"A DESTITUTE PERSON."

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 14587, 25 January 1911, Page 8

"A DESTITUTE PERSON."

MAGISTRATE'S DECISION.

[BT TELEGRAPH. —PRESS ASSOCIATION.]

Wellington*, Tuesday. An important decision under the Destitute Persons Act, 1910, was delivered by Dr. Mc Arthur, S.M., at the Magistrate's Court this morning. A woman named Jennie D. Martin had complained that her husband, Henry Nicholas Martin, had failed, and intended to fail, to provide her with adequate means of maintenance. The evidence showed that the defendant had been unsuccessful in. business matters, and had sunk considerable sums of money in his property. At : the present time ho was still in debt, and without employment. There were ho children of tho marriage.

"Under these set of circumstances," said tho magistrate, " can I make a. maintenance order? In answering this question, I am bound by the Destitute Persons Act, 1910. A destitute person is defined in that Act as any person * unable, whether permanently or temporarily, to support himself by his own means or labour. I think the complainant does not come under that definition, inasmuch as she is a capable housekeeper, and has been in employment as clerk in an office. Now, section 17, subsection 6, says that unices a magistrate is satisfied that the wife is -a destitute person, no maintenance order shall be made against the husband, in favour of the wife. It is proved that the husband is not of sufficient ability to contribute to her maintenance, and, in my opinion, the complainant (the wife) is not a destitute person. Should the defendant at any time- become, of sufficient ability, to contribute, a maintenance order will' be made in the ordinary manner."