THE COURTS.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume XVI, Issue 861, 29 April 1886, Page 3

THE COURTS.

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT NASEBY.

Tuesday, April 27.

(Before J. Nugent Wood, Esq., KM.) burglary:. Donald Jones, aged eight years, was charged with that he did feloniously break into and enter a dwelliag-house at Naseby, the property of James Crawford.

Constable "Willis deposed that, in consequence of information received he went to James Crawford's late residence on Monday last, and found the frent window, which was boarded up, smashed and the board in front of it forcibly removed. The window had then been opened from the inside and an entrance into the house effected without further trouble. The house contained a lot of furniture, clothing and household requisites, and many of these had been pulled about and strewn on the floor. The outhouse had then been entered and its contents similarly treated. On looking for some sign that would give him a clue to the offender, he noticed some small bootmarks on the window-sill, and from these he judged the offence had been committed by a boy. Later on Monday he met Donald Jones and charged him with the offence. He denied the charge for some time, but subsequently he acknowledged that he had broken into the house. He explained how he had done so, and said that the only article he had taken away was a patent leadpencil, which he had hidden behind his father's- house. Accused seemed to have a great deal of his own way at home, althogh when his father was off the drink he appeared to look after him very well. His Worship asked Mrs Jones if the accused had got beyond her control P Was he a very bad boy ? Could she do nothing with him ? Mrs Jones replied that he was not very troublesome. Recently, he had had a great deal of his own way, doing pretty well as he liked, owing to her being away from home a great deal attending to her work.

Constable "Willis pointed out that the offence was committed on Sunday evening, about 7 o'clock, Mr Jones being at home reading and Mrs Jones at church. Accused had perpetrated the crime in so neat a manner that it would have done credit to even an old hand.

His "Worship recognised that; he would, however, give accused a chance for his liberty. He would defer sentence for the present, accused to come up for sentence when called on. Meantime, the Police had better keep their eye on him, and if he was again caught at any of his 'games to at once bring him before the Court, when he would be dealt with a summary manner. He advised Mrs Jones to give the boy a sound thrashing, and to try and exercise more control over him in the future than she apparently had in the past.

This Mrs Jones promised to do, and the accused was then discharged, to come up for sentence when called on. EBOHIBITION'. The case against William Tredgold Kirby was further adjourned to May BBEACH Or CONTHACT. Hugh Devon v. K. M. Turnbull.— The plaint Bet forth that in April, 1885, plaintiff agreed with defendant to plough 320 acres of land at Linnburn Station, 150 acres of which plaintiff was to be paid for at the rate of 9s per acre, and for the remaining 170 acres at the rate of 6s Sd; that plaintiff ploughed 10 acres of the said land, when defendant refused to allow him to complete the contract, whereby he suffered loss of profit in consequence of such refusal in respect of the balance of the said ploughing, and sustained damage in consequence of his being compelledto cart horse-feed, machinery and appliances from Grimmerburn to

Linnburn; that plaintiff-.had beeu ever .willing and. ready i to complete the contract, but that defendant had always refused to allow him to do so, aud had likewise refused to pay him in respect of the ploughing already done, as well aa in respect of the said loss and damage : Wherefore plaintiff claimed to recover from defendant the sum of L 99 10s as per particulars under written :—Ploughing 10a. of land, at 9s per acre, L 4 10s; to loss of profit sustained in consequeuce of defendant's refusal to allow him to complete the contrast, L6B; to expense of carting horse-feed and appliances, Ll2 ; and to loss sustained in consequence of buying extra horses and appliances to complete the contract, Lls : Total, L 99 10s.

Mr McCarthy for plaintiff; MrEowlatt for defendant:

Mr ftowlatt demanded an adjournment of the case for a fortnight or three weeks. He understood it was not convenient for his client to be present at the hearing that day; and he had, in addition, before submitting, his defence, to communicate with Mr Charles Turnbull, Dunedin, by.wkoin the terms of the contract had been arranged. There wau only one mail per week to Serpentine, and it : was extremely difficult to get a communication therefrom under a fortnight. He (Mr Rowlatt) had written to his client informing him it was his intention to make application for the adjourn, ment, and he trusted His "Worship would grant it. If the opposite side chose, they could give their evidence, and that for the defence could be taken on a future occasion.

Mr McCarthy refused to be a party to such an arrangement, as if he were he would thereby expose the points of his client's case. He opposed the application for adjournment, as he held in his hand a letter from the defendant, in which the writer requested that if a summons should be issued against him it should not be fixed for hearing until after April 17. Any date after that, he ' had stated, would suit him.

