CITY POLICE COURT.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 4164, 23 June 1875, Page 3

CITY POLICE COURT.

Tuesday, Junk 22.\d. (Before E. M/Glashan and William Fraser, Esq., J.P.'s.) Drunkenness.—John Liston, Duncan MVeuzie, and John Allan, charged by Mounted-Constable Eooney with drunk anil disorderly conduct at Green Island, were eaih fined 10s. Hi chard Jones was fined ss. Illegally on the Premises.—Hairy Elshaw was charged, on the information of Gto:ge Htnry Baines, bailitl, with being a r«-gne and vagabond, within the meaning of the Act, and being unlawfully on his premises in Cumberland street, on the morning of the 2'2nd.—Accused asked for an adjournment of the cisc in order to get counsel.— The Police offered no objection, and prisoner wns r. mambd until next day. Ojjscene Language.—Sarah Ann Pullen, charged with using obscene language, was lined 20s, in default, fourteen days'imprisonment City Bye-Law Cases.—A number of persons were summoned for contravening the Bye-Laws. Indictable Offence—Antoni Maggi, an Italian, was charged, on the information of Archibald Booth, with attempting to choke him, in order to commit an unnatural offence.—The case was heard with close 1 doors, and Mr P. Mitchell acted as interpreter.—Prosecutor, a miner working at Chain Hills tunnel, whose face was much disfigured with scratches, stated that he fell in with prisoner at the Thf atre, on the previous evening, and, after drinking with him, went to the Red Lion Hotel, where they I oth took beds in one room. Accused, in" endeavouring to commit the offence mentioned, nearly made witness insensible by throttling him, and in the scuttle pulled out a handful of his whiskers.—Prisoner was commuted for trial. Theft.—Henry Williamson, who is at present serving a term of imprisonment for vagrancy, was charged with stealing a silver watch, ehiin,' and-locket, the property of John M Tarlane. Prosecutor stated that he attended the Tokomair'.ro races on the Sth April, and slept in the up stairs parlour of | the Commercial Hotel that night. Fie did not undress himself, and had a watch on his person, which he missed the following morning. He saw prisoner in the room, and he was afterwards pointed out as the person who had likely stolen the watch.—Abraham Solomon, pawnbrokir, George street, de posed to a man named Grant pawning' it at his shop, and stating that he had received it from another man named Sherar.—James Sherar, sworn, said tl-iat prisoner gave him the wa1 eh, to sell in Ih-.u of some money he was owing witness. Witu-ss sold it to one Orant for £(i, and gave prisoner 30s, promising him the balance at a future time. Accused subsequently told him that he had bought the watch from a man at the races. —Det-etive Bain apprehendid prisoner on the 21->t April, on a charge of vagrancy, and when searching him, he tried to secrete a guard and lr.ckeh in his boots.—Prisoner was coininitt. d for trial. Receiving Stoles Property. — James Shtrar, striker, in the employ of Messrs ■Reid and Gray, was charged with receiving the watch in question in the last case, knowing it, to be stolen. —Accused was discharged. TIMAKU LANDING SERVICE. TO THE EIHTOK. Sii;—Your remarks in to-day's issue on the landing appliances at Timaru apply with equal force to Oamaru. At both these places steam tugs titteil with the necessary appliances would be of incalculable service for landing and .shipping purposes, and also for towing vessels to sea in bad weather. But the simple fact is the Colony appears to have gone public works mad, and, as usual in such cases, the disease must run its course, as it is evidently a hopeless task to attempt to check it. At both Timaru and Oamaru suitable steam tugs would be of infinitely greater service than the breakwaters at those places, and upon which tens of thousands are being figuratively and literally "thrown into the sea." The authorities seem to be unaware that breakwaters in such places, to be of any service, can only be constructed at a cost of hundreds of thousands instead of tens of thousands; but it is probable during the present mania for public works the idea of steam tugs for these places would be met with derision. The only place in the Colony where a breakwater is justifiable is at the Grey—say at Point Elizabeth—to duvelope the vast and excellent coalfields in that district. But instead of the long sentenced prisoners being jjput to this work, it appears they are t;» be sent to Resolution Island to quarry granite, an article for which the demand is exceedingly small ; whilst for Grey River coal the market is practically unlimited. The simple fact is that everything which tends to foster and extend our trade, is being utterly neglected, whilst enterprises of a.

visionary and hixurious character, from a cable to Singapore, at the cost of a million, down to the introduction of salmon, at the cost of a few thousands, are being enthusiastically supported. In your leading columns a few days ago, it was pointed out that the San Francisco service, from which so much was expected, is of no utility whatever, and the possibility of even iv snialf trade from it, with the Sandwich Islands, is now utterly hopeless, as these islands are about to enter into reciprocity arrangements with the United States, thus excluding the products of other countries, in favour of the States. It requires no prophetic vision to foresee that our present prosperity is simply a fool's paradise, dependent mainly upon the expenditure of borrowed money, and the soie of public lands, and when these are exhausted, the disasters that will ensue will be something unheard of, unless we direct our energies to the curtailment of useless expenditure, to the extension of trade, and to the encouragement of industrial enterprises amongst us. —I am, &c, Marine. Dunediu, 21st June, 1575.