"HELLO, AMY!"

NZ Truth, Issue 247, 19 March 1910, Page 8

"HELLO, AMY!"

"Miss" Bock Revived.

Wharf Workers' Wordy Warfare.

A Fine For "Slinging Off/

Wharf laborers m ordinary circumstances don't waste much time m settling differences of opinion legally, and rarely air personal grievances m police courts. A recent wharf incident, however, was an exception to the rule, and the proceedings, at the Wellington Police Court last Monday were enlivened somewhat when two? fat and nuggety toilers of the water.sinie; bad a grievance adjusted by Mr Riddell, S.M. James Hooper (.represented by Mr Hindmarsh) and Joseph Thomas tfor whom Mr P. Jackson appeared) were the; belligerents, and the proceedings excited considerable attention from hefty wharflaborers, who crowded the rear of the j court. The charge preferred against Thomas was one of using insulting language to Hooper on March ■ 3 last. The words alleged to be usud were: "Hello, ArmyBock. Hello, Amy Bock {" Mr Hindmarsh, m opening the case, observed that Thomas persistently insulted Hooper whenever he met him on. the wharf or on the public streets, "i supi pose,'' said the democratic lawyer, '^that | even a man on the wharves, cannot be.' called the name of a notorious criminal. These insults lead to .lights, and my I client feels them, and seems the protection of the court." Hooper, m his evidence, stated that the offensive language was used to him bydefendant about 8.45 on the morning of March 3. Witness was on the Jervois■quay wharf, and when passing the Thomas gang, which was unloading some vessel, his ears were assailed with the specified words, which were repeated subsequently. Mr . Hindmarsh : Who is Amy Bock ? (Laughter.) Witness:: She is a woman (laughter), a criminal m this country, and I strongly object to. being called after a criminal. ' Mr Jackson : A number of. people -have called you Amy Bock ?— Yes. A lot of questions followed as to where Hooper/ was when tfie words were used. He stated that he was only^ a few yards away. "I was m the "conversational area," he declared,- without a smile..! Did' you tell anybody you were sorry you had commenced proceedings against this man ?— .N0... 'Didn't you tell Tom Smith,' secretary of the Union ?— I told him it was hard that I. could not go down. to the wharf . .without being insulted, and he said it was getting! a serious matter. Mr Jackson : Will you swear Amy Bock is a notorious person ?— Well, I read it m the papers. Jeremiah O'Brien, who used to be m the police force, but left m extraordinary circumstances, and! who now toils hard oa the wharf for a crust, jirbved a most unsatisfactory' witness so far as Hooper was concerned. He remembered nothing, and saw next to nothing; O'Brien was hardly improved on by iJames Parker, .who, though he didn't hear ianyone call out /'Amy Bock," etc., recollected Hooper coming back saying lie would summon Thomas. Thomas, m his evidence, denied that be had called Hooper the insulting name. , Cross-examined; he denied that be had. .repeatedly tried Jto provoke Hooper by calling ou!t at him. Thomas further attempted to throw cold •'water on the whole business by ! declaring that "Amy Bock" was indiscriminately used as a .nickname on; the . wharves. He instanced 1 .where lie^bafl been called after the Nuggets "hero," and men m tbe hatches, he said, were m the habit of addressing others, ungrammatically, thus : "Amy Bock is as good as yous two." Mr Jackson : You say you have been called "Amy Bock" ?— Yes. His Worship considered that tbe language was insulting, and imposed a fine of 20s and costs. ,