THEFTS OF JEWELLERY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2522, 16 July 1902, Page 54

THEFTS OF JEWELLERY.

fBB ACCUSED COMMITTED FOR TRIAL.

T3ie charges of theft of articles of jewellery from the Central Hotel came before Mr E. H. Carew, S.M., at the Police Court on Monday afternoon, when the two accused, Joseph Ward and Harry King, were first charged conjointly ,with stealing one gold watch and chain and We fountain pen, of the total value of £8, the property of Evaril Haggle, on July 11. ill Hanlon appeared for both accused. The Sub-inspector asKed that the information should be amended by striking out reference to a chain. This was agreed to. The Sub-inspector asked leave to have all the charges taken conjointly, and Mr Hanlon consented. His Worship, after looking up the act, said this course could not be followed, and each separate information would require to be taken by itself. The Sub-inspector said the short facts were that the complainant was a member of Pollard's Opera Company, and had been staying at Haydon's Central Hotel. On Friday evening she had left the hotel for the theatre about 7 o'clock, and had returned about 11.20 p.m., when she had found that her room had been tansacked, and a watch and pen weTe missing Constables Connelly and Kennedy had seen the two accused shortly after 11 on Friday night, passing down towards tlie railway sta toon and examining something undei a lamp which had looked like a watch. Soon after the ' had heard of the robbery, and at lonce proceeded in search of the two accused. They baa. found them at the railway station, And the missing articles had been found in Ute- possession of one of the accused, -who was Arrested. It would be proved that the two accused had been together all that evening. ' Everil H aggie stated that she was a member of Pollard's Opera Company, and had left her room door closed on Friday evening shortly atteT 7 o'clock. When she returned about 20 minutes past 11 she found the room in disorder, her boxes open, and articles belonging to the dressing table lying on the floor. She missed a watch and fountain pen, and identified j the articles produced as hers. The watch had | been in a drawer under the looking glass, and the pen in a box inside the travelling trunk. Bhe had never eeen the two accused previously. Plain-clothes Constable Connelly stated that shortly after 11 p.m. on Friday he had noticed the two accused standing near the Terminus Hotel and examining something that looked like a watch. They had been standing beneath ! a lamp. After hearing of the theft he and Plain-clothes Constable Kennedy had gene to the railway station, and found the two accused in the waiting room. Witness told them who he was, and said a robbery had taken place in the Central Hotel. Ward replied, " What have we got to do with that?" Witness said th*y might have a lot to do with it, as it had been Bus-picious that they had been seen examining a. watch. He alto said he would search the two accused, and Ward replied, " You can search me now if you like." Witness earned ont ; the search of Ward, end Kennedy had searched King. Witness found a gold watch and fountain pen (already produced). Witness asked where accused got the watch, and he had "replied, " That's my watch ; I have had it ifor a considerable time." Witness had then rtaken Ward to the Central Hotel, and Miss tHaggie identified -the watch and pen in tlie <ptesence of accused. Ward said, ' Have a Book again and make sure." Miss Haggle replied that she • was certain of it, and the ' •accused had made no further reply. | Plain-clothes Constable Kennedy corroborated the evidence given by Connelly. He said the two accused had admitted being in each other's company all the evening. He asked the two together if they had been at the Central Hotel that night. Ward had replied, ' No ; we were at the Shades. Where is the Central Hotel ? " While King was being searched witness had asked him if he had been in company with Ward all the evening, and he replied in the affirmative. King lan away shortly after. '"Witness had left him in the private bar of the [Railway Refreshment Room while he telephoned to the Centra! Hotel. When he came nut King was some distance down the platform, and when accused had seen witness comSng out of the- station he bolted through a train and down the line. Witness had not been able to catch his man along the line, and upon a-eturaing found the accused Ward trying to 4jreak away from Connelly. At Port Chalmers next day witness found out v. - h2re the accused King resided. To Mr Hanlon Witness searched King, but had taken nothing from him. He found a scent bottle in accused's pocket. Kirig gave himself, up to the police on Satuiday, having been brought to the Police Stat on by his father. King told witness in the cells that he had thrown the scent bottle away. Mr Hajilon said it was not right that conrersations should take place between detective :> ard prisoners. The Magistrate said it was most certainly • wrong. I Sub-inspector Dwyer said he had not been awaTe that any convertat on had taken place. The witness said he understood that accused wished to make a statement. Witnej«"» harl remarked about the scent bottle (the bubjp.-t of another charge), and disked if accused desired to make a statement. Accused replied that he did not desire to make a statement, and that he had thrown away the scent bottle. The only article, subject of any of the charge^, lonnd on King was the scent bottle. James Hay stated that on Friday night he ca:ne to Dunedin from Port Chalmers in company with the two ac;u = cd. and th" thrto i-isited the bai of Wain's Hole', having ono drink there. They aftervv.ud-, had another at, the Terminus, and then proceeded to the Sha<ie3 Hotel, where he had left the other two. He had gone into the kitchen, and had seen Ihe two going upstairs. He hud rot seen them until 11.30 p.m., at the railway station. It was between 9 and 9.30 when witness parted with them at the Shades Hotr-1 Wilnps-, was ppenk»ng to King on the railway station, and S2W lnm run across a carriap » vlptform and along lh" line towards Pehchet Bay. This closed the case for the prosecut on. The accused each reserved his defence, and wera committed for trial at the Supreme Court, bail being allowed each accused in £100 and two sureties of £50 cell. The two accused vvc-re further chareoil v. it ! i stealing o'ie f?okl pin. one Fmall Rold heart, ard cne hot 1p of sctl, of thp to 4 al va'u^ of 20=. ihe ororvcrtv of Marie Metralf Mar " >fptcl f q.ivo evidence s'milar to that p. von by M'fi* Ha«ei<? in the previous charee. She hat m:s=etl thp articles mpiitionffi 'n the charge, gjjel nnw idpr>*ifi»fl those produced ai hers. She had missed two scent bottles from a, rase of Ih'" i e. Plai^-clothcs Constables Connelly ard K°ni''uy Have similar P"icle ii-e to thit of the first cse. Connelly (IfDO'ins; to finding th" pin srd heart m Ward's po^s?--<j-% Inp-'thpj vj'tu v vvatoh and oen (the ='ibjAct of the U'eviou.-s eha T gp\ i tv.oe and csse b.i-c of a nipe stem, a rn'ldgo'd wat:h and chain, and nipdal. Gs 9d in money, silver sovc-reieii rase. thimbl». a rail- ' way re'urn ticket, a =mall box containing three dice, th-e? hardUerehiets. and sundry other articles such as crzpreit =. Ths acrxx^d w» c-mmit.tod for trial o" this charge also. &nd the other cases were adjourned till this (Tuescbff) ttflnriM

