The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1866-08-14 00:00:00

BRIDPOBT.

Botorroff PouCI, rridap—Efelore the Mayor
11'. Collo:, Feel.) and J. F. Stephens, Faq.--George
Follett, senior and junior (father and sea), and Wooten
Mellott, were charged with stealing ffibs. of flax, value
Is. Ad., from the storehouse of Josephlhillott, Boy.,
in Barrack street. Mr. Manley for prisoners. r.
Bartlett, maiisfaoturer, of Sri port. I have a store
in Barrack-street. Is which I keep fax, hemp and raw
material. The prisoneru Mallet and I'ollett, who bate
been In my emploi for yearn, work In the store ones
sionsily. last Tuesday they were woslieg there I
have suspected for some time that I have been robbed of
stock in the warehouse, and have received some
motion as as well, end in ormseqesties commusicated with
police sergeant Lavender. On that day where the
men were working there was hemp and flat tow.
George Follett, Jun., works for his father. In the
store above I keep liax nod msonfaitured goods. There
is a communication between the two floors by meths
of a staircase and also. trop door, which is not he
locked. On this day these men were in the store peek-
ing tow, and in soonsequence of a cononenisation
from Sergeant Leeender I went with to
the More. and asked them for an explanation of their
seeding flax out of the More without my manetioe,
and told the elder Follett that his son wee in custody
for taking flax from It. I told them the lad said they
had given him the lax. The men looked veryoonfuseC
admitted they gave him the flax, and said they did not
know they were doing any harm, they saw this flax
among tbe tow, and ty were going to make "bonds"
of it, to tie up fax with. I told them they had no
lax to tie op, they said they should have
some soother day and should want It thee. 'They had
no right to take fax from me for that popes They
were shortly after taken into custody. The fiaz now
produced was shown to me by P.O. Bennett the same
day, ise taken from the boy, and corresponds with the
other flax of mice, which I also produce. It is called
Archangel flax. The quantity the pollee:men took from
the boy is about 21ba., and the vales shout Is. ed.
There is an entrance in Barrask-street to the lower
floor, and one in Ran-lane to the upper Coe Cross-
examined: I did not give the lad into thistedy myself.
After that he was so, I went 0 his dwelling-house with
the sergeant and searched his house ; his mother was
there. I then went to the station, remained • few
minutes, and then went to the warehouse and told the
men that the boy was in custody. I did not see
FoUett's wife at the warehouse before I spoket=
men. They had no right to take away anything 'Miltons
my knowledge. If they had asked me for fax to make
bonds, I should have kt them have an Inferior sort.
They have been working for me four or five years, and I
have suspected them of stealing for some time. —John
Henry Ewen', foreman of Mr. Bartlett'', said 1 I
remember some fax having been taken away on the 7th
inst. I was engaged the next morning In the lower
store peeking the tow width the two men had not
finished on the previous d y, and found among the tow
• quantity of Ilex, half rolled and half row, about Haw
together. This ought not to have been where I found it,
but ought to have been in the upper store. The raw fax
was covered by the tow, the rolled only partly so. No
one but the prisoners had worked in that store cm the
7th.—Crom-examined I don't think that anyone bar
worked in this store for months steep* the prisoners.
The dew ripe tow has been there kr mouths, as that
work is dope Is done away from the premisemonly these
and myself work there usually. There was a large
quantity of dew ripe tow, and the men were packing it
all day Monday.—P.C. Bennett said: I was on duty
near Mr. B•rtlett's store on Tuesday last. I saw the
two elder prisoners go into the upper store in Rax-lane
about nine o'clock. I afterwards maw the Barrack-street
entrance opened. About eleven o'clook I saw George
Follett, jun., go into the premises by ths entrance
In Barrack-street. In two or three minutes he
came out, looked up and down the street, and
then west back again. A few minutes after he
came out with a bundle tied lip in a handkerchief
under his arm. I followed him into Ring of
Prussia-lane, and asked him what he had under his
arm. He told me it was some rags. I took it, examined
It, and found that it was flax. I told him it was stolen
and took him to the station. I afterwards apprehended
the two elder prisoners at the store, on the charge of
stealing flax. ney made no answer. The handkerchief
and flax I produce are the lame which I took from the
younger prtsoner.--Cross-ezatnined: I took the two elder
prisoners in custody by Mr. Bartlett's orders. That was
after. Mr. Bartlett had charged them with steeling the flax.
—The two elder prisoners sleeted to have the aim tried
summarily, and pleaded guilty.—Mr. Bartlett said be
did not wish to press the mee mainst the younger
prisoner (who is may 13 years of age), as be believed be
asted under the Intl oenoe of his father.—The magistridee
accordingly disobarged him, the Mayor telling him he
hoped it would be • warning to him for his whole life.
They believed in this Instance be had acted under the
inflames of his father, but he must mind if it ever
recurred again he would be punished severely.—Mr.
Manley, for the two elder prisoners, briefly addressed the
Bench in extenuation, and said they had never been
brought up before.—The Mayor said the sentence of the
magistrates on the prisoners was three mooths' imprison-
ment with hard labour. Their offence was • grievous
one, and was not to be measured by the value of what
was stolen. From the peculiar nature of the trade of
the town, masters were much exposed to theft, as from
the nature of the articles used it was difficult to prove •
case. One of them was more guilty than the other in
their opinion, in bringing up a young child to habits of
theft. They hoped this would be • warning to them.