LYTTELTON.

Press, Volume XXXIX, Issue 5703, 29 December 1883, Page 3

LYTTELTON.

Fbiday, Dxc—_beb 28. (Before J. Ollivier, Esq., E.M.) A Bad Cask.—An old offender, Mrs Worgan, was sentenced to three months' imprisonment for habitual drunkenness.

Thb Sealing Stbwabd.—George Duncan, cook and steward of the sealing schooner Sarah W. Hunt, was charged With being absent without leave. MrF. Ward, Acting Consular Agent for the United Stateß of America, gave evidence. S. S. Miner, master of the Sarah W. Hunt, deposed that the prisoner was on the vessel's articles. A copy of the ship's articles was put in. Mr H. N. Nalder, who appeared for the prisoner, crossexamined the witness. The Bench considered.that the Consular. Agent should not have laid the information, but the master should have done- so. Sergeant Mason said the man was arrested by the police for being absent without leave. His Worship said he then took it that the man was to. be dealt with under the Merchant Shipping Act, and not the Foreign Seamen's Act, the vessel now being in British water. Sergeant Mason pointed out that being a foreign vessel the Merchant Shipping Act did not apply. Looking at the articles , His Worship said the Court could not interfere. The evidence went merely to show that the crew and the master had entered into a contract to go into a joint stock speculation, and any breach of duty on the part of any member of the ship's company was to be punished by a fine or fines, to be deducted from whatever might be accruing as his share of the result of the voyage. Mr Nalder did not exactly fake that view of . the case, nor would he raise it as a point. His contention was that the copy of the articles produced did not show when the voyage 'was to commence, and did not therefore meet the requirements of the American shipping laws. The Bench, after some consideration, dismissed the case, but would not allow costs.