William Newland

343

Maureen Withey on 9th April 2026

Tried at the Old Bailey, 7 Dec 1826 FIFTH DAY. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 12. First Middlesex Jury - before Mr. Recorder. 58. JOHN COOPER and WILLIAM NEWLAND were indicted for stealing, on the 2d of December , 126 prints, value 10l., and 4 books, value 10l., the goods of Alaric Alexander Watts , in his dwelling-house ; and HENRY BATEMAN JENKINS and JOSEPH JOHN JENKINS were indicted for feloniously receiving 77 of the said prints, well knowing them to have been stolen . ALARIC ALEXANDER WATTS. I am proprietor of the"Literary Souvenir;" Newland was in my employ, and left my service about two months ago, and was succeeded by Cooper, who remained with me up to this time. I live at North Bank, Regent's-park . Cooper was sent out on Friday morning, the 1st of December, and did not return till about eight o'clock the next morning; I immediately asked what he had done with fifty-seven portraits, a memorandum of which I had found in the pocket of his livery coat - he denied having taken them at first; but when I produced the memorandum in his own writing, he acknowledged he had taken a few prints and given them to Newland; he said it was of no use to hold out any longer, and they had sold them for their mutual benefit; I sent for a constable, and found Newland in a lane adjoining the house, looking from behind my gateway; he was brought in and confronted with Cooper - I did not either threaten or promise them any thing - I asked how they had disposed of the property - they said they had sold a large portion to the two prisoners Jenkins, at 6d. each, as I undestood them - I never myself sold any of this size - I have them on larger paper - they said they had sold them at three different times - they were prints in sets of ten each, and some were considerably more in demand than others; several of those I missed were the most popular ones - I found some of them at the office, and knew them - I went with an officer to Jenkins' shop, in Bear-street, Leicester-square, and saw Joseph John Jenkins - I asked if he had any proof prints of the "Literary Souvenir" to dispose of- he said, Yes, and produced a port-folio with thirty or forty of them - I beckoned to the office, who came in - I said they were my property, and gave him in charge - I then inquired of whom they had purchased them - he said he bought them of a lad in livery, and had no reason to believe they were stolen - I understood him to say that he or his brother had given information to some persons belonging to Hurst and Co., who had published the volumes of the work which these prints belonged to - he was asked to produce what other prints they had, and did so after some hesitation. Cross-examined by MR. ALLEY. Q. The shop is kept by Jenkins' father? A. I cannot say that; some of the prints were exposed in the window. Q. When you said they were stolen, there was some hesitation about producing the rest? A. Yes; both the Jenkins' were bailed and have surrendered here. HENRY RICHARD BUCKRIDGE . I am an officer, and went with Mr. Watts, on the 2d of December, to Jenkins' shop - he called me in after the first prints were produced - I had been in the shop 7 or 8 minutes before John Joseph Jenkins produced the rest; he had hesitated about it, but I said I should certainly search - he then fetched them, and produced in all twenty-two - he said they had bought them of some lads, one of whom was a livery-servant - he said he did not purchase them, but at last acknowledged he was present when his brother did; that his brother was at Walworth, and that they had given information to Hurst and Co. - I went over to Walworth to his brother - he said they had bought them very fair - that the boy had produced his master's crest on his buttons, and that, as at times, these things were sold when persons were in distress - he thought it all correct - I found they had given information to Hurst and Co. HENRY GIBBS . I am a printseller, and live in Newport-street. On the 30th of November, about the middle of the day, Newland came and offered me some heads of Butler Dryden and Milton, which I gave him 2s. for - as he was going out he turned and asked if I would buy twelve plates to illustrate Byron's works - I said there should be twenty-two, and asked him the price - he said 9d. each; I offered him 5s. for the twelve - he went out, returned in two hours and a half, and took the 5s.; the next morning he brought me eight plates, five or six were soiled, but one was quite clean - I gave him 5s. 6d. for the lot - I had no suspicion at that time; but in the afternoon he produced some more, and I asked if