South Taranaki News

Taranaki Daily News, 10 December 1926, Page 2

South Taranaki News

(From Our Own Reporter.)

Telephone No. 596.

P.O. Box 133.

LIQUOR AFTER HOURS BREACHES AT NORMANBY. SEVERAL FINES IMPOSED. When a young man named Maurice James Greig, of l.owgarth, was making his way from the backyard of the Normanby Hotel at about 8.40 o’clock on the evening of November 29, after being successful in securing half a gallon ot draught beer, his feeling of elation was somewhat dampened by the appearance of Constable Pidgeon. As a result ot the meeting he appeared before the Hawera Court yesterday on a charge of being on licensed premises after hours. The man who acted as barman, Leslie W'ells, was charged with supplying liquor after hours, being a person other ’lran

the licensee, and the licensee, Gerald \ incent Peddie, was charged with opening his licensed premises and selling liquor after hours. When considering the ease against Greig the Magistrate .(Mr. J. S. Barton, S.M.) spoke strongly against the practice of going to hotels after hours and soliciting hotelkeepers to open their bars. The Magistrate exercised his powers to charge the defendant with “the procuring of the commission of an offenee,” namely, the sale of liquor after hours m addition to the police charge, and Greig rvas fined £5- on this charge. “I want the public to know that going round to hotels after hours and soliciting liquor is a serious offence.” said the Magistrate. The defendant Greig was fined £1 for being on licensed premises, being allowed a fortnight to pay, and the ‘'acting” barman, Wells, was lined £5 (costs 7s), and three weeks were allowed in which to pay. “LICENSEE VICARIOUSLY LIABLE.” “I find it proved that Peddie was ill at the time and that Mrs. Peddie was, as his agent, in fujl charge of the bar. Wells was acting-barman, and was Peddie’s agent to sell liquor. It makes no difference whether he was receiving payment for his services or not,” said His Worship, “rhe defendant is, therefore, vicariously liable for the acts of Wells and is coiu ictcd of selling during closing hours. “I am a little afraid that defendant has not a sense of his responsibility as regards the trust to sell liquor. He has not taken sufficient care.” Peddie was then fined £5, costs Ils, on the charge of selling liquor after hours, and on Sergeant Henry’s application the second charge was withdrawn. Sergeant J. Henry prosecuted and the licensee, Peddie, was represented by Mr. G. 11. Ryan. Constable Pidgeon, in his evidence, said he saw three men on a motor-cycle stop in Fitzroy Street, Normaiiby, and the driver entered the back yard of the Normaiiby Hotel through a gap in the fence. After knocking on the door he entered the hotel, and on his coming out the constable accosted him and asked him what he had been doing. The driver first said he had only gone to the urinal but afterwards admitted getting liquor at tlie hotel and produced a half gallon bottle of draught beer, for which he said he had paid 2s 6d. The constable, knocked on the back door of the hotel, but, receiving no answer, both Greig and he went inside. As there appeared to be no one downstairs they both went upstairs and entered tile sitting-room, where the licensee, two members of tlie staff, and Wells were found. Greig pointed out Wells as the man who had supplied the beer. ILLNESS OF LICENSEE. The constable asked Peddie if he knew of the liquor being supplied to Greig, and Peddie said he knew nothing whatever about it. The constable then went downstairs with Wells and Greig and the former admitted having the keys of the bars, saying he had received them from Mrs. Peddie at about 0.30 before she left for Eltham. The constable took a statement from Wells, who read it over but refused to sign it, saying the Peddie’s had been good friends to him. To Sergeant Henry, Pcddie said lie had asked no' questions when the constable made inquiries and appeared to be quite disinterested. Wells had been in the bar on several days and had seen him serving, once or twice alone with a towel over his shoulder. To Mr. Ryan witness said he had been in the. hotel earlier in the evening but he was not aware that Peddie had been ill for some days. The bnr had not lajen open when the constable had visited the hotel. Maurice Janies Greig, employed at the Lowgarth factory, admitted visiting Normanby on November 29. He had gone to the hotel at about 8.30. He had not noticed that the front door was open and on knocking at the back door Wells had opened the door to him. He raised a slight objection to supplying the liquor and asked if Constable Pidgeon were about, but eventually supplied witness with the beer. He had previously seen Wells serving in the bar on several occasions during the previous three weeks.

