QSR1863/4/5/15-16

Depositions of Joseph Axbee, labourer of Woburn. George Sedgwick, labourer of Aspley Guise. Edward Flude, painter of Woburn Sands. George Edmunds, police constable stationed at Woburn. Jane Jenkins, wife of John, labourer of Woburn Sands. In the case of John Hirdle and James Burgess accused of stealing 10 live fowls.

16 October 1863

From: 1863 To: 1863

Joseph Axbee: was employed by the prosecutor to tend his fowls. In Aspley Statute week, he missed 10 fowls from the premises. The fowls roosted in a hovel in the farm yard. The next day he saw 5 fowls in a hamper on his master’s premises and believed them to be part of the 10 he had missed. George Sedgwick: he was employed by the prosecutor, Mr Gascoyen and lived in Aspley Guise. On 3 October he was going to work about 5.30am and saw a hamper standing on a bank just underneath a hedge in a field belonging to Mr Ardley. He opened the hamper and found 5 dead fowls. He took them to his master. The hamper was not hidden. Edward Flude: about midday on 2 October he had been walking in the street of London Colney. He met the prisoners and said hello to them and asked them what had brought them there. The prisoner said they were obliged to “hook it” and he asked them what for. They replied they had stolen some fowls from Mr Gascoyen and had sold 5 and hidden 5 others in a hedge towards London. PC George Edmunds: on 3 October he went to Mr Gascoyen’s farm and was shown a hamper containing 5 dead fowls. He took some of the feathers from each of the bodies and also took 4 black feathers from under the hovel where the fowls roosted. Whilst the prisoners were in the lock-up, Hirdle said they had sold some of the fowls to Harvey Page of Woburn Sands but did not set a price for them. Hirdle said they were to be placed in a certain place for Page but he would not say where. Both prisoners said that Page was to pay for the fowls in the course of a night or 2. The prisoners would not say the number they had sold Page. Jane Jenkins: on the evening of 1 October 2 boys came to her door and inquired for her husband. The boys said they had dead fowls to sell but she refused to buy them. She saw 2 fowls. She did not know the boys but they wore caps. She could not say if the prisoners were the boys or not. Statement of the accused: neither wished to say anything.

item

Hirdle, John,
Burgess, James,
Axbee, Joseph,
Gascoyen, George,
Sedgwick, George,
Flude, Edward,
Edmunds, George,
Jenkins, Jane,
Jenkins, John

WOBURN, WOBURN SANDS, ASPLEY GUISE, London Colney, stealing, fowls, painter