- ReferenceQSR1855/3/5/16,37a/a
- TitleDepositions of George Rayner, curate of Totternhoe, Emily Marshall, a minor, Thomas Hinds, police constable of Whipsnade, James Costin, dealer in fish of Dunstable, James Chapman, wheelwright of Dunstable, George Impey, butcher of Dunstable, John Cliff, police constable of Eaton Bray and James Brothwell, barber of Dunstable. In the case of William Clark accused of stealing 10 live tame rabbits.
- Date free text14 May 1855
- Production dateFrom: 1855 To: 1855
- Scope and ContentGeorge Rayner: a curate of Totternhoe. On 5 May he had 10 tame rabbits at the back of his premises. He shut them up about 8pm but missed them the following morning. A rabbit had been shown to him by PC Cliff which he identified as his property by its colour and marks. He was also shown 3 rabbits skins, one of which he was confident was his property and the other 2 resembled rabbits which he had lost. Emily Marshall: a nurse maid to Mr Rayner. About 2 weeks previous she had been feeding the rabbits at the back of the property and there was a man at work in the adjoining field. He was very near the fence and looked at her feeding the rabbits. He had a brown frock on and a cloth cap. The frock and cap were like those of the prisoner Clark. She had seen the man several times at work. PC Thomas Hinds: on 6 May between 1 and 2am, he saw the prisoner Clark and another man going in the direction of Totternhoe. On 9 May he received a rabbit from George Impey and the following day he received 2 skins from James Chapman. He had since shown them to Mr Rayner who identified them. James Costin: a dealer in fish of Dunstable. On 6 May he was up between 5 and 6 am and looked out of the window and saw the prisoner Clarke. Clarke pulled something out of his side pocket but he could not see what it was and he shut the window. He dealt in fish and wild rabbits. He had bought tame rabbits but not since he had become a costermonger. James Chapman: a wheelwright at Dunstable. On 6 May he was in a barber shop at Dunstable and there was a man standing at the inside door. He saw 2 rabbit lying on a table. He asked the barber if he was dealing in rabbits and he said no but they were for sale and they cost sixpence each. Chapman commented they were very cheap and he would have them. He paid the man who had been standing by the door. He had a frock on which was not like the one the prisoner, Clarke, was now wearing but like the one shown to him by the police constable. He took the rabbits home and was afterwards asked by the police constable if he had bought any skins. He told the PC he had bought some rabbits and gave him the skins. George Impey: a butcher of Dunstable. On 6 May he had been sweeping his front door when 2 men came and asked him to buy 2 rabbits. He bought them and gave a shilling for the 2. He believed the prisoner Clarke was one of the men. The prisoner had on a frock like the one produced by the police. He gave the policeman a rabbit and the skin of the other, which he had sold to a man at Tebworth. John Cliff: on Sunday 6 May he received information that rabbits had been stolen. On Monday he took the prisoner Clarke into custody and told him what he was charged with. Clarke was dressed in an old smock frock and he noticed blood on the sleeves. Clarke said he knew nothing of the charge. There were a few spot so blood on the outside of the hutch in which the rabbits had been kept. James Brothwell: a baker in Dunstable. On 6 May a man came to his house with 2 rabbits and asked if he would buy them. He pulled the rabbits from his frock and put them on the table. James Chapman came in just after he had refused to buy them, as they were tame rabbits. Chapman asked about them and he told him the man wanted sixpence for 2 rabbits. Chapman bought them and gave the man sixpence for them. The prisoner Clarke was the man who brought the rabbits to his shop. Statement of the accused – William Clark: nothing to say.
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