SILVER EXPORTS

Grey River Argus, 14 June 1933, Page 5

SILVER EXPORTS

HEAVY FINES IMPOSED Finds on Wanganella (Per Press Association). WELLINGTON, June 13. Silver coin, to the value of £727. seized when the Wanganella was raided last Thursday, was forfeited to the Crown, to-day. and lines totalling £l5O, were imposed on four men charged with attempting to export money from New Zealand. James Freest on, a steward. was charged with attempting to export coin valued at £252 Ils. The ship’s bar her, Henry Morgan, was charged with exporting a quantity valued at £229 6s. the fourth officer, Douglas Jack Strath, with exporting coin valued at £26 8s 64. and James Boyne, seaman, with exporting coin valued at £2O 18 s (>d. Accused pleadi'4 guilty. The Crown Prosecutor (Mr Maca®sey) asked for the maximum £si» penalties on Freeston and Morgan. and these wore inip'osnl Strath and Boyne were ea< h fined £25. On defendants’ behalf, it w ;i , stated that as the result of flu- off'i-iiees. a )| had lost their employ merit. A feature of the proceedings was the production of a large belt containing £l7O worth of silver, alleged to have been used by Freeston to carry coin On the ship. Boyne had £25 in silver hidden in a gumboot. Silver produced and valued at £l9B remaining unclaimed, was stated to

have been found in a cabin occupied by two Indies. Freeston. it was stfcTed had been seen leaving this cabin when the ship was raided.

Mr Macassey said the Treasury desired him to point out that the cases were very serious, as it meant depleting the silver coinage, ami people taking out the silver making a profit of 25 per centum. If the traffic were not stopped, business would be furthe* handicapped, and great loss and inconvenience result. Coin was being exported to make 25 per centum pro fit out of exchange, and as the surplus exchange was purchased by the Gov ernment. under the Banks Indemnity Exchange Act. the profit was made at the direct expense of the New Zealand taxpayer. It was desired to make an example in all the cases. WELLINGTON, June 13. Mr Macassey said that about £BO9 worth of silver coin altogether would be forfeited. “Wo suggest this is rot money belonging to these men. We uggest they were acting for someone else, but there is no reason why the full penalty should not bo imposed.”

Mr Leicester, for Freeston, Boyne and Morgan, said this was a type of cn.se in which the Court should not lose its sense of proportion. The Wanganella was held up some five hours, and he understood that, as a result of that delay, the Company suffered considerable loss, the blame for that loss being attributed, to the accused. It had been explained to them that under no circumstances could they resume their association with the Company. Freeston had been to sea for twenty years. As a result of losing his employment be would be stranded in New Zealand. The money represented all his capital, and he intended taking it to Australia with the idea of making a profit. Morgan would also bo stranded. He received one shilling in the pound for taking the money’ to Australia, and had ho been successful, would only havo received £l2.

With regard to Boyne, his case showed what a travesty of justice vould result if the Court acceded to the Crown Prosecutor’s request. lie received £2O in wages and changed rotes into silver, the idea being that the increase in the money would enable him to pay the balance of the expenses of his mother’s funeral. Counsel said that if substantial penalties were imposed and the silver confiscated as he supposed they would be, the accused would havo difficulty in finding the money to pay the fines, the result being that they would have to serve a term of imprisonment, which was not contemplated by the legislature. A special plea was made for leniency for Strath, the fourth officer, by Mr T. B. McCarthy. Mr Page said that the offences were difficult to detect and exporting silver seemed to havo assumed substantial proportions AUSTRALIAN POLICE POWERLESS (Aus. & N.Z. Cable Assn.) SYDNEY, June 13. The ‘‘Herald” says: The* police in New South Wales, who have been working with New Zealand authorities to prevent the importation of silver coin from that Dominion into Australia, havo been handicapped by their limited powers under the existing Acts. Since the differences in exchange occurred, thousands of pounds worth of silver havo been brought to Sydney by inter-Colonial liners. Although the New Zealand authorities made it an offence to export silver, the practice persisted. The co-operation of the New South Wales polico was obtained, hut the authorities here found it not an offence to import silver coin into Australia. They questioned many offenders and discovered hundreds of pounds worth of coin on ships arriving from New Zealand, but could take no direct action Silver Coin Theft TAXI-DRIVER IN COURT. WANGANUI, Juno 13. John Ralph Penny, 31, taxi driver, of Auckland, was before the Court this morning, charged with the theft of £Bl3 in silver on June 4, the property of William Toomey, of Auckland. He was remanded for eight days.