SARAH'S SORROWS.

NZ Truth, Issue 79, 22 December 1906, Page 5

SARAH'S SORROWS.

BEAK BISHOP BRANDS

Tram-Troubadour White's Denial as Rank Perjury.

There is a chap named George White employed on the Christchurch tramcars, and he is a beaut. There may be more of his name grafting* thereon, but this bloke is a young, clean shaven, thin faced sonny of a boy who is a conductor, or lieutenant, or some- I thing, of that sort, who flirts with m- ] nocent and uninap^c-nt country girls j who come to thFgay and festive city i to have __ fly round, or visit friends, j and often get into dire trouble when \ they meet a uniform with no money m its pocket and no assets but a suave smile. Sarah Bolton was the victim m this case ; she was a plain looking girl, strong and healthy looking, who discards the artificial articles which go to make up the average girl's face and figure and other appurtenances. She fell m with White on the tram, and he improved the shining half hour between New Brighton and the city by making love to the simple country lass, to say nothing of appointments and in-quiring as to. her loving relatives out back. In the result Sarah had' a little lamb ; she had been seduced by White during his walks, so she said, and then the doctor and the midwife took a hand. As*- this gallant ticket taker on the i tram car bad no further interest m Bolton, and didn't intend to marry ! her, she SUED THE FELLOW FOR MAINTENANCE, and although he got out of the affair he . gbt the warmest ten minutes he ever had m his life, from Magistrate Bishop, who believed him to be guilty of having seduced the girl, but must decide m his favor as a matter of law. So the bright. youth resumed his uniform again without paying seven and six, and is still free to charm his girl passen.eets until someone will hit him oil the face with a gamp, and spoil his features, and then perhaps he will give the - game over.. When the case was investigated at the Police Court, Lawyer Salter appeared for the girl, and Lawyer Hupt for the defendant. During the. course of her evidence the mother of the unfortunate " bastard said she lived at Kirwee, and came to town on a visit, making White's acquaintance m a tram. He was A MOST AFFABLE BLOKE, and she cottoned '".on to him right away. , "And where did these intimacies take place ?" asked counsel. "On the tram," was. .the astonishing reply. "What, on the tram ? I want to know where you had intercourse together." "Oh. 'l dojti't know the first time I had connection with him— the i exact date, that is." "Well, what' was the occasion ?" "Well, it was] at a picnic."

Good old picnic— especially, the Sunday school variety. There is a very large proportion of girls ruined at these precious picnics, either at them, or coming home from them, or afterwards. And the. shady spots, carefully oliosen- beforehand by . the : promoters of the show, are very conducive to immorality. However, it is at these precious outdoor gatherings 'that young maids lose what they should treasure as one of the most precious things m life. And so it was with Sarah Bolton, on her own sworn testimony, and that picnic .will be long remembered by. her. That occurrence happened one day m December, and the next time that sexual intercourse took place was on January 13 last. "Are you sure of the date ?". asked Counsel Salter. "Yes." "Why, what makes you so sure ?" The girl gave a reason for fixing the date, that cannot be printed. "Where did it happen ?" "Round by the river at Dallington." Dallington is a little suburb on the Avon where . loyesrs stalk at nip.ht unhindered by the madding crowd, and where, all sorts of things happen m sweeif dalliance under stars that shine the brighter when win-king at the nocturnal prowlings of the sexes. There was apparently but a few meetings between the pair after that— another was at the house oi a. cousin, who lives near New Brighton. On that occasion White is alleged to have called, left his bike, and gone for a short stroll with his adored Sarah B. The only time she saw him subsequently was on the tram. He kept away from her after having SATISFIED HIS PURPOSE, so the lady testified at all events. In reply to Mr Hunt the duped female admitted to havmg patlsed 27 suniiiters, so she had seen something of life. She had come to town for a holiday, and first knew that she was m the family way when she felt crook. 'The girl was., tlipn_ asked why she hadn't told White when- she.found harself m trouble, but tlie only answer that she could give to this was that she hadn't done so. However, her brother-in-law had done so for her. She went to Kirwee m February—that was after the frolic happened. A number of months afterwards this extraordinary girl came to. town but didn't tell White anything about herself or ask what he was '•'going t 0 do about it" ; she merely asked m the most casual way what time some tram was going, and he told her m an equally casual manner what time it was going. He passed her by and said "Good day,'' and she was apparently CONTENT WITH THAT. In answer to further questions the lady said she was unacquainted with any New Brighton men, and had no intercourse with anyone else bar White. The next witness called was A^-ar Baylis, a cousin of the complainant, at whose house the latter stopped when she blew m for .her disastrous holiday. This witness lives out at New Brighton and deposed that on one Sunday White called at her house and got her obedient cousin to go out for a walk with him. Ke left his bike at the domicile, and af-s it .was 'twenty to, 10 p.m. the-wit-ness demurred that it was TOO LATE FOR STROLLING. However; out the pair went, flAit what hanncn^d she didn't know. However, months ■ afterwards White called on' her (witness) and asked "What, about, this case of your cousin's ?". but *..''<. /•pnlipfj that lie knew more about it than she did. However, she su/ro^h-;! i.hat he should marry tho givl, and

he replied that it would be absurd* and said something about his billet. On being asked by Mr Hunt if the defendant denied paternity the witness said that he did deny it.

The defendant then entered the box and denied the complainant's yarn m toto. He never had any intercourse with the girl either m December or. afterwards.'

The December date was here deleted from the charge sheet. There was nothing more emphatic than his denial of everything, and included m this was his denial of the statement of Mrs Agar Baylis that he had called at her house, and taken the girl for a walk. He was liotlv cross-examined by Lawyer Salter and the Magistrate who obviously didn't believe him. Then he stood down and. beak Bisho;> had a cut at the fellow ; he said there was a lack of corroborative evidence, and he- couldn't make an order on the evidence before him. "I believe you are perjuring yourself," he Said ; "you are a perjurer, Mrs Bavlis told a plain, unvarnished tale about you leaving your bicycle at hee house and taking the complainant out. YOU COULDN'T LOOK ME IN THE FACE when you were denying that statement, and your demeanor y/as unsatisfactory. However, the .corroborative evidence is not such as would justify, me m making an order against you. As a matter 0 E law I couldn't do so, so the case is disnyiss&d." It was very plain that the girl and her cousin were distinctly disappointed with the decision of Mr Bishop, but law is law and there's an end of it. Probabilities don't enter into all cases that come before a court. But young White was able to crawl out of the premises fueling like a cur stricken with the mange, but still sate m the knowledge that by a bit of luck he was able vo escape parting up a little seven and six a week for a little bit of humanity which has ho legal father and' doesn't appear likely to. Tram men have got a darned si n-ht more brass than their uniforms indicate-— and the country girl who wants to know things en route, pays the freight. But won't tlie tramway authorities want to have a say m this scandal, m view of the MagistrateV pointed remarks ?