GARNER GARNERED

NZ Truth, Issue 604, 13 January 1917, Page 2

GARNER GARNERED

A COVE WHO KEPT CROOK COMPANY - -. . -; : ' wAMiiNii$ c :^Wasi», on ■ ■ WAsns;-.-- . - v ; -■ . A Six Months' Retirement

'A little more cleaning up was .to- ' dolged m at the Magistrate's Court, on Thursday last, when about 4ft. 6m. of individual, labelled William Garner, 'was charged with being a rogue and a vagabond- m that ho did habitually consort with connoted and reputed thieves, he haying 1 bqan previously conyicted on January ,' 13, 1915. V : ■■ '. V : ".-. V■V■' ; : / Robert Percy Ward said that he was' , the court recorder, and he verified the ' conviction as recorded against the accused on January 13, 1915. He .had been convicted and ordered to come up for sentence when called upon as being an idle and disorderly person. Mr. Sladden, who represented the accused, wanted t0 know what the accused was charged with on. this oc~ ' easion. Was it the «ameras before or another charge? j r > , The Recorder told him that it was exactly the same as before only moire Pao, William beiik entitled to a charge yof being "■' ■■-.•>•/ : ■■ . ,/ - . ' , A ROGUE AND A VAGABOND en the strength of his previous convicr ,' tfon, such being the "lor." .: Constable Kenneth AHlster Brannan ' certified to Bill being the "bloke" wiism be had repeatedly seen m conferea*^ with Bill McKay, a purveyor of unlicensed grog, and Michael Na»ij. a moat naughty person. It was generally at night and the fairy glen which J they favored was TaianaM-street, « where the "pjbdes^ perambulated ... as mentioned. On December 17 he had !' seen the yard-and-a-half of accused m company with Mick CBien, who had just got six months. Michael Nash / end Frank Haywood, a person of ill's repute. Ken was watching towards \ /the witching hour, and he had seen >. them together constantly. Also, he ' ,bad seen him m close conference with I William Newman, who' was a naughty i person. On that and various occas--1 ions he had seen bad Bill m unison { with all th© iw liarhthouses" and thieves > mentioned, and they seemed as msep- * arable as honeymoon couples. He. , had spoken to Garner m March about the quality of the company he was *; favoring. . ' "' ■' fc ■.' ■ " ■''v--Mr. Sladden: It was not late at night ' t-~not later than half -past ten when ' you saw the accused?-^h,' I doh*t ' know about that ' ' •Do you know where he lives 1-^tJo, don't He is generally around sly? frog shops.Do you know what he does? — I have teen him on the coal carts at times. Have you seen him m the daytime .with thievea?— Well, the thieves do not , generally come out untfl evening. And the last warning you gave Mm 1 was In March?— Oh; yes. I would, not be bothered with him after that. ' Constable Alec Barnes gave similar \ evidence. Bill Garner seemed to gartier up all the rooksters who infest -street and make them *T ■ HIS BOON COMPANIONS. (* . ■.■'.:. ■ -■■"■] t , To Mr. Sladden: He did not know H. where he (bad Bill^ lived, where he { worked, or if he was visible 16 the day \ time or not. • He had seen Bill with "bad eggs" on Christmas day. It may |f have been that he was not at work on day and he may have bad more Ktime than usual to devote to the friends v©£ bia bosom. j f Constable Thomas William Cox had c been acquainted (m an official way) t- with the four-foot-six of "consort" for I two and a-half years. He had warned ; fcitn of the wrath to come, but Bill j ifstni bundled around the sly-grog shops \ and favored the time, when all good > iWealeyan parsons aad other persons '(bar policemen) should be m "byeIn answer to Mr. Sladden, the "John """Hop" said that he did not know where Bill's fairy bower was nor ' whero he > rested his weary, beery bead o' nights. [ All that he knew was that he favored k the unlicensed pubs with his miniature I presence. He had not seen him at 'Wealeyan 'conferences, but had noticed ■"bim at sly- grog shantieo and other places not favored by the Y.M.&A. Then Mr. Sladden called Bin himself, * who said he resided m TaranaW-street and was an "urger" of horses. He ''' lodged at the address given by him £ and got bis meals at the handiest places on certain occasions. That (^counted for his being In close proximity to places eOHEDUXiED AS SX.T-QROOQEIUE3. '$t Just depended where, the* coal cart ' happened to be when the pangs of granger gnawed at his vitals. He had ,beeu arrested at twenty minutes to eight on the Wednesday, and had been " employed by Mesarti, Munt, Cotterill •nd Co., his vocatloa being to induce

.a. horse to draw large quantities of coal to different addresses. He earned about £ 3 a week and more, according to the overtime worked. He labored continuously from . about 7 aon. till about five br'six ixf 'the dewy eve. He, was 23 years of age and a celibate. It cost him about 6s per week for his room, and then he , had to purchase sustenance with the balance' of his wealth. "Of pay a shillin' and noinpunce a meaul fer me tucker," said Bill, who had a most outrageous dialect In addition, he sent his dear old mother one pound per week. His ma "lived at Purth, m Westrun Ostralyer." " r '.. ■ The Inspector; Do you adroit that the constables' evidence is true?-— Yes, some of it is true. What portion of it is not true ?— Gox said that he cautioned me. That Is not true. • . ; ' Why did you keep company With these people? Mr. Cooper, S.M., explained the danger, of it to you m this court, did he not? — Yes. James Munt of the - flrm of Munt Cotterill and Co., said that he knew BUI, who had directed the energies of various quadrupeds which drew drays of coal for the M. C. ai»d Cote, firm, j Bill had been' with them for the last six months or so and he had no reason to find {iflanlt with him.' He appeared to pc a steady and reliable worker. Bill bunked into nis toll at about half-past seven, and ,.tt vas generally about five or half -past before he vacated the premises. They worked under an award. He was & man whom they would Hke to retain m their employ, and they would ' like him to urge quadrupeds for them indefinitely. As for sobriety, well, , BILL WAS WELL ABOVE THE AVERAGE. He had lost about one week only during the last six months. The Inspector: Tour knowledge is that of master and man. After he has finished his work you know nothing of bimS-^Nothing at ell. : Mr. Sladden addressed the Bench. He asked that if his Worship was going to convict that he would .impose such a penalty that- Bill could return to the horse-urging business at the earliest possible moment as the equines were just signing for .''Bill's' company. Then, his Worship started the addition* ' Here was a young gentleman, 2^ years of age, who held a constant job down. He had been convicted as an indolent and naughty person. The fact that he belted Blossom around a hilly city while that patient •. beast dragged tons of anthracltic fuel to suffering householders made no difference at all. in the result of his arithmetic. He had been warned Sand convicted, yet it seemed as useless and devoid of result as an attempt to extinguish the flames. of Sheol with compressed kerosene. He preferred the company of his boon companions, Messrs. Thief, Robbery, Sly-grog and Co., so, he must be adjudged as being as his company is— nothing to write to tho War Cry about. "I cannot see why he should, be treated ANY DIFFERENT FROM THE i OTHER MAN," said his Worship (the other man being Mick^j O'Brien). "No doubt his mother will (unfortunately) suffer, but that often happens when young men prefer such company as the accused does." Then his Worship wrote something m a book and Bill gave a hurried "Thank you*' m return for a half-year's respite from any chance of military service, during which period he win rusticate m the Arcadian solitude; of the Terrace and will not be at. home to anyone of importance except, perhaps, the Prisons Control Board and church visitors.