POLICE COURT.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 81, 3 April 1908, Page 5

POLICE COURT.

[(Before -Mr. __ W, Dyer, BM.) THE CAPTAIN IN THE STEWARD'S RIG. Thomas Martin, a heavy-featured youth of short inches for his 19 years; pleaded guilty to despoiling the wardrobe of the Squall's chief steward, and later on obtaining £1 refund from the Union Company's office by dishonest representation. It appears that young Martin, whose arrival from the Old Country, via Sydney, occurred a year or two back, got a billet in the Squall's galley, but a few days ago decided to change his quarters. So rigging himself in the steward's best he unostentatiously left I;he • ship and met a man looking for a marine cook while yet he was on the wharf. A bargain was struck, whereby he and -another man were engaged for a vessel lying, at Gisborne, and straightway each were supplied -frith a passage by that day's boat South. The boat was a few hours leaving, however, and the enterprising Martin, smelling an opportunity to become a moderate capitalist, obtained possession of the other man's ticket, visited the shipping office as a full blown skipper and captain of the Gisborne ship, and persuaded the office to allow him £1 rebate on the ticket of the other man, who, he explained, was not now. going down. When captured the £1 was already dissipated, and the steward's rig was-bearing recent evidences of casual tenderness in the we_ring. The enterprising one declared that this interesting little impromptu was his very first attempt at- diversion of the sort. His Worship marvelled thereat, and concluded that a month spent in Mt. Eden gaol would be beneficial. ANOTHER JUVENILE BIRCHING. A nine-year-old hopeful, climbing upon his father's roof the other day to inspect the pigeon cote, discovered a window leading into the neighbouring grocery establishment. So he concluded to explore, and subsequently emerged from the interior of the shop .with half-a--crown's worth of chocolates and 1/1 in cash. His Worship decided that a fitting corrective to the exploiting proclivities of this young gentleman wpuld be six strokes of a birch rod. A NOTICE TO HAWKERS'. I A young fellow named Alexander Clark, industriously engaged in Hobsonstreet vending fruit from his barrow i the other day, was aggrievedly surprised upon, a constable peremptorily demanding his name and address. ' Certain, ly he had no license, but in Sydney, the home of his youth, unlicensed barrowmen were left unmolested in all save the principal thoroughfares, and only here in Auckland he had been given to understand by the city traffic inspector that so long as he kept out of Queenstreet and Karangahape-road, his unlicensed course would run smooth and undisturbed. Sub-inspector Gordon replied that although the inspector might not visit the outside streets, anyone hawking, within the city boundaries without a license was liable to prosecution, and it. was well for barrowmen to know that regulation. His Worship, under the circumstances, decided to let Clark off with a conviction and discharge. INEBRIATE. Albert Johnston showed along for the third time in.the half year, for which £2 or seven days; Annie McMahon's previous visit resulted in. 10/ or 48 hours; and one novice left the usual crown and cab hire behind him. • REMANDS. Joseph B. Adger, tall, dark, and cadaverous of mien, was remanded one week in connection with a charge of crimin&l assault preferred against him, bail being allowed in sureties amounting to £ 100. Frank Rowes, accused of assailing two other men with the assistance of a walking stick, was demanded a week, the alleged circumstances producing a demand for £ T66 in bail. THE BIRTHDAY OF A DOG. The unregistration of a number of canine pets brought their, owners into: trouble this morning, the registrar of dogs in the district of "Eden Terrace and Mt. Eden being responsible for the roundup. A dog must become a duly enrolled and financial citizen at not later, than the frisky age of six months, and with a large number of owners the dog's birthday seems to be a family event that remains unchronicled and unsung, hence ■ a frequent and contentious source of argument abounds to worry a conscientious dog collector, and incidentally to provide him with experience in his craft. "What," insisted one owner, the proprietor of a pug dog, "do you mean to say that puppy was six months old when you prosecuted mc? How can you say it was the age? I didn't consider the dog to be more than three or four months old when I bought it at auction a month back." "Well," replied the expert in dogs, "I have registered something' like 10,000 dogs of all sorts and sizes, and I ought to know a bit about it. It is my belief the dog is twelve months old. A dog's leg never grows after it is six months old," he clinched in conclusion. When a man cannot prove the age of his dog, opined the Magistrate, the presumption of the registrar should be taken when fixing its age, but he promised to look into the matter of this disputed birthday and give judgment next week.

