ALLEGED SLY-CROC SELLING.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11854, 19 May 1909, Page 4

ALLEGED SLY-CROC SELLING.

A GOLD CREEK CASE. » As an outcome of a special mission to Gold Creek by Constable H. Scott, Dennis- F. Barry, a laborer, was charged at the Police Court- bo-day, before Mi* W. A. Barton, S.M., with alleged sly grog selling. Mr J. K. Kirk appeared for accused, who pleaded not guilty. Constable HV Scott stated that acting undier instructions ho proceeded to Gold Greek on the 29th -April; arriving there about) 1 plm. " From what he was in> > formed witness Xyent to accused's tentj Ho saw accused and asked him if he had any more > of; the beef left. Accused looked very hard i&b him for a minute and marine no reply. Witness then-fiaid •* his mate had brought <a bottle of beet 3 which he got there over to the tent, and! *-' they had drunk that bottle and. he -Would like to get another one. Accused eaidj "I don't know if you fellows are .pplidemen;- you are strangers to m©." Witness passed the remark that- policemen took good care not to, go to such ah outlandish place when'/, they ; could bo comfortable m towm Accused -replied, "I 'don't know. Some policemen anywhere." Subsequently accused i '-«aid he would chance it, remarking thatf "If I go up, I go up." Accused vthan, Went into the tent andi witness followed him to the doorway. ' There was nobody elso m the tent. Accused produced a' bottle of beer from a sack, which appeared; tri be about half full of bottles t and handed it to witness; who paid him 2s. V^itriess ■ remarked- that it was a liigh price for a bottle of beer, and he replied that it cost him about Is 3d a bottle to get it landed there. He also said, '•'There is a risk- of. a* heavy fine m connection, with these things. , Th'eibpttle was label led "Ward- and Co. , XXXX beer.' v On Monday, 3rd' inst; witness accompanied Sergt. Hutton. and Const-. Doyle to Gold Creok for the purpose* of executing a search warrant. They search* ed accused's tent and found three bottles - df beer and one of whisky (produced.).' Witness heard accused «ay to the-Ser-geant, "I suppose he told ydu I J sold "it to: him. I never sold it t» him; I'll take my oath on . that. I can prove" f I never sold it to him, <as there were twb> or three others m thevtentat the time. It. was a bottle of hop beer I sold him." By Mr Kirk r ,Wihejv he arrived at Gold) Creek on the fiTsti occasion witness went first to the engineer's office; •< Were* you m uniform?— No. ■ ■•■^»\-'. His Worship :■ He would nbt have got any beer if he was. (Laughter). -^J 1 Witness said he was, dressed >&»>;& ( navvy. It was a- similar dress to "'iW. . navvies who went on to the Avpfks that day. He had a bootlace for a^'W&t*b^chain, and had a pass from the Labor Department r to get works Witness Went to the Engineer's office with dihett anti handed m his pass. He was thete atljiplied with a. shovel, and another maty, n^med Ryan, and: himself were" supjil&d with a tent and fly. 'lheyiwent doWii near, to where accused's tent was pittihed ?and subsequently too* possession' -of a vacant tent opposite accused's.' Soon after "witness went over to accused** ■tent. He -had been, m! rthe "jiplice* force about four years. It was his principle to tell the truth excepting wh6n> it was necessary for him to tell a ;»lie. His . mate did take a bottle of beer to ■ lita \ tenty and he drank part of ifc; ' -After '£ tea witness visited accused's tent again to have a talk with the men,* and become acquainted with them. ,/. - : ■*■■■'■> ■•* ? The beer did hot make you thirsty, did it? — No; there watt plenty, of water if I wanted a drink. ■■'■■' ■'■■• ■'■■• ; - ; Did, you on this second occasion ask accused to supply you with liquor?-^ No,. I never spoke of the; liquor. '".