QSR1853/1/5/20

Depositions of William Barnes, labourer of Chalgrave, William Clough, police sergeant of Hockcliffe, John Thorogood, police constable of Toddington. In the case of William Wright accused of stealing a doe and 5 young rabbits.

6 December 1852

From: 1852 To: 1853

William Wright: a labouring man of Wingfield. He kept rabbits in a barn adjoining his house. On 3 December he fed the rabbits and locked the barn door, however, next morning he found the lock and staple gone and the hutch door open. A doe rabbit and 5 young were gone. He advised Sergeant Clough and on his arrival pointed out some strange footmarks leading to and from the garden to the road leading to Houghton Regis. Under instruction from Sergeant Clough, he dug up one of the footprints. It was the mark of a right foot. He has also seen the mark of the left foot which was the same size. It had a print of a nail in the corner, which appears to be larger than the other nails in the shoe. The prisoners relations lived near Wright and he had seen him in Wingfield. William Clough: a police sergeant stationed at Hockcliffe. On being advised of the loss he went to Wright's house in Wingfield and the prosecutor showed him the barn and the footmarks. One of the footmarks was cut out of the soil by the prosecutor. There were distinct marks of 2 lines of nails on the point of the shoe when it was taken but this was not so distinct once it had been cut out of the wet soil. There were long nail marks in the corner and point of the foot was very long and narrow. The prisoner was well known to Clough and he recalled the prisoner having a long narrow foot. He saw Constable Thorgood and communicated his suspicions to him. John Thorogood: he went to the prosecutors and saw the footmark which had been cut from the soil. The following morning he went to the prisoner’s house in Houghton Regis. Sergeant Clough had advised him William Wright was suspected of the robbery due to the length of his foot. He saw the prisoner and asked to see his shoes. He measured the shoes and found they corresponded with the footmark taken at Wingfield. The prisoner had just eaten dinner with his family. Part of a rabbit was in a dish on the table and a partly eaten pudding contained parts of a young rabbit. He found 4 kidneys in the pudding. The prisoner said his wife had bought the rabbit at Dunstable market. The prisoner and his wife said the parts of the rabbit he found all belonged to one rabbit. He asked the prisoner’s wife if the rabbit she bought had entails and she said no, they had been taken out. He left the prisoner in the custody of another constable and went to the privy on the premises. He found 5 sets of entails there. There were 4 of young rabbits and 1 of an older one and they were fresh.. The prisoner was taken into custody and charged.Statement of the accused: he was not guilty and had not been on the prosecutor's ground. His wife bought the rabbit at Dunstable.

item

Wright, William,
Barnes, William,
Clough, William,
Thorogood, John

CHALGRAVE, Wingfield, Hockcliffe, Dunstable Market, TODDINGTON, rabbits, stealing