Mornings at Bow Street: A Selection of the Most Humorous and Entertaining Reports which Have Appeared in the 'Morning Herald'Wight, J. (John)
General
Mornings at Bow Street: A Selection of the Most Humorous and Entertaining Reports which Have Appeared in the 'Morning Herald'
Wight, J. (John)
Crime -- England -- London
Kitty Kavanagh is the daughter of a watchman; and she and her father lodge
in the same house as Mrs. Dermody. The piece of calico formed "the
_canopy_" of Mrs. Dermody's tester bed. One day lately, Mrs. Dermody
missed the canopy--it was taken away even whilst Mr. Dermody was in the
bed; and, in a day or two after, she found it on Kitty Kavanagh, in the
shape of an apron! Mrs. Dermody displayed this apron before his worship,
and told him she could swear to the hemming of it--"because it was very
_confident_ to be seen by any one."
Mr. Dermody offered his evidence; and, being sworn, he said, "Your
_wortchip_, it's true, every word of it, what Mrs. Dermody was after
telling you, for myself was fast asleep in the bed at that same time."
His worship now asked Kitty Kavanagh what she had to say to it; and she
replied, in the richest brogue that ever rolled through the red lips of an
Irishwoman--"It's herself and her husband comed home _bastely_ drunk, your
honour; and her husband _bate_ her, and _kilt_ her your honour; and your
honour sees Mrs. Dermody could not get to the bed by herself any how,
_bekase_ of the liquor that night, your honour; and Mr. Dermody lay down
in the bed by himself, your honour's honour, and Mrs. Dermody lay down in
the coort."
"But what has all this to do with the stolen linen?" asked his worship;
"what have you to say about the piece of linen?"
"Is it the bit o' linen your honour's _spaking_ about?" asked Kitty, with
infinite _naïveté_--"Och! I found that same at the stair-foot when all the
bother was over!"
His worship shook his head, as much as to say he feared Kitty was adding
falsehood to theft.
Her father, the watchman, presented himself; and having expatiated upon
the excellent _carackter_ himself and his daughter had hitherto borne in
the world he next attacked the reputation of the Dermodys; which he said
was all that was "bad and _bastely_;" and then he called two witnesses,
who would tell his honour "all the rights of it."
His witnesses came forward; they were Patrick Doole and Michael Sullivan.
But all that _Misther_ Doole could prove was the drunkenness of the
Dermodys on the day of the robbery; and Mr. Sullivan had nothing to say to
it at all, only that Kitty Kavanagh was a nice young _cratur_, and her
father was just like her for all the world.
This was of course all nothing in the face of the fact so distinctly sworn
to, and the prisoner was committed for trial.--So the interesting Kitty
Kavanagh was sent to gaol, and perhaps lost her character for ever, for a
bit of old calico, not worth sixpence.
FRENCH AND ENGLISH MIXTURE.
Mons. Gaspard Jacques Hercule Flament, a French gentleman with one
eye--"_dégraisseur extraordinaire_ to the British public;" was brought
before the magistrate to show cause why he should not be committed to
prison for neglecting to maintain his wife in that style of elegance and
comfort to which she was entitled--or rather, for neglecting her
maintenance altogether.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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