POLICE COURT.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 89, 15 April 1913, Page 5

POLICE COURT.

(Before Mr. E.O. Gotten, S_f.). DRUNKENNESS. Dennis' Collins;drew, official attention to the fact that he was'drunk yesterday . evening in Queen; Street .'by ; waving an umbrella and challenging <tihe: world to a fight.' IBs self-advertisement as a world-beater'cost him 10/. Five first offenders bad to pay 5/ each, and one forfeited bail, while a statutory "first" had the price raised to 10/. Henry Steele and Alexander Campbell werei fined 10/ each, while Percy Smith, whose drunkenness constituted a breach of bis prohibition order, was fined £2 and costs. Annie Amelia Sims, for. being drunk and 1 using obscene language*, was convicted and prohibited..' LIVED ON BICYCLES. Charles Windle (23), a comparatively recent. Arrival from 1 England, was charged that between January 30 and .-March 25 . last he stole a watch and chain, the property of Luther Merce, and six bicycles belonging to Edmund Claytoh, W. R. , Twigg, Robert Dunsmuir, J. E. .Oakden, Walter F. Jackson, and Leonard Dickens —to: the '-total value of £43 "5/.7 Mr. Singer, who represented the accused,-en-tered a plea of guilty." Counsel explained 1 that Windle had committed the' thefts ; under great stress of circumstances; as as be bad .a*.-wife'and' child,' and 'was. ab'-. solntely penniless «s the result of pror longed .unemployment. He came but originally in search of'health, and he was physically j quite unable to do; manual -labour.''. He had been trained -as- a , chemist's assistant, .but :had been, unable to find a-job in Auckland for. a considerable length of time. Hi 3; Worship 'said' thatr he .could not., do less than.impose a •term ofreforaative treatment, but in ' order not to prejudice the accused in his trial, at the'Supreme-Court : 6n another charge, lie would defer sentence till after the next sessions. TSie accused' wbirld be admitted to bail in. one surety of '£ioo. : ',' ROBBED THE POOR BOX. ~Alfred Joseph Lomax, a lad.of about 19, admitted;haying stolen ing'to- 7/4J- from the poor box in St. Benedict's: Church. In consequence of a, sudden and continued decrease"ih:the collection from the' poor box and one oi-tbe offertory-boxes, suspicion was-aroused that thieving was taking place, and the matter was put in the hands ' of7the.police. Detective Ciillen, 1 'by v means of marked coins, traced the trouble7to Lomax,; who -was a trusted servant, employed to open and church and ,do. odd:jobs about Wie place....A certain amount,of cunning was* shown by the lad in the matter. He had suggested the necessity of new-locks for the boxes,- and his- suggestion being acted on, he was sent". to ; get the .locks. life got the. : locks, ;>nd''; also duplicate keys, by mean s , of: ;which he systematically took money from the .boxes. The collections had' gone down -from about 15/ a week to, sd. a week, but when taxed with the thefts, Lomax admitted to only three thefts, to the -.aggregate : extent /of. 7/4J7 This wasTconsidered a decided . under-statement; of the facts. Lomax was convicted, and ordered > to come up;;-for sentence when called; .on> with a provision., that the '-. amount" estimated'to Have -been stolen be "refunded by the lad's father. .-'. '••"'." (Before Messrs. C.Bagley and:L. W. ■■■■ -.'-"-- Andrews,- 3S.'i.). . . SETTLING DIFFERENCES. .'" : Daniel SouthjTLeo, South and William J. Webb wne charged with having, com-, mitted a breach of the peace on .'March' 14 by ; fighting in Hobsba Street. . .: Constable:T. FVSmith stated.that Leo Smith:.had, on -the night in" question, 1 claimed his -protection/against a "mob" who were following, but South added €b' his precautions by pulling 'a7paiing Off a fence. They were joined by Webb and Daniel, Southland' the constable,said: be would see young South on the car ii be were afraid.; He and -the two Souths went'to a train stop.at 'the corner of .Wellington Street: Webb came up to the stop, and .Leo South put his hand on/i-Webb's arm; 'whereupon Webb struck him. Dan South then struck-Webb, and there was a 'general mix-up. The constable said he did not see or hear anything oit:a:jcnife, but one of the police withes'sesy/who-saw the fight, said .that Leo South did draw a knife, and say something to : Webb about using it on him. Another witness said he heard Leo South exclaim that he had a,knife. Wcbb,-.in his defence, stated- that: he' was employed as.a commissionaire at the' Opera House, and be ■ knew the Souths in consequence of trouble rthey bad caused there. He was of they : were " shepherding ".him -in consequence ;bf .that with the: idea of getting even. He' -Had -avoided' them earlier' in the evening, but .when he .was, going along fiobson.Street they accosted him and-wanted to ifight. . - - Webb's 'counsel,, Mr.: Hackett;.called Constable James,, who said that, earlier, iv the evening lie had met the Souths, and found them looking: for.trouble. He persuaded them to go. away, bat tbey were, followed- by;.u" number .of. young men, though, so far as : tHe constable saw, there .■•was no , trouble then. He knew that Webb- stayed "in the Opera House till after the Souths went away. • Leo Webb said ithat-;the "mob" that followed him and, his brother had assaulted.them, arid that thcy'were friends of Webb. : / The:accused were convicted and fined 20/ and 17/ costs, each.- 77 AN EXEMPLARY FINE. ',- Edward': Commeford, charged, with cruelly ill-treating ,a horse by" working it when it -was'suffering from asevere sore on the neck,-. : \vas "a cab-driver, working on shores, and' going out only at night.,,, .. -.-_<;-,. -'. - -" ~, Inspector Alder stated that oh Saturday .night.he.-found accused in_charge of a. cab and two horses. One of the horses' had a raw wound;about six inches long aJtd three inches wide on- its ,rieck, and the, jcollar was .resting, on-.the'sore.' The inspector statetd' that he considered this" one of the worst cases he .had come across, particularly ,as":the -horse was worked under the. cover . of night. •had" arrested'the;-horse at the time in order that it might be'cared fori There was'no defence, and after the Bench had examined the horse, which. was- brought:"to, the Court House, the accused, was fined £10 and 30/; costs. DISTRIBUTING HANDBILLS. Thomas? Gerard'.Garnett was. charged '■that he deposited .printed'matter on the j: footpath in Queen Street, and; Alfred f Windship that he .threw.a handbill on the footpath.. Traffic Inspector,Lindsay stated'_that ; Garnett had 'become a pest by distributing handbills in Queen Street. He pushed them over the arms of by-passera, or farto their hands, with .the result, thai the thills fell on the footpath, or were thrown down and littered; the streets.: " G«rnei*;Baid i ,that he.had heard that ther«'waa going jto be * by-law made to [

