1786 - Proceedings of the Old Bailey (2)

From International Robin Hood Bibliography
Record
Date 1786
Topic Man sells counterfeit coin at the Robin Hood on High Holborn
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Site of Robin Hood on High Holborn.

By Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2018-06-16. Revised by Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2022-05-17.

Record

26 Apr. 1786:]
JOHN BEVAN sworn.

I am a tallow-chandler, I live in Red-cross-street, I have known the prisoner about three years: On the 21st of March, I met the prisoner near the end of Aylesbury-street, Clerkenwell-green, he asked me if I did not buy a good deal of stuff, meaning kitchen stuff and dripping; I told him I had, but markets was down; he said he had a friend that had some halfpence, and put his hand in his pocket and pulled out two or three; he said they went undeniable at Wapping, and if I would buy any of him, he would sell me 30 s. for a guinea. I told him I was going to Wapping, and would enquire whether or no they went there, if they did, I would buy some: this I told him, in order that I might bring him to justice, I thought it a duty incumbent on me, if possible, to bring him to justice. I went once or twice to Clerkenwell-green to tell the affair the next day, on the 23d I went again, Justice Girdler was there, and a young gentleman his son; I related the story to them, and young Mr. Girdler directed me to the Solicitor of the Mint, Mr. Vernon, and he directed me to Mr. Clarke at Bow-street; I told Mr. Clarke the story, and the prisoner's name, and he knew him by the name of the Cheap Butcher; Mr. Clarke told me to buy half a guinea's-worth of halfpence; on the 27th I met the prisoner, I did not see him till then, I told him I would take half a guinea's-worth of halfpence, if he would bring them at four o'clock; he appointed the Robinhood in Holborn, as I was going there, I met the prisoner, and he told me he could not possibly come till five, I waited there, and the prisoner made it eight, when he came, there was another person waiting for him, he went out with the other man, and returned in two or three minutes; he then came to me, and said, how many do you want? I said half a guinea's-worth, he brought some halfpence from the other man, and laid them on the table, and received silver for them; the prisoner then came and sat down by me; he gave me a paper that was done up square; this has been open since, which I gave him half a guinea for; there were three five-shilling papers of halfpence; there were three hundred and sixty in the whole, I counted them the next morning.

Did you know they were bad? - No, Sir, I do not know, of my own knowledge; Mr. Clarke has seen them; I carried them to Mr. Clarke directly, when I received the halfpence, he pulled out a shilling out of his pocket, and said he was queered; I likewise asked if he had any silver to sell; I met him again at the Robinhood, in Holborn; Ting and another attended there to apprehend him, but he was taken at the Magpye in Middle-row, with two separate half guinea's worth of half-pence, and some silver, which I was to buy.[1]

Source notes

IRHB has silently regularized the use of spaces before punctuation marks in the quotation and corrected the HTML text at Proceedings of the Old Bailey from the PDF of the original printed edition.

IRHB comments

There were (at least) three public houses named the Robin Hood in Holborn: one in Leather Lane, one in the now lost Robin Hood Court, and that at 281 High Holborn. Since the street name was often included in references to these and this is not the case here, I have taken this to refer to the Robin Hood at 281 Holborn. This is of course not certain.

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