SUPREME COURT.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4132, 21 August 1900, Page 3

SUPREME COURT.

CRIMINAL SEbSiON. (Before his Honor tin; C hief Justice.) The criminal aUing-. of llk> Supreme Court commenced yesterday morning, hr!are liia Honor (lie ( hief Justice. I he loll:;',vin;; Grand Jury wa , empanelled : - Mc:-: r.i VV, ,Nai hau (foreman), V. L. Cacheiiiaille. \V. HoiiieU, David Jitjhertson, S. <i. Kir!*f*r, I'. A. Field, J. CVl’orl, G. 11. liethiine, A. >V. Cook, i>. T. Orr, H. \V. I•'i'<■ -,t on. W. Clayton, AV. H. 15a Hinder, !!. Holliday. George • ioi-li'J oil, ll’. ’.V>. Ha.vivaal. C. .Monte-lio-e, J. J. K. Powell. A. A. Corrigan, A. J. AhlioU. arid tl. Birch. I Hi)E ESS BY CHIEF J I rs’i’JCK. Addre ■ dug the Grand Jury. Jii.-s Honor ■ alhe v, glad to he aide ( .-> sa.,V that 110 re did not ,-eein to lie any invrost.se of ei e,;n> iii !he<! 1 d id: during the quarter. Tint n.imher af ,on oners charged for the )»;:■.( fate-i , at ihe Angu-l silting Jiad not varied aioeh. In I8')7 tiio number w.atin Id. in I Will Id uml at the lire eid ait titin; i tiers wore Id. This v> a • no donhl ra-iM'd hy (ho greater prospevj.y el I lie colony, nml it might also la- die- 111 (he fuel that l:ho police wore '•a'■'•ln! and vigilant in looking after per- • eie; ,i ho wro lil-.ely to commit crime. In In." Honors opinion one of the main l." i;n . keeping clown crime* was not (he nnii.i.-.liineid. awarded. hut merely i the (ear of conviction. Unfortunately there were m the* world men who might he looked upon as belongin' l- to (lie criminal ela sses, anil if they felt they were eoin;: to he convicted that was a. greater factor in stopping crime than any punishment (hat miidd: he inflicted. That was, perhaps, (hr* most potent innuendo for good (hey had. et the present sitting I In- mam erimoa were theft and forgers* and none, Ids Honor Hiougld, would give lho inry much trouble in arriving at a derision. Of tile tlve eases of theft I hrei* had practically confessed their crtiite. In the case of (lie throe persons

«ware «jijs!rjaco<i v. iin forgery tde charges vpi'f verv clear. Eoferring to Mr-,-;:: cv-".-, jils 11pnop said there were some people in Cm 1 community who seemed to t-isli eheiiues without taking any trouble Jo asem-lam whether the sin-iia-tiovs v.’tTo genuine or not. In one of tin' Imrn-I.in elmrce:-, thorn wore three l-is oners to ho indicted. From tho fact that iho woman hail heen buying dynamite. it was evident she know Knnie'’-in" ol what- was being done on (ho nigiTt of (!•■■ bui-glarv. Me considered the jurv wpaid (mil i Jip o' Ideuee su (Helen t to nut (Im accused' mi llndr (rial. Tim other ( ivoc-ops it was necessary lo speak about wore yxiiat ofl'cipcivy. On,. ~; m o was Mm IV a ira rana. am I ho nrosnnied the neon od would ho indicted for indecent assiidl-, Ind ilm other was more than indocent, assaidl, and tho onnstion was whpihoi' thero wore snllioiont eiddonen ti),|iiidict tho accused'. It all turned imiin ,t he evidence of wind the girls sa-w id (lie ollonoo. anil would not require inn'oh eon.sideratinn. TIE Honor eonpln,|p,l i.v touching upon tho case of arson at Fed one.

