Inhabitants.)

Thomas Bridgens was indicted for feloniously receiving at Reedy Creek, in the district of Bathurst, on the 1st of July, 1833, three oxen of the value of £6, three steers of the value of £6, one cow of the value of £2, and three calves of the value of £2, the property of David Arthur, then lately stolen from him by some evil disposed person or persons to the Attorney General unknown.

Counsel for the prosecution, Dr. Wardell and Mr. Wentworth; for the prisoner, Mr. Therry.

David Arthur being sworn, said, I am a grazier residing at Boree, in the district of Bathurst; upwards of two years ago I lost about 100 head of cattle; I believe they were stolen; so large a quantity of cattle would not have strayed away; they were branded DA on the off side of the hip; in April last I found three of these animals in William Coates's herd, grazing at King's Plains, about 60 or 70 miles from my station; there was one brindled ox; one red poley ox with a star on the forehead; and a strawberry cow with one horn off; I am certain these were my property; they formed a part of the 100 I had stolen from me; I never sold them, nor authorised any one to make sale of them for me; Coates refused to give them up to me until a man named Bridgens was present, of whom he said he had bought them; my brand was defaced on these cattle, the A being altered into M. but the M was not plain, it appeared blotted; there was also a brand of TC on the shoulder, which I understood to be Coates's; I afterwards saw the prisoner upon the subject, and he said he got the cattle from the Mahoney's; Bridgens told Coates that he would give him three bullocks in the course of a week in exchange for them, but the latter would not agree to this; he insisted upon having back the horse which a man named Ritchie had given to Bridgens for six head of cattle, or he would drive the cattle into Bathurst, and deliver them up to the police; Bridgens then gave up the horse for the three head, and I took away my cattle; Coates is agent to Ritchie.

Cross-examined - I last saw the cattle about two years before they were stolen; I know that some brothers named Mahoney had a few cattle in that neighbourhood; the name of one of the brothers was Denis; they afterwards got into trouble and were transported; after I took away the three head from Coates, the prisoner assisted me in the recovery of three other head of my stolen cattle; he told me that he had two head of cattle at his place of a similar brand to those in possession of Coates, and if I could identify them I might have them; I saw them, claimed them, and took them away; I do believe that the prisoner bought these cattle of the Mahoney's; I promised the prisoner ten shillings a head for all the cattle he might be instrumental in recovering for me.

Re-examined - The Mahonys were transported for stealing from me a portion of the 100 head of cattle; I prosecuted them for it; and the cattle that they were transported for, were altered from D A to D M; they were a part of the 100 head I lost about two years ago.

Cross-examined - I cannot undertake to say whether the Mahonys were convicted of stealing my cattle; or the cattle of some other person; I only swore on that occasion to one of my cattle positively.

James Walker being sworn, said, I hold a ticket of leave, and am in the employment of David Arthur; I know Reedy Creek, were the cattle which are the subject of this prosecution were found; it is near King's Plains; I discovered three of my master's cattle there in Coates's herd; they were two bullocks and a cow; when we lost the cattle, they were simply branded D A; when recovered, the brand was altered to D M; the alteration of the D to the M was observable; it was an M laid over the A; I know the prisoner's brand was T B, and I have seen his branding iron, and the brand mark on some of his cattle; his brand mark was not on these cattle; I did not give evidence on the trial of the Mahoneys; it was about two years and a-half ago that my master lost the cattle; it might be 12 or 14 months ago since the Mahonys got into trouble; I heard Bridgens say the cattle were made over to him from the Mahonys by will, or that he had bought them.

Cross-examined - If I were to buy the whole of a man's cattle and his brand was upon them, I might not think it necessary to rebrand them with my own; I think the prisoner did his best to recover Mr. Arthur's cattle; he was out with us in the bush for eight days after them.

John William Coates being sworn, said, I live at Grimden Grange, near King's Plains; it is near Reedy Creek, in the district of Bathurst; I remember David Arthur claiming three head of cattle in my herd; those cattle I received in July, 1833, with three others all branded D M, by order of Mr. Ritchie, in payment of a horse he had sold to the prisoner; Cornelius Brewer received these cattle from the prisoner by my authority in my absence; two of the cattle being fat were forwarded to be slaughtered; Bridgens said if I would give up the three to him on account of Mr. Ritchie, he would deliver them over to Arthur; I ultimately agreed to this proposal if the horse, which the prisoner had got from Mr. Ritchie were restored to me; this was done, and Arthur took away the cattle, saying he was satisfied to take them, as he was certain that Bridgens had bought the cattle honestly from the Mahoneys, and that they must have stolen them.

Cross-examined - The Mahonys I think were tried in May or June, 1833, and the cattle were delivered to me in July, which I think sufficiently accounts for their not being marked with the prisoner's brand; there was a calf also delivered to Bridgens by Arthur, not branded at all; the prisoner might have kept this if he had liked; his giving it up was I consider an honest act; I did not think Bridgens came dishonestly by the cattle, and I am still of that opinion; the prisoner shewed me a written instrument from the Mahonys, conveying over their cattle to him.

Robert Ritchie being sworn, said I live in Sydney; I exchanged a horse with the prisoner some months ago, for six bullocks, which he was to deliver over to Coates; I never saw the cattle; I understand three of the cattle the prisoner delivered to Coates in persuance [sic] of the bargain for the horse, were subsequently claimed by David Arthur; I have got my horse back again.

This was the case for the prosecution.

Mr. Therry contended there was no cast to go to the jury.  There was no actual evidence to shew that the prisoner had received the cattle laid in the indictment with a felonious knowledge; but on the contrary, the expressed opinion of the three witnesses who had been produced on the part of the prosecution was that he had come into the honest possession of them.

Dr. Wardell in reply, said that the usual mode of proof adduced against receivers, was given in the present case; namely, that of circumstantial evidence.  The prisoner had received these cattle according to the examination of the witnesses, from the Mahonys, at a time when they were under commitment for trial for stealing a part of the very 100 cattle from the prosecutor, which were found with the brand mutilated in the same way as those laid in the present indictment; and the presumption was therefore strong that he must have known them to have been stolen.  The learned gentleman submitted that there was not only sufficient evidence to go to the jury, but a very strong case had been made out to support a conviction.

After Mr. Therry had replied, the court decided that there were sufficient facts sworn to, to put the prisoner upon his defence.

George Luck being sworn, said, I am a carrier between Sydney and Bathurst; I hold a ticket-of-leave; I recollect purchasing some cattle from the prisoner in April, 1833; part of these cattle delivered over to me by the chief constable of Bathurst; I saw a document from the Mahoneys to the prisoner conveying their cattle to him; this was about the time the Mahoneys were apprehended; my impression on seeing the document which I have not a perfect recollection of, was, that the prisoner was empowered to sell the Mahoneys cattle to fee counsel for them; I believe that instrument gave the prisoner power to dispose of all the Mahoneys cattle.

The prisoner in his defence said that he bought the cattle in an honest way from the Mahoneys, and that when they were claimed by Arthur, he gave them up without hesitation, and assisted him in the recover of others for him.

His Honor them summed up the evidence, and told the jury that the defence relied on, was not legally sustainable.  The rule of law, and a very sound one, was, that in the possession of whomsoever stolen property was found, it was incumbent on that person to shew that he came into the innocent possession of it; otherwise the presumption was that he had obtained it by guilty means.  The impression on the minds of the witnesses that the prisoner had come honestly by these cattle, was mere opinion, which might or might not be justly founded; but it ought not to weigh against positive facts, such as were exhibited in the strong circumstantial evidence affecting the prisoner.