Hartley Smith

343

Maureen Withey on 13th February 2020

Parramatta Police Wednesday. Hartley Smith (Ticket-of-leave) was charged with disorderly conduct exhibited in the gross infraction of certain orders given to him respecting his moral welfare. The offender was an individual whose appearance in connexion with the offence of which he was charged might have caused him to be appellatcd " a hoary headed old sinner" — but as mankind are in all cases, but partial judges of themselves, Smith considered himself as the beau ideal of a jolly young dog, that the consequence of grey heirs was only to make him a little light-headed, and that the furrows of time on his cheek only bestowed on him rakishness of aspect. Love, the Divine passion, still glowed in his bosom with all the heat of a blacksmith's forge, and the young and beautiful were the objects of his constant and unremitting attentions. Among the foremost in Hartley's Book of Beauties of Parramatta stood the young Miss Ballard's sprigs of a house, not unknown to fame in the Police Records, as each respective member of the family has had a turn in being invited to the Court House Levees; but as the daily exhibition of Smith' Don-Juan propensities, occasioned by their resorting to his residence, had been made a subject of remark by his neighbours, he was, some time since, it appeared, directed to erase them from his visiting list, and give the cut-direct to their acquaintance, if he would avoid his little amours becoming the subject of magisterial investigation. Compliance was promised, but who shall control Love ? and particularly on a Sunday evening. On Inspector Fox dropping in at Ballard's residence, the gay Lothario was discovered revelling in the arms Beauty, sipping Nectar alternately from Miss Ballard's lips and the mouth of a rum bottle. It is scarcely necessary to add the result — the kisses of Ballard, the angel, had to succumb before the embraces of Fox, the devil, and removal to the watch-house divorced two fond and loving hearts. I promise on the part of Lothario, that his youthful propensities should, in future, be restrained, and that palpitation of the heart should never again occur, procured his discharge, accompanied with advice from the Bench, that any re-appearance of this dangerous malady, would cause the afflicted to be placed under a course of treatment, in which cold water and brown bread would be the prescribed diet. The Star and Working Man’s Guardian, (Parramatta) 22 Mar 1845. The Tickets of Leave of the undermentioned Prisoners of the Crown, have been cancelled for the reasons stated opposite to their respective names,viz:— Hartley Smith, Marquis of Wellington, Goulburn Bench, indecent assault on a child under 10 years of age. NSW Govt. Gazette, 9 Mar 1849.

