Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer – Monday, 11 April 1870
Doncaster — West Riding Petty Sessions.
At this court, on Saturday last, John Thomas Bell, an apprentice at Conisborough, was brought up on remand, charged with wilful and malicious damage to a garden at Conisborough, in the occupation of Mr. J. Ballance, head gardener to Mr. Copeland, of that place.
The circumstances of the case, which were of an exceedingly flagrant character, have already been reported in these columns. Actuated by some feeling of revenge or spite—prisoner’s own father being a gardener—the prisoner had entered Ballance’s garden during the night of the 2nd inst., and wantonly destroyed plants, shrubs, and trees, to the value of £10 or thereabouts. He was luckily caught by two police officers, Taylor and Ashton, as they happened to be passing the wall of the garden, the prisoner literally dropping into the arms of Taylor as he came over the garden wall.
He admitted to the officers that he had done the damage, and alleged as his reason that Ballance was taking the bread out of his father’s mouth. The bench treated the case as one of felony, and committed the prisoner for trial at the sessions, admitting him to bail, however.