The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1808-01-21 00:00:00

OLD BAILEY. JAIIVAitY sO.

A DIAMOND CROSS POUND.
Edward Owens was indicted for defrafeling Mrs.
Crousher, of Brompton, of a gold watch stud a the
pound Bank note.
Mrs. Cronsher, a Ist' between Go and 70 years
of age, deposed;lfiitt on the Jd of December 40;4
at the corner of Hyde Park • she was accosted by
the Prisoner, whq appeared to be a respectable
fanner; he expressed Isis ,surprise at the unpreye7
silents sin,* lie was last in London, about 7 years
ago. (The 'length of absence was a fact, as he was
just retornest from transportation.) He said he had
a son, who kept a grocer's shos, No. 15, Bread-
street, Cheapside, but he, the Prisoner, would not
live in the city, if any one would give him a house
for nothing ; asked if she knew whose house
that was pointing to a house ; she answered,
she believed it was the Ranger's. He isnmedi-
- ately stooped down, and picked up a par-
cel an brown paper, saying to the %%fitness, as you
are in company, you are entitled to half; Witness
answered, that she wished the right owner had it ;
he replied, so do I. but if I had not picked it up,
some one else would." He was going to put it in
his pocket, when the Witness expressed a wish to
know what it contained, so as the right owner might
be found. They were then opposite the Green
Park, and the Prisoner proposed they should go
into the Park and examine it, as it win a private
place. They accordingly did, and sat down on
one of the benches, when the Prisoner opened the
brown paper, cud produced a Red Murocco Pocket
Book, from which he took a piece of paper, and
handed it to a stranger to read ; it was a receipt for
3101. fora Diamond Crewe; he then took out a anal I
red Morocco case, and was going to open it, when
the stranger said, he thought they had bette
retire to some house and settle the business
and he would accompany them, to see the'
old lady righted, to which they inxitsiteiced :
the Prisoner said, he thought it •.would not•
answer to go into a Coffee-house, but theysind bet-
•ter go to some small public-house. Thep &tied
the Park, and brought the witness to a publio4wmee
in Duke-street, St. James's ; they got a preeirte
room, and the Prisoner *hewed across, apparently a
diamond one. The witness proposed that the right
owner should he found out, and it retained to
him. The stranger said it would he very wrong,
as some person would own it that it did' notybeflza
to, and the (owner would certainly have it ade
in the newspapers next 'fey. He then obserred,
that the Prisoner ought to leave thirty or forty
pounds with the witness, as a security for her
*here in the cross, antil the next morning to
which the Prisoner Acquiesced, and leardliiThad
a Mend in Pall-Mall who metal him 501 aid he
would go mad get 401. of it. He went, and left
the Stranger and the Witness together : in about
half an—hour the Prisoner returned, apparently
quite vexed, and said he could not get the money,
as his friend was not atrhoine. The Stranger then
proposed for the Witness to take the cirotis, until
ten o'clock next morning, and to leave Solite money
with the Prisoner; Witness said she had but a. 01.
note about her; the Stranger then said she,,had a
wash, auras she appeared a lady of 140 tessieltsres
spettability, he could not think the Prisoriee could
hwie'any objection in entrusting her with the cross.
. She then gave the Prisoner her !gold watch, and
14 51. Bank Note, and he handed her the cross,
telling her that she must deliver up the cross,
at ten &dock in the morning, when he called for
it, and then it should be valued, if not advertised.
He took her addres4, and gave her his address in
retain ; viz. Mr. Wright, No. 1.5, Bread-street.
The stranger also gave his, Mr. Jones, NO. 15,
John-street ; and advised her to go home, ama lock
the cross up, before she went into the city, lest
she should lose it. On the next morning, tne Pri-
soner not calling on her, as he promised, she Made
some inquiries as to the value of the tram, and
was informed it was not worth one pound, it being
paste. She immediately applied at Bow-street
Office. and, on giving a description of the Prisoner,
an Officer informed her, if she would entrust her-
self with him to Leicester-fields, he would find
him ' • and that his name was not Wright, but
Owens, who had just returned from transportation,
he having been transported for the same kind of
crime before, and supposed he Feld Iscoun his old
tricks again. She went, accompanied gy tht' Offi-
cer, to Leicester-fields, where she saw the Prisoner,
and pointed him out to the Officer, who took him
into custody.
Charles Iluraphries, a Bow-street (Meet, de-
posed, that on the 4th of December, he took the
Prisoner into custody, Mrs. Cronsher haying point-
ed him out. The Prisoner said he knew what the
Lady wanted, it was a gold watch; Witness an-
swered, he had got what he wanted, and he must
go along with him ; brought him to the Brown
Bear public-house, in Bow-street, and searched
him; found a silver watch, two Bank Notes for el.
each, five for el., five for five guineas, and
seven shillings in silver ; he then brought him be-
fore the Magistrate, who committed him; went
round to the porn-brokers in search of the
watch ; had a suspicion that it was at Bentham's,
the pawn-broiter, on the top of Holborn; called
there twice; but he denied it; called a third time
and found it. The witness produced a gold
watch, a 51. Bank Note, a red, Morocco pocket-
book, ands cross in a ease.

Mr. John Wilkinson, jeweller, deposed, that the
eross might have cost a guinea, but the same kind
could now he pu for seven shillings.
Mr. Thomas Rex Est, Clerk to a Navy Atiit,
t'rthat he paid the five pound note to Lob-
ediseaulield, on the sth of October.

Colonel De Beaufield deposed, that he paid it to
Mrs. Crousher.
Mrs. Crousher identified the watch.
'The Prisoner nude no defence.

The Jury, without hesitation, found hint Crafty.

ffinaas Rawlins, both deaf and dumb, was
indicted for stealing a silver watch, coat, waistcoat,
breaches, a pair nf sioves. and a pipe topper, the
property of Thomas %Vanilla% in the Coach and

, . .
ffitee •
ptiblic house, Fen-greet, in the parish of
St. iike;. he si,:is found Guilty of stealing to the
vpJe of 395. •
r. Nicholls, atshitant teacher far the Flitinaue
Ili *tution for he care of deaf and dumb, attend-
ed as interpretex. It was surprising with vii!lat
facititr they answered and undenitomf each other;
the Pnwarier wrote with expedition:
The Ittcoartnit, sifter lie was found guilty, oh-
strved, that although the Pi'..oner was draf,eud
dumb, he was a very dangerous renew. It was got
the first time he had been tried there for the like
°fireflies. That most praise-worthy institution, for
the education of deaf and dumb, had brought him
up, and had been at the expense of binding him
apprentice to a respectable boot-inakei • and his
father, who was an honest poor man, was teed and
ashamed: of him. lie further added, that he never
was at so great a loss us to know what to do with
him.