MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXVI, Issue 8228, 16 September 1901, Page 3

MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

THIS DAY. | E«f->re Major Keddell. S.M.) ■-■-s Watson was charged that he did, 73-jk the 15th May, 1901. ait Oa- - S "v*n!lv" steal one Oladstone hag, --(I suit "of clothes, one Masonic • -~>j white shirts, wo Oxford shirts. V-trroof overcoat, two white silk and a small book of photos, t.-j' r.uue 'of 59 15s, from the 1-': Hotel. the property of one Robert ia. Oamaxu. being an indictable -*i: King showed, that ,the prose•Wa boarder in the Queen's Hotel, rlie owner of a threshing mill in '■—y. Mr Chambers left the hotel .ji February List on business, and ;-r:crn for some months. On the (rladstone bag whichMr Cham- ' in the hot-el, was found ka. in a back street and the ara r.cted. Suspicion fell on the h.'.o. after ithe theft of the bag, : k--;enced to a term in Dunedin 12ifects there were searched; with ;"aac a shirt, identified by pro- .. fcis property, was found among : admitted being in Oamara thne the bag was found rifled. Clumbers, null-owner, stated that srfee Qceen's Hotel on the 25th Eeb■iut. Leaving the Gladstone bag pro:in Mrs Wise's care. The bag con- : the articles enumerated in the in-, don. Tlie value of the bag and ar- - be about £9 15s. He left the and strapped in his -bedroom, :ii Jlrs Wise about it. Witness next i; faa J in -the Police Station about- a i;;o. The lock was then broken, as been forced open, and was other:i=!ced. All the contents but- a ferw ?T;re gone. The shirt (produced tart- of the contents of the bag left it in the hotel. Witness the loop on the back of the colwitness himself .put' on. He * liso r>— a stain. He also thought stsscktle and two collars produced feat could not swear to it-, iie Wise, wife of the licensee of *'j Hotelj stated that she knew the 5 rho had be»n for three or four :-5 at the Queen's. It would not Qris twelve months ago. Witness ; jie complainant, Robert ChuH- '■ i February last- he left the Queen's, - tr was hoarding, to go to his sr." rtill in the country. Mr Cham!:de to witness, when he was leavi' V cis has. Witness had not- seen «a*i since he left his employ at the Witness knew the produced Mr Chambers had at the Queen's - tns boarding there. He had left i'i cerc-re to go threshing, and had hji is: bis bag in witness' charge. He I® ci ibis occasion. About- two months >*» t«iice went to the Queen'* with 1 tac. which appeared to have Jd£. laborer, deposed that he 17 Merged. Witness last saw him trres months ago, just- above ithe ; Hotel. It. was some time in the Witness recognised the bag ■biosd the one he saw under ■H bouse in Humber street below stables on the 15th May last-. 1 : -C did not to have been there - WncT» irit-ness pulled the bag from tic bouse it was open, with the apof having been forced. This was " ~'>r.- sit the accused near the Hotel. Witness could not- say '!«r. Witness could sweax it- was betime accused came out of gaol

tee time witness found the bag, that is~ tfce accused near tie Queen's Hotel. ": r r Hunt deposed t-fcat- on infortjc received he visited an empty house psbe? street, on 15th May last, and p it? bar produced, whiah was empty, ':ti tor =«">me papers. Some of the c-sj core Robert Chambers' najne, and witness took the ba<* to the 41 s. "here Mrs Wise identified it as r.f Robert Chambers 1 . Later . ity Mr Chambers also identified it u witness a list- of ithe airticles the I pi contained. Witness knew the acHe l I been ".vorkirtc at the Queen s *--• ''boot?." He came of gaol on '.-. it. Stable Connolly stated that he knew iicssed. Witness arrested him in Duns- for which 'he got 18 months' imJOittt On information Teceived from witness searched the belongings -- accused in Dvmedin Gaol, and found = _Uifc-rd shin. two collars and tie now Witness interviewed the ac~"o claimed the shirt as his pro•v v - Accused -told •witness ab«nt the &th / r *^ i: he had only been recently dis°f}?- kf-m ( gaol, and had been a few *^®Y¥ llaru * Tha* was before witne.sx '_«•« aim. Witness arrested accused on case on the 29th July. had nothing to say in answer ■ii caarge. and was committed for trial of the Supreme Court