237. EDWARD STONE proceedingsdefend and ANN SOMERVILLE proceedingsdefend This name instance is in set 13681368. were indicted for burglariously breaking and entering the dwelling house of James Borton proceedingsvictim , and James Houghton proceedingsvictim about the hour of seven in the night, on the 18th of January , and burglariously and feloniously stealing therein, a pair of pistols, value 20 s. three muslin neckcloths, value 3 s. two silver table spoons, value 20 s. six silver tea spoons, value 12 s. a silver marrow spoon, value 20 s. nine muslin handkerchiefs, value 18 s. four linen shirts, value 10 s. three pair of silk hose, value 15 s. &c. the goods of James Borton < no role > . A cloth great coat, value 10 s. a pen-knife, value 3 s. a pair of silver shoe buckles, value 20 s. eight linen shirts, value 60 s. three pair of silk hose, value 20 s. three muslin half handkerchiefs, value 6 s. &c. the goods of James Borton < no role > .

Indicted in a second COUNT for the same burglary, laying it to be in the dwelling house of James Borton < no role > only.

(The Case opened by Mr. Knapp.)

(The witnesses examined separate.)

JAMES BORTON < no role > sworn.

I and Mr. Houghton have chambers jointly; his name is James Houghton < no role > , I am the responsible person, and Mr. Houghton lives with me; our sleeping place was in these chambers On Friday the 18th of January we left them about six o'clock, I saw the doors fastened, I did not absolutely lock it myself, but I felt, and it was fastened, I left them perfectly secure; I believe, as near as I can guess, about five minutes past six, we had light candles, we light candles about half after four when we dined, it was dark then out of doors.

Q. When did you hear that the robbery had been committed? - About half after seven, we received intelligence of the laundress; in consequence of which information, we immediately both of us went to the chambers with the laundress, we found them in a very great state of confusion and disorder, there were two trunks drawn out of the bed room into the sitting room, with the locks absolutely forced up from the bottom, we had left them, one in the passage just by the outer door and the other was in the bed room; the locks were forced underneath and wrenched off, and the lock itself was torn from the wood, and left on one side of the trunk; my trunk was nearly emptied of every thing, but some letters, and some papers, that trunk was left in the passage, I lost all the things mentionedin the indictment; I attended at Bow-street afterwards, I saw Stone in custody on Friday the 4th of February, all he said before the magistrate was taken in writing. The lock of the outer door was found in a perfect state, there was the mark of some instrument at the dressing room window, as if it had been forced up; the window looks into the garden in Clement's Inn, it is the ground floor, the mark was on the outside of the window, but whether it was done at that time or before I cannot pretend to say.

Mr. Peat. You went out about six, who was with you? - A gentleman, a stranger was with me and Mr. Houghton, we all went out together.

Q. You say you observed that the door was fastened, how do you mean? - I said to the gentleman, Gardiner, will you lock the door, he did, and I put my finger into the key hole to see if it was fast, and it was.

Q.As to this mark in the window was the sash fastened down with any thing? - It is commonly fastened with a bolt, but whether it was bolted then or not I don't know.

Q. Had the other gentleman a key? - No, we both had one, and the laundress had one.

Court. Can you say what the value of the articles were? - According to the value I have laid them in the indictment, they are six pounds, and they are laid very much under their real value.

JAMES HOUGHTON < no role > sworn.

I left the chambers with the other gentlemen, I lost all the things mentioned in the indictment and several more things.

Mr. Peat. You did not return to the the chambers before you saw the laundress? - I did not.

ELIZABETH LAWRENCE < no role > sworn.

I am laundress to the last gentlemen, that stood up here, I went to the chambers about a quarter after seven in the evening; I opened the door, and I found two mould candles burning, and there were two trunks broke open, and the locks were wrenched with great violence; I went into the dining room or sitting room, and said gentlemen are you in? after that I went into the bed room, and I found the candle burning there, and there was a pair of leather breeches very near, and if I had not gone as soon as I did the breeches would have been on fire by the light of the candle; I went out of the bed room to the gentlemen, to the office in Carey-street, No. 3, I called the gentlemen out and they came with me; it is Mr. Miller's office, the gentlemen were there both of them, we came to the chambers and found they were robbed, they took Mr. Gardiner with them to the chambers, and I went with them; I found then that the things were gone, and the dressing room window about that high up.

Mr Peat. The dressing room window you found it up? - I did.

