STEALING AUSTRALIAN SOVEREIGNS.

Grey River Argus, Volume IX, Issue 719, 27 August 1870, Page 1 (Supplement)

STEALING AUSTRALIAN SOVEREIGNS.

At the Thames Police Court, on the 25th May, William Chalk, aged 19 years, Michael Daly, 20, and William Randall, 20, were charged with stealing LBSO in Australian sovereigns, on board the ship Kent, in the course of her voyage from Melbourne to London. Mr Phillip James Dinte, of Melbourne, said he had been a tailor and clothier there, and had only arrived in England a few hours before. Chalk was a kind of assistant steward on board the Kent, Daly an ordinary seaman, and Randall a winch driver. Two other persons, Mr Arthur Weston and Mr Joseph Counsel, shared the same cabin with witness, and they had LBSO among them. A third of that belonged to wibneas. That sum of LBSO or LBS1 — ■■ he was not certain which — was what they had when they embarked at Melbourne, and what they lost. The whole of the money was in a mahogany box produced, and that was deposited in a large clothes box in a cabin belonging to him. The money put into the box at Melbourne was L 925, but some of it was expended, and the amount reduced to LBSO, all in Australian sovereigns. On the 29th March last Lsl was missing. An investigation was made on board ship, when the robbery was discovered. Mr Charles Wells, the chief mate of the ship Kent, said that on the 29th March he saw the mahogany box in the second cabin, and was informed thatarobbery had beeii committed. Asearch was made, and two or three sovereigns were found oq going up the ladder by Mr Bush. On the same day Daly changed a sovereign in the pantry. He asked Daly where he obtained the money, to which he replied that he received it from Chalk. He next interrogated Chalk, who said it was not a sovereign, but a halfsovereign, he had given to Daly. Chalk also said he had taken a handful of sovereigns the night before, and had taken a great many from the same box some time before. He searched Daly, and discovered L 8 in his belt, which he said Chalk had given to him. On the following day Chalk confessed that he had taken gold out of the box and presented it to Randall. Another search was made and among the springs of the lamps, which it was the duty of Randall to clean, thirty-five Australian sovereigns were found, and 13s were discovered in a place belonging to Chalk, which he said was part of the change of another sovereign. On the 29th March the prosecutors ascertained they had lost Lsl. On the following day it was discovered that all the gold was. missing. Everything possible was done to find the money, but without success. The crew, all told, consisted of fifty-six persons, and the passengers were ninety and odd. Three lived in one cabin together. Mr Dinte was recalled by the magistrate, and said he formerly traded under the name of P. T. Dinte and Son. All the money was originally his, and he agreed to lend his two fellow passengers L3OO each, because he kney they would have money to receive when they reached London. He had sold his bnsiness for more than L9OO. Mr Woolrych said there was a good deal of mystery about the transaction. A large sum had been stolen, and only a ninth part of it discovered. He should remand the prisoners. The prosecutors asked the magistrate to allow them a portion of the money found for their present necessities, in addition to the LlO advanced by the captain of the Kent. Mr Woolrych directed inspector Mill, of the Thames Police, to advance the prosecutors L 5 each. The prisoners have all been committed for trial.