Robert Gooch

110

Ron Garbutt on 23rd March 2020

Old Bailey Proceedings Online (www.oldbaileyonline.org, version 8.0, 23 March 2020), May 1815, trial of ROBERT GOOCH , alias PEED ANN GOOCH , alias PEED ELIZABETH GARLICK (t18150510-37). ROBERT GOOCH, ANN GOOCH, ELIZABETH GARLICK, Theft > theft from a specified place, Theft > receiving, 10th May 1815. 267. ROBERT GOOCH , alias PEED , was indicted for feloniously stealing, on the 6th of April, thirteen ridicule springs, value 3 l. seven pair of earrings, value 4 l. three dozen watches, value 100 l. forty-eight pair of spectacles, value 3 l. three beaded necklaces, value 36 l. one other necklace, value 4 l. two silver cups, value 4 l. two silver mustard pots and spoons, value 5 l. twelve silver tea-spoons, value 3 l. the goods of John M'Dowell , in a certain ship, called the Aberdeen, lying in the Port of London ; And ANN GOOCH , alias PEED , and ELIZABETH GARLICK , were indicted for feloniously receiving the same goods, they knowing them to be stolen . And TWO OTHER COUNTS, for like offence, only varying the manner of charging them. ROBERT FORESIGHT. I am a ship broker to the ship Aberdeen. I did not see the watches, and the other things mentioned in the indictment, until after the ship had been robbed; the ship was stopped in consequence of this robbery. Q. Do you know whether the prisoner, Robert Gooch , was considered as a seaman on board - A. I do not. Q. Did you yourself, see the ship in the London Docks - A. Yes, several times; I saw her in the month of April; I appointed the master myself, his name is John Allen . PHILIP DYER . I am a tides-man at the Custom House. Q. Did you know the ship Aberdeen, when she was in the London Docks - A. I was on board the 4th of February; she was taking in her cargo for Quebec. I saw some cases shipped; at that time, the prisoner, Gooch was a seaman on board; he assisted in loading; there were four cases of jewellery, watches, trinkets, and shells. Q. Did you know particularly what these four cases contained - A. Not till afterwards; I know now. Q. Do you know any marks that were on these cases - A. They were not then marked; I put the marks down; one was marked J. R. No. 3, I took this box myself, on the 13th of April; another J. R. No. 2; and No. 4, Ph. and Co. with the letter M, under Ph. that case contained watches; No. 1, contained trinkets. These cases the prisoner, Gooch, assisted in loading; I think they were taken on board about the 4th or 5th of April; where they were placed, I cannot say. Q. Did you go any where afterwards in company with the mate of the ship - A. I went with the mate of the ship the second time, that was on the 13th of April. Q. Why is not the mate here to-day - A. He is on board. I went with the mate to the forecastle of the ship, that is the prisoner, Gooch's, birth; Gooch was there. The mate searched the boxes; nothing was said to the prisoner as I know of. On that search, we found a one-pound note, and six or seven shillings, in the prisoner's box; we found no goods that we suspected belonged to any body else. The mate asked him what he had taken out of the hold; how he came by the shells; the shells were found on the deck about half an hour before that; the chief mate brought up a pair of shells, and delivered them to me. The chief mate said to Gooch, that he had been robbing the ship; Gooch said, he had not robbed it. I, the carpenter, the chief mate, and my partner, went down the next day into the forecastle; the prisoner was then in the steerage; we took a stick, and found there was something lodged on the steer-bed, below; the chief mate ordered the carpenter to fetch his chissel; the carpenter cut open a hole, through that hole we took out nine witches; they were delivered to me; I delivered them the same day to the officer; I took the numbers of them, On the same day as we found the nine watches, the man prisoner, Gooch, told me, he wished he had mentioned it at first, it would have been better than throwing them down the air holes. The next day, he told me, he had got some other things at his house; he said there were three silver cups, one silver tureen, two ladles, two silver mustard pots and spoons, one dozen table-spoons, one dozen tea-spoons, twenty-eight more watches, some papers of beads, and two clasps, belonging to ladies ridicules, but whether these were gold, or no, he did not know. He asked me to speak to Captain Allen when he came down. I then examined to see if these nine watches that were found, all which were lost, and I found there were only five left. The plate box had been broken open; I examined the other cases, but what was gone out of them, I cannot say; they had all been opened, each of the four. Q. Could you tell from their appearance, whether goods had been taken out of them, or not - A. Yes, goods had been taken out. I remained with the ship until about the 17th of April; the officer took the cases before I left the ship. Q. Might not those cases be broken open in the London Dock, during the time they were staying there - A. They might, I cannot say. Q. When did you first see Gooch - A. About ten days before we left the Dock. Before I had any conversation with the prisoner, I told him itwould be better for him to tell me all about it. Q. On the 15th you had this conversation with the prisoner - A. Yes. Q. When first a search was made for the watches, you did not speak to the prisoner at all - A. No; the conversation on the 13th, was trifling; on the 14th, the captain was gone to town; what he said on the 15th, was in consequence of my encouraging of him to tell the whole truth. JOHN SMITH . I am a Thames Police constable. Robert Gooch was delivered into my custody; I told Gooch, I was going to take him into custody for robbing the ship, and that I was going to take him to London; this was below Gravesend. JOHN GOTTY. I am a Thames Police officer. In