20. PHILIP HOOD, alias WOOD proceedingsdefend , CHARLES SLATE proceedingsdefend , and EDWARD SURGEY proceedingsdefend , were indicted for burglariously breaking and entering the dwelling house of Thomas Willingham proceedingsvictim , on the night of the 20th of November , with intent to steal, and burglariously stealing therein, two trusses of hay value 3s. his property . And EDWARD BUREAU proceedingsdefend , for feloniously receiving on the same day, the same goods, he knowing them to have been stolen .

THOMAS WILLINGHANS < no role > . I live in Cock yard, Tothill fields, Westminster ; I am a master of Hackney coaches , and keep thirteen pairs of plates: I have two ranges of stables, one where there are twenty three stalls, which joins the house, and forms part of the house; there is a door from the house into the stable, but it is nailed up.

THOMAS MATTHEWS < no role > . I am a horse-keeper to Mr. Willingham. Philip Wood < no role > the prisoner, left my masters employ in March last. I fastened the doors at a little after six o'clock, on the evening of the 26th of November, I fastened the loft door over the stable. I then went for some cheese, and I was returning, I saw a truss of hay coming along the yard; going up the yard, I heard a rustling in the passage; that is the passage leading to the back stabling. With that I went down the passage, and said, who is here? and I caught hold of William Brown < no role > in the passage. In consequence of what he told me, I took him in custody to my master, and sent for a constable; Hood had been in my master's servce; I found two trusses of hay in the passage. There is a loft door over the passage, and if anything was thrown out of it, it would fall into the passage; that loft door was open when I went into the passage; I know I had fastened it before.

WILLIAM BROWN < no role > . I am sixteen years of age, I have known Wood and Surgey two years, and Slate about five months. On the night of Monday the 20th of November, about eight o'clock I was in; Tothill street, nearly opposite to Mr. Willingham's place; I saw the two prisoners, Slate and Surgey, and was talking to them, when Phillip Wood < no role > came up and said, he had one truss, and then we agreed to go and get some of Mr. Willingham's hay; he told us he had got one truss before we agreed, and said he had taken it to the stable of Edward Bureau. We went up the Yard; Charles State < no role > and I assisted Wood to get up into the loft; he was to get in at the loft door. He got on my shoulder; the loft door was then open; and while we were in there Wood threw down three trusses of hay; one was taken away by Slate, and I should have taken one only. I was secured by Matthews. Wood was in the loft as I believe, when I was taken by Matthews; and I told Mr. Willingham whom to look for, and where to look.

RICHARD SMITHERS < no role > , I am a constable; I was called in on this occasion by Matthews. In consequence of what Brown said, I went with him; and we met the three other prisoners, in New Pye street; I can't say how near to Willingham's. Brown said that is Charley Slate, you must snuff him; that is he that took the truss of hay away. I took Slate by the collar, and the other two ran away, but I can't swear to them. I took Slate as far as the White Horse in Broadway, and there I met Mr. Bligh, the officer of Queen square; I told him what had happened, and then we went to Bureau's, in Orchard, street ; he is a dealer in several things, greens, potatoes, iron, and Marine stores ; and Surgey was lying down by a kind of counter in the shop without his coat; and Bureau was sitting on the left hand side of the fire place; and Brown pointed out Surgey as one of those who were concerned in the robbery, and I believe he was one who made his escape from me. We took Surgey away. Afterwards I went with Bligh, to Bureau's stables some distance from his house; we found the stable locked, and a woman acting as Bureau's wife opened it for us. We went into the stable, and found part of a truss of hay, quite loose, and part trampled under feet, serving as a bed for the horse, and in a little place on the right hand, like a sort of bin, there was another truss of hay, and a great coat spread out; Mr. Bligh pulled up the great coat, and Phillip Wood < no role > was under itWe took him into custody; Brown saying that he was one of the party. Brown was with us all this time.

William Brown < no role > re-examined. I went with the last witness to the stable where the hay was; it was Bureau's stable, but I never saw Burean in it.

JAMES BLYE < no role > . I am an officer of Queen square ofice. I happened to be in the public house when Smithers brought Slate in. In consequences of what pased there, I went with Brown and him to Bureau's stables; I did not before know it was his stable, but I knew him well. When we went there, we found the stable door locked; we asked Bureau whether he had seen any hay that evening? and he said, no I looked behind the counter, and saw Surgery lying upon a kind of bed; and I took him into custody. I sent Smithers away with him, and I staid untill he came back. Bureau at that time was sitting by the fire side, and apparently very ill. When Smithers. returned, I asked Bureau for the key of the stable. Nothing wsa said while Smithers were gone, to ny knowledge. His wife went down to the stable with me. as he was lame' and when we went into the stable I discovered two horses feeding on hay; there was no racks. Looking into a kind of grain hole, which is appeared to be, I saw a whole truss, and at the other end a large dirty great coat spread out; and I suspected some person was under, and on moving it, I found Philip Wood < no role > , the late servant to Mr. Willingham. After we apprehended Wood, we searched him, and found on him some halfpence, and asked him how he came by them.

Thomas Matthews < no role > re-examined. Q. Blye has told us of a hole which came through from another loft; was that on your master's premises - A. Yes; it was a place coming from the corn loft into the hay loft, and which I fastened up on the Sunday morning.

THE COURT Then proceeded to sum up the evidence, and informed the jury, that in this case, the principle evidence to criminate the prisoners, was that of an accessary, whose testimony ought upon all occasions to be received with the greatest care and doubt, and ought not to be credited, unless bourae out by a coincidence of facts, and accompanied by corrobirative circumstances. In the first place, no evidence at all had gone so far as to criminate Surgey; and in the next place, the jury would consider whether a case of burglary was established against any of the prisoners. The accomplice Brown, who is the only person who afforded any proof upon that part, had sworn that he was talking with Surgey and Slate, when Wood came up; and then they agreed to go to get some of Mr. Willingham's hay; but when they got down the passage, the loft door was open; in his presence no violence was used, nor had it appeared at all how the partition between the corn room and hay loft had been broken down. In cases of burglary, though a man be at the end of the street watching to prevent detection, and was not at all present at the actual breaking, yet the law would consider him to be full as guilty, as the man who used the crow, or any other house breaking instrument. But in this case, in order to establish a burglary against the three it must be supposed that when they were talking together, and through not present with Wood, they were in contest with him.

There had been no evidence to that fact, and that was a mere question of probability not supported by any fact.

The next question would be, like the former, a question of probability, whether Wood broke into the stable!-and then, if he did, whether it was dark at the time. If upon these points, and doubts should arise, it in the duty of the jury to give that doubt to the prisoners. If however they were convinced that the hay was stolen by all or any of the first three prisoner then, and not till then would the question arise, whether Bureau had received the hay with a guilty knowledge of its being stolen.

WOOD GUILTY, aged 16,

SLATE, GUILTY, aged 16,

Of stealing, but not of the burglary .

Cobnfined six months , and fined 1s.

SURGEY, NOT GUILTY .

BUREAU, NOT GUILTY .

Second Middlesex jury, before Mr. Recorder.