THE tale of two boy pickpockets at Worcester, sounding very much like something from a Charles Dickens novel of Victorian times, was told at the City Police Court exactly a century ago this week.

The Journal of 1903 fully reported the case under the heading "Little Pickpockets":

"Alfred Henry Cracroft (12) of 3 Court, Severn Street, and William Edward Adams (13), also of Severn Street, were charged with stealing 9s.3d from Hubert Hawkes.

"Mrs Anne Hawkes of Croft Road said she gave her grandson Hubert 9s.3d, wrapped up in paper, to take to the pawnshop. However, he returned without the money and without the articles he had been sent to redeem. On a subsequent day, her grandson pointed out Adams as the boy who took the money from him.

"Hubert Hawkes told the court that while in a passage of the pawnshop in Broad Street he had the money in a purse in his hand. The two defendants were there and induced him to go to a window to look at some skates. He put the purse back in his pocket, and the defendants lifted him up to look in the window, but it was frosted over and he could see nothing. When the two boys had gone away, he found his purse was empty.

"Police Constable Short, who apprehended the defendants, said each of them replied to the charge, 'We are both as bad as each other'.

"Adams was further charged with stealing one shilling from Kate Leek of Severn Street. Mrs Leek said she sent her little girl to a grocer's shop in Mealcheapen Street with 1s.8d wrapped in paper. The girl carried the money in her hand, and met Adams who asked her if she would like some marbles. He took the paper out of her hand and then gave it her back and went away. On opening the paper at the shop, the shopman found only eight-pence in it.

"During the evening, Mrs Leek happened to be in The Shambles and heard Mrs Hawkes telling P.C Short that Adams had robbed her grandson. Mrs Leek told the constable that some boy had robbed her little girl, and later the girl picked out Adams from among other boys.

"Adams, who pleaded guilty, had been several times convicted before for picking pockets and, when 10 years old, was whipped for a similar offence.

The Chief Constable said the boy came from a wretched home. Cracroft had once been convicted before.

"The magistrates ordered that Adams receive 12 strokes of the birch, and Cracroft six strokes."