MAGISTRATE'S COURT

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXII, Issue 244, 16 October 1888, Page 4

MAGISTRATE'S COURT

V [Before A. Turnbull Esq., R.M.]

Monday, Ooiober 15, 1888.

Francis Kiernan was obarged on the information >of Joseph Au y Harloy, with -ldrceny. '"Sergeant Whiie prosecuted, and Mr 0. J. Hurley appenred for the defence. The caso for iho prosecution wob that the accuasd obtained from the prosecutor the Bum of £3, for 2000 shares in tho Waimea Gold and Silvtr Mining Compsny, repre. Beating bimßelf as the owner, and supporting • the statement by a receipt purporting to be signed by Oharle.fi Russell, the owner of the shares, for the sum of £2, the prioa thereof : thati the receipt rr.ferred to did not b?ar the real signature of Oharlea Russell, who had notrtoeived any money for the shares, and fcatt'ootanthorißel Kiernan to cell them on his behalf. J. A. H»rley : I am a brewer residirg in Nelson, I know the accuse 1 , 1 caw him firßt in the month of August las'. He came to .the lUglaa Brewery and asked mo if I wished to buy shares in the W.itnea Gold and Silver Mining Company. I told him no. He and that he waß going to Mahakipawa, and that I oonlii have them veiy oheap. Tbo noonaed wont nway and nothing more was doDe then. About a w*ek efcerwarda he oame to the brewery ngnia and offered me 2000 scrip in the Company referred to for £3. I osktd him how he b oama possessed of the shares and he produced a r<-o ipt for £2 purporting to be signed by Charles Russell, for the purchase of the shares, the receipt has all the appearanoe of a dona fide document. I went with the accused to Mr Reevea 1 office in order that a transfer might be filled up. Mr Reaves' filled up the transfer form which is signed by Francis Kiernan and myself, and witnessed by Beeves, this was on the 22nc August. I bought the shares then and paid the accused £3. I believe that Mr Beeveß told me of the number of shareholders in this claim. I gave the accused the money consequently on the production of the receipt. Cross-examined by Mr Harley. I know that the receipt was not a transfer to Kiernan from BusselJ, but I thought that the j receipt gave a proper title. I consider I have f bfcen defrauded in this matter because M '" Russell disavows the signature to the reoeipt ) and until it can be shown that he actually signed it I cannot get a title to these shares. If it oan be proved that Russell had authorized Kiernan to Bell and I could get the shares I should not be defrauded. Re-examined. I showed the receipt to Mr Russell, and it was on my showing him that receipt that Mr Russell made the statement that the signature thereon was not his. Mr Russell told me I could not get the shares. I consider the shares are now worth £100, Sheppard Jeffreys Reeves: 1 am a share- " broker in Nelson. I remember accused coming on the 21st August to my office. He told me that he was hard up and he wanted to realize some shares he held in the Waimea Company. I told him that they were not very saleable, and asked him if he knew of anyone who was likely to buy them. He said that he thought Mr Joseph Harley would buy them. I saw Mr Harley and he agreed to buy them for £3 if the title was correct. I saw accused on the following day (22nd), and told him that Harley would buy the shares if the title was in order. Accused said that he had no transfer, but held a receipt, which he then went away to get from his lodgings. He shortly returned with the receipt. I told him thattbat was not sufficient, and that Mr Harley would not complete the purchase. He then told me that the shares ,iad been made over to him at Glencairn where they could not get forms of transfer. (Receipt produced signed Charles Russell for £2.) I took the receipt to be a genuine document. I produce the transfer, written in my office, signed first by accused and afterwards by Mr Harley. Mr Harley paid the money to •-. me and I subsequently haaded it to Kiernan. The claim referred to was then owned by Franklyn, Baigent, and Russell. The claim was n,ot registered then, it was not floated. Cross examined by Mr Harley : £8 at that time was the market value of 2000 shares. Russell's share in the mine was, I believe, originally 26,000 shares. I know of no sale of shares by Russell exoept the alleged one in " question. From what Harley told me I 'believe that if acoused had been authorised as an agent he would have bought the pha-ee, I have spoken to Bussell about the transaction, and he told me twice that he had authorised Kiernan at Glencairn to sell these shares although he