The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

964.   SAMUEL CONLIFFE and   JOHN COOPER were indicted for feloniously stealing, on the 17th of October , sixty pound weight of cheese, value 50 s. the property of   Edward Powell .

  EDWARD POWELL . I am a master of a barge, in the Grand Junction Canel ; my barge was in the  Canel, near Paddington wharf . On the morning of Tuesday, the 18th of October, I discovered that I had lost two cheshire cheeaes from my barge.

MR. STRANGE. I keep the Green Man, at Paddengton. On Monday the 17th of October, Conliffe applied to me to buy some cheeses, about the middle of the day and told me a boat man had some cheeses to sell, if I wanted to buy any. I asked him the weight and the price; he did not know either. I told him to bring them to me, I would buy if I could, and

between eleven and twelve at night Conliffe came to me again, As I was coming out of the parlour he called me to come to him; he took me into the kitchen in my house, there sat Cooper, I saw a couple of cheeses in a bag. I asked them the price of the cheeses. They were both together. I will not be positive whether it was fifty or sixty shillings. I thought it was a fair price, according to the size of them. I told them they were too much for me; they said, one was about forty pounds; the weight of the other they could not guess. I went from there, and told my wife, and when I returned to them, they reduced the price, until they got down to thirty shillings; at last, I was to have them at my own price. I heard that they were stolen cheeses. I left them in the kitchen. I told them the cheesses were all safe. They said, they wanted money; I said, to Conliffe, I will lend you six shillings. The next morning Cooper came into my bar; I asked him where his companion was, and said I must see you both together, and then we would see about it. I then had them both taken into custody. These are the cheeses.

Prosecutor. They are the cheeses that I lost from my boat.

CONLIFFE, GUILTY , aged 24.

COOPER, GUILTY , aged 21,

Transported for Seven Years .

First Middlesex jury, before Mr. Common Serjeant.