Bedfordshire Archives Service Catalogue
  • Reference
    QSR1871/2/5/7
  • Title
    Depositions and examination - Thomas Rose of Woburn, labourer, charged with passing off a counterfeit sovereign to Hannah Healey
  • Date free text
    29 March 1871
  • Production date
    From: 1871 To: 1871
  • Scope and Content
    Hannah, wife of James Healey of Woburn, innkeeper - they keep the Bell Inn at Woburn. Rose is a stranger to her. On Wednesday evening 22 March he came to their house and asked for lodgings for himself and a couple. She said she could not accommodate him. He left and returned in about ¾ hour with a man and woman. They pressed her to take them in. She refused at first but later agreed. They slept in a double bedded room. The next morning they got up about 8am and remained in the house some time. Rose went first and left the man and woman behind. He returned between 11 and 12 and had a pint of beer. Rose gave her what she supposed to be a sovereign, she gave him change and he left the house. She put the sovereign in a drawer with 3 half sovereigns and no other money. Between 1 and 2pm she examined the sovereign and found it was very light. She sent her son with it after her husband who was in the town and to look for Rose. She saw nothing of Rose’s wife. James Healey of Woburn, innkeeper - on Wednesday Rose and another man and woman slept at his house. The next morning he went out leaving Rose in his house. Between 1 and 2pm his son came with a sovereign which he found was a bad one and very light. He went to look for Rose and saw him at the Shoulder of Mutton Inn at Woburn. He showed Rose the sovereign. Rose said his master gave it to him that morning and he would go and make it right with his [Healey’s] wife. They went to his house together. He went up the steps and Rose ran away. He ran after Rose calling “stop thief”. He pursued him down the Crawley road. Rose left he road and went over the fields in the direction of Aspley Wood. He came back and went down the Woburn Sands road thinking to intercept him. A few minutes later he saw Rose in a field with several other men. They brought Rose to him and he was placed in a cart. He met PC Whinnett and gave Rose into his custody. William Healey, son of James and Hannah Healey - between 1 and 2pm last Thursday (Fair day) his mother gave him a sovereign and told him to go and look for his father in the town as it was a bad one. He found his father and gave him the sovereign. Alfred Baker of Woburn, engineer - on Thursday 23rd about 2pm he went in pursuit of Rose. He and others crossed 2 fields from the Crawley road and saw a man running by the side of a hedge. The man turned right and made towards Mr Brown’s barns in the direction of Aspley Wood. He found Rose lying in a ditch close to a rick. He believes Rose came from under the rick - he staggered about and fell into the water. He saw Rose taken out of the ditch and placed in a cart. James Healey got up into the cart with him and took him away. William Whinnett of Woburn, police constable - about 2pm on Thursday he received Rose from James Healey, who charged him with passing a bad sovereign. Rose said he knew nothing about it and that his master John Sherby gave it to him that morning to get himself [Rose] and his wife breakfast. He later heard Rose say to his superintendent that he didn’t find any more about him and can’t think how he came to be such a fool as to run away. Charles Turner of Woburn, silversmith - the coin produced is a bad one. It appears to be an alloy of copper and brass or zinc washed with gold. On close examination he believes the greater part to be zinc. Thomas Rose - he brought 2 horses from Northampton to Woburn Fair. "He" [not named] lent him 6d on the road and went on in front. Rose met "him" coming into the town with the horses, gave him a sack to get some corn and told him to get him lodgings at the same time. He went to the Bell, but they could not take him. As he was coming back with the corn he met "him" and 2 Bedford men. They all went to the Bell and "he" paid for 2 quarts of beer. They went out and he asked "him" for 6d more which he gave and told Rose to go to bed and get up at 8am. "He" called him in the morning. He got some corn for "him" and asked for some money to get breakfast. "He" said he would come down but never did. Rose waited for an hour then went to "him" in the Fair. "He" asked Rose to run a pony up the street. He did so. About 12pm he asked "him" for some money and was given the sovereign. "He" told Rose to go and change it and take 2s out of it. He did so and bought the remainder of the change to him. "He" said he would give 3s and afterwards did so, saying it was the 6s for his 2 days work. He changed the sovereign at Mrs Healey’s. He did not know it was a bad one.
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