QSR1879/1/5/6-7

Depositions and examinations - Eli Richardson and David Odell, charged with stealing 16 live ducks value 40s from Samuel Taylor Maddams of Haynes, farmer, on 6 December 1878

12 December 1878

From: 1878 To: 1879

Samuel Stanford of Maulden, labourer – he is employed by Mr Maddams. The two prisoners live at Maulden and he knows them well. On Friday evening 6 December shut Mr Maddams’ ducks up in the duck house and pinned the door. It was not locked. He put in 9 ducks that were outside. The others were already in the house. The ducks produced are like Mr Maddams’. One of them he can swear to as being his – it was just inside the door when he put the others in. John Maddams – he lives with his father Samuel Taylor Maddams, a farmer at Haynes and looks after the farm for him. He personally cares for his father’s ducks. They have 24 of them altogether. He saw Samuel Stanford put them up at about 5pm on 6 December. The duckhouse is only pinned, not locked. On 7 December he went to let the ducks out at 7.30am and found the door was unpinned and there were only 2 ducks left there. He found 6 more ducks in the henhouse – they had got in there by accident the night before. Inside he found footprints of a man’s foot on the duck manure on the floor. Feathers were scattered about up to the rickyard. He locked the duckhouse up to preserve the footprints and told the police. That morning with Supt. James and Sergeant Tatman he traced ducks’ feathers from the rickyard across 2 of his fields in the directon of Maulden Church. The next day he showed the footprints in the duckhouse to the Sergeant, who made an impression with a pair of boots which matched exactly. There were nails missing in the boots which were also missing in the impressions. The boots referred to are now produced. On Monday he saw his lost ducks at the police station which are the ones produced. One of the drakes was lame and one of his ducks was white. He is sure they are his father’s property. William Smith – he is a cattle dealer and lives at Maulden. On Friday 6 December he was standing in the street at about 10.15pm in Maulden. He saw Richardson coming from the direction of his own house. Richardson passed him and asked him for some tobacco. Richardson then went across a field of Mr Butts, not by the footpath but to the left. It was moonlight. Richardson went in the direction of a gate in the left corner of the field. He heard a whistle from that direction. There is a footpath from the next field to Haynes. The second field from where he last saw Richardship is a turnip field in Mr Bates’ occupation. The next day he saw Richardson again and spoke to him. From what he had seen the night before he asked him jokingly whether he had a hare to sell. Richardson said he did not have a hare, but did have a duck. He left Richardson without replying. [Cross-examined] He is sure he saw Richardson. He got onto some steps on purpose to look after him. He gave Richardson some tobacco. He did not stay long after Richardson left. A man named Adkin was with him. Philip Richardson – he is the occupier of the Ship beerhouse at Maulden. He is not related to Eli Richardson. On 6 December Richardson and Odell were in his house until about 9.45pm and left together. On 7 December about 6.15am he was called from outside by the two prisoners. He let them in and drew them 2 quarts of beer at their request. While they were drinking one of them asked if he could do with any ducks. He said “no, you ain’t got no ducks have you”. They said they knew where there were some. He said he would have no ducks on his place. They left his house. One of them said he was going up into Butt’s turnip field at the back of his house, where Richardson has been working lately. They left together, a little after 7am. There is a footpath from his house into the turnip field. They came back together about 9am but did not stop long. They were in and out several times during the day. Sergeant Tatman came about midday and made enquiries. On 8th Eli Richardson came to his house. He told Richardson he had seen the police and told them the above. Richardson made no reply. John Tatman, police sergeant stationed at Clophill – on 6 December he visited Richardson’s beerhouse between 9 and 10pm. The two prisoners were there. The next morning he went to Mr Maddams’ at Haynes on hearing about the loss of the ducks. With Mr James and Mr madams he traced duck feathers from Mr Maddams’ rick yard across 2 of his fields in the direction of Maulden Church. At