SHEEP IN RAILWAY TRUCKS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXI, Issue 61, 26 October 1911, Page 5

SHEEP IN RAILWAY TRUCKS.

CHARGE OF CRUELTY DISMISSED. At. the Eltham Magistrate’s Court yesterday Abel Gamlin was charged that he did on 6th October cause to be conveyed certain sheep and lambs in a railway waggon between Inglewood and Eltham in -u> b manner :.s to cause such animals unnecessary suffering, whereby five sheep and five lambs were killed. Constable Wade conducted the prosecution, defendant | te.vii.ig not guilty. Evidence was given hy James Cameron, railway employee, as to finding the sheep and lambs dead in the truck after unloading. He stated that if the day had been cold “it would have been alright.” To His Worship: There were no regulations as the number of sheep to go to a truck. Jt wa« a matter of the size of the sheep. Ho had seen 70 full grown sheep in a truck. A lamb would take up vorv little extra space, taking into consideration, of course, the growth of the lambs. ! Defendant: Would it have been possible for the mortality to have happened if only half the number of sheep had been put in the truck?—Yes; sheep will get down no matter how many are in the truck. The defendant did not give evidence, and His Worship in delivering judgment said there was a difficulty in a case like this, as there appeared to be no regulations as to how many sheep should be put in a truck. Perhaps it would be as well to have some sort of penning-off to prevent the crowding. His Worship said he could not see there was any evidence of cruelty in the case. Intention must bo proved or gross negligence which amounted to the same thing. The case would bo dismissed.