-■.<;. ; Continuing,, witness «aid ■■'; that wheh he visited the tent oh the' second- occasion there -were thr>ee or foUr btker men m the tent. ' If tHreeXwitnesses saitt he did % ask for drink they would be, perjuring themselves. was only m the tent about two minutes.,; If e went there : with, the sole object of;, trying to catch sly-grog sellers. 1 ; c; •Mr Kirk : And a vjery -laudable object. :.,';■.:'■ ;.I f. ,\ ' . ■' ' U.\": ': , .-"•; '; ■ ; Witness did not. remember seemg 1 accusied before* •• ■"']"'+/■ ."; '• ,-' ;• :■ >Dicj( r y°u ' n °t catch '■ accused at- Springfield playing two-irp?^r do. not remember? There" were .17^ of i'them. .v : , j .-,!,{, y«u« were ihej ;one who caught'accused playing two-up don't . you thihk^v he would have a better opportuniWToTT^*^ recognising you .than you .would' of recognising liitn ?— I don't .ki^ow.'',' 1 . What is this man's' occupation on the line? — As fur as 1 know only a.slygrog seller. - Accused bad lent witness a- magazine, He' had not returned* ib.- ■•". Was not the 2s .for payment, of £he magazine ?— No. : 1 ;, V '■-,"..' Witness said that Wheii 1 he went to accused's tent a second - time Jio asked to buy a magazine, but accused offered to lend him one. Accusecl hWd n bundle of bookß- thiSre, also some- boxefe of >cigai>ettes, i He 'tlid not notlls64hef placed w,a», fitted up as a 'barber's, shop. He did irtdt see .'any hop'! beer •m the tent^ . - ;■■ Witnajfti < shared- his; -bottle of ' betir vifith'vllyan^vso that he might not eusjiect 'wlios witness 'was. He intended getting another. botUe pri arldtheT day. The Ibottle ho bought was left m the tent. , It was riot ttiafiked "Barry's hop > beer." h. v-, .t - :by Sergt. Button : Witness went to- Gold Gceok under- instructions from ■Inspector Dwyer iand SengA. Hutton; purposely- to detect »iy ' grog. H Accused did not ■ say > anything aboutoredOgnißirig ; him ; A . man named Malloy said> pointing: to w.itnes(i # "That was the ■4-, — -— nark who put up the two-up' school."-- 1 •.:■ . ■.-•, i »'-''-. ;••-.-'■' - '■' v ■■''■'■ ■' ''''^ .. His Worship remarked that he thought it would have been betters i{/> the* bottle had been produced. < ■•;..•.:!;■,>. ; Witness L said he could not have very well done, so without- having raised the 'suspicions of Ryan.. >i. -, *-. , . -i-* Mr Kirk : Wlut would that have mattered when tho deed <w^s done?- •>« t< ■■■■■•■ i ■ Witness! But ■ ! I. had- other game m vjew. ' ■ . > ■■■•■■- .-;■■ ■! i \,.:.«'.,i ( ;.,..; -•. ,i-i „.;v: ( Sergt. Hutton gave evidence As to ©JCecuting the search*Warrant,..,and-find-ing- 'in' accused's- • tent sonic hop •« beer,, cigarettes, tobacco, magazines, and bats? faera* requisites, and 'the -place appeared ' to be a tobacconists' business. At the back of the counter, on the gr(ftind>and opvered by. a email sack, he found -thtt beer produced, Witnesß took; the btoer outside the tent, and accused followed]; and^aid; (pointing >to Constable Sobttj If l suppose that: * nai v k ; ,'told . you It sold him some beer. I -did Jsdll him a' 'b^dttlp 'of hop - beer, but sbjduhfim iho other liquor. l There were two otthtee otheiv men m the ten<f tit the' time \«ho will -swear tliat,- and by G**- >.^- si * will fight fe>r it for all I atn worth.".; , : M-r Kirk : It looked rather, ah tinußUiil place for a man to sleep m,,, He saw no wire mattress . m thei tent. ; > vßy His Worship:- !*Vc£used , did ttpt say what witness had paid for the hop beer. . t , <£Str Kirk said he fully appreciated, aiid he hgped always wlould, the efforts ojf the police to stamp out the, cUr^e of sly-grog selling!- providing it' ,was',done' on propev methods. Continuing, he;reviewed > the evidence giv.tin for tpo prosecution,* and dietailed theri evidence io^ -bo given for tho defence, '. ' .: . v .