MAGISTRATE'S COURT

Greymouth Evening Star, 14 May 1945, Page 2

MAGISTRATE'S COURT

TO-DAY’S GREYMOUTH CASES

. Mr. A. A. McLachlan, S.M., presided at a sitting of the Magistrate’s Court at Greymouth, this morning. Senior Sergeant G. H. L. Holt represented the police. Norman Ernest Gillman, for whom Mr. W. D. Taylor pleaded guilty, was convicted.and fined £1 with 10/costs for driving a motor-car on April 1, 1945, without being the holder of a driver’s license. For cutting the corner at the intersection of Alexander Terrace and Smith Street on April 14, 1945, Ralph Henry George Derry, who pleaded guilty, was convicted and fined £z with 10/- costs.

LICENSING CASES.

Four statutory first .offenders were charged with consuming liquor on the premises of the Ngahere Hotel on April 15, 1945, at a time when the premises were required by the Licensing Act. Emergency Regulation to be S&ed Two of the defendants, James Gibson and Robert Reid appeared and P1 Co d Honey said that a\ ,4.20 p.m., on April 15 he visited the hotel and found the four men in a Parlour The licensee was m the bar. Two oi the men were in possession of liquor. Gibson was standing at the slide and there was a glass of liquor in front of him. Reid was sitting on a couch and there was an empty glass, had contained liquor, on the mantlepiece. Reid said that he had not had a drink but had come to the hotel to bandage Gibson s hand, which had been injured in a football match. Gibson in evidence, said he did not have a drink m the hotel. He had had his hand injured in a football matcn that afternoon and had returned to the hotel to change his clothes, intending to return to the match. Reid had offered to bandage the hand and had gone into the hotel with him (Gibson). Prior to going to play football he (Gibson) had given the publican £3 to look after for him, and he waTat the slide waiting for the money to be given back to him when the constable entered. Reid gave evidence that he uas waiting for Gibson after bandaging his injured hand. He considered he had a right in the hotel in such cnCU £ St repiy‘to the Magistrate Gibson said he could get the licensee to coi - r °T°he iases oiiSand Gibson were adTourSd lor one week to enable evidence to be given by the hcensee. fhe other two men were each fined £2 W James jSslph O’Regan licensee, of the Ngahere Hotel, lor whom Mi. • W Hannan pleaded guilty, was chargS under tile Emergency Regulatrons vHth supplying liquor to Gibson ana othersZ April 15. when the premises were required to be closed. The Senior Sergeant said it was the first time O’Regan had been charged with such an offence. As as was known he was running a fanly good was convicted and fined £lO, with 12/- costs and 12/6 police expenses.

INFORMATION DISMISSED

Eugene Thomas Swetnam, licensee of the Imperial Hotel, Greymouth, pleaded not guilty through Mr. Hannan to a eftarge of supplying kquor to a seaman named Byrne on March 27, 1945, at a time when the premises were required by the Licensing Act Emergency Regulations to be closed. The Senior Sergeant said that at 7.30 p.m., on the date of the alleged offence Sergeant Mcßobie and Constable Wilson visited the hotel. They entered by the Boundary Street dooi, which was open. They found the licensee behind the bar and a servant at the hotel, Hargreaves, and Byrne, a seaman, were having a drink. Sergeant R. C. Mcßobie gave evidence on the lines of the Senior Sergeant’s statement. Byrne claimed that he had come to book in at the hotel, but at that time admitted that he had not actually booked in. To Mr. Hannan: The licensee supported the statement of Byrne that he had come to book a room. The licensee gave evidence that Hargreaves had been living at the hotel for a number of years and Byrne was a friend of Hargreaves. Byrne had come to see Hargreaves and told witness that he would be staying for the night. He always stayed at the hotel when the ship on which he worked, was in port. Byrne did stay in the hotel that, night. To the Senior Sergeant: He had not actually allotted a room to Byrne when the Sergeant came in. The Magistrate said there was an clement of doubt in the case which warranted his dismissing the information, but he warned the licensee to be more careful. The case would be dismissed.

