SUPREME COURT. —Criminal Sittings.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XI, Issue 3871, 9 April 1874, Page 3

SUPREME COURT. —Criminal Sittings.

Wednesday, Stii Aran,. [Before His Honor Sir G. A. Arney, Kt., Chief Justice, and Common Juries.] The session of the quarterly Circuit Court for gaol delivery was opened yesterday. There were only nine criminal charges on the calendar. The following gentlemen of the grand jurors were sworn : Albin Martin, (foreman), Joseph Howard, Henry Malion Jervis, Thomas Hunt Ivery, He my Giliillan, John Logan Campbell, John Gordon, William Innis Taylor, .Robert Maedonald Wynyard, John Wallace, Archibald Wallace, James Baber, Gustav Yon der Hcydc, Josiah Clifton Firth, James Dilworth, Joseph May, Stannus Jones, James Butcher Braithwaite, Thomas Good fellow.

His Honor delivered liis usual charge to the Grand Jury as follows : Gentlemen, — I have to congratulate you upon what lias been until now an unusual circumstance, namely, the fact that we have a very short calendar of offences to try. lam glad to tell you that the list 011 this occasion contains not more than just one-fourth of the number of cases which it has been my lot to try during one session in times past, and less than one-half the number which for several years has made •up the ordinary list of offences brought under the notice of the Grand Jury. I am glad also to inform you that the crimes chargedare not, generally speaking, of a very aggravated character. There is, however, one of a very painful character and of the deepest dye, namely—a charge of murder against a young woman who is accused of having murdered her new-born child. There is nothing in the circumstances of the ease which suggests any questions of law upon which it would be necessary for me to address you. I believe you will find it proved that the child was born alive. The question therefore will be, by whoso hands —if by any hands —the infant came by its death. It is scarcely necessary for me to say that this is a question of faet for the jury. If they find that there is prima facie evidence that the infant came to its death by the hands of the mother, it will be their duty to return a true bill, and leave to the Court and ordinary jury the more detailed inquiry. You will iiiul that it is not suggested that any one had access to that part of the premises where the child was, nor was it suggested that any third person was lilccly to be the person through whom the death was occasioned. It will be enough, if you find that in-'nna facie the child came to its death by the hands of the mother to justify you in finding a true bill. There is one other ease only upon which I have to give you a short direction upon a question of law. A person is indicted upon a charge of attempting to commit suicide. The document which has been sent to the Court in the place of depositions suggests that at the time the offence was committed the person accused was in a strange state of mind, possibly caused by delirium tremens, —so much so, indeed, that the magistrate before whom he was brought considered him unable to answer for himself. "What his state of mind may be at the present time is not known to the Court, but I have to give you this direction—that if the facts proved before you arc such as to constitute the offence charged, it will be your duty to return a true bill, even though at the time the person accused may have been of infirm mind. The question of sanity or insanity is one peculiarly for this Court. If a person is shewn to have done such acts— that is, if he were sane when he committed them —as would constitute a case of attempting to commit suicide, he is responsible for them. This is the only question of law which the cases in the calendar suggest. It would be only occupying your time and my own needlessly if 1 were to address any further remarks to you, so you will retire to your chamber, if you please, and proceed with the business that will bo laid before you.—The Grand Jury retired, and shortly afterwards returned true bills in the following cases.—Mr. Brookfield conducted the prosecution on behalf of the Crown in each case.

Stealing in a Dwelling.—Maria Gay was arrainged upon an indictment charging her with stealing, on the 24th of February last, from the dwelling, of John Higgins, a box containing £17 lis.—The prosecutor deposed that on the day in question he was in his back jm'lonr. There is a room next to the bar, to which access is had from the outside of the building. -The woman entered this room. The box was lying inside on a shelf. [The box is one of the larger kind of lucifer match-boxes, and made of tin.] She took lip the box, and was going away with it, when witness stopped her, and told her she had his money.—Constable Andrew Clarke said he took the prisoner into custody. She admitted when charged that she took the box, but did not know what was in it". - —The prisoner made a very ingenious defence. She said" that she went into the house as any other customer j that seeing no one in the bar to serve her, slis took up the box to knock ; that she retained the box in her hand, when the prosecutor came out of the other room and said she had his money. She did not know that the box contained money. —Tho jury retired, and, having deliberated for a short .time, found the prisoner "Not Guilty."—His Honor, in ordering the prisoner to be discharged, tolcl her that the jury

had taken a most merciful view of her case, and warned her that she was well known to the officers_ of justice, having several previous recorded against her; and that if she were brought before the Court again she would in all probability be found guilty and severely punished. Larceny. —■ William Henry Campbell pleaded guilty to an indictment charging him with stealing, on the 23rd of March las£ a quantity of wearing apparel, the property of Cecil Carr. The facts of this case were detailed in the newspapers a few days previously. There were two previous convictions against the prisoner. He was sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment with hard labour.

