ALLEGED HAWKING

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 57, Issue 110, 19 February 1937, Page 2

ALLEGED HAWKING

CHARGE AGAINST SHAREBROKER LEGAL ASPECT DISCUSSED. (Per Press Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, February 18. The trial of Osmond Arthur Bridgewater on 11 charges of “share-hawk-ing” was continued! in the Supremo Court this afternoon. A number of witnesses gave evidence, among them William Gilmour Bruce, of Ashburton. At the conclusion of the evidence, submissions were made to his honour by counsel on the legal aspect of the allegations. For the defence, Mr O’Leary submitted that the actions of Bridgewater, which were admitted, did not constitute a house-to-house canvass in the sense in which the term was generally understood. He contended that there was nothing in the reading of the statute which limited the meaning of the term to any particular type of canvass. So far as offering shares to the public was concerned, he submitted that the shares were not offered to the general publiic but to a selected group of persons, namely, people who owned debentures in a particular company and who had previous business dealings with the accused. In the present case the persons had been selected at 11 different points in the city and Ashburton, and in no sense could this be construed as going from house to house. For the Crown, Mr Lascelles contended that nothing could be more natural than for a canvasser to select people upon whom he would call in what was generally called a house-to-house canvass. He submitted that the term did not necessarily mean going from door to door, and that some element of selection was necessary. He said that the persons selected by Bridgewater were none the less members of the public, otherwise it would be open for a man to “take down” all his friends and acquaintances because they would not be regarded strictly as members of the outside public. The case was adjourned until to-mor-row morning, when counsel will address the jury.