QSR1843/4/5/17,31

Depositions and examinations – Elizabeth Marsh and Jemima Brownhill

8 September 1843

From: 1843 To: 1843

Charlotte Smith, wife of Jabez Smith of St Paul Bedford – her husband Jabez Smith and Mr Thomas Partridge of Leagrave, Luton are partners in the millinery trade. Miss Ann Sinnell Partridge acts on behalf of her father but has no direct interest in the business. She manages the business jointly with her under the name of “Smith and Partridge”. Elizabeth Marsh is the domestic servant of her husband only – he pays here wages out of his separate property. It was Marsh’s duty to clean the shop and workhouse. Marsh entered her husband’s service about 2 weeks ago. She has examined the contents of 3 parcels now produced by Mr Coombs – brown paper parcel A, newspaper parcel B and a bundle in a handkerchief marked S M T – the blue velvet bag, the little wicker basket, the table doyleys and 3 pairs of worked cuffs (part of her own dresses) are the property of her husband. All the other articles except the scissors, black frieze, white neck handkerchiefs and short lengths of riband are the property of the partnership. The flowers and the riband of the red cap and the riband of the other cap are also theirs which she acknowledges. The two pieces of broad red riband and the piece of black riband now produced by Mr Coombs correspond with other riband in the partnership stock. Jabez Smith – corroborates his wife’s evidence. On Wednesday September 6 about 6pm due to information he received he went with his errand boy John Darrington to a house in Grey Friars Walk occupied by one Brownhill who was previously a stranger to him. He saw his daughter Jemima Brownhill and asked if his servant had sent a parcel there that day. Brownhill asked who the servant was – when told it was Marsh she said “Oh it’s the Cook that use to live at Renholds’s”. He asked if Marsh had sent a parcel that day. The young woman said she had not. He asked if she was sure as he had received information to that effect. He called Darrington in and asked if he had brought a parcel there or whether he had brought him to the wrong place. Darrington said he was sure and had brought the parcel to Mrs Brownhill or Miss Brownhill, he was not sure which. Miss Brownhill then admitted Darrington brought a parcel either that day or the previous day. She could not say what was in the parcel as it had been sealed and stayed that way until Marsh came in for the parcel. She (Brownhill) left the room and Marsh opened it in her absence, then tied it up again and gave it to Brownhill to take care of for her. He asked for the parcel. Brownhill took something out of a chair and went upstairs, returning 2 or 3 minutes later with a small brown paper parcel (marked A). The direction on the paper was “to be left for the Cook at Mrs Brownhill, Bedford”. He opened the parcel in front of Miss Brownhill. It contained about 2 yards of new glassy silk, about a yard of lining muslin, about ¾ yard of Brussells net, 4 pieces of riband (all new goods), and a pair of marked cuffs which are not new. He asked Miss Brownhill if there was another parcel. She insisted there was not. He said she had better go upstairs and make certain. She did so and came down with a parcel wrapped in newspaper, claiming she did not know Cook had left another one there. Darrington acknowledged he brought that parcel (marked B) as well as the other. The newspaper parcel has not been opened. It was directed “to be left for the Cook at Mrs Brownhill” in the same hand. She insisted there was nothing more. He sent for Mr Coombs but he did not come so after half an hour he left the house, taking the parcels with him. He laid them in the counting house. When Mr Coombs came he gave the prisoner to him and went with Coombs, taking the parcels with him, to Brownhill’s house. Miss Partridge and Miss Adams went with them. They searched the house but found nothing more. The parents of Elizabeth Marsh live at Milton Ernest about 5 miles from Bedford. The next morning he went with Coombs to their house at Milton. They first went to the house of Joseph Marsh, the prisoner’s brother. He saw Marsh’s wife who in response to his inquiry went to a bonnet box in the bedroom and took out the 2 caps wrapped in silver paper he now produced. She then produced a bundle tied in a white handkerchief marked SMT from another place in the bedroom. [Contents listed included black lute string, riband, oil skin tablecloths or doyleys, a blue velvet bag, a muslin shirt, collar, cuffs, gloves, a chemisette and a wicker basket containing cotton and scissors] They searched the house and in the box found another oil skin doyley like the others, and in a drawer downstairs found a small brown paper parcel containing hooks and eyes. She said they were not hers and she did not know whose they were. The newspaper parcel B was opened and found to contain small pieces of carpet, another table doyley and 4 muslin neck handkerchiefs. Between his visits to Brownhill’s house he has asked Marsh where Miss Brownhill was when she opened the parcel – she said Miss Brownhill was in the room next to the table where she opened it and helped her by cutting the string. Marsh said Brownhill laughed at first then said “Oh Cook you should not do so”. He asked if Marsh thought Miss Brownhill knew she took the things from them. Marsh assumed so. Before this conversation he asked if Marsh was in the habit of visiting anybody in Bedford. She said not. She also denied being in the habit of sending parcels to anybody. He asked if she knew anyone by the name of Brownhill. She said she did but denied sending a parcel there that day. When she realised he had been to Brownhill’s she admitted taking the parcels from out of the shop. He used no threat or promise or inducement to her to say this. John Darrington, aged 11 years – he is Mr