343

Maureen Withey on 13th February 2020

Old Bailey Proceedings Online (www.oldbaileyonline.org, version 8.0, 13 February 2020), February 1814, trial of HARTLEY SMITH (t18140216-6). HARTLEY SMITH, Theft > theft from a specified place, 16th February 1814. 192. HARTLEY SMITH was indicted for feloniously stealing, on the 19th of August , four watches; value 4 l. 10 s. the property of Robert Winter , in his dwelling-house . ROBERT WINTER . I am a watchmaker ; my dwelling-house is in Cannon-street, St. George's in the East . Q. Do you know the prisoner, Hartley Smith - A. Yes, he lived in our house four days. I took him in, and gave him some employment. He came to live with me on the 14th of August; he left me on the 19th. Q. Did you lose any watches from your shop - A. I went out of town on the 17th of August; I returned in about a week; the prisoner was gone then. I had a letter sent me that he absconded on the 19th with four watches, and when I returned I missed four watches that I had left in my shop when I went away. They were silver watches, worth about three guineas each. Q. What did your family consist of - A. A housekeeper I left behind me and a son; he is gone to sea now; he was at home then. The housekeeper is here. The watches were pledged, and the tickets sent home in a letter on the 19th. The officer has the watches; he happened to be in the shop at the time the letter came in. The officer has got the property. I took the prisoner in out of charity. I did not expect he would have robbed me. I had no suspicion of the man. I had seen him twice before I employed him. SARAH UNDERHILL. I am housekeeper to Mr. Winter. On the 14th of August, the prisoner came to our shop to work; he continued to work there until the 19th. Between the hours of seven and eight he came to work on the 19th. I gave the prisoner the watches to hang up. I had the care of the watches, and took them down and hung them up, but being busy I gave them to the prisoner on the 19th to hang them up, about eight o'clock in the morning. There were a great many more watches. Them four were taken down of a night and put into a glass case. I took them into my bed-room of a night. I gave them to him about eight o'clock in the morning; I saw him hang them up. I was in a room adjoining. After he had hung the watches up he went out to breakfast; about ten o'clock he came back; he said he had heard of a situation for Robert Winter , my master's son, to go to sea; the prisoner wrote a direction for him to go and see the gentleman at Tom's coffee-house facing the Royal Exchange. He stopped at work until one o'clock, and then he went out to dinner. He never returned. On the Saturday week I saw him at the police office. About two o'clock Mr. Winter's son came home; I said to him, William is not come back yet. The prisoner had hung up watch-cases in the places where the watches had been. I did not miss the watches until Robert came home; he missed the watches, andthen I missed them. He said he had robbed him; I went to see, and I saw the watches were gone. Q. How many watches were gone - A. Four. The prisoner never returned. JOHN BUTLER. I am an officer of Shadwell office. The prisoner was given into my charge on the 5th of this month, at New Prison. He was first taken to Hatton Garden office. On the 19th of August I was at Mr. Winter's house when a letter came with these four duplitates enclosed. The letter was directed to Mr. Winter. Q. How came you to go to Mr. Winter's house - A. I was sent for, and when I was at the house a letter came with the four duplicates of the four watches. The letter bears Sarah Johnson 's name; I went to the pawnbrokers, and desired them to stop the watches. The pawnbrokers produced the watches before the magistrate; they are all here; these are the four watches. JOHN GOTTEN . I am a pawnbroker. A watch was pawned with me on the 19th of August for one pound eleven shillings and sixpence. The watch, I suppose is worth three guineas. I believe this to be the watch. It was pledged in the name of John Johnson . I cannot say it is the watch I received in pawn; the magistrate detained the watch from me; it was such a watch as that. JOHN WELHAM . I am a pawnbroker. On the 19th of August, a watch was pledged with me. This is the watch I believe; I cannot swear to it. I took account of the number of the watch; the watch is the same number, but the watch having been out of my possession I cannot swear to it. It was pledged in the name of John Johnson . I believe the watch to be worth three pounds ten shillings. THOMAS JONES . I am an apprentice to Robert Barker , pawnbroker. I believe this to be the watch that was pawned at Mr. Barker's shop, but I have not had it in my custody ever since I delivered it to the magistrate. The watch was pawned in the name of John Johnson . JOHN DAVIS . I am a pawnbroker. I received a watch in pledge on the 19th of August. I believe this to be the watch; it has been out of my possession ten days. I cannot possibly swear to it. It is remarkable in the dial plate. I believe it to be the same watch; it has the same name as is upon the ticket. It was pledged for thirty shillings; the value of the watch is about three guineas. I believe the prisoner pledged it. He had the appearance of a gentleman; he was dressed very different to what he is now. Q. to prosecutor. Look at these four watches - A. They are all my property; three of them I made myself. I left them in my shop when I left town. My son took an inventory of all that was in my shop in my presence. I was close by him at the time; the prisoner was close by also. Q. to Sarah Underhill . Do you know the watches - A. Yes, two of them; they are Mr. Winter's property. I saw the watches when I gave them the prisoner to hang up in the morning; they were missed about half past two in the afternoon. Prisoner's Defence. In the absence of Mr. Winter, my master, before I left him I heard of a situation at Uxbridge that would suit me a great deal better than his, accordingly, as I had a few shillings in my pocket I went, and when I went I had come too soon by a fortnight, and as I had left my master without any warning I did not return. I went to my father. I came up to town about a fortnight since, when I was taken into custody. I never pawned any of these watches. GUILTY - DEATH , aged 25. First Middlesex jury, before Mr. Baron Wood . Colonial Secretary Index. SMITH, Henry. Per "Marquis of Wellington", 1815; husband of Mary Ann, nee Davis 1815 Feb 2 - On list of convicts disembarked from the "Marquis of Wellington" and forwarded to Parramatta for distribution; listed as Hartley (Reel 6004; 4/3493 p.436) 1816 Oct 23 - On list of prisoners to be sent to Newcastle per "Elizabeth Henrietta" (Reel 6005; 4/3495 p.225) 1820 Jan - On monthly return of prisoners punished at Newcastle (Reel 6023; 4/1718 p.97) 1822 Feb 4,6 - Re permission to marry Mary Ann Davis at Sydney (Reel 6008; 4/3504A p.398) 1822 Mar, n.d. - Watch and clock maker; servant to Mr Oatley, watchmaker of George Street. Petitions for mitigation of sentence; as Henry Hartley and Hartley Smith (Fiche 3226; 4/1867 pp.79-80) 1823 Apr 18,23 - Son-in-law of Joseph Davis, watchmaker; servant to Mr Oatley, watchmaker. His wife seduced by Mr Oatley; petitioning to be removed from Oatley's service (Fiche 3235; 4/1870 p.60); refuting his claim which was based on false information (Reel 6058; 4/1771 p.230)