A PRACTICAL JOKE.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 13771, 7 May 1915, Page 4

A PRACTICAL JOKE.

An action arising out of what was described as a "practical joke"' engaged the attention of Mr Justice Ferguson and a jury, in Sydney. The plaintiff was John Brayley, formerly "licensee >)f the Rising Sun Hotel, Canterbury, and he sued Patrick J. Scahill to recover £500 compensation for what is technically known as assault.

The case for the plaintiff, who is an elderly man, was that-, on September 2nd Jast, ho was serving behind tho bar of his hotel, and the defendant, who »wis one of a number of others who were there, had in his possession' a bottle-shaped cigar pricker. Being at tho time friendly with the plaintiff, Seahiil said to him, "You can't balance this on your hand." Brayley took f.h& - instrument, and when he balanced it defendant came along and hit it on the top, with tho result,that the pricker wens almost through plaintiff's hand. The wound bled pretty freely, and had to he attended to for some time by a doctor. Even now plaintiff alleged that he suffered from the effects oi: the irjury. Tim defendant denied that ho was responsible for the injury. The cigaroric ?ei was produced by one of the men in the bar and defendant had been pricked by.it himself. He'nerer struts the top o1 the instrument, as plaintiff alleged. Plaintiff had closed his hand on it, and had evidently, pausc-d the injury himself. The jury gave a verdict for £20. A: certificate of costs was refused.