HOKITIKA NOTES

Grey River Argus, 11 May 1934, Page 2

HOKITIKA NOTES

(Our Own Correspondent.) HOKITIKA. May Ri. Iliree herons, one white and 1 wu grey, the former very tame-, have this week attracted attenjien nea.r liie iiH'iith of the Hokitika River. At *li< k annual meeting All .‘Sainis' parishiun.Ts elected olliceis as follows — Vicar’s Warden, Mr .1. |;_ Ward: people's wnriien, M.r W. Richards: secretary, Mr W. A. Rowe; vestry. Messrs (’. (’ampliell. ]•’ ('hestcrnian. I*. 'l'humas. R. Wild. W. A. :R'owe ami the people s wardens of Kanieri, Rimu. Ki'kalahi ami Koiterangi; All Saints' I'lnirrli c-mmit tee. Messrs R. Palmer, ( '. ('ampl.e'j. I-’. Chesterman. E. Thorn, R. Wild, 11. Sweney. A. King 1.. S, Ross, J. Cooper, J Richards and die Church wardens and secre tary. The Virur referred to the fact that Mr T. I*. Sa.vwell was unable to t-intinue- as secretary, anil paid tribute to his work- as such during his period in oilice. A \<i‘c of thanks was carried unair'inouslv. I'he Badminton Chib at its annual meeting elected tin 1 following officers. Patrcii, Dr E Teichelma n n ; president. Hr I. 1.. Wilson; vice presidents, re elected as last, season with the ad di'ion of Dr Cattail and Mr 11. M. Coulson; secretary and treasurer. Mi • I . But land ; ( J lub captain. Dr A . ('. Oakey; vice captain. Mi A. Stevenson. It was decided that playing night.s be Monday ami Thursday, and play will commence on Max 17. I’he monthly meeting of the |\< ilelangi Women’s Institute was held 'ii the public hall on Monday evening when Mrs Harcourt presided over a tail attendance. A programme \\aarra.nged for the coming y<“-'-r and arrangements were iiKide lor a ball to be held in June. A competition. the best programme, was won by Mrs Harcourt, Mrs Cooper being second. I'he hostesses were Me.-dames ('nipper. Boddington, Dimmick ami Miss E Boddington. 'l'he Hikirika Golf Club hold a men’s four-ball bogey handicap match on Saturday. Players will arrajige their own parliners and matches. The West land County Council not i lies that Five AJili l ('reek traffic and foot-bridges below Oknritu are dangerous and closed to all traTlic; users cross at their own risk. A t th-c Magistrate’s Court to-day before Messrs W Wilson and A. E. Benjamin. J’s. P.. two Jiien, George While and Richard Mee Durham were charged that on June PUT a* night they did br<‘al< ami enti , r the shop of Oliver and Duff, Revell St , and steal -eleven p-tiirs of shoes and Ills in niiHicy, <d’ a, total value of EH.i Ills, the property of Olixer and D'ulT. After evidence was heard, the accused. who pleaded no| guilty, were committed fur trial at the next sitting of the Supreme (Wurt al G reyiinoutli. Bail of £lOO, with a surety of £lOO xx as allowed in each case, this being forthcoming. Mr C. J. P S-dlers represented accused and Detective Knight appeared for the police. Thomas W. Duff said on June 28 last he left the premises between o.Jti and (> p.m., leaving all secure. I'he till ;vud drawer in the shop were, intact. From 10s fo 25s in change xx a s in the till Next mi. i'ning on en t ering ho noticed a wet patch and • lead matches on the floor in front of the safe door. Boxes containing stock had liecii .-hifled, some b<dng empty. | H,- informed the police. lie found thr*t eleven pairs of men’s shoes, both I black and tan in colour, were missI ing. The till had been emptied c/f I silver. Two drawers in the office desk had been forced open, the woodwork being broken. In company with Sergeant King he found that entry had been made by forcing the storeroom door with some instrument and this had alloweil the lower boll l»v which it was held, to come out of its socket. He saw marks of ;i similar instrumen* on another door and sonic windows. He described the missing stock. A section behind the shop h-‘'d been set with grass, and on it were the footprints .of two different persons leadin* to the rear fence whore a sheet of corrugated iron had been removed II’? valued the missing articles af £l6 I (i.-'. JSouic lime later tin? u<cils\-<I While, wfts brought to the shop While