TUFF. BILLS. 'File jury found true hills in the following casos;—Aiullis Amos Ashenden, (hi'i't; Alt'.■•a.ndor Ileid, forgery (four charge.); William Everest. theft; E. AI. Aleyers. i heft: Louis Dovle, theft: Harold' P. Gandy. theft and forgery; Georpo Hent, lergery ; .Toiui Moyer anti Frank Vo,, s, -attempted burrdarv; Jane Ann Byrne. David A- A. Vv. Byrne and Barney R.vMi. burglary; George. Sigglekow, atlempted rape: vVvatt Edward .Tones, ar.-on : Robert. Anderson, carnal knowledge (two charges). FORGES Y AND THEFT. Aiullis Amos Ashenden was charged wit a tho theft of several sums of money amounting to £l7 11s, from his employer, Air M. G. Phelan (Goold Bicycle Company). Air H. A. Cooper appeared for tho accused. who pleaded nob guilty. A. common jury was empanelled, Mr J. VV. Chapman being chosen foreman. Michael George Phelan slated that'the amounts alleged to have been stolen were entered in tho rough cash book, hut, licit in the general cash honk, and' wore not hanked. There wa.s about £7O of cash entered in the cash book which bad not been banked. Accused was acting as. cashier ana getting £1 os nor. week, , Witness discovered tho defalcations shortly after accused left- his employ. |

Evidence was siren by. Messrs g. E. Wright, Eastern, Be Sour and Detective Bodham. Counsel for accused submitted that tbo.fharge’ was one based purely op suspicion, and it was absolutely necessary to more first tlmt. flic money bad been .stolen, and secondly that- accused, and' accused only, stole it. The jury found tbo accused guilty in tii« case of three of the amounts alleged to have been stolon, but not guilty in the fourth cu.so. On (he application of counsel for the accused sentence was deferred to Thursday for the production of tho probation officer's report. .Louis Doyle, against whom there were numerous previous convictions, pleaded f'miltv to a. charge of having stolon on the 11th .Time a. watch and chain belonging to George White. Accused was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment with lied ]abnti’-. Harold P. Gandy, against whom there wwo two chevrres of forgarv. pleaderl guilty. Accused had hired n, bicycle and pawned it. producing , a bogus receipt r c*io 10s for ;be .satisfaction, of the pawnbroker. Vtc’ci was deferred to Thursday pending product inn of the probation olTicerV. ronnrt. A CASE OF BURGLARY.

John Meyer and Frank Voss were charged with, on the night of the 161 h July, attempting to burglariously enter the premises of the Westport Coal Company and with having housebreaking tools in their possession. Air Dunn appeared fob the accused, who 'pleaded guilty, and asked f hat they should he admitted to probation. The. case was remanded to Thursday morning. lo allow of the production of the proliathm officer's report. FORCING AN O UTTERING. Alesannor Reid pleaucd' "iiilty to four charges of forging and uttering valueless ehc.'iues on the Bank of New Zealand branches at Palmerston North, Grcytcvoi and Masterton. Accused, against whom there were previous convictions in .1897 and 181)8. pleaded guilty, and lie was sentenced to eighteen months’ hard labour on each charge, the sentences t-o he concurrent. _ George Dent pleaded guilty to forging the endorsement cn a- promissory note, and .thereby, bv false representations, obtaining £'4 ’IDs from the Wellington Loan Company. Sentence was deferred p°nding the production of evidence as to accused's health. ALLEGED THEFT. William -Everest, was charged with having, on the 18th July, stolen one portmanteau and sundry articles of clothing tho-cin contained, the property of George Pound, "and with receiving them while knowing them to he stolen. Mr Wilfnrd appeared -for the accused, who pleaded net guilty. The e iso was heard before a jure of twelve, of whom the foreman was Mr J. A. Allender. Evidence similar In that given in the lower Gourt war. given by George Pound, Samuel Jervis and Henry Needham. I William Everest, accused, cross-exa-J mined, said the portmanteau he took was]

the only one on the Manawatu platform when lie got an order to lake it to the hotel. Urevioin witnesses need not necessarily have seen tin* man who gave him tile order. Ho did not see anyone near. Il.e made no inquiries lor the man at the railway station or at: the hol'd. He iint: the portmanteau under the seat wild her it was wet or fine as a, and ter of cm,tom. On meeting, Pound, he denied the portma nl ( an. was his. Re-examined : When ho went hack to (lie hotel ho a -kco (In* proprietor to whom he had given the portmanteau. Counsel for tin* accused *aid the case was one which, if the old Scotch verdict held good, the,jury would find not proven. They would probably conic to the conclusion that the Crown had not made out. a, case against the orisoncr. His Honor, m summing up. thougot I lie evidence ponded clearly to the prisoners coil! , and that Irs conduct ah through was that of a "idlty man. After a -horl retirement the jury returned with a verdict of not guilty. |