The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

882.   STEPHEN WILLIAM PERRY was indicted for embezzlement.

MR. HUDDLESTON conducted the Prosecution.

  JOHN CHATFIELD . I am a grocer, and live in Aldgate High-street. The prisoner was in my employ on 31st Aug. and had been so for five or six weeks previous—in consequence of something I heard, I marked a half crown and two shillings in a particular way, and put them in the till—there was then no other silver there—I called the attention of my shopman to it—I then marked another half crown and two shillings in a different way, and gave them to my porter to give to a person to purchase articles in the shop—in a few minutes Mrs. Williams came in the shop, and I went out—Mrs. Williams had some dealings with the prisoner—I saw her quit the shop, and I went in immediately—no person could have been at the till from the moment Mrs. Williams left till I went in—I saw the prisoner leave—I went to the till immediately—the prisoner could see I went to it, and he walked to the back of the shop—there is a water closet and a soap closet on the next floor below—the prisoner went the way towards them—on examining the till, I found the 4s. 6d. that I had marked and put in, and 3s. 6d. that was not marked, and 1s. of the 4s. 6d. that I had marked and given to my porter.

Cross-examined by MR. DEARSLEY. Q. You put in the till 4s. 6d., and then Mrs. Williams came in and paid 4s. 6d., and you found 1s. of that? A. Yes; I found 3s. 6d. beside, which was the change of a sovereign which

another person had changed—I found only the prisoner in the shop when I returned—the coming in of the porter was the signal for the other shopman to go out, and for me to go in.

  ROBERT EDWARD CLARK . I am shopman to Mr. Chatfield. I saw the marked money put in the till—after that a person came in to make a purchase, and paid the prisoner with a sovereign—he went out and got change, and gave her the change ont of the sovereign—the goods she purchased came to 3s. 3d., he gave her 16d. 6d. and 3d. in copper—I did not see what he did with the remaining 3s. 6d.—Mrs. Williams afterwards came in—I left the shop, and my master came in—there was another customer in the shop whom I had served before Mrs. Williams was served.

  JOHN LEWIS . I am porter to Mr. Chatfield. I received from him a marked half crown and two shillings—I gave them to Mrs. Williams, on 8th Sept.—I went to the soap closet, which is at the same end of the warehouse as the water closet is, but not very near to it—it is near it—I moved some soap, and I heard something fall—I gave information; the policeman searched the closet and found a half crown and a shilling.

  MARY WILLIAMS . I am married. I received from Lewis a marked half crown and two shillings, to purchase some goods at Mr. Chatfield's shop—I went and bought goods to the amount of 4s. 6d.—I gave the prisoner the half crown and two shillings that Lewis gave me—there was a lady in the shop—when I went out, Mr. Chatfield went in.

MR. CHATFIELD re-examined. Q. Did you see the half crown and the shilling that were found in the soap cupboard? A. Yes; they were part of the money I had marked and given to Lewis, and they were similarly marked to the one shilling found in the till.

JURY. Q. What did you find in the till? A. Nine shillings—the 4s. 6d. that I had marked, 3s. 6d. unmarked, and one shilling that had been given to Mrs. Williams.

  JOHN LEWIS re-examined. I saw the half crown and shilling found in the soap cupboard—I saw them shown to Mr. Chatfield.

  FRANCIS LIVERMORE . (City-policeman, 631). I found this money in the closet—it is marked.

Prisoner's Defence. Lewis can prove that I went no further than the water closet; I did not go near the soap closet.

GUILTY . Aged 20.— Confined Eight Months.