COBDEN.

Grey River Argus, Volume IX, Issue 676, 19 May 1870, Page 2

COBDEN.

(Before C. Whitefoord, Esq., R.M;) Tuesday, Mat 17. /. STEALING GOLD. Joseph Pitts and Joseph Pickup were charged with stealing gold of the ; value of L2O from the person of Samuel HoldsWorth, at Ross's public-house,, foot of Nelson Creek, on Sunday evening last. Samuel Holdsworth : I am a miner residing at Moonlight Greek, and came down to the foot ..of , Nelson Creek on Sunday last. Iliad a bag of coarse gold arid a small parcel of amalgam in a bag. The bag produced is mine. The airialgam and the nugget produced.l also believe to be mine. . I opened my bag, at Ross's to pay him a debt I owed. I gave him the piece of gold, produced, the rest in the bag were larger and smaller, the largest was loz sdwt, the smallest ldwt. I was in a raffle for a gun- that night, and don't remember going to bed. : -I went to the^ camp at •Twelve-mile on Monday morning.. I .had then found I had lost my gold. I know both , prisoners. Pickup has worked with me. He caihe from Mborilighi: with me. Pi,tts followed... l don't Remember telling them what gold I had. , Cross-examined' by prisoner Pickup : I know I had the gold at Ross's publichouse. I believe if you had found my gold you Would have given ii'to me. 1 would have lent you some if you had asked for it. If I had lost one piece I would have lost all. I remember making a bet at Ross's, and offering to stake gold as I had no money. I had no .occasion to take out iriy gold until I offered a piece to the landlady, arid it was then I offered to bet. . ; ! Prisoner Pitts declined to ask, any, questions. . . , John Ross : I am a publican residing at Nelson Creek, and remember seeing Holds worth, who was the worse of liquor, at my houle on Sunday afternoon last* The prisdfters and he came in together, Holdsworth produced some gold and offered to bet. He handed a piece to my. wife who returned it to him. lad vised him to let her take care of the gold, but ■he ; refused. The prisoner Pitts and Holdsworth slept in thesame room. It was separated from my bedroom by a calico partition. Seven men slept in an adjoining room. Prosecutor and Pitts were put there because the former had so much gold about him. When Holdsworth was undressing, Pitts was sitting on his bunk. Pickup came into the robm, and I left. Istayedin the/bar, which 1 is separated from the room by calico. Pickup remained, in the room about five minutes. After this I went, to my bed-: room, arid looked through the calico. I saw Holdsworth in bed, with his trousers folded up and placed under his head. Pitts was at this time taking off his boots. Pitts came out of the room in about a quarter of an hour, and asked 'wfiere' Pickup was. I showed him, and he went in, but he remained only a minute or two. I heard no words pass. Pitts then came oat of the room; got his swag, arid went to make a bed on the floor. My wife was present, ; and said to Pitts, "I want to know what is the matter, that you don't turn-in to your bed after being ther^ three-quarters of ah hour." Pitts'went oh making his bed down, and my wife said, to me, "Jack; there must be something wrong." 1 called a man named Jordan, who was asleep on the table, to go intjo

thY bed-room with me to see if Holdg-v worth's gold was all right. When, we went in we found th;eV trousers ?fjulled fromi under his head,%hd|bhe ie^ was.; on* the floor. I searcfied^fcfie ti^piisers^ 1 "and found the one nnggejj |he ,;i>ag joi '.} amalgam, and the miner%tiglit prb&icecf./ These things were in one pocket, the other being empty. I saw another nugget besides this with the prosecutor a quarter of : M''h6u*?B6fblfß^he t JirentMo bed:^'!?lt-r! was about half an ounce weight. I had not lost Bight of Holdsworth from the time he showed the gold till he went to bed; Jof ffatfiCttd ' I awoke HordswoftKr Pickup came into the bed-room. I saidj to him, " Well, Joe, he (the prosecutor)! has lost his nugget fie had in the house, that, lean swear, tp." Pickup wanted it, to be kept qiiiet till Holdsworth would be sober- in the morning, He, then.^eft, the room. I searched the floor., I decided to go for the. police, but} before .doing so called up the rest of xhe lodgers and told them that as Holdsworth had lost gold no one was to leave the chouse till I came.backi After Pitts, went into Pickup's room he also go| up. This was when I went to see if procecutQr's gp}d was. alL r right. As, I ,was coming from Holdsworth's room Pickup was going out of the 1 back door. I went to look after Pickup, and found hipa comings to.- the back of the. house frqmthe front. " I told him rf any gold wasloist his conduct looked bad. Jordan was with me twjee when I searched Holdsworth's room. I went to Oamptown and brought^ the police. . . . ' -'* Cross-examined by Pickup :' I showed you. your bed. Youdid not teU.me ;yo.u. were ill. You had some' brandy/ You went out publicly*; Pitte jdid not bring his swag out of the'robm where you were sleeping. 1 saw Holdsworth .offering to bet two or three times. lam certain he : had two : nuggets'. When (Pitts ;wenjs&r bed I am confident he wasjipjggpf^Wneia the comis^J^S3&Ji^*^ertdei to be jrun^^i^ 7 the ; conatable;. lef t he ap''pSared to get sober. John Jordan : I brought the prosecutor and prisoner down in ; my:bpai? from the foot of Moonlight Creek to Boas* house. ProsQCutorvwas drunk. , He pulled;.! ouih his nuggets to make a. bet.; anji prosecutor went tobed i fl tlte same room. After a little' Pickup went' in and * Boon after came out. "In a little Pitts went into Pickup's room .and '■■■■. remained only about; a.minute. f Pitts said -to ; Rpss^ ' Vi want to see: you to bed, {before I go to bed." I was sleeping on a ;^table^ r He said- Holdsworth ' had beeni growing? so he would make a bed on the floor. IJoss then called me' to go -into Holdsworth's room., I saw the trousers, partly hanging over the side of the bed. Ross, searched the pockets and -found the 'nugget and bag produced. Ross left .the room, and afterwards returned ;i with x ' ; ' PicKup/ 1 I saw two nuggeis with prosecutor. : John Paul : lam aconsteble rof ( stationed at Camptown. ' 1 went up 'to .Rpss's public-house about midnight^ 3VTay 15th. I went into the roomwerfrfprpser cutor was lying.,. The prosecutor was drunk and I could get nothing out of him. I found nothing, I received thenugget and bag prp.duced frd f m' Boss on the 16th. I arrested the prisoners on the' morning ! of the 16th, about fli a. m. ''Previous toi my arresting, them prosecutor said,he ; had ! had about five or six ounces of gold: stolen, from him on thetpreyious;night." I! cautioned the prisoners, after telling them 1 the charge against them. ' By Pickup : You were present when 1 prosecntor said ; he had lost, about 6ozs of ; gold, something similar to the nugget produced, which' was then in my possession. This clpsed the examination, when the Magibtrate reniianded both, ; prisoners to; Monday next. J ! .'■■'■