The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

773.   ANDREW BENT , and   PHILLIP STREET , were indicted for burglariously breaking and entering the dwelling house of   Hannah Bickers , widow , about the hour of twelve at night, on the 20th of October , and burglariously stealing therein a coat, value 2 s. a tippet, value 6 d. two pair of boots, value, 15 s. and two shoes, value 5 s. the property of   Samuel Solomon .

  SAMUEL SOLOMON . I live in a room in   Hannah Bickers 's house,  Clare-market, the corner of Houghton-street, in the parish of St. Clements Danes , somebody else will prove that; in this house I have got a shop, I sleep in the one pair of stairs room in the same house. Mrs. Bickers sleeps in the house, she is the mistress of the house. On Friday the 19th of October my shop was shut up at four o'clock in the afternoon. I fastened my shop door with a padlock outside of the door, and another lock inside of the door, and the windows were shut on the ground floor, there were no fastenings to them, only the windows pulled down. On Sunday morning, a quarter before three, the watchman called me, I found the padlock was broken off, and the other lock forced; I missed two pair of boots and a pair of shoes.

Q. Did not you miss other things besides them - A. That I do not know. I went to Bow-street, they shewed me the things on Monday morning, I said they were mine, I had seen the two pair of boots and the pair of shoes in my shop on the Friday afternoon at four o'clock, when I shut up my shop, I am sure of that.

Q. When the watchman called you on the Sunday morning you came down and saw your padlock broken off - A. Yes, and these shoes and boots I missed directly.

Q. Did you miss any thing else - A. Yes, I think I missed more shoes, these were new shoes and the boots were second hand, the shoes I bought at a sale.

Q. You do not know either of the prisoners do you - A. No.

  JOHN WHITE . I am a publican, I live in King-street, Drury-lane.

Q. Do you know the persons of the prisoners - A. I know Bent very well, I have often seen him. On last Sunday week, Bent and Street came into my house about eight o'clock in the morning and ordered breakfast at nine, they brought in a bundle but who had it I cannot say, they both had it before them and spread it out on

the table in the tap-room, there were boots and shoes, and a coat or two, but what else I cannot say, they offered them for sale to different people that were in the taproom, to me and all; I bought two pair of boots, and a pair of shoes, the boots were old and the shoes partly new, they are regimental shoes, I believe I gave them six shillings for the lot.

Q. You ought to be scrupulous of buying without asking them how they came by them - A. I had no idea of their coming by them dishonestly.

Q. Why if they had bought them they could not sell them for six shillings - A. No, but I did not know but some gentleman gave them to them, I was busy, I told my wife to give six shillings for them, and she took them up stairs.

Q. Should you know the shoes and boots again - A. Yes, the officers came in about nine, they apprehended the prisoners there, and I delivered up the boots and shoes to the officer.

Q. Did either of the prisoners give you the money back - A. Yes, Street gave me three shillings.

Q. What, they divided the money half and half did they - A. I suppose so, I cannot say.

Q. The prisoners gave no account how they came by them - A. Not any.

Q. Did Solomon come with the officers - A. He came himself, he took them away with him, he said there had been some things taken out of a house, I told him I had them, when he asked me if I had got any thing, and then the officers took away the things.

Bent. Did I offer them to you for sale - A. I cannot say which of you offered them. I believe they had two old coats and some more shoes.

- ADKINS. Q. You are an officer - A. Yes.

Q. You attended Salmon to the house of the last witness - A. I did, the prisoners were apprehended there, Salmon was with me.

  WILLIAM SALMON . I apprehended the prisoners on Sunday morning, the 21st of October; I received information that there were some men offering some wearing apparel at a public-house about eight o'clock in the morning, I went there with Adkins between eight and nine, I found the two prisoners there sitting in the tap-room by themselves, I asked the landlord if he had bought any property that morning, he told me he had bought two pair of boots of the prisoners, and one pair of shoes, he produced them.

Q. Did you see one of the two prisoners offer back part of the money - A. Yes, Street gave me three shillings, and he asked Bent for three shillings, he said, Mr. Bent, did you give it him, Bent made no answer, these are the boots and shoes.

Q. to Solomon. Look at these shoes and boots carefully, and say whether these are your shoes and boots you had in your house, when you shut up your shop - A. These were all in my shop, I saw them in my shop on the Friday afternoon.

Q. How late on the Saturday did you see your shop safe - A. On Saturday night at ten o'clock, and the padlock was entire I am sure of that; I had occasion to pass it, I am sure all was safe then.

Bent's Defence. On Sunday morning I bought the boots and shoes of two men and a woman, at the corner of Coal-yard in Drury-lane, I gave them a crown for them, they asked me six shillings, and took a crown; the other prisoner came up to me and asked me what I was buying, I told him, he said he would go my halves, and he gave me half-a-crown.

Street's Defence. I was coming down Drury-lane, I can say no more than what has been said.

  JOHN BARFIELD . The prisoners brought the goods for sale into my master's shop about half after seven o'clock.

Q. What is your master's shop - A. A translator of old shoes.

Q. Did the translator buy them - A. No.

Street. It is not a dwelling-house that was broken open, and there is a witness in court can prove it not to be a dwelling-house.

Q. to Solomon. You sleep in the house - A. Yes, in the one pair of stairs room, and Mrs. Bickers sleeps in the house; there are two doors to the house, I enter at the same door they do, to go up stairs to my room; the shop door is in the street.

Salmon. After the house was broken open, I went and examined it; the house is a corner house, the shop door is in Houghton-street, and the house door is in Clare-market, there is no entrance from the shop door into the house, only coming out into the street, and going into the other door to go up stairs, it is all one house.

Street called seven witnesses who gave him a good character.

BENT GUILTY - DEATH , aged 20.

STREET GUILTY - DEATH , aged 16.

Second Middlesex jury, before Lord Ellenborough.