His Worship thought Mr Eowlatt had made out a fair case, and would grant his ap plication.

Mr McCarthy presumed it would be on the usual terms—payment of costs ?

_ His Worship replied in the affirmative. Defendant would have to pay £3 Is for expenses, and the hearing of the suit would be taken at Naseby on May 12. BREACH OF CONTRACT. M'Laren and Barrett v. Law and Son: Claim, £J 16s, balance of account due for making 5,-100 sun-dried bricks at 8s per hundred and building •4G30 ditto at 7s per 100. Mr Eowlatt for plaintiffs. Defendants paid £'l l4s 3d into Court in full settlement of the claim, and pleaded " Not Indebted '■ for the'balance.

James M'Laren, laborer, Naseby, stated that in December last he agreed with the junior defendant to make and build 5000 sun-dried bricks, 14x6x7, at 15s per 100, defendants to cart them from Home Gully to Naseby, to the site of the buildiug they contemplated erecting. He made 4000 bricks, which were then carted by the senior defendant's sou into Naseby. The bricks were stacked near the site alluded to, and in a very extraordinary manner. They were left uncovered, so that the weather could get at them and destroy them, and as a consequence plaintiffs had to make and cart 1400 more. It was solely owing to the manner in which the bricks had been carted and stacked by defendants that so many of them had been rendered useless for building purposes. Cross-examined: He saw the first lot-af bricks loaded, and he then remarked that if they were not put on their .edges they would be destroyed. He bad complained to defendants of the manner in which the bricks had been_ unloaded, but they took no notice of his remonstrances.

William Barrett, laborer, knew nothing; as to the terms of the contract, although he had made and built some of the bricks. Many of them could not be used for building, because they were all broken and smashed up, solely owing to the manner in which they had beeD carted and unloaded.

Bichard H. Browne, 0.E., said he had measured the building erected by plaintiffs for defendants, and found that 4630 bricks had been used in its construction. The bricks appeared to him to be of fair quality. j Stephen Duck, laborer, said he had made the mortar for plaintiffs when"! erecting defendants' new smithy. A. large number of the bricks had. been destroyed by rough usage in carting and unloading them, and those of them that were useless for building were used in making pug. This was the plaintiffs' case. Defendants admitted their liability for making and building 4330 bricks at 15s per 100, but not for 5400. The contract was for making arid building at per 100, and not, as represented in plaintiffs' statement of accounts, at so much per 100 for making and -so much per 100 for building. James Hore deposed he had seon a lot of the bricks in dispute lying at defendants' shop, and casually inspected them, Mr Law, Ben., having remarked to him that they were of poor quality. They certainly were not first-class, and would have been a little stronger if more grass had been used in their manufacture. Some weeks since he carted several hundred for Mr Silas Hore from the same maker.- Those had a tendency to crumble and break, and hia brother complained to him that they were not so good as he had requiredGeorge Law said he had carted the bricks from plaintiffs' to defendants'.

The plaintiff M'Laren assisted him to load the first lot.and he then told him particularly to lay them on their sides and not on the flats, as tho latter system had a tendency to break them. Eyeryono of them was subsequently carried and unloaded in that wav. Not above six or seven wore destroyed in tho cavtiug. John Law, jun., gave evidenca as to tho contract, which he stated emphatically was for making and building 4500 bricks at ls'i per hundred. The first 4-000 carted were of inferior quality and cru.nbled and broke up, on account of there not being sufficient grass in them. His Worship said, there could be no doubt the action had been wron<>ly brought and. was-not iu consonance with the terms of the contract. Judgment would be for the amount paid into Court, with Court costs £3. 12s. THE WARDEN'S .COURT, NASEBY. Tuesday, April 27. (Before J. Nugbjtt Wood, Esq., Warden.) ' ." PHIVTLEGES. ' : ; . Applications for' iriiriiDg privileges were granted as follow: . . Tail-race. —Williamson Bros. < Tucker Gully, Upper Kyeliiirn. r ' Water-race. '■ — Robert Johnstone, Gall's Gully, Blackstone Hill. MOUHT! BURSTER.. An application by John Brown for a water-race at Mat's Gully, Mount Burster, was granted, conditionally that a notice had' been placed in each of the gullies crossed by the race, and that the owners of other races (if any) in the same gullies had been served with notices of the application.

I.and act, 1877. Patrick Lewis applied to purchase 50 acres of land on Run 22 (Mauiototo) and 50 on Run2l9 (Eweburn). There being no objections thereto, His Worship said, lie .would recommend the application tovibhe favorable consideration of the" Commissioner of Crown Lands.