The Alleged Conspiracy.

Auckland Star, Volume XVII, Issue 243, 15 October 1886, Page 3

The Alleged Conspiracy.

Cjmmlssloncra: }lon. Colonel Haultain, Ex

Judge Harver, and Mr Weateura. Thu examination of Mr VV. S. Cocbrane was continued attor wo woiit to press jesterdny, tnd

wo resume our repart. By Mr Cott.'r: Tha offer to leas-i tho house and X uuniis was ono icusoa for inducing Mr Stark, to silt, by blijwidk thai hu would i.ot roeeecirily bo disturbed. He tad Had previous transactions with Mr Alison, a. .d the:, wo.oall r>:uis,'aetor;. Thji-e. w-s uuihiog t»t iho tune to V-urant him in thinking that Sir Alison was oltVring a-, extravagant prino, and Mi Su.i-k re,fiuingu Rood uil'-.r. In railway Ouuipuiua^ou oaseatho difference, between ihe vuluuions of owners ad intending pureh-s. is was .sometimes as treat us a third of ihu who'e. Jud«o Harvey noii'tod oui thai if Mr 8 • k ictsr.d.d to get £3-000 by cutting up hi- \> ■ - perty. this would mean that ho ballet od ho would g.-t £2:0 each for forty 'ret front ir-s, qthycwisn f.j per foot. D.ii not. it s:rike '.:o witue.ss thut whfii s-urk ninrlo tlwt c t culution ho was talkii.g rather v. iidly 1 Mr CoUirine.: I told him that I did not Ihi.ik ho would get it Iturbert A»hU>r., sen., stated that ho h.id be. n IV land a^cnt for 18 years. He B"id to Mr Stark the property which wan the subject of tho. Inquiry. Ho sold >t as 2.1 ac cs. butil, miiuil out 11 bo 21J acie). Ho bold .t iv ISSI, for £1,903, Viz., SCO an acre, and tbo allotmsxit on the other Bi ie, 20 acres, at i'lo per acre, viz., £900. Ho liad Subsequently a 1-i for Stark, to Morrison, on the ivhersldeur tho road. 5£ acre 3 ut.-C75 per acre. Thattt-aa in July, ISS'2. Subsequently h<; to:d two lots adjoining Mj- Monisou'b, at J'Oi psi foot, to aMr Keucqdv. They hLd v frontago of 50 ftet e.ach, by udepth of liS leet, and thj two brought «150. That was in January. ISBJ. Stark brought him lntVugust, ISS3, thu plan (Drocu ied) of his prqeerty in order that lie might sail it nil together if po. *ib!e, but otherwise if necessary. In Mr Stark'a own handwriting ha was inBtructed to 8-.-11 Iho house, stabled, cawshid, ont-houses with 5 anres of lund. and a fronts"o to tho maio roal of 50 fe.-jf, for £3,000, quarter oauh, and tho balance to remain ut (i per cent This was No. 1. No. 2 was tho houso, utablerl coWdhed. etc,, witb 8i acres, having a main rood aid sea frontage, tor .-C3 500. No. 3 was tho above, and 20 acres down to tho Narrow Neck, for ,S5 000. lhen ho was empowered, to sjll tho house and oni acre fjr £'. x,OOO, of which SiCO ehjutd be caah, and tho balance remainii'K at 6 per cent. He found that ho could no; sell at theso prices, as people thought them too high. Mr StarK withdrew the proporty from witnins's hautli in ISSi or the beginning of ISSS This was iv order that othora njight try nnd sM. Subicnujntty IJr Stars wanfed him to conclude a sale to Mr Roas of tho house alid 10 ac-ea (not Si aoiffl as before) for £.1,5,0. Stark was excessively anxious to sjil and witness believed ho would havo taken £1.000 cash, an ho noeded tho money. In Augua , ISSJ, property was at Its hißheat va uo, and sineo then it had boen dacreating. Ho made many eftbrti to sell, ohierly n slraagors, fjr towne-peoplo were too wide awake. (Laughter.) He. knew tho proper:" woll. Ho was over it IS ye.ird ago with tho original ownor. It was poor clay soil. By Mr Devoro: Stai k'a improvements would be woith about £I,SOO. For a portiou of the property which Stark bought in ISBI for £1.300, the Government had paid £17,100 Me.rrison, tho lelegraphijt, told him ho valued iho 5 acres that ho had bjiight moro than all tlu rest. He ndvcitised KtarK'a property as being for sale. Iv facr, it wm well known to be in hia handi", and hu was surprised tbo Government did not come t > him. He . 6*Dcaed Mr Seaman and Mr Alison, but had no wish to bo brought into contact with them.

