Richard Backe: The Information of Richard Backe Leominster in the County of Hereford Dyer and Clothworker 12 November 1698

<26r>

[1]

The Informacon of Iane Iuxon Richard Backe of Leominster in ye County of Hereford Dyer and Clothworker taken this 12th. day of November Anno Dni 1698

Who saith yt abot. a year and a half ago this Informt. was in company wth. Thomas Yarnold of Leominster aforesaid Glassier and Katherine his wife at Leominstr. aforesd. and there the said Katherine Yarnold did propose to this Informt. yt her husband would make false and counterfeit milld money and she would have this Informt. to put it off or pay it away an equall share in the proffit thereof but this Informt. being very unwilling to be anyway to p{illeg}ed in such a bad practise as making of bad money and enqing {sic} of the illegallity thereof the said Thomas Yarnold and Kath. his wife said yt. what money they intended to make should be as good as any yt was coyned in the Kings mint so yt. no body would be cheated or rummaged by taking of it whereupon this Informt. did agree to be concerning in putting of bad money as aforesaid, and the said Yarnold did declare that he believed he could make money and that his father and another had done it, and that about a month after this Informant saw the said Yarnold in his own house in Leominster aforesaid mould a pair of Flasks with burnt Alaboster and a Milld shilling and took this shilling out of the Flask and run melted metall into the mould and cast 3 or 4 milld shillings one after another but at different tymes but the edges of the said shillings were not well cast so yt this Informt. and the said Yarnold did conclude not to be any further concernd. in making of false money at yt. tyme, but yt. abot. a quarter of a year after the sd. Thomas Yarnold told this Informt. yt. he had been with one Willm Mawne who then lived in the ꝑish of Midleton in County of Hereford Yeoman and that the said Mawne had told him that he <26v> make {sic} counterfeit money and the said Yarnold said yt. he believed he could make false money for yt. he supposed the said Mawne had been concerned with Yarnold's father in assisting him to make counterfeit money in imitacon of the Currt. Coyn of this Kingdom and the said Mawne and one Francis Eno of the sd. Leominster Blacksmith were one tyme drinking togeather at the said Yarnold's house and the said Yarnold went into the room where they had been drinking imediatly after the {sic} went away imediatly and found a paper with Clippings in it fa{illeg}llen upon the floor and that he left ye same where he found them and the said Mawne retaind. in a litle time and said he had left something in the room where he had been drinking, and went into it and carryd. away the Clippings with him as Yarnold told this Informt. and ye said Yarnold did importune this Informt. to go with him to Mawne to talk with him abot. making of counterfeit money and abot. a fortnight after this Informt. did go to mawns house and did then appoint a time togeather when Mawne should make and experimt of casting counterfeit money and the said Yarnold did buy arsnick and salt petre morder there to and shewd. them to this Informt. and this Informt. went to the said Mawns house abot. a week after in company with the said Yarnold and {illeg}the said Informt. did then and there see the said Mawne cast one half Crown in sixpence and abot. 3 or 4s. all counterfeit money and the edges of the said money were not fairly cast and Mawn tryed to edge one shilling by a Tool like an Iron Chissell but could not edge it well And this Informt. further sayth yt. abot. March last past the said Mawne and one who went by the name of Edward Iones of Burrisson near Tenbury in the Borders of Worcestershire and Shropsh a Smith and George Hampton of Dudley in Worcestersh in Staffordshire Smith came also togeather to this Informt. to Leominster and shewed him a pair of Shilling Dyes or Stamps and a Mill for edging of Shillings and offered to sell ym. for 3ll. to this Informt. but he did refuse tlo buy them and yt. abot. aprill last he saw the said Iones and Hampton counterfeit the Currt. Coyn of this Kingdom at Iones's house at Burrison aforesaid by stamping of shillings. Hampton blancht ye Copper of which the false money was made and beat ye metall into plates and cut it round Iones filed it round and he and Hampton stamped it togeather and Hampton edged and they told this Depont yt the stamps and Edger were Hamptons and yt. they were made by Hamptons brother who liveth in Birmingham and yt. Hampton told the Depont. yt. one mr.     Perks an Iron monger of Ludlow in Shropshire had a considerable quantity of their money at the rate of <27r> twenty 5s. for 20s. and yt. the said Iones told this Informt. yt. his father Iones who lives near Burrisson aforesaid was privy to his making of false mon'y and yt. Iones Senior used frequently to buy sheep and horses and let his son Edwd. Iones have the payment of the money by means thereof he used to pay away counterfeit money amongst good and that the said Mawne told this Informt. that the said Iones senior and himsel{illeg}fe used frequently to make false and counterfeit money of the old Coyn and yt. in aprill and may last past he this Informt had severall times counterfeit money of the said Edward Iones and George Hampton to the value of abot. 5ll. and bought some of it at the rate of 28s. of bad for 20s. goo{illeg}d money and after the rate of 30s for 20s and that afterwards this Informt. sold part of the said counterfeit money to the sd Thomas Yarnold and his wife at the rate of 24s. of bad for 20s good and that this Informt. sold 12s. of the said counterfeit money to the said Francis Eno and Erie gave him 9s. of good money for it and told him yt. he the said Eno had bought counterfeit money of the said Mawne which he believed to be made by the same persons which made the said false money which this Informt. sold him as aforesaid and yt. he gave Mawne after the rate of 20s. of good money for 26s. of bad money.— And this Informt. further saith yt. abot. the beginning of Iune last past the said George Hampton and his wife came to this Informt. to Leominster and did tell him yt. a Gent. who lived near Dudley aforesaid or some where in yt. countrey had sent Hampton's wife to her husband to get her husband to go to him for yt he would employ him to make false money for him and the said Gentleman would put it off by buying of Cattle and Hampton would have had this Informt. to have gone with him to have been concerned with him but he refused but Hampton said yt. his mother kept an alehouse in yt sd Dudley and yt. if this Informt. had at any time a mind to see him he should enquire of himer and she would tell him where Hampton's wife was and yt. she would tell him where her husband was and yt. the said Hampton told this Informt. yt. Iones and he had a pair of stamps to make false $\frac{\mathrm{1}}{\mathrm{2}}$ Gineas {sic} with from Hampton's said brother but yt. upon tryall they found they found {sic} them not good so they had sent ym back to his bror. to mend them

And this Informt. further saith yt. after the said Thomas Yarnold understood yt. this Informt. had an Edging Mill and stamps offered to be sold to him as aforesaid he was very importunate with this Informt. to buy them for him or to let him know where they were yt he might buy them himselfe but this Informt. refusing so to do the said Yarnold was very angery with him and yt. after some time the said Yarnold told this Informt. yt. though he would not tell him where the stamps were yet he had learned by Mawne and was to have a pair of stamps and would have have {sic} had this Informt. to have been sharer with him in paying for them and that Katherine the wife of Thomas Yarnold told this Informt. yt she had shewed some of the Counterfeit money which her husband and she bought of this <27v> Informant as aforesaid to her sister Mary Perks who liveth near the said Leominster and told her how she came by it and this Informt. doth believe yt. mrs mawne widdow and her daughter are privy to and do know of some of the evill practises yt. are above menconed agt. the said Tho: Yarnold

Rich Backe

[2]