The National Register.
London, England, 1818-07-26 00:00:00

WEDNLADAY.

John I.awes was indicted for burglariously breaking and entering
the house of Mary Steevens, in the parish of llishopstone, on the
night of the lath of April. 1817, and stealing therefrom 66 guineas.
This trial occupied a considerable portion of the day, and depended
upon very peculiar and circumstantial evidence.
Mary Steevens, an elderlywoman, and a widow with four children.
410,rosAl, that on the night in question she was awelte by hearing
noire resembling that of a person rummaging in her drawers, and
perceived a tall- man walitmg through her mom. She was much
alarmed, and called nut •• Who be you, and what do you want
1 e answered," Be quiet, or I'll blow your brains out." He had in Lie
hand a lantern, with a candle burning in it, and wore a dark great
coat. There was a great deal of money consisting of guineas. half
guineas. and seven shilling pieces, which she kept in her chest, but
the exact amount of it at the time she did not know. It was
left to her by her husband in order to provide for her children.
Being cross-examined, she admitted that she received assbaauce from
the patish at the period of the robbery. Her daughter rind another
woman were it the hotise.and they all went to bed at the same time.
after fastening the doors and windows. The woman who lived with
her was named Fanny Perring, and was placed there by the gentle-
men of the parish. Her own weekly allowance was 3d. and a quer-
tern loaf. She paid no rent for the bowie. as it had been lice hus-
band's freehold. the could nut say whs.ther the trisoner at the
bar was the znun Sill! saw in her ruo:n, although the 1110:711 share
brightly.
Ite-examined.—She got up when he was gone, found that the
money had been taken away, and a wiudow forced open wide enough
to admit the body of a man.
Sarah Steevens, the daughter of the last witnes,,, ars next called,
and corroborated the teettamny of her mother in all its material
circumstances, with the addition that she also saw the man de-
scribed, and Llieved him to be the prisoner. She had teen him
hemieruly before, but bring ignorant of the name, had heen
suable to give any informatian to the magistrate until he ass
apprehended iu Aprd last, twelvemonths atter the commission of the
robbery. She, and lien her mother, had the management of the
money left them by her father, and she knew the exact amount of it
at the time it was carried away. Thirty guineas of it had been lent
to a person of the mime of Lodge, who had returned it in the March
preceding.
Ferny Perring also saw a man, as above described, rats through
the outer chamber in which she slept, betwecu the hour. of 12 and
one at night. He had on a dark great stoat with sereral capes to
it, as of a caddy complexion and study hair. She mss suite sure is
was the prisoner at the bar having frequently seen Lim before.
They got up attar he war Bone, and went to one or too neighbouring
fanners, wno Caine to their hence and witnessed tl.e state or the
window. She ince the prisoner ois the road in company with Mrs.
Lodge about two months after. He &mated her, but :hey had no
conversation.

Gros-examine.—She had known the prisoner's person for some
time. bur was ignornnt of Lis rxsue. She had Own'., 'tilted. that if
she sltnald see hitt again File Ci.Uid rc utrnise l.im. She had liven in
the habits of ob,evving him at the niectii.g.how e. rlic,e he assisted
in per arming the smirk. She 'villa not dis:.ncily re:()ltct. but her
belief was thar she did not see him there after the tebberv. She
could sol mnly lAF:lar diet she had Lever expressed her belief that
it %was anoi.et rcrsm, or that she bad ever said td:e had hid her
head under the heti-eluthes when she perceived a Ittranger in her
chamber.

Richard Curtis. a tithingman. in consequence of informati to
which Le had se:cis-al, r.pprchentli si the prw...er in April last. lie
found hit.i in gaol et !Indium. in Cornwall, and knew hist as haeirl
formerly beta laeour. r in nie pr.rirls of hishopstune.
%V. Swaine, Demur Clerk of the Peace for the county, knew the
prisoner's, person. Ile had hten, previous to April, In 7, in the ha-
bit of teeming parish relief. and working on what was tolled the
aft moviiich sir itied the doing jobs for dlifercnt farmers in succession.
In use e outdid April of last year the pri.oner crane :o hint hand-
somely dressed, basing briote generally warn a shabby bark great
coat. He. protluer:d two"winewas,• and said he came to pay the feel
of an expired trevgdst.nee to keep the peace. which for himself and
:sureties amounted to ii. 194 He had a purse with more guitnas in
it. and likewhe paid the fees of another rc...gnizance which lad beta
respited. Ile saw hint no more ur.iil. w.. 1) taken ir.to custody.
The in honer was a married roan, and bib wife kit Bishepstehe a short
time after his disappearance.
The prisoner in his defence merely threw him (if on the merciful
consideration of the Court. obierv:ag that he h been additive to
pouching. the consequence of which was that his frier.ds bad become
his fees.
Air. Justice Park 6:mulled 11,1 the evidence with Jreat accuraey
and minut.n.Na„ ...1 the remark, that it was a ease of
eats% me Unto:tome. A tloubt had been sttir:;ested whether this charge
b.! rs.is.t.".icied by the preiznt thlictateht, on the ground that.

'T.Y S 6

the stolen money was not the property of Mary fiteevens the elder.
This doubt was, however, altogether removed by the cirenmatanca
of the indictment cont.numg 'smother count, in which it was laid :LI
the property of the c'filolren: Arne:that. the Intl' or had died intesta:e
or not, the vethal declaration by he in!routy.l the money in
question to her wit.: vested it either in her or lon. children. The free.
bold tenement necessarily belonged to them. An attempt had been
made tc discredit her tatimony, by showing the. if the money was
tier own, she must have falsely sworn that she was not worth five
swum's, that being required by law to be done. before a person can
rce lye parish relief. This, hawever,‘vas a form net always observed,
and the probability was, that the witnev, who igrowant of the
amount of the money, consideNd it as belonging to lter children ra-
ther than to hersoq. There was smother circumstance, • also, to be
-taken into eontineration, that of her having a woman quartered on her
by the parish, for whose maintenance it might be diet the weekly
allowance was alinink:ercal. The ream point, therefore, in this tat ;02,
relo.rred to the question of identhy ; and it was • for the
.lary to con-
sioter, whether a variety of corresponemg circumstance_ might not
o establish as firm a conviction of the truth, as the moat direct evidence
and whether the fingerof Providence did not peint out tne prisoner as
the man who had committed the robbery to rittcation.—Verdict—
Vaiilty—Death.
The-business on the Nis! Pr;us side terminated this morning, one
can;.: alone remaining for trial. It related.to a qumtion of right of
fshery, which eta'. been before tried, and was of no general interest.
Mr. Henry Hutu, the Westminster candidate, was the principal
. witness.