QSR1846/2/5/20-21

Depositions and examination - George Stevens and Samuel Crowsley

28 February 1846

From: 1846 To: 1846

Thomas Smart of Kempston – last Saturday night (Feb 32) he went to Mr Lilley’s beer house at Green End about 9.30pm. He had a small flag basket with him, with 1lb of soda, ½ lb of sixpenny soap, 1lb of sixpenny sugar and 6lbs of pork. He came out again about 9.45. He was quite sober. Stevens and Crowsley were in the house. He went out of the house for a short time to look at a horse of the Wests’, leaving his basket and the contents in the house. When he returned he missed his basket. The prisoners were no longer in the house. He suspected them and went after them. He saw Stevens carrying his basket. Stevens said he did not know it was his and took it by mistake thinking it was his. He took his basket from Stevens. He went to Crowsley first and saw his soda in his hand. Crowsley said Stevens had got his basket. Stevens offered him the soda which he took. Crowsley said “we took the basket by mistake thinking it was our basket”. They were together when he first saw them but when he stopped Crowsley Stevens went on. When he looked in his basket the contents were right except for the soda. Tamar Lilley of Green End, Kempston – last Saturday night the prisoners were in her father’s house. She saw Smart go out the back way. While he was gone she saw the prisoners leave the house, with one of them carrying Smart’s basket. She heard one of them say to the other “there’s your basket”. The other then took the basket. They did not leave a basket behind them. She saw one of them when he came in. She did not see whether they had two baskets when they left. George Stevens – he took his own basket in and brought it out. He never knew anything of its being Thomas Smart’s basket until they got a long distance from Mr Lilley’s house. Samuel Crowsley – he took it and thought it was Stevens’s basket, which had some apples in it. When they left Lilley’s house he asked Stevens if had his basket. George went on and did not hear what he said to him. They went on a great way. He said to him “George, take your basket” and Stevens said he had it. He said to Stevens he must have taken somebody’s basket for his. He gave Stevens the basket. Stevens gave him the soda and said there were shop things in the basket. He took it in his hand and Thomas Smart overtook them directly.

item

Stevens, George,
Crowsley, Samuel,
Smart, Thomas,
Lilley, Tamar

KEMPSTON, Kempston Green End, stealing, food, sugar, pork, beer houses