A SERIES OF CHARGES

Evening Star, Issue 14186, 11 October 1909, Page 4

A SERIES OF CHARGES

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, At tie Oitjr Polite C/ottrt this morning Answorth Ldviflgrfode Peary appeared i<> aUßwftr eeVeral cMtgcg of leaking and enterinc several dweffingg and eicsling various l£e fret that, oh Septhmiaet 28, he (brake and entered the dVrelHiightouee of Edward Potting, ahd stole therefrato one gold medal Valued at 856, fettds vahted at ate, and stud case valued hit 3e. Mr OalveH appeared for the accttsed.—EdWiPd Harris Rotting, butcher, residing at 13 Reid toad, Strtfth. Dunedin, said that, on September 28, in obtfleqoeoco of Something his wife told him, he went am} St ami bed his house At 1.30 jtia, On his uist'examination he missed a ease containing four studs, and subsequently he missed a gold medal. That evening hfe reported the matter to the poJke At South Duriedin. The articles missing were kept in the dtehtem in the front bedroom. He had last e«£fi the arbieks on the 26th. The gold medal produced was the one that had been taken. He had won it in a fito-a-side football match, and it bore his initials. The etude produced resembled the ante he had lost. No oh® had authority to remove tbs articles. WitoeashAd fib previous knowledge of the accused.—Cross-etteniiiSd: He thought the studs Were gold. They were given to him by his lather, Who Lid bought them as gold. The Studs were in a case which Was given tb witness With the etude.—Jessie Rotting, wif® of the last witness, said that she left her house at 9,h5 a.m. on September 28, leafvitig no one at Jv&me, and feiring tit© doors and win- 1 dows secured. The kitchen window was closed, but She Cotild not shy if it were locked. When she tfetiritiOd two hours later the kitchen window Was open; On entering by the kitchen door elie found that the house had been ransacked, and the articles in the dnehesee chest were disordered, Witness found the back part of a gold collar stud, which was part Of a set to which the three studs produced belonged. The remainder of the studs And the case containing them were missing. The studs and case were kept in a little drawer at the t°P of the dOcbcsse. The Studs were not marked, but those produced were similar. The medal was the property of her husband, Prior to the date of the offence she had seen the accused in the street, but he had never called at the house of witness. On the following day accused' called on witness to try to sell a rheumatic cure.— Cross-examined : Witnoae did-not give accused An order for the rheumatic cure. She cottld not swear that the stnds produced were those belonging to her husband, but they were similar.—Mary Batting, wife of R. J. Rotting, residing at 26 Reid road, South Dunedin, said that accused called at het house at about 19 a.m. on September 88> tried to sell a rheunnatTc cure. Witness did not buy any, but directed bun to the house of the last witness. She saw him enter the eide gate of the house and disappear from eight. Accused was alone. Witness saw no more of him that day.— Gross-examined : Her sister-in-law’s house was on the other Side of the road, about a. hundred yards along. She was at the front window when she saw him enter No. 13.—John S. Rotting, brother of the witness E. H. Rotting, and residing at 42 Reid road, said that on September 28, at 10 am., he was passing through Reid road, when he saw accused coming out of his brother Edward’s passage. Accused was alone, and had hie hands in bis pockets. In consequence of what his brother told him of the robbery he described accused to him.—George Latimer, manager of the Union Pawn Office, Royal Arcade, eaid that on September 28 accused pawned the medal produced for Ss. On October 4 witness handed the medal to Detective Hunt.— Cross-examined: The studs produced were not gold, but braes,—'Detective Hunt said that on October 4 he recovered the medal produced from the last witness, In the following day, in company with Detective Lily, he arrested accused in Maclaggan street. Accused made no reply when charged. The three etude produced were found in tho pocket of accused.—Crossexamined : Accused was wearing one of the studs.—Mr Calvert said that accused was prepared to plead guilty to receiving the goods. Accused’s story was that he had been engaged selling goods on commission for a company. He had become acquainted with a man called Hughes, who professed to take a great interest in hie Work, Hughes very often accompanied accused on his travels round tho City. This man had so won the confidence of the accused that he prevailed upon the accused to pawn the goods that had 1 been taken. He would ask that the charge be reduced to one of receiving.—Accused was then committed for trial.

(Left sitting.)