The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1884-02-26 00:00:00

THE HOUSEBREAKING CASE.

The polio' have suocoeded in oaptoriog two youog
men aimed Beach sod Damon on suspicion of break-
into Mr. Burnett's oiScas in South-street. They were
brought up on Friday. before J. Tudor, K.q., and
Pearl JiHard, Esq., and chargod with the offence,.
Mr. T. Coombs appeared tor the prosecution, and,
having briefly stated the facts, called the folbwing
evident:4 :

Frank Will., clerk at Mr. Barostra office. said he
was in the office on Tuesday tth to ten minutes t)
seven o'clock. He was the last In the office, and
locked it up. I He locked the both and front doors of
the dB" and the door against the street. He abto
saw the windows were fintenei, and the shatters abut
In the three rooms. He opened the offioe in the morn.
big about a quarter past nine. He went into the
back room, and there he foam I ths shutter unta.tentd,
the peas of glass smashed out of lb. window. The glass
was lying inside the offlos on the floor, ant the papers
were strewn about. The top sub of the window
was partially dowa. The night previous when be
left, the papers were not on the fhor, but on two
desks In the same room. lie waited until the woman
who °lathed the office came, then he fetched Mr.
Denoio, and went for the polio..
George Dennis head clerk at Mr. Burnett'', said on
Wednesday monAng Wills came to him and made •
commanioatkon. Withers west to the office Immo.
cUately afterwards. He found the shutters partly
open and a pane of else smashed. His desk bad been
turned ogee, every drawer turned out, and the Papers
thrown all over this place. Two of the drawers which
had been I Allied were forced. He had locked one of
them on Tuesday, and the other was kept locked.
One of thee* drawers contained • quantitY of Peer;
end the other oath to the amount of £2 31. lid. This
was in two spent* bags. The money was taken and
the bags left behind. None of the papers wore taken.
Witness this examined the other aloes ; in the
next room to his the paper, were thrown.
about. In Mr. Bonnet's room be found the desk
(produced) thrown on the floor. It had been
wrenched open, and the drawers had bees Inroad. A
box on the mantlepleoe in Mr. llornett'e oaks had
also bees locoed, aid oss ooln taken. There was
&soldier small box on the seine mustlepiece la which
there had been some colas ; these were takes Witness
afterwards mined some haUpesamy stamps from his
desk, about a shilling's worth, and some copper wins.
He had mind no papers.
P.S. Mitolsell said front information received be
went to Mr. Burnett's once, and found the desk (pro.
dined) had been broken open. Ha ethinthed the
end fogad the window in the beck room
bad bess moishod. There were masks on UN petty

ea though the glass had been removed from the
outside. Vito, a al. , found a little gime
Weide the room. He examined the place
on the outside, and from the top end of
the geed.' near the will divi.linr the premises from
Mr. Churchill's, he fo,,t foloanek, towaide
the offies. The marks wore of two different nine.. He
covered up one of them. I. wan not very distinct.
He traced the frwttnaikt to the wtodo• that wan
brokers, and also away from the window to the bank
premien ad) dialog. Wit..e writt through the gate of
D. garden belonging to the to mk, end there he fount
other foi.ten•rka leading tower is the door opeolug
Into Triuity-street. He trammed the tracks. They
were more distinct, especially the toe-part of the
largest of the track.. There wore four hobnails
arranged diamond fashion In the front clamp. On
Thursday witne. saw the prisoner Damon at the
Royal Oak; Beech wee there also. He called out
Damon, and weed him to allow bko I 0 examine his
boot.. In the toe of the boot be found four hobnails
in the clamp. Witness naked him if he had any
objeoilou to taking them off, as Its wanted to compere
them with s ,usetillog. He replied " No." He went
to the police-station and took them off (bouts pro-
duced) lii oompany with 13 tperinteudent Omar.' he
went to Ceder Pak, and from there into the garden.
He compared the boots .ith the marks, and they
corresponded In .very particular—in width of the 1..
and in the arrangement of the nails. They then went
to other treat's, but they were not sufficiently distinct.
They then returned 1i the police-station where the
prisoner Damon wee He told him his boo. o wee-
ponded with some marks In the ground, and charged
him on sospicion if breaking &cluttering, on the night
of the 19th, Mr. Burnett's riSoaeln South-street. He
said he did know anything &boat it, as he was
at home. He said be tuft the ttoyal Oak ,
about •leven. (The
IVI10111)r Damon : "Between
10 and 11, I mod.") • iraW I.e was in a mpany to
the evening with men name I J antra and Hiscoak,
and elterwarde wee at the Oak with Knott. On
Thum:lay afternoon from information rewired he went
ti the house of a Mrs. 114 oway, in Shirshall.place,
and received from her ties screw trivet (produced).
He then went to Mr. Burnett's office, alai in hts
present ecompared It with the mark, on the desk and
box (produced), and the drawer in Mr. Denote' office.
Choy oorresponded. Wltn.smnlleewardo saw Keech at
the polies-station, an I charged him oe suspichet of
breaking into the office in oompany with Dam on.
Prisoner replied : " How is it toe, cups. cao
Witseea had the screwdriver In hie hand at the time'
and he told him be had roared it from Use.
Holloway, and et. had told him she hied lout it to
him on the night in question. He also told him the
screwdriver correepooded with the marks. Prisoner
1.1411111 I know I borrowed it to screw op mother's
drawera, aa they were loose. I did not keep it more
than five minute., and I took it back end put it on •
*hest of drawers.
Mrs. Holloway said she lived at Joseph Keeoh'e, in
Shinhall.place. rihe knew the parbioner Kelenti, who
was the eon of how landlord, Bad lived at home At
half-past ten on Tuesday he name to her room and
said ' Kra Burke wants • screwdriver (meaning Mrs.
Burke of the Royal Oak), and I told her you had one."
Witness mid' rake it, John, and bring it back again
tom." He took it an went out of the house She
did not se, it again that night, but found In on the
ObMi nt drawers when she came downstain. When
P.S. Mitchell came to her on Thursday ahe gave the
ecrewdriver_(produzied) to him.
Williamßitilowo, husband of lest witness, said the
prisioner &web brought back the screwdriver and
placed it on the oh rat of drawer, on Wednesday morn.
lag atout eight o'clock.
Mary Ana Burke stated on Tuesday evening Keecile
wee at the Royal Oak between six and Devon. She
did not speak to him that evaning. She did not want
a screwdriver, nor author.° him to borrow one for
her.
Tale concluded the nine for the prosciutto°, end
prisoners were charged in the usual form.
Beech said he left the Oak at • eptarter-peat tea,
went boon, and had his supper. Hie mother asked
him to go I' Mrs. Holloway for a screwdriver, end he
screwed up some drawers for his mother with it, and
returned the screwdriver in about five minutes, and
then went to bed.

Damon then made determent which chiefly related
to his arre4 sod confirmed Sergeant Mitchell's
account He also repeated the etwement he male
when apprehends I to the effect he went home about
11 o'clock, awl did not ee• Ketch again until about
etas neil moralud.
Prisoners were committed for trial at the Quarter
Sessions. .

poboe ere to be complimented on their smart
In tilt., relater.