TRADE UNION FUNDS

Evening Star, Issue 17919, 15 March 1922, Page 6

TRADE UNION FUNDS

SECRETARY CHARGED WITH EMBEZZLEMENT. THE ARBUCKLE CASE. The ex-secretary of the Miners' Federation, John Arbuckle, appeared before Mr Riddell, S.M., at Wellington last week charged with having stolen £459 3s 4d, the property of the Now Zealand Coal, Gold, Shale, Quarry, and Tunnel Workers' Federation. Ho was committed for trial. Mr W. Perry appeared for the prosecution and Mr Treadwcll for tho accused. (living evidence, Peter O'Rourke, secretary and treasurer of the federation, said that accused had occupied that position from July 1, 1919, till August 28, 1921. About the latter date, witness took over accused's duties, having been elected just previously. On August 29 he saw accused, and they went to the office. Witness asked him how malteis stood, and he said that there were only one or two letters to attend to. Accused did not hand over any money, receipts, or registered letter to witness, as all tho money j belonging to the federation was supposed ito have been banked on the previous Saturday. Accused produced a bank receipt to that effect. The federation consisted of an unlimited number of members of the Coal, Gold, Shale, and Quarry '< Workers' Unions. The federation received certain moneys from these unions. _ There ■were New Zealand dues amounting to !3J,d' per member per week, Australian ! dues of id per member per week, Is per ! member per quarter for the delegates' i fund, and 6d per member per year for j affiliation to the Alliance of Labor. In [addition, they had to pay whatever levies i were decided" upon by the federation for assisting men out on strike or those who were victimised. There was also a house fund—a levy of 7s 6d per member for the purchase of a house for tiie secretary of the federation to live in. Arbuckle was the secretary at that time. A levy of 1\ per cent, on wages was struck for the Broken Hill miners by the Australian Federation, and this was endorsed by the New Zealand Federation. Later the levy was increased to ,'2l, per cent. All these moneys were iorwarded to the secretary of the New Zealand Federation, and were supposed to have been paid to the tecleration's credit in the Te Aro branch of the Rank of New Zealand. Witness produced the books which accused had left in the office when he went to Sydney in 1921. The bank pay-in book was written 'up to December 24, 1920. There were no entries between that date and August, 1921, when witness took oiiice. He cuuhl lind no record of payments into the bank between December 24, 1920, and August 27, 1921. When he, met Arbuckle in August, 1921, Arbuckle said that he had taken the accounts to Mr J. (.Hover, of the ' Maoriland Worker' Office to have them checked. Witness felt pleased, for he had great faith in Clover, who visited the otiico later, and brought some papers with him. lie asked Arbuckle where, the books were, and Arbuckle said that he bad not kept any books since the conference in July ; he had merely kept a statement of income, expenditure, and petty cash. Arbuckle remarked' to witness that he could "post" ihe books, for if would not take him very long. Glover drew accused's attention to the fact that there was a discrepancy of £SO, and Arbuckle said thai, some of tho delegates to the conference must have put it up on to him. Witness replied that lie did not think that was possible. They checked the delegates' vouchers, and could not find anything". Arbuckle then said : " 1 must have gone drunk nn myself for £SO. 1 will have to pay it." He said be bad sent all his money to Australia, only keeping sufficient to defray his cxpr-.ises on the trip, but that he would be back in three weeks' time, as he had a Jot of business to do in Wellington, and would make the £SO good. He did not return in that period. RECEIPTS AND DUPLICATES COMPARED.

