POLICE COURT

Evening Star, Issue 19021, 17 August 1925, Page 5

POLICE COURT

MONDAY, AUGUST 17. (Before Mr H. W. Bundle, B.M.J SALVATION ARMY OFFICES ASSAULTED. George Thomas Bentley, married, twenty-three years of age, was charged with having unlawfully assaulted Ena Heaton Fenwick on Saturday evening. Accused was represented by Mr U J, L Sub-inspector O’Halloran said that tho assault took place on Saturday evening at about 9.30. , A Salvation Army officer was escorting accused to the railway station, when the man snddenlv opened out on Jus Good tan, connecting with a nastv jab behind tho ears. Ho had previously doffed his coat, “it was a cowardly assault,” added the Sub-inspector, “ and the man must have known what he was doing, as lie was sober enough to run away.” Mr White said that the affray wan unfortunate and regrettable. The accused was a young married man with one child. Ho recently purchased a trawler, and had been working off l ort Chalmers. On Saturday after mooring his craft to the wharf he made a, round of the lintels, consuming, according to counsel's precise statement, eight rums during his foraging expedition. He then made for the city, arriving herai at a quarter to 6. He also visited al local hostelry, and came away armed with a bottle of liquor. He was next found in the Salvation Army ring, where lie contributed a pound towards tho enemy’s offertory. “ People do_ not act so generously when they are m a, sound mind,” commented counsel. The' officer then made a strenuous effort to sober the accused up, per medium of a cup of tea, but unfortunately it had quite tho opposite effect. The officer l magnanimously suggested that the man! ,should be dealt with leniently. M? White went on to state that Bentley, had his craft tied up to the wharf at Port Chalmers, and it had been “lefts to the four elements.”

The Magistrate: What are the foun» elements, Air White? Air White: I’m afraid that my myth* ologv is a bit weak. “Perhaps, though,” added counsel, “the reporters could help me, as they seem to think it is a good joke,” The Magistrate said that he would take into consideration what had been said hy counsel, and he would inflict a fine of 40s, in default seven days’ imprisonment. Mr White made an application for the suppression of accused’s name, but the Alagisti'ato said that he could not grant ihc request. DRUNKENNESS.’ Walter Henry Turner Crimp, a statutory first offender, was fined 40s on a charge of having been found drunk on the Dunedin railway station platform.—A first offender was fined 20s; and another, who had been in the colls since Saturday evening, was convided and discharged. AIAINTENANCE. Henry Michael Harwood, with arrears of CIO 2s (id under a maintenance! order, was sentenced to one month’s imprisonment, with release on payment of arrears. COULD NOT PAY FOR MEAL. Ernest William Graves went to that Leviathan Hotel on Saturday nighty and had a meal. Finding he could not pay for it, the proprietor look him to the police station, where it was found! he had no money. The outcome was that defendant wa< charged with, and admitted, being an idle and disorderly person with insufficient lawful means of support. ' He said he had been working in Central Otago, and more recently had been employed on the wharf. He received war pension. Graves was remanded for a week, tef sec what could he done for him.