Norfolk Mills - Bawdeswell smock windmill

To the sensible, humane, and generous Part of Mankind, this Publication of the Case of Henry Hall, of Grint-water-mill, in the Parish of North Elmham, Miller, is humbly submitted, in Hopes of its having some Weight with them, in clearing up his Character. On Friday, the 27th of July last, (the day of the Justices sitting at Dereham) I was charged, on the oath of Mary, the wife of Gabriel Farrer, of Mattishall, who sells meal and flour for me, and also on the evidence of three or four poor persons in Mattishall, who purchased small parcels of meal and flour of Farrer, with Knowingly selling to Farrer wheat meal adulterated, and mixed with barley meal, as, and for, and at the Price of, whole wheat meal, contrary to the clause of the statute of 31 Geo. 2 sect. 22, which says, "That no person shall, Knowingly, put into any corn, meal, or flour, which shall be ground, dressed, bolted, or manufactured for sale, either at the time of grinding, dressing, bolting, or in any wise manufacturing the same, or at any other time, any ingredient, mixture, or any other thing whatever, or shall Knowingly, sell, offer, or expose to sale, any meal or flour of any sort of grain, or any other thing, as, and for, or mixed with the meal and flour of any grain, which shall not be the real and genuine meal and flour the same shall import to be, and ought to be, on pain of forfeiting not more than five pounds, nor less than forty shillings." On this evidence chiefly, as far as I can recollect, I was ordered to pay down 5 pounds directly as the penalty, which, although innocent of the crime charged upon me as the child unborn, I unfortunately complied with, without considering the consequence; for I was not acquainted at that time, that the statute gave me 24 hours for payment before I could be convicted, and that I might appeal to the Sessions. Without doubt the payment of this 5 pounds penalty must be generally construed as one of the strongest arguments of my guilt; but if on reflection, my distressed situation be considered, an unexperienced youth, not yet 21 years of age, called to answer before a room full of people, unacquainted with the law, without a friend at that time to advise or assist me; and above all so overpowered, that for a time I was so far bereft of my senses, as to be glad to pay any demand required of me, and to get out of the room. The truth is, my mill was too much out of repair, that I had not done work thereat for weeks past, but was necessitated to grind corn, and to buy meal and flour to serve my customers, at the neighbouring mills; particularly in July last, I sent a last of wheat to be ground at Mr Robert Perry's mill at Bawdeswell, several sacks of which meal (as I suppose) on the 13th of July last was delivered by John Perry to John Bone, my servant, and John Bone brought the same horse that evening and lodged in my granary the next morning; some sacks whereof were weighed off by John Bone, and my other Servants, and carried by John Bone to Mattishall, and there delivered to Mary Farrer, without seeing or examining the same myself, for I neither suspected, or was conscious of any adulteration whatever, part of which meal is supposed to the same meal complained of by Farrer to be mixed with barleymeal by me. I have since seen Robert Perry, and John his son, who declare that they received the last of wheat from me, unmixed and unadulterated, to be ground into meal; that it was ground accordingly, and some sacks thereof, so ground into meal, delivered by John Perry to John Bone, my servant, on the 13th of July, without any mixture with barley meal, or any other mixture whatever, part of which meal they have heard is the same meal complained of. Notwithstanding the folly I have committed in payment of the 5 pounds I am ready to call God to witness in the most solemn manner, and even to take the sacrament, that in the milling business I never in my life time intermixed, or caused to be intermixed, barley meal with wheat meal; or do I know, or ever did know, of such intermixture by my servants, or otherwise, and more particularly, I did not intermix the meal sold to Farrer, and by her sold to the poor persons for which I paid the penalty, or do I know or ever did know, of such intermixture by my servants, or any other person or persons whatever; and I do from my heart abhor and detest all such iniquitous dealings. I am sensible, that I have now inconsiderately deprived myself of justice by appeal to the laws of my country, should hope therefore this appeal to the Public will in some measure compensate for that false step, and recover the character, which, once lost, is so difficult to be regained, and is dearer to me than life itself!

"Who steals my purse, steals trash; 'tis something, nothing,
'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name,
Robs me of that, which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed."
Henry Hall.

We John Bone, John Norton, and Edward Rust, servants to Henry Hall, each speaking for himself, are ready to testify in the most solemn manner, that to the best of our knowledge and belief, the case above set forth by the said Henry Hall is the real truth; and farther, that we never intermixed barley meal with wheat meal, nor do we know of any such intermixture by the said Henry Hall; and particularly, that the meal delivered to Mary Farrer, for which Henry Hall paid the penalty, was not adulterated, or mixed with barley meal, by us, or any one of us, or by any person, or persons, to our Knowledge.

John NORTON (signed), Edw. RUST (signed), John BONE (his mark).
Norfolk Chronicle - 25th August 1781