Subsequently, said witness, he wrote to the unions and told them that they had not paid in conned ion with the Nightcaps mine levy. He got no replies for a time, and then the. secretary of the I'tikemiro Union wrote stating that lie held a receipt for an amount he had paid. Witness subsequently obtained (he receipts held by the various unions. No. 876 was for £3l 12s from the Dcnnisto:i Union, but the duplicate receipt in the federation's hooks showed only £27 2?. No. 837 was for £125 14s from the Puketniro Union, but the carbon copy showed £55 15s 9d. No. 889 was for £34 6s 9d, and the books showed £2l 6s Bd. These were all signed by Atbuckle. No. 897, from 'the Hotowaro Union, was for £54 IDs lOd, and the duplicate showed £44 10s. No. 906, from Blackball, was for £126 7s 6d, and the copy was for £B6 1.7 s 6d. There was also a receipt from Hikurangi for £l7 ss, but the duplicate was torn out of tho book. There were no duplicates for receipts Nos. 1,273. 1,274, 1.275, 1,276. No. 1.275 was for £56 8s 6d, and No. 1,276 for £4l 15s. There was a duplicate form for tho latter, but nothing was written on it. There was no carbon copy of receipt No. 1,321 ior £l7 10s paid'in by the Eotowaro Union. The federation had received certain moneys to rerfl't to the Broken Hill minors, but he did not know how tlicy wore remitted. He obtained from 'the Te Aro branch of the Bank of New Zealand: ei«ht cheques for £350, £ICO, £l5O. £IOO, £3CO, £3OO, £343 10s 6d, and £3OO respectively, making a total of £1,943 10s 6d. He recognised Arbuckle's signature on those cheques. They were also signed by witness as president, and cither Mr P. J. O'Regan or Mr \V. J. White as trustee. Th.ev were dated respectively January 18. 1921, January 26, 1921, February 12, 1921, March 12. 1921, April 4, 1921, April 29, 1921, May 7, 1921. May 16. 1921. 'lTiev were all open cheques. The Broken Hiil monevs should have bcen sent to Mr A. C. Willis, secretary of the Miners' Federation. Sydney. THE CHEQUES ALU CASHED.

John J. E. Downey, clerk in the To Aro branch of tho Bank of New Zealand, said that all the cheques produced by the last witness had been cashed. Thomas Morton Highel, clerk in chargo of the pav-in Revenue Office of the Treasury, said that in March, 1920, hi? department had made a payment of £6O to the federation. William Joseph White, law accountant in the emplov of Mr I\ J. O'Regan, said that he and Mr O'Regan were trustees of the funds, and one of them, with the secretary and president, signed the cheques. The federation had only one banking account. The secretary used to bring in the cheques signed by the president and himself and witness or Mr O'Regan would countersign them. The eight cheques produced were signed by O'Rourke, Arbuckle, and witness. Witness had never cashed any of tho cheques. To Mr Treadwell: The secretary did not always bring round the cheques. "Witness had held one cheque up and rang up Arbuckle to see whether it was in right hands, because it was taken round by a stranger. DISCREPANCY DISCOVERED. John Glover, manager of the ' Maoriland Worker,' said that on August 28 accused visited his house. He brought with him a statement of income and expenditure, and asked witness to take charge of the books until Mr O'Rourke arrived. Witness found that cheques totalling £1,215 5s lOd had been drawn for delegates' expenses, and the vouchers totalled only £1,162 0s 7d leaving a discrepancy of £sl 5s 7d. He also found that one other amount in expenditure should have been £5 10s instead of £5, which reduced the discrepancy to £SO 15s 7d. He went to the federation's office and saw Arbuckle and O'Rourke there. He pointed'out that there was a discrepancy, but accused would not admit it After checking the vouchers again, accused said he did not know how it happened; also that he had sent all his money to Australia, but on arrival there he would return the amount. At the latest he would be back in three weeks, and if he had not sent it before would bring it with him. Witness, in reply to Mr Treadwell, said that ho had known two or three weeks previous to that that accused was going to Australia

Herbert Bolton said he had audited the books of the federation for the last four years. He last audited them in July, 1921, and there was no trace of the cheque from the Treasury having been received. Constable Anderson said that on February 2, 1922, be was sent to Sydney to bring the accused back to New Zealand. Accused pleaded not guilty, reserved his defence, and was committed to the Supreme Court for trial. Bail was allowed in the same amount as was previously fixed. Mr Perry asked that the Crown should take over the case, and to this the magistrate agreed.