TALE OF A HORSE

Clifford O’Leary, cf Totara Flat, bushman, represented by Mr. J. W. Hannan, claimed from William Maloney. of Blackball, carrier, for whom Mr. W. D. Taylor appeared, the sum of £3O, the sale price of a horse, with qollar and cover, alleged to have been sold and delivered by plaintiff to defendant on November 10, 1944; £2 2/6 for grazing the horse at 2/6 a week from November 24, 1944, to March 22, 1945, and such further sum as might become owing for grazing from March 27, 1945 to the date of judgment. Defendant, Maloney, denied that there was a sale and said that it was a condition that the horse should be a good snig horse; said that the purpose for which he required the horse was disclosed to plaintiff prior to the alleged sale; said that if the representation that the horse was, a good snig horse amounted only to a warranty then there was a breach of that warranty; that the horse was not a good snig horse, wherefor defendant counter claimed for £32 2/6. Mr. Hannan said plaintiff was the owner of the horse which he had used for 12 months on snigging, at which it had worked satisfactorily. About two weeks before the sale plaintiff met defendant, who had a look at the horse and a price of £3O was later agreed on. On November 10 Maloney sent a man to get the horse. A week later plaintiff phoned defendant and asked for the cheque for £3O, and defendant said he would send it right away. On December 9 at the Ahaura sports the parties met and defendant told plaintiff that the horse was unsatisfactory, that it would not snig and that he would return it. Plaintiff said he would not accept return of the horse as a sale had been made. On the following Monday morning plaintiff discovered that the horse was in one of his paddocks, it having been returned during the night unknown to plaintiff. Evidence was given by plaintiff of the arrangement between the parties as outlined by counsel. He said that the horse was a cripple when it was returned. It had only one shoe, was on three legs and had a long scar on its head, as if it had been hit with an axe.

To Mr. Taylor: Maloney did not say before taking the horse that he would see what it would do. The horse was not sold on trial.

Further to Mr. Hannan witness said he had told defendant what work the horse had been doing, snigging sleepers and fencing posts. To the S.M.: Maloney made the first approaches about the horse, asking if witness wished to sell him. A. Jeffries, bushman, said he had seen the horse snigging and he regarded it as a good snig horse. To Mr. Taylor:. He had had 26

years’ experience of smggmg mining timber. A good snig horse would pull five 12ft. bars easily. To Mr. Hannan: The horse concerned would have no difficulty with such a load. ~ William Tomlinson, farmer, said he had seen the horse at work, and he regarded it as an average good snig horse. The horse was in good condition when it left, but was on three legs when it was returned, had a five-inch scar on its head, and a sore shoulder and only one shoe. CASE FOR DEFENCE

Mr Taylor said that Maloney’s case was that he took the horse on trial. The horse would not pull the sleigh when tried, which was some three days after the delivery as the horse escaped on the first night it was in the paddock and could not be found for three days. There was some delay in returning the horse as the man who was asked by Maloney to take the horse back was held up by the flooded river and could not get the horse. across. Defendant said that, in a discussion at Greymouth, witness told plaintiff that he would be requiring a horse for mining timber, and would have a look at the particular horse. No price was mentioned, but plaintiff said it was a first-class snig horse and that he would guarantee it. When witness went to have a look at it plaintiff said he wanted £3O for the horse. He told the plaintiff he would take the horse and give it a trial. Later he sent Mr McDonald to get the horse. Witness tried the horse in the bush, but it would not pull five 12ft bars. ' He pulled four after a lot of trouble, and did only three loads all day as against eight and nine bars on each oi the other horses. He was several trials in three days, but would not work. He made arrangements for McDonald to return the horse, but he could not cross the flooded river for some days. When plaintiff ’phoned him about the cheque the horse had not been tried, but he had said that the cheque would be sent if the horse proved satisfactory. He told plaintiff at the Ahaura sports that the horse was no good to him and had been returned. To Mr Hannan: He knew the class of work the horse was doing lor plaintiff. The horse escaped from a paddock as soon as he secured it, ancl it was four days before at was tried. It was tried on three occasions. All that was said about a trial Ayas that he (Maloney) said he would take the horse and give it a go. ahe horse was in first-class condition when it left his place. He did not advise plaintiff for a month that the horse was unsatisfactory. To the S.M.: Had plaintiff been at home at the time witness found the horse was unsatisfactory he woula have been told. He did not write to plaintiff, who was then at the races in Christchurch. The. horse had been sold to him as a six-year-old, but he considered it was over 10 years Ol Robert Perry, bushman, corroborated the evidence of defendant in regard to negotiations for the horse and Henry McDonald, miner gave evidence of bringing the hoise irom Totara Flat and returning.it The horse was in good condition when returned except that it had only two shoes on. He saw no sign ot scars on the horse when he returnee.it. The flooded river had held him up for several days. To Mr Hannan: It' was about a month from the time he brought the horse to Moonlight to the time he r - tU Th d Magistrate said , that Qn the evidence in “this unsatisfactory cas. , on both sides, “he V as n . s K tl |Up d h Q^ e there was a warranty that the noise was a first-class snig horse. It seemed that there was some reasonable doubt as to whether the horse was a first second or third-class sn.g horse, but that did not. give defendont the right to repudiate the contract. He would adjourn the case to enable counsel to arrive at a m °!.c reasonable value for the horse. Nq witnesses’ expenses would be allowed.