Old Bailey Proceedings Online (www.oldbaileyonline.org, version 8.0, 01 June 2023), April 1815, trial of RICHARD NAYLOR (t18150405-2).

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RICHARD NAYLOR, Theft > animal theft, 5th April 1815.

426. RICHARD NAYLOR was indicted for feloniously stealing, on the 23rd of May , a mare, value 20 l. the property of William Maul .

WILLIAM MAUL . I live in Piccadilly.

Q. In May, 1813, had you a black mare in your possession - A. I had; that I was disposed to part with.

Q. On the 21st or 23rd of May, did the prisoner call upon you - A. It was on Saturday, the 22nd, I think.

Q. You were called upon by the prisoner - A. I was; he said, his groom said, I had a horse to dispose off, which his groom represented likely to suit him, as he was very anxious of putting his little niece that he had, upon a safe animal, that he had ten or eleven horses always, that he would profer buying one of me than a dealer; he then gave me his card of address, which I had previously learned from the person that came before was in Park-lane; the card was in writing; his address was in Park-lane, the next door to my Lord Petre's. He requested I would give my servant leave to bring the animal the next morning to his house to try her in order that he might ascertain her paces in the opposite riding house; I did so, but I did not give the servant any caution not to leave it if in the event it should not be convenient to him to try her at that moment; I think he asked the price, but the groom had asked the price before; the price announced was twenty-six guineas. I accordingly sent my servant the next morning at the hour appointed, ten o'clock on Sunday morning.

Q. Did you in any way commission or instruct your servant to sell the horse - A. No, decidedly not; it was sent there to be tried in the riding house, and for no other purpose; the servant was sent with the horse to let it be tried, and nothing else.

Q. After the horse had gone there, did you see it again - A. Never.

Q. Did you receive these papers on the Monday - A. They were left at my house on the Monday morning early.

Q. The horse was sent for trial on Sunday morning - A. On the Sunday morning.

Q. After receiving the note in the letter, did you go to the house in Park-lane - A. Immediately.

Q. Did you see the prisoner there - A. No, nobody was to be found there, but the creditors. On Monday my servant who had delivered the horse at Park-lane, took me there; I went on receiving that letter immediately; that letter opened my eyes.

COURT. Q. Did you go immediately with your servant who delivered it - A. I did; we found nobody in the house, there was a servant left in the house; we found nobody but the servant; I found a person there; the prisoner I did not find; I have never seen him since.

Mr. Gurney. When the price was mentioned on Saturday it was agreed to - A. Yes.

Q. You stated the price, it was settled - A. Yes, certainly, on the Saturday.

Mr. Adolphus. Q. Was there any sale affected for the price mentioned - A. There was no sale certainly; our conversation was then in that sort of a way, believing I was talking to a gentleman, I sent the horse for trial, which would lead to a sale in all probability.

COURT. Q. If the price had been paid to your groom, you would have taken no further steps - A. Certainly not; I do not recollect that ever I told the groom what the price was. I should not have considered it a robbery if he had sent back the money.

Mr. Adolphus. Q. You sent your horse with a bridle - A. Yes; I received the bridle back four or five days afterwards, after I received the first letter, another letter accompanied it, and a brown paper parcel.

JAMES HODSON . Q. You were a servant to Mr. Maul - A. I was at that time.

Q. Did you on Sunday, the 23rd of May, two years ago, take a horse to Park-lane - A. Yes, a black mare, to No. 22, Park-lane; I saw Mr. Naylor and another gentleman; Mr. Naylor I believe opened the door to me; he stood at the aperture, he came down the steps to me; I had the mare in my hand at the time by a bridle; he said, if I would follow him, and take the poney to the stables where his horses stood, he would try it at Mr. How's stables if I would leave the horse; upon that, I left the horse with the ostler at the livery stables, I delivered the horse to Mr. How's servant.

COURT, Q. You left the horse with the servant at Mr. How's stables - A. Yes. Mr. Naylor said, after he had tried the poney, if he approved of it, he would settle for the poney; if not, he would send the poney back. That is all that passed.

Q. Did you go there the next day - A. Yes.

Q. Did you find Mr. Naylor there - A. No; I never saw him afterwards.

Q. You went the next day - A. Yes, I went to Mr. Naylor's house, No. 22, Park-lane, the next morning; I did not see any body, I found he was gone.

