MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1239, 22 September 1911, Page 3

MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

NOT VERY LUCID. Judgment was given by Mr. Riddcll in the action of Dunk. I'rmgle and Co v W. H. P. Barber. Mr. Jl. i\ vou Ilaast was for the plaintiff, and Mr. A. Fair for the defendant. It wa* set out th.it the? Scott Motor Cycle Company had supplied motor-car accessories, and hail done repairs to defendant's car. The cost of these had lieen £"i 12s. While the ear wns in the ,*-'cott Co.'.s custody, it had been danu-wd and defendant Darber had then had a discission with llio firm. From Ihis i-nnverfation he had understond that il 1,-ul been arranged (as a conwiiuenco of liii. I'nmnßc) that tlu company should viiiv.- oil' his account. 'The Sco'tt Motor and Cycle Co. subM?r|tieiitly wont into lifiuidation, and assigned this debt (anions others) to Dunk. I'rinxle and Co., Ltd. Tlio latter sued Barher for thn .£2l V'i., and he raised the defence that it had Imjcii arranged to set oft the damage to liis car again-t this necount, mid tliat (even if there had. not been that nrranseiisent), lid ras entitled to set oil-the amount. Mr. liiddell. S.M. (on the first occasion on which the cuie was before liiui). had held that ]i« had uo richt

set off a claim fur unliquidated damages against a na>*-it;iu'(' sums for n debt. Therefore, his Worship did not decide ll, c question of whether or no I the .Scott Co, won: liablr for the damage to thu cur, Tho caw went to th? Sunremi' - Court, and Mr. Justice Sim had held that tindefendants were , eirlitled to ii ,1 . oil' the claim for unliquidated damaies. '.I'll!' caso wits accordingly remitted '.o tho Magistrate to find if the Swtl C-j. wore liable in damages. Alter coing iuto the cast, Mr. Kiddull had held tlia: the difiiajre to the cur bavins occurred while the car wits in tho Scoit Company's (.11:tody thoro was a presumption that negligence on their part causpd tlu. ilaiiia:!.;, and that that cuuld only be rebutted by showing that daiuaso was duo to some, inherent defect or Gonio cauie other than tho act of tho company. Tho company bad failed to show thai, and, therefore, they were liable in damages, which ho assessed at .£24. Judgment was 1 for plaintiffs for 125., with costs JCI l'J.s., and against that were sot tho defendant's costs of appeal, .£8 as., leaving a balance in favour of tho defendant of Its. THE MAN CAME BACK. DESEHTEK AND DKOWNING HOAX. Yesterday afternoon William Tliomae Jones, a seaman, wnscharged with having deserted from tho Ruapehu. Jones pleaded guilty. It was stated b.v Mr. W. H. D. Moll that Jones deserted tho Kuapehu and joined the AoTangi while l>otb vessels were in Wellington. Ho joined the Aorangi under an assumed name. He was a ship's carpenter, and that made the matter more serious than an ordinary case of desertion. It was impossible—not by law, but in a practical sense—for a ship to go to sea without a carpenter. Mr. Bell asked for an exemplary sentence, Some time after Jones's desertion, Mr. Bell went on, his clothes were found on the beach at Lynll Bay, with n letter supposed to indicate that he had been drowned. Mr. W. G. Eiddcll, S.M., who"was on the bench, said-that as regarded tho request for an exemplary sentence he .did not see how this case could be distinguished from other recent cases. He sentenced Jones to one month's imprisonment. - OVER A DOG. (Before Dr. M'Arthur, S.M.) John Wishart Maxwell, accountant, Wellington, sued George H. Stanhope, Christchurch, to recover possession of "Whareroa Wild Girl," an Irish terrier puppy, pr £o 5.5. Mr. H. Machell represented tho plaintiff, and Mr. C. H. Dix the defendant. There was evidence of a verbal "breeding agreement," but after hearing the facts adduced, his Worship de'cided in favour of the defendant. BOARD AND LODGINGS. • Miss M. E. Drake sued P. Frederick for £2 10s.— £1 ss. for board, and ,C 1 ss. in lieu of notice. Mr. A. J. Luke appeared for the defendant. Judgment was given plaintiff for .Cl 'ss. for board. DEBT CASES. In tho following cases judgment was entered for plaintiff' by default:—G. A. Uitchic v. Kobert I.'riescj .£1 15s. Sd., costs ss. j E. \V. Mills and Co., Ltd., v. Norman Phiips, £1 2?. 7d.,. costs us.; W. H. Nash v. Mrs. W. Findlay, JEI I'Js. Id., costs us.; Jt). J. Jones v. George 1 , . Ilanna, 12s. Cd., costs 55.; ".Sew Zealand Times" Company, Ltd., v. D. Charteris, J215, costs .CI 10s. Gd.; n. Hoimann v. Robert Bull, JCI -Is. lid., costs 55.; New Zealand Express Co., Ltd., v.,J. M'Dougall, .£1 2s. Sd.,. costs 55.; "New Zealand Times" Company, Ltd., v. R. E. Howell, £12 Is. Gd., costs £1 Us. Gd.; "London Times" v. J. H. Campbell, JX, costs £1 os. 6d.; Briscoe and Co., Ltd., v. Harry Hill, Is. Gd., costs £1 75.; Hat Box Mercery Co. v. E. H. D. Buchanan, £i 4s. Gd., costs lfls.; Joseph Lewis ami Co. v. Albert Downes, J!5 55., costs £1 3s; 6d. LESSONS IN TAILORING. (Before Mr. W. G. Riddell, S.M.) Jack Jacobus v. Emanuel Bergman was a claim for .£5, alleged to be owing in respect of. fees incurred by tho defendant for the giving of cutting lessons in tailoring, and .El in respect of an unreturned paper pattern. Defendant was credited with a contra of .£] for material supplied. Tho defence was that 20 lessons were to have been given, but only four had been received. .. ~. -Judgment was for the defendant with costs. POLICE CASES. Albert Austin, who was charged with drunkenness, was remanded till September 28 for ■ medical treatment. Albert Whyte was fined £\ for drunkenness.

Charles Enticott was fined <£3 for using obscene language. Queen's Wharf was tho scene of the offence.

Charles Edward M'Kay pleaded guilty to a charge of converting to his own use £i Is. 7d., the property of tho committee of the Mooraki Bachelors' Ball. Meeraki is a settlement in Otago, and the defendant was secretary and treasurer of a ball held -there. He was fined £1.

Minnie Brown was sentenced to three months' imprisonment for being idle, disorderly, ■ and without sufficient lawful means of support.