WEST BRITON and CORNWALL ADVERTISER - 17 OCT 1851, Quarter Sessions part 2 SECOND COURT - before C. B. G. Sawle,Esq. JOHN CORNISH, 16, pleaded Guilty of stealing, on the 7th of October, at Redruth, a fustian jacket, the property of Mark RICHARDS. ROBERT VICARY, 35, was indicted for stealing, from the person of RICHARD BINNEY, divers moneys amounting to about 12s., his property. Mr. J. B. COLLINS for the prosecution, and Mr. CHILDS for the defence. On Friday the 10th instant, Richard Binney, a labourer, went to St. Columb with a donkey-cart, and some potatoes; and after selling the potatoes he went into Mr. WALKEY's public-house, where he remained between two and three hours, and drank three pints of beer. He went then towards his home, and had got as far as Whitewater-hill when a man jumped over the hedge, "clenched" the prosecutor, threw him down, and robbed him of his purse and money, amounting to about 12s. When prosecutor was drinking in the public-house at St.Columb, Vicary, the prisoner, and a man named John SKINNER were sitting opposite him, and prosecutor took out his purse in their sight. The landlord stated that the two men left his house about ten minutes after the prosecutor, and they were seen by two witnesses, PHILIP SALMON and JOHN HARRIS, going in the direction of Whitewater-hill, where prosecutor was robbed. Prosecutor said the man who jumped over the hedge and attacked him was not Skinner, but he believed it was the prisoner. From other circumstances, however, Mr. Childs, on the part of prisoner, contended that his identity was not made out as the party who committed the robbery; and the jury, after some consideration, gave a verdict of Not Guilty. JANE EVEREL, 13, was charged with stealing, in September last, a piece of black silk, the property of Thomas TREWEEKE. Frances EVEREL lives at Short-lane's end, in Kenwyn parish, and prisoner lived next door to her. The silk was taken from a box in Mrs. Everel's kitchen, and some black silk was afterwards found in prisoner's possession, which Mrs. Everel identified as that she had lost. Verdict, Guilty. [Obviously the reporter was confused - but if you substitute Mrs. Treweeke for Mrs. Everel, the article would be correct - Julia] ROBERT ANDREW, 24, pleaded Guilty of stealing at St. Austell on the 5th of August, a quilt, the property of WILLIAM CROWLE, farmer. JOSIAH SPARGO, 23, was charged with stealing a shirt on the 1st of August, belonging to Thomas BATTERSHILL, Fairmantle-street, Truro. Verdict, Guilty. Constable COPLIN, of Penryn, was called on by prisoner to give him a character; he said he had known him from a boy, and had never heard anything of the kind charged against him before. WILLIAM LAKES, 11, was found Guilty of stealing, at Bodmin, on the 19th of September, a shirt, the property of Joseph JULIFFE. The Court then rose. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15 - Before Sir Colman Rashleigh, Bart. JOHN NICHOLAS SPARGO was charged with stealing, at St. Austell, a cucumber, shown at the exhibition of the St. Austell Gardening Society. Mr. SHILSON for the prosecution, and Mr. CHILDS for the prisoner. On the 6th of August there was an exhibition of the Cottage Gardening Society at St. Austell. Mr. W. WILLIAMS had charge of one of the tables of vegetables. When he turned his back for about half a minute, prisoner was standing by one of the baskets of vegetables, in which there was a cucumber of large size. When he returned he missed the cucumber, and asked prisoner about it, on which the latter threatened to knock his teeth down his throat. Another witness, NICHOLAS INCH, saw the prisoner take a cucumber out of his trousers pocket, and put it behind his back, and believed some other person took it from him. WILLIAM VIVIAN said he saw prisoner take the cucumber out of the basket; he then said to prisoner, "that is doing the thing very fine," and prisoner replied he was fond of cucumbers. MR. NOTT, one of the committee of the society, said he was called on the occasion, and charged prisoner with taking the cucumber, which he denied. Prisoner gave a false name; he said his name was JOHN NICHOLAS, of St. Blazey. Mr. Shilson stated that the society had missed things before, but this was the first time they had been able to bring the stealing home to any person. Mr. Childs addressed the jury for the prisoner, submitting that though he took the