MAGISTRATES COURTS.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 11084, 1 October 1901, Page 2

MAGISTRATES COURTS.

DEFAULT CASES. Iv the following cases the defendant? did not appear, and Mr H- W. Bishop, S.M., gave judgment against them, by default with costs:—W. Strange and Co. (Mr Flesher) v Gr. H. Smith, £2 Os 8d; Dtrolop Pneumatic Tyre Company (Mr Johnston) v Peter A. Smith, £20 "?»; Sawtell and Wachsmann (Mr Franks) v W. J. Boyd, £6 ss; Trade Auxiliary Company (Mc Russell) v Charles Allen, £5 Ss; C. Pannell (Mr Francis) v T. Smith, £1 16s 6d.

EXPERTS ON HANDWRITING. A case was heard before Mr H. W. Bishop a few weeks ago in which William S. Crichton, grain merchant, claimed £50 from Margaret Cronin, as damages for alleged breach of contract for the sate of a quantity of oats. The plaintiff produced several letters, ostensibly written by the defendant, containing the "offer to sell "the oats, and the subsequent revocation after the offer hed been accepted by Mr Crichton. The defendant denied that she bad written tire letters, stating that she. was away from, home at the times the letters were supposed to have been written. The case was accordingly adjourned for the production of further evidence. Yesterday 0. Edgar, engraver, employed by the "Lyttelton Times" Company, gave it as his opinion that the disputed letters aud a letter actually written by Mrs Cronin had bsen written by the same person. J. M. Lloyd, aleo an engraver, wfth. an experience extending over fifty years, was of opinion that the letters were" not written by the same hand. John Cronin, a son of the defendant, stepped into the witness bos and swore that he had written, the letters at his father's order, but without his mother's knowledge or consent. >Ir Bishop dictated one of the letters to tfte witness, and it was found afterwards that not only was the writing similar, but that & peculiar mistake in the dictated letter was repeated in the one the witness wrote in the witness box. His Worship said that in, "the face of this evidence he must give judgment for the dtefendant with costs. Mr Joynt appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr Russell for the defendant.

A BUILDING CONTRACT. John Cummings Green (Mr Stringer), a contractor, sued Jacob Osborne (Mr Russell) far £106 9s lOd, balance alleged to be due on a building contract. Green had entered into. a contract for the erection of a housa for Osborne, according to plans and specifications. During the progress of the work Green stated that he had been, compelled to do a number of extras which had not been mentioned in the specifications, and for which he had not been paid. He therefore claimed for these extras. Several of .the disputed,items had been taken in detail, and each tkreshsd out, wheal . an arrangement was come to whereby judgment was to go for the" plaintiff for £80 and costs, and a counter-claim of £57 for penalties was to be dismissed.. > , ■ • OWNERSHIP OF'A HEIFER.

■ Timothy Hanlon (Mr Russell) claimed £8 10a from Alfred Horn (Air Johnston) value of a heifer alleged to : be detained by the defendant. It appeared, from the evidence that the plaintiff, -who.is a. farmer at Btom'-ey, turned but a red heifer with a black cpw on a run at Rupaki, hear Lyttel--ton. - In Aprilof tibis year Hanlon missed his heifer, and sic subsequently found it on Horn's farmrat Woodend. At first Horn refused to give it up/ but later on he offered to, purchase it for .£3 10s. The offer wae refused, and Horn, then agreed to return the beast. He neglected to do so, and afterwards refused on the ground tihat it had not own branded •by Jlr Horn. The defence was that the particular heifer claimed had been bred by the defendant, and had always b«n his own' property; 'After hearing a quantity of evidence, his Worship gave judgment for the plaintiff fW £5, and costs. ■ - .

. A CAB FARE.Philip Kelly, proprietor of a hansom cab, claimed 16s from C. E- Hoddinotfc, for cab fares. Judgment was given for the plaintiff for ss, and costs.

At Kaiapoi JohnDriscoll, trho had been charged with fighting in a public place, was convicted and ordered to come up for sen? tence when ■ required, A similar charge against two otters was dismissed with a caution. ,