WHAT IS A BROTHEL?

NZ Truth, Issue 123, 26 October 1907, Page 5

WHAT IS A BROTHEL?

. HUTCHISON'S HOME IS NOT ONE. : i — .. 't a Brothel-keeper but a Vagrant I j Hubby Released Because He Get Werk.

/ll be recollected that last iary Ann and Andrew Hutchi'fere charged m Wellington Burt with keeping a brothel, gist rate Riddell reserved his S on the point of law raised Wilford as to what consi a brothel. On Monday his |) gave his decision. He said formation charged the Hutchi/fith keeping a brothel at No. / festers-lane, Wellington, on Oc- / §5, 1907. It was proved that Ibcupied a house at the above h, rented and paid for by the I defendant, that for some I prior and up to October 7, jfcvere constantly seen visiting jbuse at night, and on Septem/3, when Sergeant Hutton called ,f1. 30 p.m. three sailors were ye. Mrs Hutchison admitted that m came to the house for the nurof prostitution ; Hutchison the same admission, and added •p that he could not prevent it. No other woman lived m or frequented the house but the female* defendant. The Hutchisons gay« no evidence, and it was urged on • their ochalf that it had not been proved that any offence had been committed by them on the day named m the information, further that as no woman other ' than Mrs Hutchison lived m the house or frequented it FOR PURPOSES OF PROSTITUTION. the decision Singleton v. Ellison applied, and the defendants could not be convicted. In that case, decided .m England, m 1895, a woman occupied a house frequented by day and niffht by men for purposes of prostitution, but no other woman lived m, or visited, or frequented, or used it for such purposes. The Justices who heard the information held that it was not a brothel within the meaning of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1885, which states that any person who keeps, manages, acts, or assists m the management of a brothel, shall, on summar- conviction, be liable to fine or imprisonment. 1 There was no definition of a brothel m the English Criminal Law Amendment Act, but Stephens's digest of • criminal law, defined "a common bawdy house" as, "a house or room or set of rooms m any house kept for purposes of prostitution." In dismissing the appeal from the Justices' decision, which was heard before two Judges, Mr Justice' Wills said, "I am o! opinion that the decision of the Magistrate was right. A brothel is the same thing as a bawdy house, a term which has a. well-known meaning as used b^ lawyers and iii Acts of Parliament. In its legal acceptation it applies to a place resorted to by persons of both sexes for the purposes of prostitu- * tion. It is certainly not applicable to a state of things described by the Magistrate m this case, where one ■ .TvoTv n n received a number of men.". In New Zealand, by section 13 of the Indictable Offences Summary Jnrsidiction Act, 1894, a brothel v ! was defined as "any house, room, .set of rooms, or place of any kind •whatever kept for the purposes of prostitution," and section 29 stated that "any person who keeps or : manages, or acts, or assists m the. I ; management of, a brothel," shall, on summary conviction, he liable to the pcnali?/ provided by the Act." The difference between the law m England and that m New Zealand was • this : In England there was no sta- - tut*- definition •of a 'brothel, hut both Stephens's definition of a com- • ■ mon bawdy house and our statutory *■•■ one of brothel;, which were practical- - !v the same, included "any house ■> kept for purposes of prostitution." - The facts of the case of Singleton r. Ellison and the present one were almost identical, and as the term ;"" brothel was there interpreted not to V". a-'ii'lv to a case where one woman "•■•• kept a house visited by men, it seamed to his Worship, though tt, NOT WITHOUT SOME DOUBT, T. that that decision was not binding ir. until our statutory definition clearly x' applied to such cases. Without that ...decision, his Worship should have ;/ considered it wide enoup-h to cover £••• the offence with which the Hutchi- • sons wore charged. The information ... .:Wrts dismissed. . ••' ■ '■ ■ ■;. The Hutchisons were then chargd ?-.-.. with-.,. bein-f idle and disorderly per- .'?•■; sons, and Mr Wilford informed the Bench that the man, who had been vv making strenuous endeavors to. get '. into, collar had now succeeded *ri oh-' -: tainiir- employment at a good wage. Counsel didn't want the Bench to is put Hutchison to the expense of . calling witnesses from all parts ot -r New Zealand to prove that he had obtained or had applied for work .-.. from thirty-two different employers. His wife pleaded not guilty to the charge, an<l evidence was Viven by '*■'• Sereeant Hutton and Detective Kemp that the woman' had been petting her : living by prostitution. Mr Wilford ...said, "My defence is that she hfrs been carrying on a legal pccuia+ion." His Worship : It is not legal. - Counsel held that the. Magistrate "•''■ hy his decision m the brothel case. - had declared that the occupation of '/•- the woman was not illegal. No one : ! could admit that she was not earning rhonev and that she was not obtaining it m a legal manner, and it i- , could -not be held that she came un- .; tier the definition of the offence with ■which -she was charred. It had been .-.. tuled by Sir Robert Stout that if a y. man had a £10 note m his posses- . • . sion he was not without means, and this woman was not without money. , It would be Gilhertian for a Magis- ■■'■ ' irate to say that the -woman was -"- livinfT m a legal manner and then put % - her m gaol for being without means 5 of support. Counsel expressed his disinclination to^a^e-ar pathetic, "but - ■ ' he told a most pathetic story of the woman, whose first husband had been a chronic invalid. The husband was " useless as a breadwinner, and to add - to the trials of the unfortunate woi' man. one of tho children, a boy. met > wit* 1 'm ncoirifvit whir>h rps'iltf»«l m the fracture of his thigh, and he had %o be removed to tb« hesv^ta-*' *"*

