Chelsea, in the Olden & Present TimesBryan, George
History
Chelsea, in the Olden & Present Times
Bryan, George
Chelsea (London, England) -- History
Mrs. Hutchins deposed on the trial, that about six weeks before her house
was robbed, Hyam Lazarus came to it, inquiring for one Beetham, a weaver,
when she said she knew no such person; that on the 11th of June, the
night of the robbery she heard the dog bark, about ten o’clock at night,
her men being then gone to bed; that she called to one of her two
maid-servants to see what was the matter with the dog, and shortly after,
hearing a noise, she ran herself to see, and found her maid, Mary
Hodgkin, with her cap off, and some men using her extremely ill; that to
the best of her remembrance, she recollected Levi Weil and Hyam Lazarus
to be among these men; and though her fright was exceedingly great, she
did her endeavour to assist her maid, but that Levi Weil (called the
Doctor,) pushed her into a chair, and pulled her upper petticoat over her
face, which hindered her seeing any of the rest. Hearing her cook cry
very much, one of them said, “Cut her throat;” another, “If you don’t
hold your tongue, I will cut your throat.” Then coming to her (Mrs.
Hutchins) they offered to tie her legs, and she begged they would not, as
she would not stir; whereupon they all went to another room, the door of
which being locked, they said they would break it, if not immediately
opened, and returned from it in about five minutes; that then going up
stairs, she shortly after heard somebody cry “fire!” and after much
swearing, heard also a pistol go off, and a man cried out, and begged
they would not; that, endeavouring to get out at the back door, she was
prevented by some men on the outside, who told her if they were not her
friends they would blow her brains out; that then returning to her chair,
she heard a very great noise above stairs, as if they were throwing the
servant down, and a little while after she heard another pistol go off;
that the wounded man, endeavouring to get down, came to her, and said,
“How are you ma’am, for I am a dead man;” on which, turning short, he
fell on the ground; that his shirt was on fire close to the wound just
under the shoulder, which she put out, that he groaned very much, and
complained of being cold; that the people in the house, running from room
to room, came down to her, and Levi Weil, to the best of her knowledge,
took the buckles out of her shoes, and two others attempted to put their
hands into her pockets; she begged they would not, saying she would give
them something worth their acceptance, and accordingly gave them her
purse and watch; that asking where her plate was, she told them, and they
took it out of the cupboard, and gave it to their companions at the back
door. That going into the parlour, where there was a cupboard, they
broke it open; and she following, told them there was nothing in it worth
having but paper; but that one of them, a short, thick, elderly man,
struck her on the face with a pistol, and would have shot her, had not
the Doctor turned the pistol with his hand.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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