articles of wearing apparel belonging to the workmen .
Second Count. Charging it to be the dwelling-house of Thomas Gibson and George-John Gibson only.
The prisoner being a foreigner, a Jury of half foreigners were sworn.
Names of the Jury.
(The case was opened by Mr. Knapp.)
GEORGE-JOHN GIBSON sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knapp. I am in partner ship with my father, Thomas Gibson , and John- Christopher Alterieth , No. 42, Lime-street .
Q. How is your house situated with respect to the street? - A. The whole of the premises stand back from the street.
Q. How do you get out of the premises from the street? - A. The entrance is by means of a passage from Lime-street, the gates of which are shut at night; at the end of the passage part of the dwelling-house front you; the sugar-house is behind the house; it joins by means of a warehouse; the warehouse is in the middle, between the sugar-house and the dwelling-house.
Q. Is there any communication internally between the one and the other? - A. None.
Q. How do you get from the dwelling-house to the sugar-house? - A. By crossing the yard, no other way, and then into the sugar-house.
Q. Then the entrance to the sugar-house is in the yard? - A. Yes.
Q. And the sugar-house, warehouse, and dwelling-house are all surrounded by a fence are they? - A. Yes.
Q. Which way do your carts come to the sugar-house? - A. By a gateway from Lime-street.
Q. What is the back part of the sugar-house? - A. Contiguous to a church-yard, near Fen-court; there is no entrance to the sugar-house from Lime-street.
Q. Who was last up on the 26th of December last? - A. The gates are locked regularly at ten o'clock; I fastened the private door of the dwelling-house that night, but not the gates; I came home about twelve o'clock that night, the dwelling-house was then in a perfect state of security.
Court. Q. Can you get to the private door without going through the great gates? - A. We have besides the great gates a private door in the street, and from the private door in the street we have to pass through a passage to the dwelling-house.
Q. There are two doors, the one for a cart, and the other a private door? - A. Yes; I can take upon me to say that both of them were perfectly secure at that time.
Mr. Knapp. Q. Is there any other passage that leads to the sugar-house? - A. There is a passage from Lime-street by Mr. Alterieth's house, but that is never used.
Q. Do you know of your own knowledge whether the door of that passage was secure that night? - A. I cannot say.
Q. You have known the prisoner some time? - A. He was in our employ about two months previous to this affair.
Q. How long had he left you before this time? - A. I believe about three days; he left us on the 22d, and on the day following he applied for his wages; we paid him his wages, deducting a week, because he left us without warning, it is the rule of our house so to do; he withdrew himself, I did not discharge him.
Q. Did you happen, after you had discovered in the morning that the sugar-house was broke open, to make any observations? - A. Yes, I saw a ladder on the side next our premises, between the church-yard and our sugar-house, by which a person might easily ascend the wall, and get over into the church-yard.
Q. You suppose that is the way the man got out? - A. Yes, we observed some foot-steps; we at first imagined the door in Fen-court had always been locked, but upon enquiry we found it had not; we then imagined he had made his entry that way.
HANS JOUBERT sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knapp. I am clerk to Mess. Gibsons.
Q. On the 26th of December were you the last up? - A. No, some of the servants.
Q. What servant? - A. The footman, he is not here.
EVAN MASON sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knapp. I apprehended the prisoner on the 27th of December last; I was on the watch in Fenchurch-street, about two o'clock in the morning; the prisoner came past me facing Rood-lane.
Q. How far from Lime-street? - A. Not far; I observed a bag, as I thought, across his shoulder, and I asked him what he had there; he replied, his clothes; I put my hand to them, and found it a hard substance; I said, these are not clothes, I must detain you, you must go along with me to the watch-house; upon taking him to the watch-house and searching him, I found twelve loaves of sugar wrapped up in some shirts; I found also a pair of breeches and a shirt under his waistcoat in the watch-house; he said, he had bought them; he was taken to the Compter that night; the next day I attended before the Lord Mayor.
Q. Was what he said there taken down by the Clerk? - A. As far as I know.
Mr. HOBLER sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knapp. Q. You were present when the prisoner was examined? - A. Yes.
Q. Was what the prisoner said taken down in writing? - A. No.
Mason. He said the first day he bought them of a man, but he did not know who; the next day he said Mr. Gibson had stopped him of his wages, and that he went and stole them; he said, he had got them over the wall; the officer has got the things.
JOSEPH GREGORY sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knapp. I searched the prisoner in the Compter, and found upon him a shirt; in the watch-house I found upon him a knife, a pair of scissars, and a duplicate, (produces them and the whole of the property); when this watchman brought him into the watch-house, he said he had bought them of Mr. Dedman, of Virginia-street.
(The sugar was identified by one of the prosecutors' workmen; the shirts and other things were also identified by the different proprietors.)
Q. (To Mr. Gibson.) Had any part of that sugar been sold? - A. No part of it.
The prisoner did not say any thing in his defence.
GUILTY, aged 27,
Of stealing the goods, but not in the dwelling-house, nor of burglariously breaking and entering the dwelling-house .
Transported for seven years .
London Jury, before Mr. Recorder.