Edgecombe County, NC - Court Record - King vs Braswell, 1745 ----¤¤¤---- Edgecombe } County } The Deposition of Hardy Cane Constable Sworn Saith That he received a Search Warr't from John Haywood Esq'r of His Majestys Justices in Comission of the Peace for Edgecombe County afores'd the Twentyeth of this Instant May against One Richard Braswell, That this Dep't Executed the s'd Warr't the next day on the s'd Richard Braswell who told this Dep't that he was right welcome to Search his house and accordingly this Dep't went into s'd Braswells house where s'd Braswell took Keys out of his Pocket and told this Dep't he might search every where & any Chest he had in the house, the s'd Braswell accoringly opened his Chests & bid this Dep't look into them, he did & found nothing in them concerning what he searched for, Then this Dep't went to s'd Braswells storehouse but found nothing in the lower Room, the s'd Braswell then ask'd this Dep't whether he would not go up in the loft above and accordingly brought a Ladder, & the s'd Braswells Wife came into the Store & told the Dep't She would go up first because there was some Honey and he might Spil it and accordingly she went up first and this Dep't immediately followed her and as soon as Mrs. Braswell got up in the loft he the Dep't saw the s'd Mrs. Braswell put her foot against the little barrel (now produced on the Table) & Slide it away & put some old thing up & threw upon the barrel, And that there was a Chest in the loft w'ch he felt in, being very dark but found nothing, but having a Mistrust this Dep't went to the Barrel and asked Mrs. Braswell what it was & felt in the barrel, & felt a parcell of Wooden Moulds & other Stuff in it, and then handed it down to one Thomas Price who was below in the Store, & he Immediately went down and Examined what was in the barrel w'ch the s'd Rich'd Braswell look'd strange at and admired how these things came there, & looking farther into the barrel he this Dep't found Three Counterfeit peices comonly called Georgia Peices & Four Counterfeit peices in likeness of Portuguese money, one peice in likeness of a Spanish peice of Eight & two small peices in likeness of Pisterreens which he now produced. That the Depon't went afterwards into said Braswells dwelling house where there was a Desk w'ch s'd Braswell opened and found nothing in it but a Paper in w'ch the Dep't Say'd that the s'd Braswell told him that what was in the Paper belong'd to Hughs & was the Truck they made use on for runing the peices of money afores'd. Then the s'd Braswell took two baggs of money out of his Chest & out of one of them he took Three peices w'ch this Dep't took to be Counterfeit & now produced them That this Dep't coming along with the s'd Rich'd Braswell to this Court last Night he the s'd Braswell told him that he had pass'd some money to Colo. Mead several years agoe which he thought was not Good, but That Colo. Mead Say'd, if that was not good money he did not know which was Good. The s'd Braswell also told this Dep't that he sometime agoe asked one Hughs and one Cleft Whither they could make any money Genteely, That Cleft answered he Could and accordingly he made some which s'd Braswell did not like, And that one of them (Hughs or Clift) said they could make money as good as any if they had Ingredients, upon which the s'd Braswell sent his Son to Williamsburgh and gave him forty shillings to buy Ingredients to run this Silver money seemingly by his discourse but that his Son could not get any. And further this Dep't Saith not Hardy Cane The Examination and Confession of Richard Braswell in Relation to the Warr't by which he was Apprehended Say'th That he is an Ignorant Person and that he knows nothing of the matter Rich. (his mark) Braswell Taken before His Majestys Justices in Open Court the 22d day of May 1745 Per Cur On reverse: Dom. Rex vs Braswell} papers Hardy Cane app'd. John Chambers fail'd. Jechonias Yancy app'd. (Second Document) North Carolina July General Sessions 1745 To the Hon'ble Enoch Hall Esq'r Chief Justice and the rest of the Justices of the Grand Sessions now Sitting --- The Jurors for our Sovereign Lord the King upon their Oath present that Richard Braswell of Edgcomb County in the Province aforesaid Planter not having God before his Eyes but being seduced by the instigation of the Devil on the eight Day of April in the eighteenth year of the Reign of Our Sovereign Lord King George the Second & at Fishing Creek in the County of Edgcomb af'd did falsely and traiterously forge Counterfeit and Coin four pieces of Brass and Pewter and other mixed Metals to the resemblance and likeness of the good & lawful Silver Coin of the Kingdom of Portugal called Six hundred & forty Rais Pieces, and four Pieces of Brass and Pewter and other mixed Metals to the resemblance and likeness of the good & lawful Silver Coin of the Kingdom of Spain called pieces of eight and three Pieces of Brass and Pewter and other mixed Metals to the resemblance and likeness of the good & lawful Silver Coin of the same Kingdom of Spain called Piastrins, which said Silver Coin of the Kingdoms of Portugal and Spain aforesaid was then and now is Current Money of the Dominions, Colonies and Plantations of our said Lord the King to the great prejudice and deceit of the Subjects of our said Lord the King and against the Peace of the said Lord the now King his Crown and dignity and also against the form of the Statute in that Case made and provided. Jos. Anderson Att'y Gen'l On reverse: Dom: Rex vs Rich'd Braswell. Indict'd. Ignoramus. Tho's Blount, Forman. Evidences: Hardy Cane, Jechoniah Yancy. Sworn & sent. Ja's Craven. Ck Crown. Source: Criminal Papers, General & Assize Courts, 1745-1749. Criminal Papers. General & Assize & Supreme Court 1750-1759. Folder: General Court & Assize Criminal, 1745-1745. Folder # 1. Pisterreen and Piastrins=Pistareen, which is a lightweight Spanish silver coin with a face value of 2 reals but with an intrisic value of less than 1/5 of a dollar. Source: Money and Monetary Problems in Early North Carolina, by Alan D. Watson for the N. C. Department of Cultural Resources. (NOTE: Copied as closely as possible from the original. Original spelling and punctuation retained. Grace Turner) ___________________________________________________________________ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Grace Williamson Turner ___________________________________________________________________