POLICE COURT.

Auckland Star, Volume LI, Issue 114, 13 May 1920, Page 4

POLICE COURT.

(Before Mr. F. K. Hunt, S.il.) THE MERRYMAKERS. Mary Ann Windeor (46), made afw when arrested for drunkennees m Hol>son Street last night. In her struggle ehe noticed an electric torch in the conetable'e pocket, and this ehe pulled out and emaehed on the footpath. She was fined 20/, in default eeven daye imprisonment. Another fussy person was Malaroa Pomanan, otherwise William Bowman (24), who put up a fight when! arrested for drunkenness in Customs Street yesterday afternoon; three constables packed him, still struggling, into a motor-car, a helmet of one of the constables being packed in under the struggler and crushed. He wa-» fined £2, and ordered to pay 10/ damages. Three first offenders for drunkenness forfeited bail, and three were fined 5/ a? John R. C. Miller (27), for being drunk at the City Market, and obstructing a constable in hie duty by following him round and spotting any •chance there may have been of detecting petty thefta on the part of loiterers about the place, was fined 30/ DIDN'T USE H.L. Charged that he etole a pair of boots from ■ Knight's boot-shop in Queen Street yesterday afternoon, and that he struck a young, girl who chased him, George Warren Hastings (42), declared that he didn't assault the girl, but his hand slipped. Evidence was given that the man snatched a pair of boote, but was seen by a girl' in the shop, who gave chase, caught the man and snatched the boote back, to get a 'backhanded slap on the head from Hastings. A young man who saw the incident thereupon took a hand, and threw Hastings on the ground, holding him till a policeman came. "Don't send mc to prison, as I'm not able to do hard work," pleaded the prisoner. After looking at the man's lengthy list, the Magistrate imposed a sentence: of three months' hard labour. "What about the hard labour?" persisted Hastings. "The gaol people will see to that," replied the Magistrate, who! carefully bagged "HJL" to the length of the term. HIS EASY-GOING WAY. Henare Wiremu, or Henry Williams <49), a Maori from the East Coset, was charged with having stolen a. seaman's overcoat and book of discharges on the SJ3- Maponrika, on which he had taken a passage for Tokomaru Bay yesterday. The circumstances were that Wiremu had gone to 'the eeamen'e quarters on the ship, taken an overcoat, slipped m pocket-book out of the coat into hie own pocket, and then taken the coat to a bunk and need it for a pillow. He explained that he had just ejipped the book into his own pocket in case it got lost while he used the coat for a pillow, but he could not explain why he didn't take hie own overcoat for a pillow.

He wae convicted and fined 40/. TAXI DRIVES TALKED

Andrew Ferguson, a taxi-driver, admitted that in March he charged more than the legal fare. The circumstances stated were that a man and hW wife, who Juid Janied-Irojp, ;thft_Thiimeß «x----prewr To.' drive them to King's Court Private Hotel, and he asked 10/. The man challenged the charge, and Ferguson reduced it to 6/, but, the fare was not satisfied and offered 4/, -which was refused. Eventually defendant was paid 6/ under protest, and the hiring was carried" out at that price.

Defendant, who did not appear, sent a letter admitting that he had overcharged. He 'stated that on account of the rise in prices of benzine, tyres and oils, he was justified in passing the extra coet along to the public

Traffic Inspector Lindsay stated that as the distance was under a mile, the legal fare for the job was 2/6.

"It's nothing but robbery, asking 10/ and reducing it to 6/,' commented the Hagietrate, who added that it was for the City Council to alter the fares, and not for taxi-drivers to charge just what they could get. Defendant was fined 40/ and 9/ costs, and ordered to refund 3/6 to the hirer. '