Charles Huske Allen

343

Maureen Withey on 29th December 2021

Old Bailey Proceedings Online (www.oldbaileyonline.org, version 8.0, 29 December 2021), October 1814, trial of CHARLES HASKE ALLEN (t18141026-11). CHARLES HASKE ALLEN, Theft > mail theft, 26th October 1814. 879. CHARLES HASKE ALLEN was indicted, and the indictment stated, that at the time of committing the said felonies in the first eight counts mentioned in the indictment, he was a person employed in sorting letters and packets at the General Post office , at the parish of St. Mary Woolnoth, London , that he on the 20th of July , at the said parish, a certain letter then sent by the Post from Dartford, in Kent, to be delivered to James Wentworth , at Wandsworth, in the County of Surry, came to his hands while so employed as aforesaid, that he afterwards feloniously did secrete the said letter, then containing a 10 l. note . SECOND COUNT, for stealing a 10 l. note out of the said letter, the property of James Wentworth . THIRD COUNT, stating it to be a packet, instead of a letter. AND OTHER COUNTS, stating it to be the property of George Hall . RICHARD CLARK . In the month of July last, I was living at Dartford, with Mr. George Hall. On the 29th of July, I made up a letter to be sent to James Wentworth , of Wandworth; I enclosed in the letter a ten-pound note, the number of the note is 5325, dated 21st of May, 1814; having put that note in the letter, I wafered it; I myself, took the letter to the Post office. I was then in the employ of Mr. George Hall. This note was the property of Mr. George Hall, my employer. Mr. Knapp. You say, you wafered this letter; you wafered the letter in an hurry, did not you, and you took it away to the Post office - A. No. I am particular in money matters; I put the impression of a stamp upon it. I am particular in money matters; about two hours after I had wafered and put the stamp, I carried it to the Post office. I am perfectlyconvinced the wafer was holding when I took it to the office. The Post office is at Dartford; I put the letter into the box. HENRY HORON . I was Post-master at Dartford. On the 19th of July last, I made up the letters for the London packet. I forwarded all the letters that ought to be forwarded; I cleaned the box. CHARLES ROW . Q. What is your employ at the Post office - A. I receive the bags of letters that come from the Country. I was on duty on the 20th of July last. Q. Can you say whether the Dartford bag arrived in its usual course on that morning - A. It did. The prisoner was on duty that morning; it was his duty to open it; in point of fact, he did open it. Q. Was he employed in any other duty besides opening the bag that morning - A. Yes; he was clerk at the table; he had to sort his portion of letters at the table. Q. Had he to separate the Country letters from London - A. I cannot speak to that. CHARLES PEISSE . Q. On the 20th of July, were you employed in the General Post office - A. I was. I was at the same table with the prisoner at the bar; our first duty is to open the bags, and then to give them to the clerk to examine it. I assisted in sorting letters to the Country again. Q. You assisted in sorting Country letters - A. Yes; I threw out those which were for the Two-penny Post. Q. A Wandsworth letter would be separated from the London letters - A. Yes. COURT. In the first instance, you separate all the London delivery from the Country delivery, and then you have them in two separations, those which are for the Two-penny Post; a Wandsworth letter would be delivered by the Two-penny Post - A. Yes. It was the prisoner's duty and mine, to tell the charge of the Two-penny Post. Mr. Attorney General. For instance, suppose a hundred letters to be sent by the Two-penny Post, that hundred letters would be charged two-pence each, and a hundred two-pences would be the charge of that quantity of letters, that would be handed over - A. Yes. Q. Did you upon that day secrete any letter that passed through your hands - A. The whole of the letters that came into my hands, I gave regularly over. We finished our duty by eight o'clock in the morning. JAMES WENTWORTH. I live at Wandworth; I am a servant to Mr. George Hall, he is a millwright. The establishment is at Dartford. I was doing millwright work for him at Wandsworth. Q. Did you on the 20th of July, receive any letter from Dartford - A. I did not; I expected one; it did not come. I expected a remittance of money; it never came. Q. Has a bank note 5325 come to your hands for ten-pound - A. It never did. No letter came to my hands on that day. I received a letter on the 22nd, but not on the 20th. ROBERT NASH . I am shopman to Mr. Ellsworth, linen-draper, Bishopsgate-street. Q. Look at the prisoner, do you know him - A. Yes; I saw him on the 20th of July last, at Mr. Ellsworth's shop; I think about one or two o'clock; he came to buy some handkerchiefs; he bought six handkerchiefs, he paid for them in a ten-pound bank note; I desired him to put his address on it; he wrote his address on it. Q. Look at that note - A. This is the note; he wrote what is written upon this note, C. Willbram, Trafalger-place, City-road. Mr. Ellsworth wrote his acceptance, T. E. the initials of Thomas Ellsworth . Q. Did you know him before - A. I had seen him before. I saw the prisoner write this address myself; I handed him the pen. Q. When did you see him again - A. I saw him again that day, about two hours afterwards; I saw him go down Bishopsgate-street, and I saw him again two or three days after that, going down Bishopsgate-street; I knew his person perfectly well. Q. Where was it when you saw him again - A. At Giltspur-street Compter, about a week or a fortnight ago; I knew him as soon as I saw him; he was with several others. I have not the least doubt he is the person that came to our shop on that day. Mr. Knapp. Q. You had seen the prisoner on the day before - A. No. I had seen him a dozen times before. Q. You are speaking to the identity of a person that you saw in July - A. Yes. The ten-pound note drew my attention to him; from that circumstance, I have not the least doubt he is the person that gave me the note. Q. to Mr. Clark. This bank note when put in at Dartford, was perfect in all its parts - A. Yes, it was. Q. to Robert Nash . Was the bank note perfect in all its - A. I cannot speak to that; it had the appearance of a note in currency. COURT. Q. to Peisse. Was the prisoner in the employ of the Post office - A. Yes, about fifteen or sixteen months. PETER DOWLAND . Q. Are you in the office of Mr. Parkin, the Solicitor of the Post office - A. I am. Q. Have you made deligent enquiry at Trafalger-place, to know whether any person of the name of Wellbram lived in Trafalger-place - A. Yes, I made every enquiry at every house; I could find no such person as Wilbram. Q. to John Row. The prisoner was a clerk at the Post office, was he - A. Yes; he had been so fifteen or sixteen months. (The note read.) HUGH PARKIN . Q. You are a son of the Solicitor of the Post office - A. I am. Q. Where did you get this note from - A. From the Inspector in the Bank of England; this note is cancelled in the usual way, by a hole being punched out. It was delivered to me in the usual way, by the Inspector of bank notes, I believe by Mr. Dawes. The prisoner left his defence to his counsel, and called six witnesses, who gave him a good character. GUILTY - DEATH , aged 16. London jury, before Lord Ellenborough.