he was a copper-plate printer - he said, No; that he had lived with Colonel Smith, in Harley-square, and the female-servant had given them to him - that she lived with Alaric Watts, at Manchester, who had given several soiled ones to his children, and she had asked him for some, which she had got framed - he went away - I gave information, and saw him in custody the next morning. WILLIAM McDOWAL . I am a printsellre, and live in Newport-street. Newland came to me, four or five days before he was taken, and brought a print called the Rivals, belonging to the Souvenir - I asked if he was a printer - he said, No; and suspecting him, I called him into a back-parlour, and asked where he got them from - he said Mr. Watts had given each of the servants a set - I said I knew they were stolen, and asked him to write his own and his master's name and address - he wrote "James Evans, No. 5, Foley-place - A. Watts, North-bank" - he asked 6s. for the set - I said I had been selling them at 6d. each, and I would give him 5s.; he said very well, and he would bring them in the morning - I intended to secure him if he brought them; but he came and said he had only eight and did not bring them - I said, "I must have the set;" and he said his fellow-servant had two which would make the set, and he would bring them - he called again, and said he exchanged them for other prints, which he produced - I did not secure him. PATRICK O'CONNER . I am a watchman - Mr. Watts' house is in my beat. On the 1st of December, at one o'clock in the morning, both the prisoners passed my box with another person - I went after them - they went into Mr. Watts' gate, opened the door, and all three went into the house - one of them had a bag on his shoulder - I saw no more - about eleven o'clock, two or three nights before, I had seen Cooper go into the house, while Newland waited outside, with a woman - when I returned from calling the hour, they were gone - I did not inform Mr. Watts of it, as seeing a light in the house I thought they were at liberty to go in - Cooper had his master's bag, in which he used to carry things. RICHARD ROOTS . I am an officer of St. Mary-le-bone; I went with Mr. Watts to Cooper's house - he lived there with his father - I found there some books, pamphlets, and fifteen plates, which Mr. Watts claimed - Cooper's sister was in Mr. Watts' service.(Property produced and sworn to.) COOPER's Defence. I sold none of the prints. COOPER - GUILTY . Aged 16. NEWLAND - GUILTY . Aged 19. Of stealing to the value of 39s. only. Transported for Seven Years . J.J. JENKINS - NOT GUILTY . H.B. JENKINS - NOT GUILTY . ----------------------------------------- Leviathan Hulk Records. HO-9-8_6 page 13/54. Received from Bermuda, 25 May 1830. William Newland, age 19, Stg from the person, Tried 7 Dec 1826, Old Bailey, 7 years, To NSW 26 June 1830, R. Admiral. Note, The description of his crime, as recorded on the Leviathan record, is incorrect. William was sent to Bermuda, as a convict, to labour on the public works there, the main work being the construction of the dockyard at the harbour. Around 9000 convicts were sent there to work, between 1823 and 1863. They were not allowed to settle in Bermuda after the termination of their sentence, but were returned to Britain, and often sent on the Australia. The death toll in Bermuda was very high, and the work very hard and physical, quarrying the limestone and building the dockyard and public building, while living on board convict hulk ships in the harbour. On his return from Bermuda, he was sent on to New South Wales to complete his sentence, on the ship Royal Admiral in 1830. NSW Convict Index. William Nowland, per Royal Admiral, 1830, Certificate of Freedom, 14 Dec 1833. No 33/1345.

343

Maureen Withey on 9th April 2026

Leviathan Hulk Records. HO-9-8_6 page 13/54. Received from Bermuda, 25 May 1830. Wm. Newland, age 19, Stg from the person, Tried 7 Dec 1826, Old Bailey, 7 years, To NSW 26 June 1830, R. Admiral. William was sent to Bermuda, as a convict, to labour on the public works there, the main work being the construction of the dockyard at the harbour. Around 9000 convicts were sent there to work, between 1823 and 1863. They were not allowed to settle in Bermuda after the termination of their sentence, but were returned to Britain, and often sent on the Australia. The death toll in Bermuda was very high, and the work very hard and physical, quarrying the limestone and building the dockyard and public building, while living on board convict hulk ships in the harbour. On his return from Bermuda, he was sent on to New South Wales to complete his sentence, on the ship Royal Admiral in 1830.