193. JOHN MILNE proceedingsdefend and SARAH STEWARD proceedingsdefend were indicted for feloniously stealing one pair of linen sheets, value 5 s. the property of Thomas Shaw proceedingsvictim .

THOMAS SHAW < no role > sworn.

I am a shoemaker in Lewkner's lane, I lost some sheets, and Charles Young < no role > told me there was a pair of my sheets at Litchfield-street, in the office, there was my mark on them, m y name was at length, and where I lived, in large print letters at length: I went and owned the sheets, I knew them to be mine; these are the sheets, and here is the mark, they are marked with a stamp and India ink, Thomas Shaw < no role > , No. 3, Lewkner's-lane, Drury-lane, one with red ink, and the other with black.

- BLACKETER sworn.

I had these sheets from Mrs. Steward the prisoner, we had information that there were some stolen goods in her room, and we went to search her house.

Is she married or single? - I do not know, she lives along with Milne.

How do you know that? - She told me so herself, his clothes were there, which he owned to afterwards, his breeches was hanging over a chair; he came in, and I asked him whose those clothes were, there was a coat and a pair of breeches, and I am not sure whether there was not a waistcoat; in searching we found these sheets, with this man's name upon them.

Where did you find the sheets? - At the door on the landing place, laid in a handkerchief.

Were his clothes laid in the same place? - No, they were hanging on a chair by the bed side.

But these clothes were not in that room? - No, we asked how she came by them, and she said they were a pair of sheets Mr. Milne had bought early in the morning; I asked Milne whether they were not his sheets, and he denied them.

Was he by when she said he bought them? - No, that was just before he came in, we found some picklock keys in the cupboard, in the same room where Mrs. Steward lives.

Was the cupboard shut or opened? - I do not recollect.

JOHN SAYRE < no role > sworn.

I belong to the office; on the 2d of November, Young, I, and Dixon went to the lodgings of Mrs. Steward, with a search warrant after some stolen goods; searching the room for them, I saw Dixon take these picklock keys out of the cupboard, at the further end I saw a hatcher, I went out with a candle, and went to see if there was not a cocklost on the staircase; and I found these sheets under a table at Mrs. Steward's door, she lodged in a garret; I asked Mrs. Steward if she knew any thing of them, she made answer, they were dirty sheets Mr. Milne had brought home that morning; they were dirty, we have been obliged to get them washed.

CHARLES YOUNG < no role > sworn.

I went with the two last witnesses and Dixon to search Mrs. Steward's lodgings, No. 9, Tottenham Court-road, and Sayre brought in these sheets from the outside of the door; says he, Mrs. Steward, what are these sheets; says she they are dirty sheets that Milne left here this morning; I saw Dixon take these keys out of the cupboard, and when I saw the prosecutor's name on the sheets, I went and fetched him.

PRISONER STEWARD'S DEFENCE.

