The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

94.   JOHN INGRAM was indicted for stealing, upon the 3d of January , one cloth surtout coat, value 12 s. the property of   John Dear .

  JOHN DEAR sworn.

The 3d day of this month, about eleven o'clock in the forenoon, my wife hung three great coats up to dry, they had been wet; they were hung by the front of the house; in a quarter of an hour after she missed one out of the three; she

came and told me, and I asked if she had sent the men after it, she said she had.

  BENJAMIN BEDFORD sworn.

As I was at work for Mr. Dear, my mistress told us to pursue after the great coat, it was taken away. I and another man went towards Newington; I enquired of a man that I met, whether he saw a man, he said no; I was going over the bridge, and saw this man with the great coat wrapped in his blue apron, under his arm; I catched him between   John Butcher 's and the Bull, at Stoke Newington; there was two more with him, when I stopped him; the others were taken but discharged. This man said one of those was to give him six-pence to take it to Shoreditch; as soon as we got the constable we carried him to the justice's; Mr. Dear has the same great coat on him now, that I found upon the lad; I am positive of it.

PRISONER's DEFENCE.

A man gave me the coat to carry; he was to give me sixpence to carry it into Shoreditch. I have no witnesses here.

GUILTY .

Tried by the First Middlesex Jury, before Mr. RECORDER.