Catherine Smith

135

C H on 18th February 2024

Old Bailey Online CATHARINE SMITH. Theft; pocketpicking. 18th April 1787. Text type Trial account Defendants CATHARINE SMITH Offences Theft > Pocketpicking Session Date 18th April 1787 Reference Number t17870418-24 Verdicts Guilty > Lesser offence Punishments Transportation 353. CATHARINE SMITH was indicted for stealing, on the 25th day of August last, one watch, with the inside and outside cases, both made of silver, value 40 s. the property of Patrick Baxter , privily from his person . PATRICK BAXTER sworn. I am a gardener , and live in St. George's parish, near Chelsea . I lost a watch the latter end of August last, in the house I live; I saw it the same night; I lost it about nine; I missed it about five; I slept in the prisoner's room; the next morning when I awoke about five, I missed my watch; the prisoner was there; she was up before me; I asked her whether she had my watch, and she denied it. Was you sober? - Yes; I was at work that very day. Was you perfectly sober when you went to bed? - My master had given me some beer when I was at work. I was not drunk, nor I cannot say I was very sober. Was that the first night you slept in the room? - Yes. How long had you lodged in that house? - About two years. How long had she lodged there? - I cannot say; I suppose she had been there a twelvemonth before I lost my watch. I found my watch the 1st of April; I did not take her up at that time. What did you think of its being gone? - When I asked her for my watch, she threatened me so hard, that I dropped it; she threatened to get a warrant against me for taking away her character; I found it at a public house door, where there were some men quarrelling in the street; it laid on the ground. Was she there? - She was in the house. There was a man standing by me, and he said, there is a watch on the ground; and we both stooped and picked up the watch, and I knowing the men were quarrelling, I told the man I would keep the watch till we found who dropped it. I put it in my pocket, and told the landlady of it; I did not know it was my own watch then; I went home, and went to bed, and in the morning, when I awoke, I found the watch to be my own. When you went into the public house, to say you had found a watch, did you see the prisoner? - Yes; she was in the house; I did not tell her I had found it; I told the woman of the house. Had this woman continued to lodge in the same house, from the time you had lost the watch, till the 1st of April? - Yes, she did. I went away about two months since; I left the house before Christmas last. Had you any intimacy after this? - No. The 2d of April, which was Monday, I took up the prisoner; I charged her with it; she said she picked it up in the bed, two or three days afterwards. Whereabouts in the room had you left the watch, when you went to bed? - I did not undress myself at all; I kept on my cloaths, and laid down on the bed. I have got the watch here. (Produced and deposed to.) Did you search the bed the morning you missed it? - No, I did not. Was she undressed? - No. MICHAEL ROURKE sworn. I lost the watch when the prosecutor found it. I bought the watch of the prisoner, and gave her 1 l. 18 s. for it; I had it about four months or more; I did not hear him talk about the watch at all; I did not see him pick it up. Prosecutor. I did not know that this man dropped the watch till the next day; it was a stranger that was with me. Do you know the watch again? - Yes, I think I do. Look at the watch; is it the watch you bought of her? - Yes, this is the watch. When you bought it of her, did she tell you how she came by it? - She said a young man that had come out of the country had left the duplicate with her; and if he did not return in such a time, she might release the watch, and sell it. PRISONER's DEFENCE. The latter end of last October, I picked up a duplicate of a watch, and I shewed it to a great many people in the neighbourhood that I do not know, and they persuaded me to have it raffled for; others persuaded me to sell it out and out; I could not do either, because I did not know the pawn-broker. A person informed me of the pawn-broker; I enquired if it was their duplicate, and they told me it was; I spoke to several people to raffle for the watch; two or three people that work for me, persuaded me to sell the watch out and out, and Rourke said he wanted to buy a watch; he went with me to buy it; my husband has been here all day. GUILTY Of stealing, but not privily . Transported for seven years . Tried by the second Middlesex Jury before Mr. Baron HOTHAM .