Sharp eyed bobby spots stolen pedigree pooch being offered in local beershop

Theft of pedigree dogs in Chiswick is not an exclusively 21st century phenomenon as research by a leading expert in the history of crime has shown.

Dr Drew Gray recently posted on his blog about a case he found in the Morning Post newspaper from 13 August 1883.

In August 1883 PC Webb was walking along Chiswick High Road in plain clothes. He noticed a young man driving a horse and van and a little Skye terrier seated next to him on the cab.

Queen Victoria's Skye terriers, by Otto Weber (1874)

The Skye terrier had a special significance in the period as two of the breed were owned by Queen Victoria. Relatively few people owned pure breed dogs compared to today.

His suspicion aroused, PC Webb decided to follow at a distance. Presently the man pulled up outside a beershop, picked up the dog and gestured to a man inside asking him if he wanted to buy the animal. When he was told ‘no’ he offered the dog for 2s 6d which the carter claimed was sixpence more than he had paid for it.

The beershop owner still wasn’t interested so he moved on to a barber’s shop and tried to sell it there, once more unsuccessfully. At this point PC Webb made himself known and asked the man who he was and where he’d got the dog.

The said his name was George Cole and reiterated that he’d bought the animal that morning for 2s. PC Webb didn’t believe it and took him, and the little terrier, into custody.

On the next day Cole and the dog were brought before Mr Paget at Hammersmith Police court where the prisoner repeated his claim. The magistrate remarked that he thought the dog was likely lost or stolen and so would be advertised, for the real owner to claim him. In the meantime he remanded Cole in custody for further enquiries. The dog was given to the police to look after but the report does not say if the owner was ever located.

Dr Gray a lecturer in the history of crime at the University of Northampton. He is the current head of the History department and has published a number of books on the subject of crime and punishment.

His latest text is Crime, Policing and Punishment in England, 1660-1914.

August 19, 2018