In some of the cases the registrar asked that the Court should deal mercifully with them, as the regulations had since been carried out, and the dogs under the cloud had become respectably collared. William Howell had two dogs, for each of which he paid 2/6 and 7/ costs in penalty; L..E. Denze's canine cost its owner 5/ and 7/ costs; S. J. Atkins, 5/ and costs; and the dog of T. R. Keesing was ordered to stand over for further consideration. A FISH"-" QUESTION. Albert Sanford allowed that on March 6 he emptied a quantity of fish offal into the harbour, but contended that the engineer of the destructor was to blame, inasmuch as he refused to accept the fish as fuel, not considering them good electric light generators. Mr. McVeagh, who appeared for the Harbourmaster, narrated how the Harbourmaster and Harbour Engineer were out launching on .the day in question, and saw Mr. Sanford, also in a launch, tipping the. offending offal into the waters of the harbour, midway between Queenstreet wharf .and Shoal Bay, the operation being a contravention of the harbour regulations. .. ~ " True enough," agreed the tipper, but where could he take, this fish refuse? He had asked the Board to fix a.reasonable limit for unloading these fish interiors, so that he would not be .obliged.to ship them ten miles or so out to sea in order to escape penalties. The (instructor

wouldn't take the fish, so he had to send it somewhere, and he did not think trie harbour would be • harmed to any : great extent by receiving it.

That was not the point, contended the prosecution. If Sanford were allowed to tilt refuse into the harbour everyone elsewould be entitled to similar consideration.

"Where can Sanford put his offal?" inquired the magistrate.

" That is a matter for Sanford to decide," returned Mr.. McVeagh, " but he. must not empty it into tlie liarbour."

" Very well," remarked the defendant, resignedly. " Fish is dear enough, now, but people will have to pay more, for it, that is all," and upon his promise not to discharge any more of the fishy waste to corrupt the Waitemata's purity, he was fined 10/ and £1 8/ costs. CRUEL OVERLOADING. William Jameson was the driver, and John Lei—is the "one .who ordered him to load the dray of J. J. Craig, Ltd., with 35cwt. of pig iron, that Mr. Alder, inspector for the Society Preventing Cruelty to Animals, considered a matter for prosecution on behalf of the unfortunate horse. "Quite a young horse, your Worship, five years old, and there was only Sscwt of pig iron in the load," commented the driver in extenuation, when it was pointed out that to make any horse attempt to haul,up hill and down hill such a burden was a proceeding nothing short of barbarous. It was sickening to see the way in which horses were overloaded sometimes, said Mr. Dyer. The poor brutes were made to take loads up and down hill sometimes that in passing one was often moved to turn aside one's head to avoid witnessing their cruel struggles.

"Well, Sir, we can't" help it," ventured the driver. "If one man. won't take the load, another will; and if you object to overloading your horse, it means tho sack."

Mr. Brookneld also expressed the opinion that if a driver refused to take the load assigned him. it would often simply, mean, "Well, go to the office and get your money." These remarks led to a. flat denial from .the office manager, who was also , arraigned in connection with the same offence. Be. declared that the men were only required to take sis much as they considered the horse could manage. His Worship decided to'fine .the man Leilas £5 and £1 18/ costs, and the driver, as a subordinate, .10/ and II costs, the information against Keefe, the • manager, being withdrawn- ' | THE STAMP ACT. Peter Anich, an Austrian gum dealer, admitted through Mr.,Skelton that by signing receipts, one for £10, on the butt of a cheque book, and another for £20 in the ordinary way, without stamping either as required, he was infringing the terms of the Stamp Act, but he pleaded ignorance respecting the liability of the cheque butt receipt to duty, and did not explain the other. Anich's trouble over the unstamped receipts occurred through a Court case, in which the documents-were bffered in evidence. Mr. Kettle noticed the omission of the regulation stamps, and impounded the imperfect receipts, the result being that Anich was to-day fined £1 and 7/ costs for each omission. AFTER THIRTY TEARS. Nathaniel Mason declared that for the past thirty years he.had driven loose horses along Bowen-avenue or. other avenues of the city, yet had never been warned of. £he offence he was committing in broad daylight. But the by-law was of five -or six years 'standing, which prohibited' the driving of loose animals along the city streets between 7.30 aia. and 6 p.m., said Mr. Turner; and Mason andanother, Adolphus Claude, had infringed that j law by driving a nwu of loose horses through the highway in question within, the prescribed hours. Mr, Turner ad-! nutted" that never before had he taken < action, • but complaints received had! obliged him to move in the direction of stopping it, and Mason and Claude were the first crop.., ' Each man Was fined 10/ and 7/, costs. BY-LAWS. Alexander Lefth engaged a couple of men to bury- decently the horse which died in his paddock at Kingsland, but the' pair apparently saw other profit. J3o they skinned the animal, quartered him, and carrying the sectional remains to the "bank of a creek, performed a perfunctory funeral rite with the aid of some brushwood, and leaving"the charred "meat to offend Beaven and the nostrils of man, departed, sold the hide, and celebrated the occasion as became them. And Leith paid for their sins this morning to the tune of £2 and costsi- : Edward Falcon Tixard, for allowing noxious weeds to exist-on his property at Birkenhead, was fined £1 and costs. William Whitehead was fined 10/ and costs for driving round a Karangahaperoad corner faster than the law permits.