ASSETS REALISATION BO4RD. (Fbom Ocr Owx Corbesfoxdext.) WELLINGTON', July 11. The annual report of the genoral manager of the Assets Realisation Board presented to the House to-day stated fhat owing to th 3 low price ruling for wool, ete 1 ., the eotimates of the values of produce afloat and unrealised at ilarch 31, ISCI, were not sustained, and m addition to this the values of standing flocks and stock had receded considerably, and for these two items provision had, of course, been made from the past year's earnings, etc.. and by thin amount approximately they had come short of making, with the £50,000 the bank contributed, the debenture interest for the year. The position, therefore, was as under: — Balance of profit from stations, £21.92r ; from sundry properties, £13,801; fiom payment Bank o£ New Zealand. £50,000; balance 1901, £25,978 :— total £111,607 From these had to be deducted debenture inteießt, £82,826; land and income tax, £7735 ; charges, etc., £7453 ;— total, £98.015. which when deducted from £111,607, left a balance of £13,592. Sales to the extent of £139,898 had been made during the year, an increase of £33,167 over tho^e of the previous year. The sales for the period 1895 to 1902 totalled £825,180. The localities of sales n.ade were as follows: — Auckland — 5 estates, 14-9 farm 1 --, 608 town sections, 265 Sruiwrban properties, of a total value of £253,615 ; Canterbury — 3 estates, 73 farms, 19 town fcectiont, 63 suburban jjroperik -, of the value of £234,650: Hmvke'd Kayr-2 9 town sections, of the vi«luo of £104-. I^-0 ; Otag< — 2 estates, 9 farms. 565 towu section 0 , 124suburban properties, value £67.540; MailboroujjL — 1 estate, 4- farnis, 65 town sec tions, 6 suburban properties, value £20,414 : Wellington — 17 farms. 31 town sections, 1 suburban property, value £89,631. Tlie lesults of the year's working on the stations, whilst mue-h short of those of the previous year, were sti'l very zmifl, considering the low price of wool and the much lower rated obtainable for stork sold locally and frozen, as well as the reduced values at which stork f-tand this year. In 1896 the profit was £32,719. Since then the annual figures were £45.400, £25,857, £54,812, £49.598, £81,710. In 1902 the profits were £30,335. tho- average for the whole period being £45.776, or 3.12 per cent, on the book cost and 4.35 per cent, on the gener\l manager's valuation. The working expenses in 1902 were £5".. 758, as against £71.524 in 1901. The report, m conclusion, states that " properties which the "board is working arf being brought up and kept up not only to the best earning rondition, but aip being held in the best and most profitable condition for the nrobable purchaser The land is not l>eing impoverished, but i» being enriched by the operation* r-arrieel on. which aie purely the production of wool and mutton, no grain cropping being undertaken beyond what is rece=sarv for stock-feeding. The 6tock throuehout of all descriptions arp of the be3t, and are without exception in ee>od order and condition The inquiry iis improving for farm-: in Waikato for rlainrihjj purpose*, and the },roDertir< already cut un are moving off at fair value s Considerable areas have been and are still berna put on tlie market by other sellers, and readily taken un, but iv moct cases tliese have the advantage of locality or quality that mak*> them morp popular than those we arr> offerine-. We have little doubt that, with these out of the way. we shall clear large arpas durinor the next 12 months. The onsets of the board were set down as being £2,428,436.

At Friday's meeting of the Southland County Council, Cr Raymond Rave notice to move at next meeting: — "That this council favours the omenelmcnt of the ti action engine by-law in so far as it relates to the fee pi £10, and that the said fee be reduced." Xow that we arc experiencing weather that is thoroughly wintry, and coughs and colds arc becoming a common affliction, attention may n t tingly be drawn to the advt. of Mollei's Cod Liver Oil which appears in this issue. The preparation is an old and reliable one, and besidea affording .relief in the minor ailments alluded to, it has wonderfully curing effects on per&ons suffering from bronchial ami consumptive trouble". The manufacturers pie a!so most emphatic in stating that the oil never repeats.