Smith’s errand boy. Two or three weeks or a month ago he carried a small paper parcel (B) for her to Mrs Brownhill’s. He has seen her write and thinks the direction is her writing. He took the parcel to Mrs Brownhill’s and told her he had brought the parcel from Mary [sic] and was to leave it there until she came. Mrs Brownhill took the parcel but said nothing. Marsh was usually called Mary although her name is Elizabeth. He did not see Miss Brownhill. Last Wednesday morning Marsh gave him a brown paper parcel (A) to take to Mrs Brownhill’s. He did so. He did not see Miss Brownhill and did not know what was in the parcels. After he took the newspaper parcel on the night of Mr Munn’s concert Marsh told him to go to Mrs Brownhill’s and say she wanted to see Miss Brownhill or Sophy Brownhill. He went but they were not at home and he gave the message to Mrs Brownhill. The following evening Miss Brownhill came to the back door leading out into the Market Place. Mary talked to her a little while in the passage. He did not hear what they said. He saw Brownhill there once before. He never saw Mary give anything to Miss Brownhill. William Coombs, chief constable of Borough of Bedford – he accompanied Mr Smith to Mrs Brownhill’s on September 6. After receiving parcels A and B and searching Marsh’s box he took Marsh to his own house where she was to remain all night. He informed her about the parcels. He opened parcel A and told Marsh Mrs Brownhill said she [Marsh] had sent it. He asked if the things in the parcel were what she sent. She said they were. She also admitted sending parcel B and agreed it was in the same state in which she sent it. She admitted writing the direction on parcel B. Later as he was taking his supper Marsh asked if he was going to Milton in the morning. She said she hoped he would not search the house, and that there was no more than she had told her master about. The next morning he accompanied Mr Smith to Marsh’s brother’s house and the things Mr Smith listed were found. When they returned to Bedford Mr Smith accompanied him to his house. They opened the bundles found at Milton in Marsh’s presence and told her they were produced by her sister-in-law as things Marsh had left with her a little time ago. Marsh acknowledged this. Yesterday evening he was directed by the Mayor to warn the mistresses to attend the examination of this case today at 11am. When he went to Brownhill’s house he delivered the message to Mrs Brownhill. Mrs Brownhill asked him to go in as she wanted to speak to him. She gave him a piece of black riband her daughter found in a room that morning which she thought must have dropped from the brown paper parcel and 2 black ribands the Cook brought there some time ago that her daughter had forgotten about. He went home and had his supper with Marsh. After supper he said he was afraid she had not told him all she had taken to Brownhills. Marsh said she had, but on seeing the riband admitted it had been in the brown paper parcel and said she had forgotten taking the other two pieces of riband to Brownhill’s. Elizabeth Marsh of St Paul, Bedford, spinster – “if Mr Smith will not put me to prison I will pay him anything he desires”. Jemima Brownhill of St Paul Bedford, spinster – when Mr Smith came to the door he asked if Mrs Brownhill lived there. Her mother went to the door. Smith asked whether a parcel had been brought there by a boy that day. She said not. The boy said he had brought a parcel that dinner time. She said to the boy she was certain it was not that dinner time, that it was either that morning or the previous morning. Mr Smith asked to see the parcel and she brought it to him. She said she had no idea what was in it. Mr Smith wished her to look at the silk as she was a dressmaker – she said it was like an apron. He asked if she had anything else. She thought not but when she got upstairs she was looking about and thought of this parcel (B). She brought it down. She said there was nothing else. She and her mother both said he was welcome to search. Later Mr Smith, Mr Coombs, Miss Partridge, Miss Adams and the boy came back. Mr Coombs opened the brown paper parcel and asked her if she could swear they were the goods Mr Smith had taken away. She said they were. Mr Coombs asked her to sign her name on the parcel so she could take her oath of it again. Miss Adams and Miss Partridge went with her mother to search. They did not find anything. She denies what Mr Smith said as to what Marsh told him she had said. When Marsh came in that afternoon she asked for the brown paper parcel. She saw that Marsh had a bundle under her arm and said “what are you come away from your place?” Marsh said no, she had been borrowing a pillow, which looked like a lace pillow. She was very busy and the next time she looked Marsh was undoing a little parcel in a white handkerchief. She saw there were parchments used for pillow and bobbin [lace]. Marsh said she was going to make a piece of lace for Miss Adams. That is all she saw. Marsh asked if William brought a parcel there that morning. She said he had and Marsh asked to see it. As soon as she fetched it she was so busy she took up her work directly. She is not one to take notice of what others are doing. She did not cut it and does not know what Marsh cut it with. She went after the children that were disagreeing. When she came back into the room Marsh was doing up the parcel and appeared in a hurry as she always did when she came in. The parcel lay there for an hour or so until she took it upstairs, where it remained until Mr Smith came.

item

Marsh, Elizabeth,
Brownhill, Jemima,
Smith, Charlotte,
Smith, Jabez,
Partridge, Thomas,
Partridge, Ann Sinnell,
Darrington, John,
Marsh, Joseph,
Brownhill, Sophy

Bedford St.Paul, LEAGRAVE, LUTON, Bedford Greyfriars Walk, domestic servant, milliner, stealing, fabrics, ribbons