The GLIO Site

PETERSFIELD.

     PETTY SESSIONS.—Present: Hon. J. J. Carnegie, chairman, J. Bonham Carter, Esq., M.P., and J. Waddington, Esq.

   TRESPASSING.—Eli Ewens and Albert Ewens ( father and son) pleaded guilty to a charge of trespassing in search of rabbits, in the parish of Hawkley, on Thursday, January 3rd.—Fined 5s. each and 10s. 6d. costs.

   STEALING PEA MEAL.— Thomas Cook was brought up in custody charged with stealing in the parish of Street, on Sunday last, half-a-bushel of pea meal, value 2s. 6d., the property of Mr. Thomas Howard.
—George Wooldridge deposed: I work for Mr. Howard at Tilmore Farm. On Saturday last I locked up the chaff house, there was a quantity of pea meal there. I went again next morning about seven o’clock, and stayed till nine; I did not miss anything then, and on leaving I left the door unlocked. I retyrned about twelve and then missed about half-a-bushel of pea meal from a sack. I had measured two bushels into the sack the night before, and had used about half-a-bushel in feeding the bullocks, and there was now only about a bushel left. I saw some tracks of footprints in the snow from the lane to the chaff-house, and back again. I followed the tracks over a gate on the opposite side of the lane, into Farmer Smith’s field, through that field and another, in the direction of Harrow-lane. I afterwards showed those tracks to P.C. Elderfield.
—P.C. Henry Elderfield deposed: From information I received I went on Sunday last to Mr. Howard’s farm in Tilmore-lane. I saw the last witness there; he showed me some foot-tracks in the snow at the back of the chaff-house. I followed those tracks up by the hedge in the field a few yards, over into the lane, up the lane about 50 yards, over a gate into a field, a few yards along that field over a bank into another field, all round by the hedge of that field to a gate within about 150 yards of Cook’s house. I then went back and proceeded by Harrow-lane to the back of Cook’s house; I saw prisoner there asked him if he had any meal for pigs in his house. He said “Yes.” I asked him what sort it was; he said “Pea meal; I’ve got half-a-bushel that I bought last Friday night at Mr. Lucas’s shop at Petersfield; a tall man served me with it.” I asked him if he would show it to me. He said “Oh yes; what is there some lost?” He took me into the wash-house and showed me some meal in a pan, and said “There it is.” I said, after looking at it, ‟This is not all pea meal.” He said “No, I had some barley meal left, and I mixed that with it. I've always had barley meal before, and that’s what I wanted the other night, but they told me they had none, and I was obliged to have pea meal,” I said ‟Is this all you have?” He replied “ Yes, except a few oats here in a bag.” While I was looking at the meal his wife was between me and the copper. I said “What is on the copper?” His wife said “Oh, nothing.” Cook said ‟Oh, there’s nothing there but two or three old bags.” I went and moved the bags, and underneath them found the pea meal which | now produce. There is over half-a-bushel. I said ‟What is this, then?” His wife replied, ‟It is a little we had left out of the other lot.” I told Cook I should take him into custody, and charge him with stealing it from Mr. Howard’s. He said “No, Mr. Lucas will tell you I bought it there on Friday night, and paid for it.” I then took him into custody and brought him to Petersfield. Yesterday I went to the gate where I had left off following the tracks the previous day, and traced them down to the end of the field, over the gate into Harrow-lane. There is a slope from the gate down the bank into the road. The tracks did not continue down the cart-way, but turned short round up the lane in the direction of Cook’s house within about 30 yards, where I lost them owing to the traffic in the lane. I took Cook’s boot with me and made impressions in the snow by the side of the tracks in several places, and also measured the tracks both in length and breadth, and they corresponded exactly with Cook’s boots. I produce a sample of pea meal which I took from Mr. Howard’s chaff-house — Wooldridge, on being recalled, said the pea meal taken from Cook’s house exactly matched the sample produced
— Thomas Monk deposed: I live at Mr. Lucas’s, Petersfield. On Friday evening last prisoner came to the shop and bought half-a-bushel of pea meal. It came from Durford Mill, which is used by Mr. Lucas. On comparing the sample from Durford Mill, now produced, with that produced by P.C. Elderfield, I am of opinion that they do not correspond; one is finer than the other. The meal I sold to prisoner weighed 22lb.
— P.C. Elderfield re-called, stated that the pea meal which he took from prisoner’s house weighed 36lb.
— John Smith deposed: I am grinder at Durford Mill for Mr. Lucas. On Wednesday or Thursday last I sent a lot of pea meal to the shop at Petersfield. The sample I now produce is from the same bin as that sent to Petersfield; that produced by P.C. Elderfield is not my grinding, and is from different peas. I know this by the outside shucks; it is not so fine as we grind ours. The mixed lot is composed of coarser pea and barley meal.—Witness was asked to examine and compare the meal taken from prisoner’s house, and the sample from Mr. Howard’s, having done so he said he believed them to be the same.
— Prisoner elected to be tried by the Bench, and pleaded not guilty. He was, however, convicted, and sentenced to two month’s imprisonment with hard labour.