a stile at the end of the 2nd field the feathers ceased. There is a footpath there leading from Maddams’ farm to Maulden. He went on to Maulden with the Superintendent and with PC Hoare went to the beerhouse where he saw Odell. He asked what time Odell went home the previous night. Odell said about 10, that he did not go into the house but slept in the barn. He told Odell he asked as something had been lost the night before. He asked what time Odell left home that morning – Odell said he would not tell him any more. He noticed some down like duck’s down sticking to Odell’s clothes. He then went to Richardson’s house and asked what time he came home the night before. Richardson said about 10, and that he went to bed about 10.30 and laid there until 7.30am, when he got up and went into Butt’s turnip field but it was too hard, so he then went to Richardson’s beerhouse. He noticed Richardson also had some pieces of down on his jacket. Next morning Odell was in custody on another charge. He and PC Hoare took Odell’s boots to Maddams’ farm. He saw Maddams who unlocked the duckhouse door for him. He matched the impression made by the boots to the footprints and they corresponded. The length of foot, the number of rows of nails, the shape of the boots and the missing nails agreed. That evening he went with the Supt and PC hoare to Mr Butt’s turnip field and found 2 bags buried in two separate turnip pits. One bag contained 10 ducks and the other 6, both tied with snares. He later obtained another bag (produced) from the barn of Odell’s father in Maulden. He went with Supt James to the Ship beerhouse and apprehended Richardson. When charged Richardson said “well that is a D--- thing. Can you sware that I stole them. He said that Richardson was offering ducks for sale at 6am the morning after they were stolen. Richardson said he often had an old hare or pheasant for sale in a publick house. At the station he searched Richardson and found the snares produced, which are like the snares on the bags. On 9th with PC Hoare he took both prisoners’ boots to Mr Butt’s turnip field. In several places near where the ducks were found were footprints corresponding with Odell’s boots. He could not find any prints there corresponding with Richardson’s. Further up the field was the track of 2 men coming across the field towards the heaps. They tracked these across two other fields in the direction of Maddams’ farm. In the field near the turnip field they found prints corresponding in size with Richardson’s boots. The track turned out of the footpath across the ploughed field into the turnip field, three fields from where they had missed the track of feathers. It is the same footpath. He showed the ducks to Maddams who identified them as his fathers’. He charged Odell with stealing them. Odell said he knew nothing about them. He charged Richardson who said he “Oh, are they the ones then? He said they were. George William Hoare, police constable stationed at Haynes – he accompanied PS Tatman to Haynes on 7th December to trace the feathers from Mr Maddams’ farm. He was also present when Tatman spoke to the two prisoners in Maulden. He noticed the down on Odell’s jacket. There was a small white feather on his arm. He was present when Odell’s boots were compared with the footprints in the duckhouse and when the ducks were found in the pits. He was also present when Odells boots were compared with some footprints at the pits. He helped trace the footsteps from the turnip field and saw Richardson’s boots fitted into some footprints in the next field. He corroborates Tatman’s evidence in every particular. Joel Cave of Maulden, labourer – he went to the Ship in Maulden about 7.30am on 7 December. No one was there but the landlord. Richardson came in, soon followed by Odell. He remained until 9 or thereabouts. He had been working with Richardson pitting turnips in Mr Butt’s for some days previously. The 6th was the last day he was there. They finished measuring up on that morning. The pits were completed and they left their spades near the place. The spot where PS Tatman found the ducks is near where they left the spades. Eli Richardson – he has nothing to say Davd Odell – he has nothing to say.

item

Richardson, Eli,
Odell, David,
Maddams, Samuel Taylor,
Stanford, Samuel,
Maddams, John,
Smith, William,
Richardson, Philip,
Tatman, John,
Hoare, George William,
Cave, Joel,
Butt

HAYNES, MAULDEN, CLOPHILL, stealing animals, ducks, turnips, farmer, cattle dealer, police sergeant, Maulden Ship