HERBALIST IN COURT.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 18968, 5 April 1927, Page 10

HERBALIST IN COURT.

POLICEMEN AS PATIENTS. MUCH MEDICINE, CHIEFLY PILLS, i [THE PBESS Special Sir-rice.; AUCKLAND, April Tt . ■ Abraham "Wally Mohamid Saiama.;. aged 40, the Indian herb ,; atah -: o{ : Kyber Pass, whose premises were raided j by detectives recently, i\as charged at ; the Police Court this morning that, ; with intent to defraud, he did obtain j sums of money totalling £3 16s from i David John O'Carroll and Charles ! Lawrence Packman by falsely repre- j seating that he was a person capable j of diagnosing and curing ailments, and ; skilled in the treatment of disease. ! Mr W. R. McKean, S.M.. was on ~Jao j bench. Mr Schramm appeared for Sala- j man. who pleaded not guilty. Chief- ! Iteteetive Cummings prosecuted. j The evidence for the prosecution was j that of two strong policemen who had visited defendant in his consulting room, had been told that they were far from well, and had been prescribed medicines, chiefly piils. Salaman had applied a stethoscope to the glands of the witness's throat and told him he had bad circulation, that he had "left it too long." and that vtry soon he would lose the power of his legs. Witness went away with a plaster on his back, a bottle of medicine, and five bottles of pills, the charge being 10s. At a second visit, the constable stated, j he was given another bottle of medicine and five more bottles of pills. At a third visit Salaman put a magnifying glass on witness's eyes and said: "By jove, very bad! You've got ulcers/' Witness asked where the ulcers were, and Salaman replied, '"They are in your stomach." Salaman,gave witness more medicine for the ulcers and five more boxes of pills. Another constable gave evidence about consulting Salaman. Medical men who examined the constables said that they were perfectly healthy strong men. One of the doctors said that from the way in which Salaman had gone about his diagnosis of the patients' ills, it seemed that | Salaman knew very little about dts- i ease. Detective-Sergeant O'Brien gave details concerning goods found upon accused's premises, including an envelope containing indecent photographs. He also found a number of pamphlets including a form of indemnity by which, patients might agree to indemnify the accused against any claim for damages arising out of the use of remedies prescribed by him. Mr Schramm said the, defence was that the accused was carrying on the business of a herbalist and did not profess to be a doctor or a chemist. He did not allow himself to be called "doctor." Witnesses would show that he had effected marvellous cures in cases which had been given up by doctors. Defendant really believed he was doing his patients good. The indecent photographs were part of a job lot of goods bought from a bankruptchemist. .Salaman gajve evidence. H© denied making the diagnosis related by the constables. The hearing was adjourned.