By Mr O'Moagher: Ho wes a perfectly disintorasted witm-su, and ho had never beuu concerned in a shady land transaction. Ho had bought a block at Newton and cut it up for Sac Ho sod them all, and he believed all the purchasors •■ btai led a legal title. Ho had no %vish to do Mr Stark an ill-turn ; in f act. ho bolioved Mr Ktark would pay him moro defertneo thm anyone olFein Auckland. He was a ehaieholler in thfl D.vouport Ferry Company, und he wanted v balaoco-sheetfrcm that man (pointing to Mr Aliapn). Hero tho wilue33 strew vo'ublo and excited, ant an altercation eusued Colonel Hiultiin requested Mr Ashioa toproced, and proitisod to protect him from imperCincnt questions.

Mro'iYleaghersaid Buch a promise was quite superfluous. Ho knew how to treat a hostile witnosa.

Mr Astiton (continuing): He had five or ten shares In the old Ferry Company, and at iho las! meeting read tho Chairman (Mr Alison) a lecturo for not submitting a bulunccfheet, saying It was moDsirouß. Ho mwht havo 70 SO 101, or 200 shares in the new Furry Company. The witnees objected to these questions ai a waste of timo, and said ho might aa well be questioned about his washing bill, .Asked if he wore nat on unfriondly terms ■with Mr Alison. Jlr Ashtoa walked round to Mr Alison in order to shsko hands with him. Mr Alison declined tho overture, acd Mr Aahton beean to catechise him. Finally Judge Harvey called him to order. Oa the question beina: repeated, Mr Athton said that it Mr Alia .n taid he was on unfrteadly torms wilh him ha could only feel astouudou at his msoieaco. These questions wore only a ruse tj throw doubt upon his veracity, tie hid Hhown to other persons Mr otark'alottor to him solf re the salj of his property, but that was not before he was Invited by tho people at Wellington to give information.

Mr O'Meagher was proceeding tocross-qucstion on this point when Mr Ashtoa, in another outburst;, declinodto bandy words wiili him. and stigmatised him as a dlpracc tj his profes>-ion. t:ol. Baultain rebuked tho witness, and Mr O'Meaghcr complained of his intemperate and offensive conduct.

Mr Ashton said when Mr O'Meagher was an old man o£ 81 he would not iind his memory very active. Mr O'Mcaglier hoped he never should be an old man of SI.

Mr Ashton fcon(fnuingr).- Ho did not make a boast of what ho had done in this matter of wetting an inquiry into the Stark purchase, Mr Philcox had not seen Mr Stark's letter to him until within the last three months On being shown a letter written by Mr Philc >x. and dated the 21st of June last, in which reference was made to the information contained in Stark's letter, the witnessadmitted that he must have shown the letter to Mr l'hilcox prior to tho 21ft of June.

By Mr Cotter: He had been annoyed ovcrtbis matter by the badgering he had received from the professien. There was no illwill at the North Shore against Stark and Alison, but there was annoyance against the Government for muddling the affair of the purchase. He was not annoyed at tho matter beiDg completed without his services being required, for he was not penurious. He was delighted to be left out of it, for he did not want to be concerned in such dirty work. The valuation he would have put upon tho property was £(5,500, and he could have bought it not long before for £1,500 ; £6,500 was the extreme value, and ho would not give with in £1,000 of that amount for it. Mr Hammond's 3} acres had been oilercd him twelve months ago for £800, and yet he had written offering it to the Government for £1,500. That was not a dirty piece of work. He wrote at Mr Hammond's instructions. Ho thought it worth more than J3SOO. Professor Thomas's place contained 1:J acres ; £1,000 had been spent in improvements upon it. and it was good value for £I,SOO. Tho Commission then adjourned.