prevent this style 6t distributing handbills,[but: did not know it ; w«6"iin:fbrcei The Inspector: It_■ an old by-law that : has beenin force the lastl7 or 20' years. Garnett was fined 10/ and 7/ costs, and' Windshipj who was merely an unfortunate member of the suffering'public, who had liad a bill thrust-into hi» hand and had .thrown it down,' was convicted and, discharged.. .7 .'-'' >- MISCEL—ANEOOS. _■■ Henry Whitesides, a prohibited. person* for'being drunk and using obscene language, was . convicted and ordered .'■• to come up for sentence when called. '.'.*<.'* - Alexander Lerth, for ill-treating a horse by working it wheh.it was. suffering from. 6ores > :on.\the legs,w—i fined: £o and costs. - . ; ■• '■.-'■'■ ' ■ Sidney Grove,' for hawking without haying a license; was fined- 20/ and costs. For driving " a"; "rt»h Without a .;-license Ernest Brown was fined .10/ artd costs, and Harold-Simpson 5/ and costs. Cyril ' Lcyland, for driving on the wrong side, had ' to: pay -5/ and eos-ta, and' Archie Webster 10/ and' costs. Walter 'Copp-' ings, for neglecting to chain the,ivheeit of his cart when he *left it,oh, the'road. unattended, had to pay 10/ and costej and Hy. Brierly,: : for driving, too fast . ■round Queen and■,Wellesley Streets, cor? ner, was fiiied:'lo/ and «»ts,'Gearge,.Fi Monk, Harold McQueen,' and : 'Wm-. ;ffini ning, for not having -the registered 'hmnbers painted on their cycles, were fined each 5/ and*costs.-...' ". ~.,--• John Hanha, farmer, of Dmrtrooni -wa« allowed,.l4 diy-3"in which to pay up .the arrears o* nTairrtenance i or, hie illegiti-".•' mate child. : -:• ■.-. ■ - *-