Attempted Suicide ( Extraordinary Casf.). —Laureno: Gorton Smith was arraigned upon an indictment, charged with having, on the 12th of March, attempted to commit suicide.—Epliraim Mills, a settler and contractor,' residing at Maliurangi, said the prisoner had been some time in that district. On the day in question the prisoner came to him with a wound in his throat. He- slid he had inflicted another wound on his body, over the heart. The prisoner appeared very excited. He had been drinkiilc. The prisoner then ran to a well and was going to tlu-ow himself in, but was dragged back by a young man named Timothy Healy. He then ran and threw himself into the river, and was pulled out by a man who had appeared as a witness before the magistrate, but for some reason had not answered to his recognisances. The -witness brought the prisoner to Warkworth, and while at breakfast, before going ou their way, prisoner said to witness, " I hold you responsible for my life, —that you keep deadly weapons out of my reach."—-Timothy Healy, a young man who described himself as a sawyer living at Maliurangi, said he lived in a tent not far from the hut occupied by the prisoner. Remembered the prisoner coining up and saying that he had cut himself with the knife. Prisoner said lie had been rasping at himself for a long time, and if the knife had been sharp he had been a dead man. He .said that he had insulted Mrs. Mill, and he was determined to kill himself. Had heftrd the prisoner in his hut during the night. He cried out that he could see scenery with augcls on the trees. He said that he had murdered twelve men. Ho said he saw females in the bush. He changed this tale, and then said that Mrs. Mills had insulted him, —that the murders had been committed bj' someone else. He had brought a bottle home with him in the evening. The prisoner had been drinking. He ran towards the well, and was raising the lid, when witness dragged him back. He afterwards ran towards the river, and threw himself in. He was rescued by a .person who was examined before the magistrate, but did not appear as a witness on this triai.—His Honor summed up the evidence, and the jury found the prisoner "Not Guilty, on the ground of insanity." It was ordered that the prisoner be detained in custody to await Her Majesty's pleasure as it should be indicated by the Governor.

Malicious Injury- to Property'.—Henry Calian, alias Keehav, was arraigned upon an inclictmcnt charging liim witli having sot lire, on the 2Sth December, and destroyed 35,000 singles, value £21, tlie property of John B. Hatfield. There was a second indictment laying the property in the prosecutor's son.—.John Alexander Hatfield, of Hatfield's Bay, Waiwera, deposed that the prisoner had been in his employment as shinrde splitter and doing general bush work. Witness- bought the trees from his father, paying per thousand for the sliingles which they produced. On the 2Sth December witness invited the prisoner to dine together with a Mr. lianlon. Prisoner made use of language to which the witness objected. He misbehaved himself. Witness told him if he used the lcjiguage again, he (witness) would put him out. The prisoner repeated the language, and witness put him out of the house. The orisoncr said he would burn the whole of the b bush and shingles. The prisoner went in the direction of the hut, which was near the shingles. Witness went out in his din"y. When passing the Hot Springs he saw smoke issuing from the bush. The value of the shingles—that is : the price ill the bush —being "heart shingles," was 10s a thousand. I could have got that for them. Returned to the shore, and learned from his father that the two heaps of shingles had been destroyed. Tho hut that the prisoner lived in was burned. Had seen some clothing belonging to the prisoner since the fire. He kept the clothing produced in his hut. There was no other person living ou the ground in the neighbourhood of the shingles except the prisoner. The prisoner crossexamined the witness with great pertinacity, in order to shew that his hut took lire first by accident, and communicated the flame to the heap of shingles.— Mr. Brookfield re-examined in order to shew that the perfect safety of everything belonging to tho prisoner in the hut operated against tho theory set up by the prisoner, and further, that one of the heaps of shingles was 150 yards from the hut, and there being but little wind at the time. What wind there was was blowing the contrary way. —AVilliam Hanson, a carpenter, confirmed tho material evidence given by the last witness, and spoke to the threats uttered by the prisoner.— William Bunting, a lad who was employed by tho first witness, gave a similar account of the quarrel and the threats. Prisoner went towards the bush. Shortly afterwards saw the prisoner's whare and both heaps of sliingles on fire. Witness heard Mr. Hatfield, senior, call out to the prisoner, who did not answer. —John B. Hatfield, father of the first witness, said the heaps of sliingles must have been set fire to separately. Saw the prisoner afterwards hid under a puriri tree with an axe in his hand and his clothes changed. Asked prisoner who set fire to the bush. Prisoner said he did not know. Asked him why he had not previously answered when called. Prisoner made no reply. The prisoner made no efforts to extinguish the lire. At once accused the prisoner of having set fire to the bush and shingles. Prisoner again made no reply.—Detective Ternahan produced a bundle of clothing found at the house of Mjchael Ryan, which were stated to be in the prisoner's whare on the date in question. —His Honor having summed up, the jury found the prisoner "Guilty," and he was scntcnccd to 12 months' imprisonment with hard labour.