The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

1027.   JAMES JONES was indicted for stealing, on the 2d of July , two 5 l. Bank notes, the property of   Roger Robinson , from the person of Alice, his wife .

  ALICE ROBINSON . I am the wife of   Roger Robinson , who is a mariner ; I went with him on the 2d of July, to Somerset-house, to receive some money; I had before this, two 5 l. Bank notes in my pocket-book; a person spoke to my husband by St. Dunstan's Church, about two o'clock, and he took us into the back room of  the Falcon, Fetter-lane , to get directions about a ship for my husband, and in about ten minutes the prisoner came in. Myself and my husband, and two other men besides the prisoner, were in the room; there was only one man there when I first went in; the prisoner asked if I had seen a young woman whom he described; I said no; he then said he was a country farmer just come from Wales, and had received 1100 l. at the Bank the day before; he pulled out some guineas and Bank notes, to shew that he had money; he dropped one note, and one of the two men picked it up, and said it was a 5 l. note; he gave it to the prisoner; we told him he should be careful of his money, and not throw it about. Then the man who took us there offered to play a game with the prisoner with three chalks, and putting halfpence under a pot, they asked my husband to put his hand on the top of the pot, which he did, and then he lifted it up; the other man who took us there called heads or tails, and he won a sovereign of the prisoner; he put the sovereign on his finger, and said he would treat the company with it, either with wine or brandy and water, (the landlord had brought a pen and ink before the gambling began, for the man to write the directions of the ship.) The man played another game with the prisoner for another sovereign, and won again - he offered to return all he had won, as he said, he did not wish to keep it, as he might as well have won 20 l. as 2 l.; the prisoner began to abuse us all, and said we were all poor people, and had no money, and meant to rob him, and that he had plenty of money, if we had none. I took out my pocket-book to put in the direction the man had given me; I took the two 5 l. notes out to put it in, and my husband said.

"Let him see that we are not poor, and do not want to rob him;" the other man snatched the two 5 l. notes out of my hand, and put them into the prisoner's hat, and the prisoner put them into his pocket. My husband collared the other man, and told me to take care of the prisoner - saying, they were all a

set of swindlers; the prisoner went out of the room, and I after him, and just as we got out of the public-house, he put two 5 l. notes into my hand; my notes were quite clean and new, without any writing on them whatever; one of those he gave me, I think was my own; but the other had writing on it, and I was fearful it was bad, and had him detained; it afterwards proved to be a good one. I gave him over to the beadle. I stopped him in the passage before he got out; he gave me no reason for running away with them. One of the other persons ran away, and the one my husband collared got away; the prisoner was taken into a grocer's shop, and immediately began to tear up some papers, which I thought were notes. After we had been to Guildhall, he said he hoped we would not hurt him, and what did I want more than my money? I said I did not want more; he said he hoped I would not be hard with him.

Cross-examined by MR. BRODRICK. Q. Some money was taken from him in the grocer's shop - A. Yes. I cannot say how much. The prisoner laid no money on the table; he put it all in his pocket. The man snatched the notes from my hand - I never put them on the table; only us five were in the room.

Q. Did he not say, I do not want your notes, here they are - A. No.

  ROGER ROBINSON . On Tuesday last, I and my wife were together; we met a man who took us to the Falcon public-house about getting a ship; the man went into the public-house with us. There was another man in the room; and in about ten minutes the prisoner came in and called for a pint of beer, and enquired after a woman, who he said he had given 10 l. to, and said he was a farmer come from Wales - that he had been to the Bank and received 1100 l. He began to flash his money about - he had gold and sovereigns. A note dropped out, and the man who gave me the direction picked it up, and said he should be careful of it, and gave it him, saying it was a 5 l. note; the prisoner pulled his gold out again, and began to grumble with the man. I laid my hand on the pot, as they asked me; they made three chalks, and covered it with a pot, and put a halfpenny under it. I did not bet with them; the prisoner lost a sovereign; the man gave it him again, and told him to be more careful of his money. The prisoner then said we were all a set of beggars and wished to rob him. My wife took up the direction and put it in her pocket-book; she took out the notes; I said,

"Let them see the notes, that we are not poor, nor mean to rob them." The man who gave me the direction snatched them out of her hand, and put them into the prisoner's hat; the prisoner immediately took them, and was putting them in his pocket; I jumped up and seized the man, and told my wife to take care of the prisoner, who was going out of the room - she got into the passage, he gave my wife the two notes; the man who was in the room started off, the other men was at the street door with me, I let go of him to secure the prisoner, I shoved him into a shop, and then that man came up to strike me; I should know him again if I saw him; my wife fetched a constable while I held the prisoner. Our notes were new, and quite clean; the prisoner gave her one that was endorsed, the other appeared to be my own.

Cross-examined. Q. You proposed to shew the notes - A. Yes. She did not put them on the table.

Q. When he went to the door, was it not to call the landlord - A. No. He said,

"You have got your money, why not let me go about my business;" he had no money in his hat before the man threw my notes in; he had got to the threshold of the street door when I laid hold of him.

  JAMES HOGAN . I am a painter and glazier. I was going to dinner, and saw the prosecutor and his wife hurrying the prisoner into a grocer's shop; they said he he had taken two 5 l. Bank notes from the wife; he said, They had got their money, and thought that was quite sufficient, and hoped they would do no more; the constable searched them, and the prisoner took out some papers like Bank notes, and attempted to destroy them, but was prevented; but he succeeded in tearing some of them. I saw the duplicate of a watch and four seals found on him; also, ten guineas, a sovereign, a foreign coin, a ten-pound note, and two five-pound notes.

  THOMAS SMITH . I am the street keeper. I took charge of him; I was going to search him - I found a 10 l. Bank note, two 5 l. notes, ten guineas, and a foreign gold coin and a sovereign, and some papers. One was a shilling note, and three or four flash notes. The money found on him was returned to him.

Prisoner's Defence. I declare to God, that they betted their money as fair as any man.

GUILTY . Aged 50.

Transported for Life .

London Jury, before Mr. Recorder.