I cannot express my affairs so well as I could wish, for I am deprived of council by these men who had my property; this day six weeks, the 2d of November, they approached my apartment forcibly; I was a washing, I had a great wash; I asked them for their authority, they did not produce it, they would not let me have it in my hand; I said do nothing rashly, let me have some person to be witness, if it is only the constable of the parish; this gentleman packed up my wearing apparel, I had a mangle in the house, I take in mangling and washing, they then picked up a trunk which they called a Peter, I paid eighteen shillings for the trunk, I have the receipt; I said here is nothing but what I have a receipt to prove; there were six silver tea spoons, tea tongs, buckles, seven gowns and my sheets, and two counterpanes, one never wetted; they acted like lions, had I been a Turk or an Infidel, they could not have acted with more barbarity; I have been six weeks in prison, I have had this man out of compassion to support, he was a sufferer, and a great one, he came inadvertently to the place during the interview they had with me, and he said Gentlemen, what demand have you with Mrs. Steward; says he, Gentlemen, send for the constable of the parish and see her righted, as she is without a friend, or any person present: I stand here as a prisoner, it is really truth though you may not believe it; Blacketer packed up my trunk, and there was three silk gowns, that any Gentlewoman in London might put on, and six silver tea spoons with S. S. engraved, which I paid for; they had my undeniable character in the neighbourhood; they even brought my fender and a set of fire irons, they were going to unscrew a pier glass; I said, Gentlemen, do not spoil the frame of my glass, which I worked very hard for, and eat a cold dinner of a Sunday; they only unscrewed one screw of the pier glass, which was to go before the magistrate, I desired them before the magistrate to commit me bailable; he then took four or five keys from a cupboard; now this man deals at Mr. Perrott's, and several ironmongers, he has iron to turn to the best advantage, he has imported them abroad by the dozens together, they are no picklock keys, and they were loose when they had them. I will endeavour to submit to your command, be it what it will, and the will of God, if you will but please to release this man, he is an innocent man; I am willing to submit to your command, was it death, so you please to release this man, he is innocent, and I am innocent, they brought my clothes to prison, after being in prison thirteen days; this Blacketer that appears against me, is acquainted with a Jew woman that deals in old clothes; there is a God above that knows the secrets of all hearts; there was a little boy that lives in our neighbourhood, with one Mr. Roper an auctioneer, this man after I tried to get him into place, the husband of this Jew woman suffered, and she had received a duplicate of this poor boy whom I kept from destruction, and this Mr. Milne out of charity gave the boy a shilling to bring her before Mr. Fakney, one of the Justice's of the rotation; he had a search warrant against me, these sheets were laid at my stair head out of villainy, and no other; I am as innocent as the baby unborn, I am willing to submit to the will of God; this woman gave an information of me in Tottenham Court-road; my imprisonment has brought me to destruction entirely.

Court. What became of the clothes? - After thirteen days I had some of them sent, I was starving in the prison for eight days, and had nothing to relieve me, nor had this innocent man, my spoons and tea tongs were returned by Mr. Blacketer.

PRISONER MILNE's DEFENCE.

My Lord I live in the City I am a porter to auctioneers and brokers, I never was before a Judge or Justice in my life before, I gave a shilling to this boy, the sheets I never saw, as there is a just God in Heaven; these things were advertised on the 6th of November, on the 9th Blacketer brought down a porter with her trunk, and some apparel, and some plate, he charged two shillings, she paid him one and nine-pence, then he comes on the 13th teenth, and says, will you sell your fire irons and fender to Mr. Fletcher, no says she; said he, if I had known this I would have brought something against you, then he forcibly took from her, a Princes metal candlestick, between the gates of New-prison.

Court to Blacketer. Did you receive any money for the things that you carried? - I received two shillings, then I came down again with a load of wet linnen, and poker, tongs and shovel, I gave the man one shilling each time, and I had nothing for my trouble at all.

Who was the man that brought it? - A porter that came along with me from the office.

Court. I should be glad to know if you take away things out of her house, is she to pay for bringing them again; upon my word an innocent person may be in a very pretty situation, if that is to be the case? - I brought them to prison by her desire, she promised to pay me, I paid the man two-shillings for bringing them down, upon my oath I paid two shillings, and I never had directly or indirectly any of that again.

You have the man here I suppose? - No I have not, he saw me have no more than two shillings, I never put it into my pocket.

How came you to keep these things fourteen days? - I do not recollect that they were so long, they were advertised three times.

Sayre. There were three or four pair of wet sheets, they were advertised, and people came and could not swear to them, when we were at Mrs. Steward's lodgings, she begged we would not let the woman of the house know, I said it was fit she should know; this woman has been convicted before.

Court. But that you are not to say.

Prisoner Steward. I never was? - I dare say she was.

Court. Do you know it yourself? - For shoplifting once.

Do you know that of your own knowledge? - Yes, Mr. Akerman's servants know it.

That man was not in the house when you first came in? - No he came in, in about ten minutes after the sheets were found.

Court to Prisoner Steward. You was saying just now, that you had people that knew you, I suppose you have somebody to your character? - My landlady is not well my friends have attended all last week, I am innocently accused, but I am willing to submit to your pleasure, so as you will please to release this man.

Prisoner Milne. The late Sheriff Skinner has known me these twenty-two years, he is not in town this day, the Lord Mayor has known me ten years.

BOTH NOT GUILTY .

Tried by the second Middlesex Jury before Mr. Baron HOTHAM < no role > .