Court. Did there appear to be any marks of violence about that window? - I did not look then, nor since; there was a tea cup at the side of the window, and a pair of trowsers and a brush, and the tea cup was thrown down to the floor and it was not broke.

Q. Did you observe whether there was the marks of any feet, or any thing of that kind, what sort of ground is that that is underneath it? - It is a flag pavement, not soft ground.

Mr. Peat. Had you been in the chambers before that day? - I left the chambers about half after five o'clock the window was down then when I left it.

Court. When you left it at half after five, and when you returned afterwards did you find the trunks in the same place or were they all changed? - They were all taken out of their place.

Mr. Peat. You are sure all the windows were down when you left the chambers? - I am very certain of it.

Q. Was you in the bed room at all before you left the chambers that day? - I was.

Q. Did you take notice of the situation of the trunks before you left the chamber? - I took notice that one trunk was in the passage and the other was in the bed chamber.

GEORGE DOBREE < no role > sworn.

I am a pawnbroke, I produce a pair of pistols; I have kept them from the time they were pawned, ever since; I received them of Edward Stone < no role > the man at the bar; the 31st of January, Thursday; he asked a price for them, and I asked him whose they were; he said he had the mould of them at home; he said he bought the pistols and the key, he did not say any thing more; I know the man perfectly well, I do not recollect ever seeing him before.

Court. Had you ever seen him before? - I know him by his face, he is the man that pledged the pistols; he called again the 11th of February, he was then in custody, before that I saw an advertisment from Bow-street, the 2d of February I saw an advertisement describing these pistols; I took them to Bow-street, and took them to this gentleman's lodgings, and shewed them him; on Monday the 4th of February, he came with the ticket to redeem them, he laid the ticket down on the counter, and I immediately sent for the constable, and he was taken.

Mr. Peat. You took in the pistols you say? - Yes.

Q. You had never seen this prisoner Stone before? - No, not to my knowledge.

Q. Did you ever see him after that till he came to redeem them? - No, not that I know of.

Q. These tickets go into the hands of many persons, any person may come for the things that have the ticket? - Yes.

Q. You have little partitions and apartments in your shop, where people stand behind the shutters? - He did not happen to be in one of these; he was in the open part of the shop at day light.

Q. You stated that those pistols have been in your custody; I presume they were laid by in the shop? - No more than being in the shop.

Q. Every body had access to them as well as you? - Yes.

Q. It sometimes happens that tickets are mislaid and affixed to other goods than those they belong to? - That is impossible, the ticket is on them, and he came for them; I can swear they are the pistols that was pawned; I never saw a pair like them in my life; I have seen a thousand pairs.

Prosecutor's Counsel. In what name did he pawn them in? - Edward Stone < no role > .

Q. Have you any doubt about his person? - I have not.

Court. When he came for the pistols did you produce them? - I did not.

Q. Had you any in the house at that time? - Yes, a hundred pairs; but these pistols are rifled all the way down, you hardly see one pair that is so in five thousand.

EDWARD TREDWAY < no role > sworn.

I produce a penknife, I got it in the lodgings of Mrs. Somerville, and I found these three large keys in a chest in her lodging room, No. 5, Short's Gardens, St. Giles's, I found them on Monday the 3th of February; Chamberlain the other constable had got Stone in custody at Bow-street; he said the prisoner told him where he got the pistols from, and he did not know whether he had a right to go and search the lodgings; I went with him to the lodgings of Mrs. Somerville, she was in the room, and an old woman that is her mother, I found the penknifein a box; she told me her husband was out at work; her husband was out I have never seen him, he is a journeyman carpenter; she was looking in the box sorting some things out; I brought every thing away, which the other constable has got, and what led to the discovery, was the boots with Mr. Borton's name inside; I found a great coat, and two or three shirts, and I believe a couple of waistcoats.

JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN < no role > sworn.

I produce a pair of boots, &c.

(The pistols deposed to by Mr. James Borton < no role > , as having the maker's name on them and the pistols being made for him on purpose, with the riffle barrels all through, and have them for a twelve month; and having such bags for them as there were found in.

Prisoner Stone. I borrowed these pistols to make some money upon them of this woman.

Edward Stone < no role > GUILTY .

Of stealing to the value of 39 s. but not of the burglary.

Transported for seven years .

Ann Somerville Not GUILTY .

Tried by the second Middlesex Jury before Mr. RECORDER.