cucumber, he had no intention of stealing it. Mr. Childs then called Mr. GEORGE JOB, who gave prisoner a good character, and said he contributed towards the support of his mother. Two witnesses called SOWDEN and CHARLES RUNDLE also gave prisoner a good character. The jury returned a verdict of Guilty, but recommended the prisoner to mercy. ROBERT JOHNS MOYLE was indicted for stealing an iron grate and cast-iron chimney front, fixed in the pitmen's and account house, on a mine called Wheal Rose, in the parish of Sithney, the same being the property of the REV. CANON ROGERS. Mr. SHILSON for the prosecution, and Mr. DARKE for the prisoner. The case lasted nearly the whole day, and all the witnesses were ordered out of Court till called for. The mine in question, Wheal Rose, had been abandoned by the adventurers, and the property had been given up into the possession of the Rev. Canon Rogers. The articles were stolen in September and October, 1850, but under a statute passed last session, both felonies were included in one indictment. Mr. Shilson stated that not only were the pitmen's house and account-house broken into, but also the smith's shop and other parts of the premises, and various things were taken away. In consequence of the breaking open of another house on the 8th of February last, a search-warrant was obtained, and the house of prisoner (who is a farrier) was searched by Mr. WEBB, an agent of Canon Rogers, and Constable CHAPPEL. Prisoner was not there, but in his bedroom up stairs they found a grate fixed which it was alleged had been stolen from the pitman's house. Chappel went in search of the prisoner, and met him coming towards his house with a bag of potatoes on his back. He told him that Mr. WEBB was at his house, waiting to see him about something. Prisoner asked him to take the potatoes and go on, and he would be there in a few minutes. He did not, however, come, and the constables had been unable to find him until August last, when he was apprehended at Goldsithney fair. Since he had been in custody, prisoner told the constables he had been in France, Plymouth, and other places. Mr. FREEMAN a farmer of Gunwalloe, stated that about the 20th of October he was out by night on his farm watching for trespassers. It was a good moonlight; he was behind a hedge, and saw prisoner about twenty-five yards from him, go by carrying a grate on his shoulder with a bar of wood. This was at half-past two in the morning, and within three quarters of a mile from the mine. Prisoner did not see witness at the time. Another witness, a little boy, said he was driving a donkey-cart in the fall of the year, and overtook the prisoner carrying a grate. The boy said this was between three and four in the morning, but on cross-examination he made some confusion about the time, saying it was about sunrise. With regard to the cast-iron chimney front, it was missed about the latter end of September from the account-house, and about October a front of that description was seen in a cart before prisoner's door. After this it was seen in an outhouse in prisoner's yard, and prisoner offered it to a person for sale. Subsequently, the chimney front was found in a pond adjoining the orchard of prisoner's brother-in-law, in such a position as to lead to the conclusion that it had been thrown over the hedge. The grate found in prisoner's house, and the cast-iron chimney front were produced in court; and witnesses were called to prove that these were the same as had been fixtures in the pitman's house and account-house. Further evidence was also given, that after the prisoner was in custody, and they were taking him to Helston to appear before the magistrates, Mr. FREEMAN passed by, and the prisoner inquired who he was, and being told he was going to give evidence against him, prisoner said, "I did not see him when I was passing through the mine." He also said to Constable HARRIS, "the grate I found upon the mine, and the other things were given to me." Mr. DARKE cross-examined the witnesses at great length, and ably addressed the jury for the prisoner, contending that the identity of the grate and chimney front, as the stolen property, had not been sufficiently made out; and that it was not proved the prisoner had taken those fixtures from the premises. Another point of the defence was that the prisoner had dealt in cattle, and went to France