did not men. tion the price. Russell told me this • irinde the arrest of . the accused, and he was quite sober on these occasions. I have known acoused for a considerable time. .He is as steady as most miners, works hard for his money, and then spends it. He has always borne a good charaoter. Re-examined : Ido not remember Russell • telling me that he had authorised accused to sell any partioular number of shares Russell did not say that he had countermanded the direction to accused to sell his shares. Russell told me that he had authorised accused to sell shares for him, although no - number was mentioned. The conversation between Bussell and myself I can't distinctly remember, but 1 have given the gist of it. J. A. Harley, re-examined by the Bench. : I said in my evidence that I went with, ac cused to Mr Reeves' office. I think Reeves is mistaken when he says that the accused and myself went separately. I cannot swear that we signed the form of transfer together. I made the bargain myself with accused. Reeves was not my agent in the matter. S. J. Reeves, re-examined by the Bench : When accused offered the shares he had no receipt in hi 9 possession, but sent to his lodgings for it. On production of the receipt I saw Harley again and showed it to him. Thereupon Harley agreed to take the shares, and went away. While he was away Kieroan signed transfer and went out ; afterwards Harley came back and signed transfer. My belief is that while Kiernan was signing in the back office Harley came in at the front door. I did not look upon myself as agent for either party. I was acting in a friendly manner for both. Charles Russell : lam a miner residing at present in Nelson. I have known the accused 12 or 18 months, first at the Lyell, and then at Glencairn. The receipt produced, purporting to be given by me to accused, dated 26th July, is not signed by me. At that time I was working at the Maruia I never sold the shares referred to, viz, 2,000 shares in the Waimea Company, to the acoused. I never sold the accused any shares at any time. On 26th July I held 5400 shares in the Company named ; the Waimea Company is now being floated. I authorised the accused, to sell for me 1000 •hares in the Company in the winter months, when I waa at the Maruia, the sum I asked , for them being A3, and if I could I was to give him a transfer. If he could dispose of them he was to come over to my hut and , let me know. He did not do so, nor did he . ever acquaint me that he had disposed of my • shares, although I saw him at Glencairn about three weeks after I had given him the authority. After seeing him then I considered the whole matter ended. Cross-examined by Mr Harley : I originally h,ad26,oooflharesin the mine', but when I caw accused »t Glencairn I only posses ed 5100, the remainder I had given away, with the exception of 10,003 I bad sold for V«5. 'I still hold the 5400. I believe a Co -i.pany is being formed in Ohrißtchurch to work this mine. My interest in the new company is represented by the 5400 shares I believe I possess in the old Company. Some of the shares I assume I hold are in dispute, notably the 2000 shares .forming the basis of tbo present proseoution. The market value of the shares is now possibly £50 a thousand. I claim to be registered as the owner of the shares alleged to have beeu purchase 1 by Harley. I am sura I onlj authorised Kiercmn to Bell 1000 shares. I do not remember telling anyone that I had given a general authority to Kiernan lo sell my shar?, bub it . .is not unusual for such a general authority - ta be given verbally. Sergeant White submitted that it was not , ); pecegßary to prove that a particularindividaal had been defrauded, proof of a general intention to defraud being Bufßoienb for a conviction, Mr Harley contended that from, the evidence it was shown that Kierrian wis authorised to sell es many of the Bhares as he thought fit, and this was partially admitted by Rubbsll, the original owner. If ; tho ; pathority had been given no one hud r been : really defrauded. .- , JPranois Kiernait was charged on the information of Sergeant Whits with forging a

receipt for £2, purporting to be givan by Charles Rnsnell to accused for 2000 shares in the Waimea Gold and Silver Miniug Company. Mr Harley defended. In this 01.83 the evidence was similar to tbe preceding one. Prisoner, who, out being CiutioneJ, said ',hafc he reserved his defence, was committed to taka bis trial en both charges at the next sessioa of the Supremo Court, being allowed bail, himself in £100 and two securi'.ies of £50 eioh.