ALLEGATIONS OF CRUELTY

Taranaki Daily News, 7 February 1928, Page 9

ALLEGATIONS OF CRUELTY

HORSE’S SHOULDER BROKEN 4 CASE TAKES AN UNUSUAL TURN. ' FRESH EVIDENCE VOLUNTEERED. JUDGMENT RESERVED BY COURT. An unusual development occurred yesterday when the ease of the Taranaki Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals against Percy C. Sole, Walter C. Theobald, and Jack Kopu, on charges relative to cruelty to a horse, came up for hearing. The ease for the society had come to a conclusion on Friday, and the defence was well advanced when the Court adadjourned in the evening. Prior to the continuation of the defence yesterday morning, Mr. R. H. Quilliam, on behalf of the society, mentioned to Mr. R. W. Tate, S.M., that since the publication through the newspapers of the report of Friday’s proceedings, a lady, evidently in possession of evidence to throw fresh light on the case, had communicated with him by letter. Counsel suggested that in view of the conflicting nature of the evidence already heard, the Court might adopt the rather unusual procedure of calling tho lady to give evidence. Counsel for the defendants (Mr. A. A. Bennett) submitted that the application was a most unusual one, and one which he must oppose, at any rate until he had ha'd an opportunity of looking into the authorities. Such a course had not to his knowledge been previously adopted in the Court at New Plymouth. At the least, it was calculated to induce perjury. In such a case, the person concerned might appear to be disinterested, but at any rate she was sufficiently interested to write to the prosecuting counsel on the matter. It might easily be that a person in such a position might be actuated by vindictive motives “WHERE WOULD MATTER END?” The ease for the society had closed on Friday, and if further evidence was going to be brought in the manner suggested by Mr. Quilliam, one could net say where and when the matter was going to end. He suggested that the proper course would be for the Court to hear the rest of the evidence fox the defence, and then give him' an opportunity of looking into the authorities. There was no doubt that applications of the nature of the one made by Mr. Quilliam should be sparingly granted. With this last submission the magistrate agreed. There was no doubt, he said, that in some eases the application should not be granted at all. However, the potential evidence in the case before him might be valuable, for there were certainly points in the case that required elucidation. With reference to Mr. Bennett’s suggestion of perjury, partisanship and vindictiveness, Mr. Quilliam 'suggested that the most probable explanation was that the lady had read about the case in the newspaper, and was actuated by motives of humanity in volunteering the information she had. The magistrate decided to adjourn the Court for half an hour to give Mr. Bennett an opportunity of looking into the authorities. The latter soon returned, and said that while he was not prepared to admit any legal justification of the action, his clients were willing that the lady should give evidence. The Court then adjourned for another half hour while the constable went off in his motor car to serve a sub poena on the lady The magistrate intimated that he did not wish his approval of the particular course of action being adopted to be taken in any way as a precedent. WOMAN GIVES EVIDENCE. Florence Julian, of Paeroa, who shortly arrived with the constable in the motor car, said she was in Taranaki on December 27. She was returning north by car after the races when she met a young man leading a horse. The latter was in a very terrible condition. The spot where she met the man and horse was where a bridge crossed a river on the north side of Bell Block. The horse was swinging one leg, aa.i was suffering from abrasions on the shoulders and hip bones. The horse's condition was so bad that it would remain in anyonejs memory. It was v: y lame, and had the appearance of be' ig in agony. It was proceeding very slowly. Cross-examined, witness said she did not write the letter sent to Mr. Quilliam. It was written by a Miss ' Wood without her knowledge, and the first witness knew about it was when the constable arrived with the sub poena.

Reginald Baker, stock drover, Waitara, said that he had noticed something very peculiar about tti horse several times since the middle of winter. It had the appearance of throwing ths leg wide, and would give a passer-by th? impression that it was injured. W'iness, however, did not think it was injured, though he thought it was certainly weak. It was quite possible that Theobald had ridden the horse for me time without noticing the peculiarity. The case for the defence closed with the evidence of Jack Sole, aged 8 years, a son of one of the defendants, who accompanied Kopu and the horse on Ti journey from Sentrv Hill to Waiwakaiho. Witness said that when they had just passed the Bell Block factory the horse broke down and refused to go. Prior to that, no difficulty had been experienced with the horse. Witness gave it a tap with the handle of a whip to make it go. At no time on the journey did ths horse fall down. At the request of the magistrate, counsel addressed him in turn on the facts. At the conclusion, the magistrate said that in view of the importance of the case he would give his judgment in writing, and his decision would accordingly be reserved. He felt there was a good deal to say.