| 21 July 1881 There is a long report of the crime in the Staffordshire Sentinel Thursday 21 July 1881 p.3 col.6: JUVENILE HOUSEBREAKERS. - Three boys, named respectively Henry Harratt (fourteen), Herbert Davis (fifteen), and Robert Wright (nine), were charged with breaking into a house in Stone-road, and stealing therefrom a black dress and a dinner, the property of William Carnall. - William Carnall, potter, Stone-road, said on Tuesday last his house was broken into by means of the parlour window, which was forced open. A black dress was stolen, worth about 16s. A drawer was forced open by bursting a lock off; and witness's dinner, winch was by the fire, was eaten. - Mr. Greaves, pawnbroker Church-street, Longton, said the dress produced was pledged at his shop on Tuesday afternoon by the boy Davis, who gave the name of James Hibberts, Chancery-lane, and asked 6s. upon it. .saying it was his sister's. The money was advanced -Superintendent McWilliams said the boys were brought to the office on Wednesday afternoon, and wers charged by witness with breaking into Carnall's house the previous day, and stealing a dress and a cooked dinner. The boy Wright said he did not break into the house. Harratt however, said he did. and was with them at the time. The other boy, Davis, also said they were all together. Being told that he had pledged the dress at Mr. Greaves's, he admitted doing so, but said they were all together at the time. Wright said he had only one potato of the dinner, and Davis said he and Harratt had a piece of mutton each. There were several other serious charges against the prisoners but the Mayor said it would not be necessary to go on with them. With respect to Wright, the Magistrates considered it a proper thing to send him to an industrial school until sixteen years of age, and Davis and Harratt would be committed to prison for a month each, and afterwards to a reformatory for four years each - Superintendent McWilliams said there were clear cases against prisoners upon whom numerous keys had been found, of breaking into Messrs. Adderley and Lawson's manufactory, and also into Messrs. Ferneyhough's manufactory, forcing doors with crowbars, and doing a considerable amount of damage by breaking a quantity of ware at the works, and writing filthy language upon pieces of paper and sticking them up in the workshops on the factories. It was, he said, almost impossible to believe that prisoners so young had been guilty of such conduct. Had they been grown men they would in all probability have got penal servitude for the offences against them. The Major characterised prisoners as young desperados, and their punishment would no doubt do them good. He hoped they would come back better boys. |
