THE RECENT WOOL ROBBERIES IN SYDNEY.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5274, 19 February 1878, Page 3

THE RECENT WOOL ROBBERIES IN SYDNEY.

(From the Queenslander.) The following are the principal facts disclosed in evidence at the Sydney Police Court recently by George Gunn, four years a store laborer in the employ of the A.S.N. Co., respecting the robbery of wool from the company’s stores, and which resulted in the committal for trial of Henry Harman, merchant ; John Dalzell, sen., John Dalzell, jun., and John Smith, employes of the A.S N. Co. : —Twenty-three months ago an agreement was made between Dalzell, sen., Smith, and himself to get as much wool as they could to sell to Harman and divide the proceeds between the three of them ; be often saw Harman at the store, for he went there generally two or three times a week, and sometimes oftener ; Harman used to ask them if they had any stuff there—any wool—anything there for him ; if they had he would say to Harman, “ Yes Harman would then go and look at the wool, and sometimes ask him how much was wanted for it, and sometimes would fix the price without asking ; upon the price being agreed upon, Harman would tell them to send it up to his store ; he went for a van sometimes, and other times Dalzell, sen., would fetch one, and occasionally Harman would send a van for the wool ; Harman had a cart of his own, and at first they wanted him to send it for the woo), but Harman objected to this arrangement, as it would cause suspicion ; he generally received the money from|Harman, but occasionally went to the latter’s store to get it ; Harman made it a rule in going to the company’s store to pay him, and generally asked if the way was clear ; if the way was clear they went to the top end of the store and settled there ; Harman often told him to be careful, tor if it was found out it would be a bad job ; Harman often asked him how they managed to get the wool without being found out, and he replied that they managed that very well ; Harman generally supplied them with woolpacks and bags ; on the Bth of the present month he told Smith ho did not think Harman was coming to the place that day, and that he would go up to his store; when he went to Harman’s store, Harman’s two sons and a man named Stevens in Harman’s employ were present; he told Harman there was some wool at the store, the same as the last, and that they wanted 5Jd. per lb. for it ; after a little haggling Harman told him to send it up ; in answer to a question Harman said he would he down that afternoon ; he then went to the company’s store and saw Smith, to whom he related the conversation he bad with Harman, and said also that he would get a van to send the wool up to Harman ; ho went to a vanmau named Flynn, and then went to dinner ; when he returned, Flynn’s van was backed into the stage, and Dalzell, jnn., was trucking the wool out, one bale and one bag ; ho told Flynn, in the presence of Dalzell, jun., that the wool was to go to Harman’s store, but gave no delivery note ; it was a raado-up bale, the wool bring got out of some other bales in the store : some hales were cut

by the Dalzells and himself, and the wool’ extracted, and srme were broken ; he generally cut them, and one of the Dalzells sewed them np ; he out the bales for the bale that went on the Bth instant to* Harman's, but Dalzell, sen., put the wool in tlio pack and sewed it up ; young Dalzell sewed the packs np ; Harman went and asked if the way was clear ; he said it was, and llarumn then went to the top of the store and paid him £9 55., which he afterwards paid to Smith ; it occupied a little over a day to get the bale and bag, and packing them, and they remained during that time in Smith’s custody; Harman’s son took the empty bale and bag that afterwards contained the wool, and took four empty packs on the same occasion, and* gave them to Dalzell, sen,, who took them down to the store ; the bale and the bag only were filled ; he and Smith weighed the wool at the company’s wharf, and it was a great many pounds more than 300 ; Smith divided the money, and said he gave £1 ss. ©r £1 6s. each to the Dalzells ; Smith gave him £2 Bs. or £2 12s, he did not recollect which, and kept the balance ; within the last twentythree mouths he could not say how much wool they had sent to Harman ; the most they sent in one week was eight bales, and they were part of two weeks getting that; wool did not go every week, and sometimes there was an interval of three or four weeks without any going. The information upon which the prisoners were arrested was given to Captain Trouton by a man named George Stevens, who had been Harman’s stoieman for nine years.