va> wearing a pair of tan shoes. A slight exam mat ion ofl them was made Witness did uut recognise them as a pair stolen. Theyi were similar to lines they hud in stock and to those missing. On April 5, 11'34. at the police nation he was shown a pair of shoes, Flexile fancy size 7. They had been worn. They were a pair taken on the tight of Die robbery. This line was a special order from an Auckland firm, and hud been stock for live or six years The trimmings became out of lasiiion. He produced a pair uf shoes as part ui [he same order from stock. Later he was shown a pair of Gloucester, tan shoes, size 7. They had the firm’s private mark on the right slue, cost and sidling price. This pair was stolen from the shop on the night of the 2tM h. A paid of worn black shoes, produced, had the firm's cost pi ice mark un the waist of the shoe, i hat was another pair that was stolen. The tan shoes, size 8 (worn) bore the number, corresponding with an empty box left on the shelf. That was a pair of sh'/es stolen that night. A pair u?‘ kid shoes (worn) was similar to the stock stolen. To .Mr .Sellers: The Flexile tan shoes were not stocked by anyone else in Hokitika, to hi s knowcidge 'l'he numbers corresponded will) the order given and the number of tin* box left behind. The footprints on the grass were both coming and going, an<| made bx- tx\o different, people. Tliuiuas Patrick Fogarty gave, evidence that h,- was manager of tliu ' Wholesale Boot Warehouse. Jvevei! Si ie-ct, in business in Hokitika since December. l‘J32. He knew both ac (.used. To his knowledge he had not •su'id the pair uf black shoes produced io cither uf ■accused. He renrembered Ihe brother of the accused White, making the purchase of a pair of working bools. Durham came with Ihe purchaser on another occasion. Hi* did not renie-mbcr having sold any shoes to Durham. His firm slocked various brands. Charles Hugh Bleach, railway employee, said he remembered "lie morning o f June 29 lust lie was in Revell Street bejween 2 and 2.35 o’cluck about 75 yards away from the premises of Oliver and Dull’. Tx\o persons walked j>ast witness. One was carrying what appeared to be a box. They were going towards North Rex ell Street. He did not recognise either of the two men. One w?i s tall er than the other. He knew the accused. One of the men he saw wore a coat. He did not know where they xxen.t To Air Selleis; They were on the same side of the road as witness. 'l'he Im x was about- the size of an apple case, it was on one man’s shoulder. John C'rowiey. police conslable. of Ross, staTed that on .Apri l 6 last lie went to Waitulia and saw the uccused Durham and showed him the Crown black shoes produced. He denied all knowledge? of them, saying l‘C had never seen them before. Wit ness examined fiis elTecis and found txvo p.iirs of shoe s (produced) black tmd tan. He made a statement, which he signed. On April U, hei obtained a further statement. On April 25. he xx as present when Durham was arrested Alonica Knowles, shop assistant at the- Wholesale Boot Warehouse, uf Hokitika, said she. knew the two accused by sight. She had never sold cither ol them a pair of shoes to he. knowledge. Sergeant. King detailed l he examinati'uii of the shop where he lock possession of eleven -empty boxes. He saw AVhite wearing tan shoes a. month later, which he .said he bought from ;v traveller, but Oliver and Duff failed to identify these. On April 1 White had on another pair of shoes that he said he bought from a. traveller whom he had not known, and Dull identified tlwse. He then searched AVliite’s home, finding nothing in accused’s room, but in a room opposite, occupied by his brother Leu. and the accused Durham, when in Hokitika, found pair "f black shoes, xvhicli Mrs White said belonged to Durham. In a loft, on top ofi the bathroom, he found a tan pair of shoes, unworn, a (iloucester shoe. These were identified by Duff as property stolen. He then took a statement from White. After Durham's denial of .ow nershin' of the Crown shoes. White acknowleged the shoes were his, making a. further statement in writing Detective Knight itated three- pairs of shoes obtained from' AVhife were definitely identified by Oliver and D’uff. The two- pairs taken i.voni Dnrhaui we&p examined

and on the inside uf one shoe was the identical marking of those still in stock. White made a lengthy statement and was arrested the next day. With Constable C’rowiey. witness went, to Pukekura and saw Durham, who made a statement (produced). He was also arrested, and. charged. Every effort had been made to trace the alleged traveller but ji'oi trace or information about him had been found. A receipt, produced was one that was handed .to witness bv the accused. White 4