COURT OF QUARTER SESSIONS.

New Zealand Gazette and Wellington Spectator, Volume II, Issue 105, 8 January 1842, Page 3

COURT OF QUARTER SESSIONS.

TUESDAY, JAN. 4, 1542. Present: — E. Halswell, Esq. (chairman,) Capt. W. M. Smith, George White, Esq. and H. St. Hill, Esq.,, Justices of the Peace. Henry Bailey and Norton Harris were placed at the bar, the former charged with plundering the wreck of the schooner Jewess, in the month of May last'; thelatter with receiving and concealing the property, knowing it to have been stolen. Both persons pleaded not guilty. The facts of the case are familiar to our readers, a report of the case when heard before the committing magistrate, having appeared in our columns. From one of the witnesses now forgetting what he then swore, and the absence of .a material witness, the jury returned a verdict o^.jiot guilty, and the prisoners were dis■cbiiSflfedi - • ■"-•? "',,"' Jane Cook, a woman" of very respectable appearance, was charged by E Turoa, a native, living at Petoni, with having stolen one waistcoat, value 55., and three sovereigns, his property. " % Mr. Richard Davis was sworn in as interpreter. The prisoner pleaded not guilty. Mr. Brewer for the defence. The Crown Prosecutor stated the cas,e',^and called E Turoa, who being interrogated, said he was a Missionary ; that he knew fie must speak the truth, or he would be punished in the next world. He was then sworn, and deposed as follows : — I know the prisoner, I" have been to her house ; I went to light my pipe. I had a waitscoat with me; there' 'were three "money golds" (sovereigns) in the pocket. " I pulled of my waistcoat, and put it over my arm ; and when I stooped to. light my pipe, it fell off. I did not notice it fall. I knew the money to' be inthe pocket, as I had seen it just before"! lost it; I am quite c'ertainof'that. After I had lighted my pipe, i I was going along, before" I missed the waistcoat, \ and met the prisoner. When I missed it, I - • went'back"to her, arid asked if she had seen my ■waistcoat, and she said, "what do you say?" I asked again, and she said she had not. There ' ■was no one-else near at" the time. I have not found my waistcoat again. When I discovered I ■ had lost- it altogether; • I "went to Jemmy (meaning Stratford, the constable,) and told him 'of my loss, and then went to the pah to sleep. 'Next'day, Iwent with the constable to the prisoner's house,' and' saw three children ; ' on making enquiries, the two eldest said they -had not' seen my waistcoat; "aild the youngest said" motherburntit yesterday: " Cross-examined by Mr. Brewer. — One maori •was present when I was" 'lighting my" pipe ; he went with me. The distarice from where I met 1 the woman -and lost 'the money was" more than 100 yards. I missed the waistcoat alter I met. the prisoner. I looked at my waistcoat outside ! the gatej before I lit' my pipe, Jl'putJ I'put the waistcoat across my arm. The fire was inside, and I t sent another native to fetch it; I never "went inside the house. When I turned round, I saw« the prisoner. ' As I J was " walking home, after I had missed the waistcoat, I met Mr. Wallace, and asked him if he' had seen any white' man go by. - 1 saw prisoner go into her house before I met Mr. Wallace.,;,, l did not. set fire, to my blanket after I had lighted my pipe. By the Court. — After he had lighted his pipe, saw no one besides the prisoner and Wallace. Statford, the constable, deposed that on going, tothehouse next .day, one of the,children had said his mother burnt the. waistcoat. Archibald Cook, a child of about 4£ years of age, was then produced, but could not be induced to answer any question's. Mr. Brewer made a feeling address to the jury, declaring most solemnly on the part of the accused, that she was innocent of the charge. Mr. R. R. Strang and Mr. R. Branks, gave the prisoner a most excellent character for propriety of conduct. The learned Chairman summed up very carefully, and the jury, after a few minutes consideration, returned a verdict of not guilty. Gabriel Lee, a man of color, and an American by birth, was charged with having, on the 28th

November last', stolen six bank* notes, value £7, the property of James 1 Jackson 1 , Lamb toil- quay: From 1 the evidence of Mrs. Jackson, it appeared that the prisoner was in the employ of her husband ; his wages were £1 per week, and rations. Witness remembered on the 27th November last, putting away some money ; there were two parcels of notes ; one parcel contained- five £I, notes and one £2 note; and ther other contained three £l notes and four sovereigns; and there was some .silver loose at the bottom of the box. She saw the prisoner on that day ; he came to have a settlement, but had. little, to .receive; as <he had had' money .advanced, and they had become answerable for some goods he had had at other places. There was no question of debt between- ihem. The" balance due to him- was 9s. 6d., which she .paid him ; she took the money out of a small cannister, in which was the money above described. Prisoner- was in the room at the time, and saw the money. This was between 9 and 10 o'clock at night. Witness missed the money on, Monday morning. They had been out dming a portion of Sunday, but not on Saturday night. The door was not locked, but a fierce dog was kept in the house, who, she was confident, would not allow a stranger to pass. Prisoner had access to the house, and used to fondle the dog very much. George White Bennett deposed to making out the prisoner's account, at the house of Mr. Jackson, and to Mrs. Jackson's paying him 9s. 6d. On his cross-examination by the prisoner, witness said he was quite sure Lee could see where the cannister was put. Several witnesses proved that the prisoner on that day and the two following ones, paid several small debts in notes; and the cook of Mr. George Young, South Sea Hotel, deposed that the prisoner, on the 28th November, called to pay a debt he had contracted there, and a note out of his stocking; he also saw something else in his stocking, but could not swear whether it was paper or notes. Lee made a very lame defence, and the jury returned a verdict of guilty. The Court sentenced the prisoner to three years' hard labour. Robert Biggs and Charles Poune or Guinea were charged with having, on the 17th October last, stolen a pig, value £1, the property of George Hawkins. The prisoners were discharged for want of evidence ; and the recognizances of Henry Brown (^640) ordered to be estreated.

