A BULLY BOOBED.

NZ Truth, Issue 100, 18 May 1907, Page 4

A BULLY BOOBED.

SCUIXERYMAN SMITH

Raises Cain on the Waikare.

A Truculent Scallywag Soundl^

Trounced.

A' lowrlooking. truculent ~ scaU-yiwagj-of the bully stamp gat a well-die-' served three years' hard labor at the Christchurch Supreme Court on Monday for assaulting -and . robbing Polly Money, a Dunedjn tailor* ess, who made the trip to Christ-" church 'm the Wailcare. The rapscallion, whose name is Walter Louis Smith, and who hails from Sydney, was a scullerymah on the Waikare. At about four o'clock one mominfl a man, presumed to be Smith, entered the cabin of an elderly woman, Mrs. Fletcher, who was accompanied by her daughter, and she felt something pass over her face. , Thinking it was a rat she struck out and hit a human hand, and the owner therefore disappeared from the room right away. Shortly afterwards she heard screams from hard by. These came from Miss Money, whose cabin Smith had invaded. She saw him come m the door, and as&ed him what he wanted. He stood by her bunk', and said he wanted to ''get the motion of the boat,," whatever he meant by that. Alter stopping I/here a few minutes, . the girl became alarmed, and asked him to go, but the fellow refused to do so. ' Then she asked where . tha stewardess was, and tfta reply was that she couldn't go to the stewardess' room m her nightfown. Becoming further alarmed the girl got out of her top bunk, saying sho was sick, and Smith got hold of her by the neck, and cursed and swore at her, eventually • throwing her - into , the ( tyr>tto;n. bunt. Whilo ; there he wanted her to lie down, amd because she refused and resisted he continued cursing and swearing, and held her. Then he made an indecent proposal, and si id that if she mov- • ed he would kill her. Miss Money told the ibrutal Mack'g-uard that if he would gio out of the oafoin sha would say nothing about- the incident. To. thin the beast said that if she would lie down m the bed he would ro. A refusal, was, of 'oOiii-.se , the response, and the. girl, mansascd, to get out of the end of the. Sw'nk on to the floor. Smith irrabh-L'd her and threw her down head, first, nncl on her rising he once ac-am ~ collared her by the -neck and -bauds, . and seeing that she held her purse she / grafed it. The nurse , containled £3 3_s ed, and she implored him to give it back, and he ■SiUii) i hat if she save him : all he wanjKl he would do so. Then he grabbed her by the neck, nnd slve scream Pd loudly. Smith then threatened to kill . her if ■' she didn't shut dp.. But SHE CONTINUED TO SCREAM, and he fled, the pirl after hi. ,5. A steward named McLeod rushed along to the spot from where cries of "Murder" were emanating. He me,* Smith running away, und slopped h» ; m, ,. asking wlut the disturbance was about.. Smith rejued, "Oh, there's ' some woman getting biaziv knocked out of her." Then -th« io'llcrw ran on to his quarters m the scullery. McLeod put Miss iYlorwy iii Mrs Fletcher's cabin ; sho was m a very excited, state. lanOiad^a—touJT on tor— "Ticse. Later on, i.TTa gvri" identified Smith as her assailant. She was face to face, jwith him all the time, and was positive of his i;!.?huity. The blackguard, . who is of. t corpulent disposition, resembles uo other man on the 'ship. Wheiir Smith was brought before the captain to explain his scandalous couJ.uc 'j he ' made a statement of denial, and th» girl recognised his voice as. 'AXil as , his 'face and figure. Prior' to .this,, though, Steward' McLeod went ; , along to the tralJey, and -, asked Smith what game he had Wn' get-: ing up to m the forecabin. The vicious dish-walloper grew wild,, ami swore, at McLeod, and said he would , knock' his brains out ;>vith a sh'oyel if he didn't smoke away-. Suiting action to the word he made a dir* for the shovel, apparently intending to carry out his threat, and the steward thought it advisable to clear off. Constable Poole, of -Lyttelton, arrested the accused; who denied his guilt. He could find no trace of the missing money*; the thief probably threw it over};oard m his "flight,. r« J cognising that if it was found ojv Mm ■it would be incriminating evidence. - J ' ' The only defence Smith had &.t. the Supreme Court -was that he ■ didn't do it. He didn't have atiythiißK to say to the jury, who promptly f. o uii# him guilty. . , ■'■"'. , It transpired that Smith hatlmly l:een a short time m this colony, and that he had been conricte* m Sydney, receiving six monthsquod for assault, and a second seiv tence of three years' penal servitude for indecent assault, on a little e:irl. The rascal denied this,. but his finger-prints were produced, as well as a couple of photoei-aphs, which pave him right away. H« looked sta^rerod, and said nothing more. Judee Chapman told the lecherous lout that he had been convicted of a very serious offence. There was no doubt about bis guilt, and he would be sentenced to three years' hard labor. The nrisoner said afterwards that he- expected to receive double that amount. It would >c to the advantage of Society if hV had.