232. WILLIAM WHITE proceedingsdefend was indicted for that he, on the 1st of February , about the hour of eight in the night of the same day, being in the dwelling house of Abraham Israel proceedingsvictim , one set of cotton bed window curtains, value 40 s. the property of the said Abraham, feloniously did steal, take, and carry away; and that he the said William White afterwards, to wit, on the same day, and at the same time, feloniously did break the said dwelling house to get out of the same .

ABRAHAM ISRAEL < no role > sworn.

I live in Little May's-buildings, St. Martin's-lane ; on Sunday was three weeks, the prisoner came into my house at the street door, which was open, between seven and eight o'clock in the evening; I sat in my little parlour, and I heard somebody step up stairs in my room; I took the candle and went up stairs, and when I came upon the stairs, I saw the door of the room over me open, so I went down stairs again and shut the street door, and hallooed out for assistance; I was afraid to go up stairs.

Court. Was any body in the house besides yourself? - Yes, lodgers; I called for assistance, and the prisoner came down stairs, and finding the street door locked, he went up stairs again, and wanted to jump out of the window.

Court. Was the window open? - I suppose he opened it.

But do you know whether it was fast or no? - I cannot tell; I did not venture into the room; I waited for people to assist me; they came and saw the prisoner out of the window upon the tiles; I suppose he was afraid to jump; when I saw the people come, I opened the street door to let them in to help me take the man, they took him half off upon the stairs; that was the prisoner; when we came into the room the bed was laid together upon the bedstead, and the furniture was taken half off from the bedstead.

Court. Was there any thing moved from the room? - No.

Court. Gentlemen of the Jury, in the first place this is a crime as charged in the indictment which the law has made equal to burglary, but in this case here had been no breaking at all; he came in by the street door, and got out by a window, which the prosecutor does not know but it was open: the next thing charged here is, that he stole a pair of bed curtains, now you hear he had got them half off, but they were not all removed; if they had been separated from the bed and had been removed but a foot, that would have been a felony; but in this case it is not so; therefore in point of law, the evidence does not support this indictment.

NOT GUILTY .

Tried by the first Middlesex Jury before Mr. Justice GOULD.