SEEING THE OLD YEAR OUT.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXVI, Issue 8420, 20 January 1899, Page 3

SEEING THE OLD YEAR OUT.

ALLEGED DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY.

At tin' Magistrate's Court this morning, before Mr ,1. ]>ooth, X. M., a young Native named To Kuwait Kingi was charged with having, on t lie Ist January, at. I'arihi--1 ni.iiiilii, wilfully doti-ovcd three apple Ircot, one peach tice, and one Honeysuckle creeper, then growing on the ptopertv of Daniel Courtney. Mr Nolan appealed for the prosecution, and Mi- E. Kces for the \ defendant. Captain Tciw acted as intcrpieter. Mr l-iecs a.-kcil to liave the case adjourned, as the defendant wi.-hed to call a number of witnesses, who were to-day I attendine: a Native race meeting. 'I'he defendant denied the charge, and could pi ove an ahln. lti* Woiship <liil noi, think the rea-ou , given for an adjournment was mill'h lent to I adjourn the ca^e. lie would tiirtl lie. lit he evidence fur the pro-secutiou, and then mti'-ulcr y\r \ice>'< application. Mv Xulan, in opening the ca-e for the pio-ecutinn, -i.itcd tho pic?cnt charge was the oliUoiiie of a practice pievalcnt in the colony of young men going in for wholesale deitructioii of ptopeity on New Year's; Kvc. l''-pp<'i,illy «a-- tins t he c,\<c in countiy ili.-n u'tt- m tin- di-tiicl, and Waetcnga-a-hika ajipeaied to be ,t sttong hold of it. Upon «uch occis-ions gates were ttroken down, fences destroyed, and even the culverts on the roads torn up. K.uly on Now Year's Day the accused had gone to the informant's residence and: iiiiilidnusly destroyed seveial apple tteesl and a peach tree. He had been seen by . Mr and Mis Courtney, who knew him anil tecognised him. The Magistrate said that what Mr Nolan hail Mated about larukinistu on Xew Year's K\c was true with repaid to count! y pl.iccs in this distuci, altlimigli he was pleased to sec it was fast decreasing in Oisborne. He hart recently had three cubes from Oimond and Waerenga-a-hika,

being places where such piaelices were i much indulged in. Mr Nolan said that, in addition to carrying gates away, it often happened ih.iL fanners wore ]iut to further hr-s through their stock straying. Iff thought, steps should lie taken to put down Isim--11 kinism of the form complained of. 11 Ewdenc-e was given by -Mr and Mrs Courtney and thcii sun to tin; efleot that the accused came to their residence at the eaily hour on New Year's Kve and threatened to break in the windows unless lie was given something. They afterwards saw him break three apple trees and a peach tree. The accused lived in the district, and was known to the family for a number of years. A dog belonging to the informant had attacked the accused, but the latter li.ul beaten it oil' with a .stick. In answer to the Bench, Airs Courtney stuted that the accused had visited the house on the previous New Year's Eve, but had done no damage, as he was at that, time afraid of the dog. She was aware that young fellows were in the habit of forming themselves into companies, bent on doing mischief on New Year's Eve; in fact, it appeared to be a sort of custom about whore they resided. At this stage the case was adjourned mail the following morning, in compliance with the request made by Mr Rees. The Bench ordered the accused to be kept in custody, nntl further stated that unless the witnesses were present in the morning, the case would be proceeded with. Every one may not know what the term "benefit of peerage" implies. A peer can demand ,1 private audience of the sovereign to represent his views on matters of public welfare. For treason or felony he can demand to be tried by bis peers ; he cannot, be outlawed in any civil action, nor can he ba arrested unless for an indictable ollcncc. and he is exempt from serving on juries. He may sit, with hat on in courts of justice, and should he be liable to the last penalty of the law, he can demand a silken cord instead of a hempen rope. The unusual spectacle of two of the female sex wearing their dresses inside out was witnessed at the Auckland Police Court recently, when two women were being tried on a charge of theft. At first glance it might be thought that such an action was not in keeping with the fair sex's vanity as regards dress; but vanity was really the cause, for the accused are at present undergoing sentences at Auckland gaol, and their intention seemed lo be that the public should not see the broad arrows, with which their dresses of dark blue are liberally bespangled. The passion for making money without earning it, which makes the gambler, in Dr Johnson's phrase, " an unsocial man, an unprofitable man," has never been so pronounced aa in the modern system of "common juggling." The Hooley revelations have caused " Punch's " examination paper for company-promoters, set in 1875, to be revived. It contains four simple questions : — (1) How many times have you been a bankrupt? (2) Do you thoroughly understand the various methods of evading payment, of a County Court summons ? (3) Show to the satisfaction of the examiners that two and three amount to 27. (4) Given a financial cmcrgcncv, describe on the map the shortest and most secret route to Spain. It has been remarked that the paper is not up to date, and needs an arithmetical question touching the quotations for Peer directors.