“NO AUTHORITY TO SERVE.” Leslie Wells, employed at the Egmont Box Factory, Eltham, said he had been staying at tlie Normanby Hotel for about a fortnight prior to the date of the alleged offence. He admitted serving in tlie bar occasionally. said he had never previously had the keys in bis possession. To Mr. Ryan witness said that the Peddies had offered to put him up until he could get work as he had known Peddie previously at the Thames. As soon as he had been able to get. work lie had left the hotel. On the night m question Mrs. Peddie had received word of the illness of her sister at Eltham, and before she had gone she had hurriedly thrown witness the keys and ne had assumed the responsibility of serving Greig himself. The wife of the licensee, Elizabeth Peddie, said her husband liad been ill in bed for three days prior to the alleged offence. Wells had no authority td serve and he had never had the keys previolusly, nor had he been solely in charge, although he had assisted in the bar. The licensee. Gerald Vincent Peddie, corroborated the previous evidence, and said he was not aware of the offence in

I question. He had been astonished when the constable informed him of the trouble. To Serge:.nt Henry defendant admitted he had been convicted of a similar offence in Stratford through an error of judgment, and he admitted being ill on that occasion. Judgment was then entered as stated THREE YEARS’ OLD CHARGE. FORGERY CHARGE DISMISSED. On an information for alleged forgery and uttering laid on May 4, 11123. William Meßride, alias William Patrick Brophy, alias Loftus, late of Kapuni, appeared before Mr. J. 8. Barton, S.M., yesterday on remand. The charge was of forging the name of Patrick Murphy to a cheque for £32 on the Bank of New Zealand at Hawera on April 14, 1923, and of uttering the cheque to Mary Cramp, licensee of the Central Hotel, Hawera. After hearing evidence the Magistrate said he was not prepared to commit the accused to the Supreme Court and the charge was dismissed. James Bublitz, a farmer of Hawera. sard that in April, 1923, Norman Chadwick had asked him for a blank cheque form and witness had given him a form on the Bank of New Zealand. He had not seen Chadwick hand the form to the accused.

Norman Chadwick, formerly employed by the Hawera branch of the Farmers' Co-op. and now a farmer of Marton, said. • man who he would not swear waz the accused, had visited his machinery department and told witness he was taking over* a farm at Ohangai, which belonged to a man named Murphy and had asked him for a blank cheque. Witness did riot have a cheque form but he procured a form from Bublitz and the man filled in tlte cheque. Within three days after the offence witness was shown a photograph of Mcßride, and identified him as the man who had filled in the cheque. The licensee of the Central Hotel, Mary Cramp, deposed that on April 14. 1923, one of her barmen brought to the office a cheque for £32 (produced) which one of the customers wished to cash. Witness did not examine the cheque but on being told' it was Murphy’s, authorised him to cash it. The cheque was paid into the bank and was returned endorsed “no banking account in Hawera.” The barman, Bailey, had died shortly after.

Patrick Murphy, a farmer of Skeet Hoad, Kapuni, stated that on April 2, 1923, he was returning from Wanganui and in the train he got into conversation with the accused, who gave his name as Brophy. He said he was looking for work and witness gave him employment on his farm at Kapuni. A few days later Brophy came to town to buy some clothes, for which witness gave him £l. He had not given him a cheque fpr £32 and the signature on the cheque produced was not his, nor had he a bank account at Hawera at the time.

This concluded the case and the accused, on being warned, said that a week before coming to Hawera he had been discharged from the Porirua Mental Hospital. Shortly after he had been committed to the Auckland Mental Hospital, having recently been discharged after being an inmate for three years. On being asked by the Magistrate the Sergeant said the evidence of identification was weak, and the Magistrate then dismissed the case, GENERAL. While bowling at the practice nets at Okaiawa on Wednesday evening D. Crawford, the promising young Okaiawa cricketer, ricked his neck and had to receive medical attention. It is understood that he. will be incapacitated from playing for his club for at least three weeks. The Hawera Technical High School cricket team will play its annual match against the Feilding Technical High School on Tuesday at Hawera. The Hawera School team is hopeful of lifting the Gibson Cup, which is at present held by the Feilding School. In this issue Messrs. Duflill and Gibson, architects, call tenders for the erection of a cottage at Te Kiri. “A BIRD OF PASSAGE.” Charged with being found at Manaia on 1 in a state of helpless drunkenness, a middle-aged man, a statutory first offender, who, said Sergeant Henry, had a formidable list of convictions against him and had just been released from custody after serving a term of two years for burglary, appeared before the court yesterday The defendant was fined £1 and expenses (17s Oil), aud was allowed time in which to pay. Sergeant Henry said that, the defendant had been found lying under a hedge at Inaha in a state of drunkenness. The constable at Manaia had been informed that he had been there for two daw with nothing to eat. An empty methylated spirit bottle was found nearby. The defendant had 3d on him when arrested, and he had been sent to New Plymouth, where he had been given medical treatment by the gaol doctor, incurring 17s fid expenses. He appeared to be “a bird of passage.” THE WINTER SHOW. PAST YEAR REVIEWED. Tlie seventeenth annual meeting of the South Taranaki Winter Show was held yesterday. Present: Messrs J. R. Corrigan, B. C. Bennett, C. J. Preston, E. C. Barleyman, R. F. Page, G. A. Duncan and E. A. Pacey. The annual report was as follows: “During the year we regret the loss of our esteemed treasurer and co-direc-tor, Mr. D. J. Goodwin, whose death occurred while on a visit to Australia, and your directors wish to place on record the valuable services rendered to the Winter Show by the deeeased. “We have to report a very successful year in every way, our efforts having been concentrated, on our Third Week for the Empire. In this connection we have had the‘whole-hearted support of the citizens of Taranaki, the British Manufacturers’ Association, and the New Zealand Government, which enabled us to bring several thousand school children from the districts between New Plymouth and Wanganui. This sfiove-