addition, two girls had to be kept at school, and m the midst of these troubles the woman fell. The new life she adopted was most repugnant to her, but she had to obtain the means TO KEEP HER DYING HUSBAND, provide for the treatment of her injured son. and keep the two girls at school. Those girls had bee^n kept away from their mother's evil abode, and they never knew by what means she found money to furnish tftiem with maintenance and an education. The father died, the son, whose spine was affected, became a chronic invalid, and the mother was obliged to live a life of prostitution. Throughout this recital the woman Hutchison was crying softly, and Hutchison, who insisted on remaining with her, although informed that he was at liberty to go, was also much affected. . . In' the course of his reply, ChiefDetective McGrath remarked that there were other means besides prostitution whereby a woman might keep her children. His Worship spoke very briefly, combating the contention that prostitution was a legal occupation. The woman had admitted prostitution, which was a different thing to keeping a brothel dealt with by his decision. She would be sentenced to one month's imprisonment. Hutchison was remanded, on the application of the Police, to enable enquiries to he made respecting his alleged employment. On Tuesday morning Chief Detective McGrath' remarked that of course the Bench knew the kind of life " Hutchison • had been ; leading, which merited a .penalty, but this particular case was an exceptional one. The police were satisfied that accused did not take up with the woman for the express purpose of loafing on her. He was a very young man, just 21 years of age ; he was m bad health, and the officer asked for permission to withdraw the charge. • . " His Worship asked if the police were satisfied that Hutchison had obtained employment. The 'Tec. replied m the affirmative, and his Worship > said, that m the circumstances he would grant the application.

addition, two girls had to be kept at school, and m the midst of these troubles the woman fell. The new life she adopted was most repugnant to her, but she had to obtain the means TO KEEP HER DYING HUSBAND, provide for the treatment of her injured son. and keep the two girls at school. Those girls had bee^n kept away from their mother's evil abode, and they never knew by what means she found money to furnish tftiem with maintenance and an education. The father died, the son, whose spine was affected, became a chronic invalid, and the mother was obliged to live a life of prostitution. Throughout this recital the woman Hutchison was crying softly, and Hutchison, who insisted on remaining with her, although informed that he was at liberty to go, was also much affected. . . .In' the course of his reply, ChiefDetective McGrath remarked that there were other means besides prostitution whereby a woman might keep her children. His Worship spoke very briefly, combating the contention that prostitution was a legal occupation. The woman had admitted prostitution, which was a different thins to keeping a brothel dealt with by his decision. She would be sentenced to one month's imprisonment. Hutchison was remanded, on the application of the Police, to enable enquiries to he made respecting his alleged employment. On Tuesday morning Chief Detective McGrath' remarked that of course the Bench knew the kind of life " Hutchison • had been ; leading, which merited a .penalty, but this particular case was an exceptional one. The police were satisfied that accused did not take up with the woman for the express purpose of loafing on her. He was a very young man, just 21 years of age ; he was m bad health, and the officer asked for permission to withdraw the charge. • . " His Worship asked if the police were satisfied that Hutchison had obtained employment. The 'Tec. replied m the affirmative, and his Worship > said, that m the circumstances he would grant the application.