A STRANGE CASE.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXVI, Issue 4154, 6 December 1870, Page 5

A STRANGE CASE.

: „ -The following particulars of an extraordinary charge of robbery on shipboard have been supplied to us. > They jare taken from the San F/anciscoßulletin of Jufoj 14, and we are placed in the unfortunate position of neither having the ; beginning nor the end to the story :4-"The Alleged Robery on Shipboard. —At the close of our report yesterday afternoon in the case of William J. Boyle, charged with- robbing Denham, on .board the ship .' Saranac,' the last witness for the poseoution was oh/the stand. The defence then commenced their case, by calling the defendant to the stand. —William J. Boyle deposed: I live at the Irving House. I lived for 20 months at Auckland. I intend to return there. Know Denham. We were partners. On the 15th March we came to make a settlement. There was £627 10s. 4d. due me. He said, ' If you draw all this money you will cramp me.' Told him that I did not want to cramp him, and that he could draw the money and use it for several weeks or months, as I had to go to Dunedin, and he icould return it to me when I came back. He s^id he wanted to use it until the 24th of March. Before I left for Dunedin I gave him 10 ten pound notes to give to Mr Nixon to buy scrip with; 'WLile I was gone I learned that. Mr. Denham had left, and I returned to Auckland ; went to. the) Uniou Bank, and found, that ail but three shillings had been drawn by Denham, and; in "the Bank of New South Wales he had drawn all but £2 10s. I also learned that he had sold all the material of the firm. I learned he had sailed for this.city; I took passage in. the steamer, and got here ahead of him. I had a warrant from Auckland with me. After arriving here, I waited on the Chief of Police, and also on the British Consul, and told them what Denham had done. When I learned that the vessel in which Denham came had arrived, I went oa board and saw Denham. He was not surprised to see me. Told me I had cut his wind, and get here before him. He said, ' Don't make so much u<.ise, bnt coma into my state-room an ' we will talk it over.' _ I then went into the sta f. • t> om, an t he said, 'Don't make so niu h noise about it.' 1 asked him for my money, an t he ope ied his trunk and said this was ail the mon^y he had, giving ms a bag containing thirty-eight sovereigns. He gave me this. He said he did nob have any more, as the rest he had sent to his home in South Boston. I afterward returned him the money, but asked it of him again, saying it was my mon^y, and he gave it back to me. The office s left the ship before I did When I camo ashore I saw Detective Johnson, aud asked him if Denham had come ashore. He said 'No.' Met Denham on shore, .at the wharf, when I was waiting for him to come off the ship. We walked up Front-street to California. On the way up he cried, and said the woman — meaning Mrs. Craft--had led him into it. He was married to her, for I saw the marriage certificate. He said that there must be some mistake about the money in i ank, because the money was there. Told him if there was anything in the shape of a mistake, and he would return with me, I would pay his passage to Auckland j and, if everything was all right, I would pay his passage back here. He said that the money was there, and he would do anything I wanted. He also told me he would go to the house where I board, and stay there till I was ready to go. Then I met Johnson, and told him what Denham had promised to do, and he asked me if I was fool enough to believe what he said. Denham stated, in presence of Johnson, that he had paid me the 38 sovereigns on account of what he owed me. Johnson said, ' You had better get a document to show that he paid you this.* Went to my room with Denham, wrote out a document, which was in acknowledgment that he had paid mc thirty-eight sovereigns on account of a dishonoured cheque he had given me. This document ho signed, but it is now missing. Saw Denham eery day after that until Wednesday. Never agreed to pay him back the 38 sovereigns. Did not pay a penny to either Johnson or Anshro. Nothing was ever said that I had robbed Denham until after I bad lost my pocketbook, in which was contained the document signed by Denham. I went to Mrs. Bowers's house to look for Denham ; he was not in. Asked for pen, paper, and ink. _ The little gill whom I spoke to said she did not think she had any paper; so I took out my pocket-book, and tore out a leaf. She then brought me pett and ink, nnd I wroti 1 a note to Denham, which I left iv the house. I then went to Vallejo, and never missed my pocket-book till I got there. So I telegraphed here to stop payment of a cheque of deposit which was in the book. When I returne • here, I looked in my room, and culd not find my book ; so I went to Mrs. Bowers, and asked if I had not left it there. She said she did not know. Went there again, and asked for the book, when Mrs.Bowers apologised for a mistake she had made; that she was in trouble in consequence of the loss of her husband ; that she had found the book, and had sent it to her lawyer. Told her to name him, so that I could get my book again. She said that I did not know him ; that he had just come from the East, and was then in Vallejo. After some more talk, she said that if I would return at 3 p.m. she would have the book for ma. I went away and met Johnson, and told him about the book. He called an officer, and sent him with me to get the book. I went there and she said 'Walk in.' She handed mo the book, and an officer stepped up saying, ' I arrest you for rob cry; give me that book ; I jnst want that.' I was passing it to him when ho told me to look and see if all was right. I glanced at it, saw the certificate of deposit, and the dishonoured cheq'ie,and said it was all risdit. Did not see the document signed by Dfnhnm. rs it did not enter my mind to look for it at the time. Have never seen it since I put it in the book. Never had an idea that Denham would not return with me until I was arretted. Was at the time preparing to return to Now Zealand. Am not acquainted with any one here. Did not tell Denham, nor did the officer tell him, that I had Irish friends here who would murder him. . Never told Denham that I came on board to murder him or his brother. The further hearing was then postponed until two o'clock p.m. to-day."