MOLESWORTH BOOK-KEEPER.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 77, 7 April 1910, Page 7

MOLESWORTH BOOK-KEEPER.

ARRESTED ON HIS WAY TO SYDNEY.

COMMITTED FOR TRIAL FOR TrtBET.

A BOGUS TELEGRAM

[from otrr. correspondent, i CHRISTCIIURCH, April 6. _ At the Magistrate^ Court this afternoon, Ernest Phillip Berlyn was charged with having, between December 11th and 31st last, fraudulently failed to account to F. H. Labatt tor £57 17s received from F. Logen, K. Mowat, F. Needham, G. Mclntosh, J. Newton, F. Ferriden, and C. Baurle. Chief-Detective Bishop prosecuted, and Messrs Cassidy and Alpers defended. Robert Boddington, manager ot Molesworth station, said that the accused was book-keeper there for about a year. He also had charge of the stores, and received £5 a year for looking after postal and telephonic communications. Sometimes the shearers would hand him money to take charge of for them, and this should have been forwarded to F. H. Labatt, Christchurch, to be placed to their credit. The accused told the witness that he had received £36 from the shearers to take care of for them, and the witness instructed him to send the money to Mr Labatt. The accused wrote a letter to Mr Labatt forwarding the money, which the witness signed, but on receiving no acknowledgment he instructed the accused to telegraph to him. Later, a telegram, alleged to be from Mr Labatt, was handed to him, and stated that an acknowledgment had been posted. The witness did not receive a receipt for the money. F. H. Labattj accountant to H. Acton-Atfams, owner of Molesworth station, said that the station ledger showed that certain moneys had been transferred to him on behalf of shearers, but he had not received any of them. He knew nothing about the telegram handed to the previous witness by the accused stating that an acknowledgment had been posted. The witness did not send the telegram. Ohas. John Cox, registration clerk at the post office said that there was no record of a registered letter for F. H. Labatt having been sent from Molesworth station between December 17th, 1909, and 15th March, 1910. Detective Andrews said that he arrested the accused on board the Manuka at Wellington on the 24th March. He had a single ticket to Sydney in his possession. In reply to the charge he said that he could produce registered letters at Molesworth station that would prove he was innocent. Wm. John Barnett, a clerk employed in the Christchurch telegraph office, said that the total number of telegrams sent from Christchurch on the day the accused alleged that he received the telegram from Mr Labatt acknowledging receipt of the money was 1151. The number of that particular telegram was 1174, so that it could not have been sent from Christchurch, as it purported. The accused, who reserved his defence, was committed for trial. The accused was further charged with failing to account for £23 3s Id, the property of H. W. Acton-Adams. As the police were not in a position to proceed with this case, the information having been laid only that morning, a remand for a week was granted. Bail was allowed in both cases, the accused in £100 and one surety of £100 or two of £50.