and Jersey for that purpose, - that in fact he did not leave for the purpose of escaping apprehension. He also called as witnesses, THOMAS LAWRENCE, of Mullion, prisoner's brother-in-law, and JOSEPH MOYLE, prisoner's uncle, whose evidence was to the effect that they had seen a grate of the same description as that produced in prisoner's bed-room in February last; consequently months before the robbery took place. As to the chimney front, Mr. Darke contended that the evidence was wholly inconclusive as against the prisoner. Mr. SHILSON replied on the whole case in a lucid speech, and pointed out the inconsistencies in the evidence given by prisoner's witnesses. The Chairman summed up at considerable length, and the jury, after briefly deliberating, gave a verdict of Guilty of stealing both the articles named in the indictment. GEESE STEALING - ROBERT HAWKEY, 40, ANTHONY HAWKEY, 20, and GEORGE OSBORNE, 20, were indicted for stealing, at the parish of Landulph, thirteen geese, the property of RICHARD ROBERTS. Robert HAWKEY was also charged with receiving the geese, knowing them to have been stolen. Mr. SHILSON conducted the prosecution, and called a number of witnesses. It appeared that a man called THOMAS MOYSE lives on an off farm in the parish of Landulph, in the occupation of Mr. ROBERTS. He had twenty-two geese under his charge, thirteen of which were missed on the morning of the 3rd of October. On the 2nd of October, two of the prisoners, Anthony Hawkey and George Osborne, were seen by a man who was thatching, about four gun-shots from Mr. Roberts's goose-house. They were then on the public road to Saltash. PHILIP BUCKINGHAM also saw them on the road going towards Mr. Roberts's farm. JOHN ELMS, a boatman at Saltash, was employed by the two prisoners, Anthony Hawkey and George Osborne, to take them across in his boat to Stonehouse, at six o'clock in the morning of the 3rd of October. They had four bundles, and there was blood about the bottom of the handkerchiefs. It further appeared that the prisoners, Osborne and Anthony Hawkey, had taken an unfurnished room of Mrs. O'NEILL, Newport-street, Stonehouse, and from information received this room was broken open by the constables. Policeman BRENT, of Devonport, said there were in the room five geese, three with their heads on, and two partly dressed for market, twelve heads of geese and fourteen pairs of geese feet. Constable ELLIS said there was about a bushel of entrails of geese on the floor, and in the corner a quantity of feathers, enough for a bedtie. On the walls were pencil marks, showing that some division of the spoils had taken place. Two heads of geese found in the room were produced in Court, and one of them was sworn to by Moyse as being the head of an old goose which had belonged to his master, Mr. Roberts. Conversations of the prisoners after they were taken into custody were deposed to, and it was shown that their room had been visited on different occasions by the elder prisoner, Robert Hawkey, who had taken away some of the geese. He stated that he did not know they were stolen. The jury, however, found him Guilty of feloniously receiving, and the other two prisoners, Osborne and Anthony Hawkey, Guilty of stealing the geese. A former conviction for stealing ducks from JAMES PAYNTER was proved against Robert Hawkey, who was then tried under the name of ROBERT CARVETH. The Chairman discharged the Jury between five and six o'clock, with the thanks of the county for their services. The Court rose at eight o'clock. NO BILLS - The Grand Jury ignored the following bills: against JOSIAH SPARGO, charged with stealing trousers from George PELLEW, Jun.; THOMAS HAMBLY, charged with stealing chimney ornaments from RICHARD COUCH; ANN SCANTLEBURY, charged with stealing money from the person of THOMAS MAGER; STEPHEN WILLIAMS, charged with stealing eight shillings and a seaman's register ticket from DENNIS MULLIN; JOSIAH MARSHALL, assaulting JAMES LANG, a constable at St. Kew; THOMAS MURTON, assaulting MARTHA ANDREW with intent &c; EDMUND LAUNDRY, stealing pilchards at st. Ives. Julia Mosman, OPC for St.Austell,Charlestown, and Treverbyn Website at http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~staustell W. Briton newspaper transcripts at http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~wbritonad Please visit the OPC website at http://cornwall-opc.org