inent in itself necessitated a tremen dous amount of work and responsibility for which we have to thank the mein bcra of the community who so ably as eisted. “The Empire publicity scheme, whic] we hope will help to strengthen thi bonds of Empire, was inaugurated durini the Empire Week. The 11127 show, t< be held from June 28 to July 2, pro' inises to be a most successful one, th( intention being to hold a “Week foi New Zealand Manufactures.’ “The directors, following out the pul icy of sound finance, have written dowi bitildings_ £OO2 Is. plant £5l fld »d; I Also £l7 bad debts, leaving a balanci | lor appropriation of £312 9s lOd. Th< I reserve account now stands at £3141 17s 7d. “Mr. K. A. Pacey was elected to t.h< i directorate to fill the vacancy canseC ; by the death of Mr. Goodwin.” A SUCCESSFUL YEAR. ! In moving the adoption of the reporl j and balance-sheet, the chairman referred to the death of Mr. D. J. Goodwin with regret. He said the good work done by tlie late Mr. Goodwin in connection with the winter show would long stand as a monument to him. Mr. Corrigan said the past had been a particularly successful year and th< citizens of Hawera and the people of the surrounding districts, who had helped so mueh to make the show a success had to be congratulated. Referring to the financial position the chairman said in a few years it would probably be I necessary to repair the roof of the build- ( ing. With prudence he hoped the coni, mittee would be out of debt within a few years. Speaking of the popularity of tne show, Mr. Corrigan said wherever In? went in New Zealand lie met people who spoke to him of the success of the show. The show was also known in England through the publicity' schemes adopted. At the next show would be featured New Zealand manufactures and the New Zealand manufacturers would take an active part in this. The show management was indebted to the residents of Hawera for putting themselves about and offering to accommodate 500 people. While there was a credit of £2179 in the working account, there were some liabilities which would take a great part of it. GOOD FINANCIAL POSITION. The increased popularity of the show was evidenced by the record attendances at the last show, practically 10.000 paving for admission on the Saturday. The public of Hawera and South Taranaki, and the dairy companies, had always given excellent -support to the show and during the last show generous support was given by the Government and many of its departments. A policy of the show had always been to assist in advertising New Zealand primary products abroad and particularly in the Old Country. In this connection support had been given to the manager in launching tlie children’s publicity scheme, and 3000 letters from the Taranaki and Wanganui education districts had been sent. Other districts had yet to be worked. The annua! report and balance-sheet were then adopted. The treasurer, Mr. B. C. Bennett, in reviewing the financial position, stated that during the year the record profit of £1407 17s 4d had resulted, an increase of £275 over the profit from the 1925 show. A comparison of the accounts for the two years attributed the increase in the profit to an increase in door-takings and space of approximately £520, while there was an increase in advertising of £lBO and a decrease in income from special prizes and season tickets of £65. It was interesting to note the growth of the committee’s operations since its inception in 1909. Detailed in the prospectus was an estimate of tht company’s income for the year 1910, based on the figures for the Wnikato show in 1909. The income for 1910 was estimated at £BB2. with a profit of £395. The figures for the 192(1 show showed an income of £3392 0s 9d and a profit of £1407 17s 4d. The three retiring directors. Messrs Joll, Page and Gillanders, were reelected. /> Mr. C. H. Suistcd was re-elected auditor. At a subsequent meeting of directors, Mr. J. R. Corrigan was unanimously re-elected chairman. GENERAL ITEMS. For allowing five horses to wander on the Ahaipaipai Road, Okaiawa, on November 21, Wilmot IC. Penfold was fined £2 and costs £1 12s, by 7 Mr. J. S« Barton, S.M., at the Hawera Court yesterday. The ranger, George 11. Blackwell, " said he had received complaints from many residents of Okaiawa aud had previously warned the defendant. For the Hawera County Council, Mr. J. Houston again stressed the ever-present danger of wandering stock in South Taranaki.