QSR1843/3/5/4/a

Depositions and examination - Jane Stratton charged with stealing one gold seal from Edward Heighington

19 April 1843

From: 1843 To: 1843

Anne Ratliffe Heighington, wife of Edward Heighington of Woburn, grocer - Jane Stratton was in their service for about 1month during the summer of 1842. During this time she missed a small gold seal which was usually kept on an inkstand on a writing table in the dining room of their house. Stratton had nothing to do in that room except cleaning the grate. Elizabeth Gee the next witness was in her service at the same time. From information received she spoke to Elizabeth Gee respecting a letter she was told Gee had received from Jane Stratton. Elizabeth Gee produced the letter she now produces which is sealed with a seal bearing the same impression as the one she had lost. She brought the letter away with her and compared it with othe impressions in her possession made with the same seal, which all corresponded exactly. She has seen the seal now produced by William Coombs which she is sure is the same, although it appears to have been broken and mended again. She spoke to Elizabeth Gee about the letter about 10 days ago. Gee was then living at her mother's house at Silsoe. She did not directly tell Stratton she lost the seal, but did speak of it in the house. Elizabeth Gee - she is a housemaid in the service of Heighington. She lived in the service of her present master from Michaelmas 1841 to Michaelmas 1842. During that time Stratton was in Heighington's service for about a month, she thinks in September. She left the service on 13 October 1842 and Stratton had left about a fortnight before. A few days after Stratton left her mistress stated she had lost her seal and had not seen it for 2 or 3 days. She knew the seal Mrs Heighington meant having often seen letters sealed with it. Last January she received the letter now produced from Stratton. Before opening it the impression on the seal struck her as being that of the seal Mrs Heighington had lost. She mentioned this to her fellow servant at the Revd Mr Dawson's at Clophill in whose service she then was. She mentioned it in order to clear herself. About a fornight ago Mrs Heighington came to her at Silsoe and she gave her the letter. She is sure the seal now produced is the one that used to kept in Heighington's dining room at Woburn when she lived with him before. Two or three weeks after she left Heighington's Stratton came to drink tea with her at her mother's house. She told Stratton her mistress had lost a seal. She described the seal and said it had "Anne" upon it. She told Stratton her mistress suspected she [Gee] had taken it. Stratton said she knew nothing about it. William Coombs, chief constable of the Bedford Borough police - from information he received from Heighington he went to Sutton yesterday to Stratton's mother's house where he found Stratton. He asked Stratton where the seal was that she sealed the letter to Elizabeth Gee with. Stratton said she sealed the letter with an old seal she had found about the house. He asked her to look for it. She looked below stairs and then went upstairs. He went up with her and looked into several boxes. Stratton then opened a larger box which she said was her mother's and took out a small box in which he found the seal now produced. The seal was attached to a watch guard with Stratton owned to be her property. He then took Stratton into custody. On coming from Sutton to Bedford Stratton stated she found the seal in some dirt that she swept out of one of Mr Heighington's rooms when in his service and that the seal was then broken into two pieces. She had since had in mended which cost 10d. Jane Stratton - one morning she was sweeping the dining room and the passage and she gathered the dirt up and put it in the same dust pail as Elizabeth Gee had put hers in. When she was going to empty it she saw the broken seal. She laid it on the mantelpiece in the kitchen and when she cleaned the mantelpiece down she put the seal into the kitchen drawer where her things were. She did not perceive anything more of the seal until she got to Kimbolton. She then found it in her box. She wrote Elizabeth a letter and sealed it with the seal and sent it to her. She did not think the seal was of any consequence. She thought it was thrown away.

item

Stratton, Jane,
Heighington, Edward,
Heighington, Anne Ratliffe,
Gee, Elizabeth,
Dawson,
Coombs, William

WOBURN, SILSOE, CLOPHILL, SUTTON, stealing, personal seals & coats of arms, grocer, servant, housemaid, Chief Constable