consequence of some communication from the ship Aberdeen, on the 15th of April, I searched the premises of Mrs. Garlick, situated at No. 1, Taylor's-court, Shadwell, when I went to the house, I asked her, whether she had not a person lodged with her of the name of Peed; she said, she had no lodgers. I then said, I understand there is a young man on board the ship Aberdeen, that was at your house, is it not so; she said, yes. I told her I must search the room that he had occupied; she shewed me to a room up two pair of stairs. After having examined round, I desired her to bring the keys of some drawers; she did so; she unlocked the drawers herself; in one of the drawers I found a watch; in another drawer, I found two watches; they are three silver watches; I have them in my care. She then begged me for God's sake, not to hurt her; she said, her daughter put them there. I said, what, is your daughter, Peed's wife; she said, yes. I then saw a deal box standing at the feet of the bed, and asked her for the key of it; she said, she had not the key, that her daughter had the key: it was her box, and her daughter was not at home. I broke the box open; in the box I found four silver watches, two metal watches, a gold ridicule clasp, two silver cruets, a silver tureen, and ladle, twelve silver tea-spoons, two silver tablespoons, three silver desert-spoons, two silver mustard pots and spoons, five papers of beads; I opened a pocket-book, containing thirteen pawnbrokers duplicates, they all related to the subject of this indictment. I went away to the office with the things that I had found; and afterwards brought the mother and daughter; when the daughter came into the office, I asked her if that was her box, and for the key; she gave me the key, which unlocked it. I then took the duplicates out of the pocket-book, and looked them over, and such of them as were for wearing apparel, I returned to her; she then told me her husband's name was not Peed, but Gooch. WILLIAM DENTON . I am a silversmith. I shipped fifty-six watches, on board the Aberdeen, they were packed in deal cases, lined with tin; I superintended the packing of them; the case was marked Ph. and Co. with M under it, and No. 4; the case contained nothing but watches. I shipped two other cases on the same occasion, with jewellery and trinkets; I shipped them on board the ship Aberdeen, on the 6th of April. I was afterwards shewn the cases again at the Thames Police office; first the case containing the watches, there remained but fourteen; from the other boxes also various sorts of the trinkets were missing. These watches produced by Gotty, have the same name, as these found in the box; they also all correspond to the numbers. I know none of the articles of plate; the trinkets I do. EDWARD HOPPING . I am in the employ of Mr. Brown, silversmith, in Cheapside. Q. Did you sell any spoons to Mr. Dorett - A. Yes, I sold him twelve table-spoons, eighteen desert-spoons, and twelve tea-spoons; I have seen them since at the Thames Police office. JOHN GIBSON . I am in the employment of Mr. Hollier, silversmith. Q. Did you sell any tureens to Mr. Dorett - A. Yes; I sold him four tureens with covers, all silver. I have seen them since at the Thames Police office. WILLIAM CHAPPLE . I am clerk to Mr. Brown, Union-court, Broad-street. I recollect shipping on board the Aberdeen, some spoons; I packed twelve silver table-spoons, eighteen desert-spoons, four square tureen covers, and four ladles; all these I cannot speak to; I can speak to none but the three silver cruets; these three were packed up for Mr. Dorett, among the rest. CHARLES WILLIAMSON . I am a pawnbroker, Church-row, St. George's in the East. I produce articles pledged with me in April, a watch, a pair of desert-spoons, and a table-spoon, Elizabeth Gooch pawned them, on the 11th of April, in the name of Elizabeth Daniels ; Elizabeth Gooch also pledged the watch; the other articles were pledged by her mother; the tea-spoons were pledged on the 14th of April; the mother pledged them, in the name of Garlick. I have known the prisoners twenty years. JOHN WILHAM . I produced a silver watch, pledged by Mrs. Gooch, in the name of Mary Ann Johnson , for ten shillings. JAMES CAMPBELL . I produce three table-spoons and a pair of sauce ladles, pledged by a person of the name of Gooch; I do not know the person of the elder woman. Hopping. All these things were sold by us, except the ladles; the spoons have our own mark upon them. THOMAS RUSSELL . I produce a silver watch, pledged on the 10th of April, by Ann Gooch , the young woman at the bar; she had five shillings on it. GEORGE BAYNE . I produce a silver watch, pledged by the daughter, for five shillings, on the 11th of April. JOHN GEORGE . I produce a silver watch, pledged for one-pound, on the 11th of April, by the prisoner, Garlick. ARTHUR PRICE . I produce a silver watch, pledged by Gooch, the young woman, for four shillings. STEPHEN WHITTAKER. I produce a watch,pledged with me on the 11th of April, by the middle prisoner, to the best of my recollection, of the name of Elizabeth Jones, Hackney. ROBERT HIGHAM . I produce a silver watch, pledged on the 11th of April, by the middle prisoner, in the name of Elizabeth Jones , Hackney. ROBERT WILD . I produce a silver watch, pledged on the 8th of April, by Elizabeth Gooch . GEORGE GUY . I produce a silver watch, pledged with me on the 11th of April, by a young woman, in the name of Mary Pearcy , of Hackney; I cannot speak to any person. (All the watches were deposed to by Denton.) The three prisoners called thirteen witnesses, who gave them a good character. ROBERT GOOCH , GUILTY, aged 24, Of stealing, but not in the Port of London . Transported for Seven Years . ELIZABETH GOOCH , NOT GUILTY . ELIZABETH GARLICK, NOT GUILTY . First Middlesex Jury, before Mr. Baron Wood . https://www.oldbaileyonline.org/print.jsp?div=t18150510-37