SECOND DAY. ■WEDNESDAY. Present: — E. Halswell, Esq., (chairman,) G. White, H. St. Hill, and W. Guyton, Esqrs. Justices of the Peace. ' ■ i Pukewa alias E. Tonghi, (the native who it will he remembered was tried and found guilty at the first Quarter Sessions, of stealing a blanket from Alfred Hornbrook,) was placed at the bar charged with having stolen on the 16th December, a pair of blankets, value 155., the property of James Pribble. • Dr. Evans for the defence. Fro'mtheevMence,ltap))eareutiiatthVp"ris'6i . ■* went, to the house of the prosecutor on the day above-mentioned ; that the blankets were hanging on a clothes-horse outside the door, and that shortly afterwards, the wife of the prosecutor, finding the blankets were gone, sent her daughter, a girl of 14 years of age, to Pipetea pah, in search of them. On her arrival there, she saw the prisoner putting the blankets on, and said to him, "you have got mother's blankets;" the native made a queer noise, and ran away. Another witness (Judy Diamond) deposed, that shortly afterwards the prisoner came to her house in great haste with a pair of blankets under his arm, answering the description of those lost ; that he asked her if she had any blankets to sell, and said she might look at these he had got. Prisoner then laid them down, went to the door and looked out, and then came back and took the blankets, and went away.

Prisoner's defence was that he had bought the blankets from a Mr. Blake, and that the receipt was in his pocket when he was searched by the constable: <' ' ■ ' Thomas Floyd, a constable, deposed' that he searched the prisoner, and found two pieces of paper, one he produced; the other, by some accident, had been lost. This was alleged to have been the receipt 1 ; but the constable said he onlysaw some maori words on it.

1 Dr. Evans made a lengthened address to the jury, but did, not produce Mr. Blake. The Jury returned a verdict of guilty ; and the learned Chairman having summed up, sentenced the prisoner , to be transported to Van Dieman's Land, or any' other place which his Excellency the Governor might think fit, for the period of seven years. William Gill was charged with having, on the 9th of December last, willfully and maliciously cut and, maimed a red bullock, the property of Samuel Phelps. The Crown, Prosecutor and Dr. Evans for the prosecution, and Mr. Brewer for the defence. The' evidence of this case was conclusive, and the jury returned a verdict of guilty, with a strong recommendation to mercy, the offence having been committed under great provocation, the bullock' being trespassing in the prisoner's garden.

The Court sentenced Gill to fourteen days im prisomnent.

• James Swan, charged with stealing divers tools, locks/and crockery, the property of Dantelßiddiford and T. MV Partridge, was sentenced to two months' hard labourV-^i&V,; ' >'• j Joseph aad Mary CorHfmL, man and wife, were charged with receiving the" i&lie-^knowing theni to have -been stolen..' ,■', :-5%&i.>. . Joseph, Cornford was sentencijgi&p^oiie month hard labour, and the woman was mseS^fe^., , .

, THIRD DAY. — THURSDAY. Present : — E. Halswell, Esq., (chairman,) Geo. White, H. St. Hill, and W. Guyton, Esqrs. Henry Welch pleaded not guilty to a charge of having stolen one razor, value Is. 6d. the property of Archibald Milne. Dr. Evafis for^the defence. Not guilty. Joseph Roots, .residing in Murphy-street, was indicted for keeping a disorderly house. There were two counts in the indictment; the Ist charging him with keeping a brothel; the 2nd with keeping a disorderly house.

The first was not proved ; but from the evidence of several vof the neighbours, the 2nd. was fully made nut. ( The prisoner admitted the latter charge, but said it had arisen from one of the witnesses, who was also his landlord, having opened a butcher's shop, in which business lie was engaged, and had taken this course to injure him. In his cross-examina-tion'of the ; witnesses, Roots wished to prove to the Court, that they were " gentlemen," not working-men, who visited his house. * The learned Chairman said that the Court would accept his own recognizances in '.£2O and another in the sum, of .#lO, to appear to receive judgment on that day fortnight. The prisoner could not find bail, and learned Chairman very kindly said " the Court" would become his bail !"