QSR1848/4/5/23-24

Depostions and examinations - Ezra Hindes and George Sands (alias Thomas Sands) charged with stealing a tarpaulin from William Creak at Caddington (Beds)

9 October 1848

From: 1848 To: 1848

William Creak of Caddington (Herts), farmer - he lives in Caddington in the county of Herts and holds land in the same parish in the county of Beds. He lost a tarpaulin last August from a rick in a field opposite the turn to Lewsey Farm. He saw part of the tarpaulin onOct 1st at the cage in Luton in the possession of the police. It appears to have been cut in two. This half has part of the words West Smithfield on it. He knows it to be his property by a mousehole in one part and part of a mousehole in another. He remembers seeing it on August 12 which was Dunstable Fair day. It was missing the next morning. Robert Taylor of Dunstable, labourer - he is servant to Mr Creak. He saw the tarpaulin on the rick last harvest. His master told him on the day of Dunstable Fair that it was gone. He recognizes the part now produced by a hole where the mice gnawed it. He only swears to that hole. There are 12 holes in it - some are string holes and some appear to have been cut by the stones when they thrashed on it. He noticed the mousehole last winter - they found a mouse’s nest in it. The mousehole has ragged edges like one of the stringholes but the stringhole is partly bound. There are two other holes which have ragged edges like the mousehole but are not so large. John Millard of Luton, police constable - on Saturday 30 Sept he went with Mr Bayldon to Hindes house where they found him with Sands. Sands lives with Hindes and travels about the country with him. They found the part of the tarpaulin now produced in the barn. Hindes said he bought it at Dunstable Fair for 16s from a man he did not know - not the last Dunstable Fair but the one before that. He saw Hindes and Sands at Dunstable Fair on 12 August in the morning, and coming home at about 7pm he saw a tarpaulin on a rick opposite the turn to Lewsey the same colour as the one produced. The next afternoon Mr Creak told him of his loss and described the tarpaulin. After taking the prisoners to the cage on Saturday 30 Sept he put them into separate cells and heard the following conversation: Hindes: “We are done Snip”. Sands: “How the devil come you to think of that for nobody can’t tell where that came from”. Hindes: “It was all Smith’s doing. It must be the old man or else they would not have known anything about the saddle. If they ask you anything about its being cut you say we cut about 3 feet off it to make it fit the cart ... they are safe to know it again and we shall have seven pen’north. You heard what Millard said, that was the one”. Sands: “Don’t you split”. Hindes: “You are safe to get off on Monday they can’t do anything to you for it was found on my premises”. Sands: “I should like to go with you where you will I don’t want to leave you”. Hindes: “Where I was wrong, I ought to have told them I bought it last Dunstable Fair instead of the Dunstable Fair before”. Sands: “You can’t alter that now, stick to what you have said”. Hindes: “I wish we could get hold of some one as would come forward and swear that he see me buy it”. Sands: “But who are we to get”. Hindes: “If somebody would come and get in at the window and get the tarpaulin away then we should be all right. The next Sunday he took Mr Creak to the cage and Creak identified the tarpaulin. After that he heard Hindes and Sands talking: Sands: “They never can swear to that” Hindes: “You d--d fool did you not hear the man say he knew it by the hole”. Sands: “Whose is it?” Hindes: “It belongs to a man who used to live at the Half Moon near Dunstable”. Sands said he did not know him and Hindes repeated he was certain of being transported. [Cross examined by prisoners’ attorney] When he went to Hindes house on 30 Sept the first question Bayldon asked Hinds was if he had a tarpaulin. Hindes took them into the stable and showed them the one produced and told them he bought it at the Dunstable Fair before last. When he heard the conversation between the prisoners he was standing as close to the middle cell as he could. He stood there to listen as they wanted to find out other things. It was about 12pm. They had not been in the cell more than a minute. He stayed there listening for more than an hour. He left for 2 or 3 minutes then came back again. The 2nd time he listened between and hour and an hour and a half. Most of what he heard was during the first time. Not more than ½ minute after they were put in they started talking. After they said that without Smith nothing would be known about the saddle Hindes started taking about his wife and children and said he would not care anything about himself if it was not for them. Hindes was crying and Sands told him to keep his spirits up. [Repeats much of previous account of conversation] On the Sunday soon after Creak left he listened again between the 2 cells. There was another prisoner with Hindes. William Edward Bayldon of Luton, police superintendent - on 30 September from information he received he took PC Millard with him to Hinds house where they saw Hinds and Sands and found the tarpaulin. Hinds said they bought it at the Dunstable Fair before last. Ezra Hindes - on the advice of his attorney declined to say anything. George alias Thomas Sands - on the advice of his attorney declined to say anything

item

Hindes, Ezra,
Sands, George,
Sands, Thomas,
Creak, William,
Taylor, Robert,
Millard, John,
Bayldon, William Edward

CADDINGTON, DUNSTABLE, LUTON, Luton Lewsey Farm Estate, stealing, farmer, police constable, police superintendent, fairs and markets, threshing