Q. How did you find he was gone if you did not find any body - A. There were some trades people in the house.

Q. Were there many trades people in the house - A. Three or four. After that, I went to the livery stables immediately, to Mr. How's stables.

Q. Did you find the horse there - A. No.

Q. Did you find the other horses there that he talked of - A. No.

Q. What instructions did your master give you when you took the horse, what were you to do with it - A. He said, he would send the horse, the poney, for Mr. Naylor to try it, and if Mr. Naylor approved of the poney, he would settle with Mr. Maul for it.

Q. Did you communicate that to Mr. Naylor - A. No, I did not tell Mr. Naylor that.

Q. Had you any authority from your master to leave it - A. Mr. Maul told me I might leave the horse for trial.

Q. Was that all he said - A. Yes.

Q. Did he say he might keep it if he approved of it - A. No.

JOHN SPITAL . Q. Were you two years ago groom at Mr. How's - A. I was ostler there in May, 1813, I have been six years there, and am now. I received a mare poney of the last witness: I cannot tell the day of the month; I remember the last witness putting a poney into my hands; a gentleman was present who called himself Naylor.

Q. Is that the person now at the bar - A. I cannot swear to his person; I was not long with him.

COURT. Q. To Hodson. Is that the groom to whom you delivered the black mare - A. Yes, it is; the prisoner was present at the time, and this other gentleman was with him.

Q. To Spital. There was another person present with him, was there - A. Yes.

Q. How long did that poney remain in your hands - A. I should think twenty minutes, from that to half an hour in my possession; I put it up in the stable, tied it up to a rack, by Mr. Naylor's direction.

Q. Had you seen Naylor before on the subject - A. The servant told me he had brought a horse there for Mr. Naylor to try; Mr. Naylor told me to put in the stable; there it remained for twenty minutes.

Mr. Adolphus. Q. Who took it away - A. Mr. Naylor, he took it away himself, he led it away with the bridle; I thought it singular the horse having no saddle; I watched him; he led it up into Upper Brook-street, Park-lane.

Q. Did you ever see that poney again - A. I neversaw saw it before or since to my knowledge; nor I never saw Mr. Naylor before or since to my knowledge; he told me he would send another horse that afternoon. When I delivered the mare into his custody he went up Upper Brook-street, which is towards Grosvenor Gate; our stables are within two doors of Upper Brook-street, Park-lane.

Q. Had Mr. Naylor any other horse with you - A. He had not.

MATTHEW M'COMBY. Q. Do you know Naylor's hand-writing - A. I have seen him write his name.

Q. Look at them papers, do you believe that to be his writing or not - A. I should believe it to be his writing.

(Read.)

Addressed to Mr. Maul, Piccadilly, May 24th, 1813.

"SIR, I like the poney very well, I enclose you a draft at seven days.

I have the honour to be yours, R. N."

Q. To M'Comby. What name did he go by when you knew him - A. By the name of Naylor. I saw him write his name at the time of my apprehending him, and I have got a good deal of documents of his hand-writing in my possession.

(Read.)

London, 24th of May, 1813.

"Seven days after date, I promise to pay Mr. Maul, or bearer, twenty-six guineas for a black poney.

signed R. N. 22, Park-lane."

Q. To M'Comby. You did not know any thing of this man prior to our apprehending him, did you - A. No. I apprehended him upon another charge.

Q. To Mr. Maul. You saw him in prison - A. Yes, two or three days after last sessions.

Prisoner's Defence. I never intended to defraud Mr. Maul, at the time I was embarrassed in signing a bill for my friend; when Mr. Maul came in Clerkenwell Prison with Hutt and Vickery, Mr. Maul said, did not I recollect buying a poney of him; I was always ready to pay him; I can only say I had no intention to defraud him.

Q. To Mr. Maul. When did you receive the bridle - A. I received the bridle four or five days after I received these papers in a brown paper parcel.

Q. Did you go to Park-lane before you received this note - A. No; immediately upon receiving that note.

Q. After you received that promissory note, you went to Park-lane - A. Yes, I went there, I could not find any thing of him; I never found him until he was in custody in Clerkenwell Prison.

GUILTY - DEATH , aged 29.

[ The prosecutor said the object of the prosecution was to satisfy the Public justice of the Country; he would wish to recommend him to mercy as far as was proper, as his friends were respectable people .]

First Middlesex Jury, before Lord Ellenborough.