CATTLE STEALING CASE.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 16039, 25 January 1918, Page 6

CATTLE STEALING CASE.

CHARGES AGAINST A MAORI. ACCUSED COMMITTED FOR TRIAL. ' At the Magistrate’s Court on Thursday afternoon the charges. against a Maori named Ngatai Percsdka of stealing one steer and three hoifei’s (valued at £2O 7s 6d, the property of A. Te. K. To Whiti), also two steers and one heifer (valued at £l9 17s Gd. the property of To Kupe) were heard. SubInspector Hutton prosecuted for the police, and Mr. A. C. Lawrey represented the accused. The charge of stealing Te AVhiti’s cattle was taken first. Noho (Billy) To Whiti. farmer, residing at Pungarehu, said that in March and' April last he purchased, on behalf of his'wife, 150 head of cattle at Rnhotu and Okato sales. He took them on his own land and branded and earmarked them. They were a mixed lot. In August last the accused went .to his place and said he had a lot ot grass on his property at Newall Road, AVarea. An arrangement was made that To Whiti should run 60 head on accused's place for three months for £2O. It was a verbal agreement. Witness paid a deposit of £5. and accused and Wi Pntcne took the cattle away. Witness ■was away at Karioi when they ealjed. When he returned from Karioi ho visited accused’s place with his daughter and cut out 38 cattle which were running with accused’s. He found five dead, and 17 remained on the section. At the end Xif November witness went to accused’s section again and counted 17. He told accused to look after them as he had to do some ploughing. On December 13, in consequence of somethin!* lie heard, lie went back .to the section once more and found there were no stock on the laud. So far ns he knew accused, still owned the property; he was not there at that time. On December 16 witness went to Mr. Carlin Gill’s farm af Carrington Rond, Okato, and there saw one steer which was earmarked with his (witness’) mark. Tho same dav he went with Constable O'Neill to Mr. Greenway’s place at Puniho. and saw three heifers, which belonged to witness' wife, and which wore marked with witness’ brand. One was white, another blue, and the third yellow. Ho bad last seen them on Ngatni’s land after accused returned from Auckland. The steer which he saw at Gill’s was also on accused’s property then. Ho had given nobody permission to remove the stock from tho section. He considered that the four beasts would be worth £5 10s each. Ho was present with AVI Kupe when the constable took possession of them. A To K. Te Whiti, wife of the last witness, said she was present wdion tho cattle purchased fori her by her husband in March and April, 1917, were branded. She knew the brands and earmarks. There were 150 rattle, and tho receipts produced related te them. Her husband Told her of thy propose* to graze 60 o 7 the cattle on Ngaiai’s land at Non-all Road, and accused and AVI Patene called for them on August 20. She i-emerabered her husband taking SS head away from accused's property in order to sell them. At. this time there wen 17 left. At. Mr. Greenway’s place on December 23 sbo saw three heifers—ore white, one blue, and one yellow—-with ben husband’s brands on. She was quite sure they were her property. She remembered accused coming on December (2 for payment for grazing, and she gave him two £lO notes; He' asked for £l9, but as she bad no single notes be said he would return the odd' note to her. Accused at this time offered to buy the three lieifors which were on bis land for £4 each. AVitncss refused. She know tho sale bad been held at Okato the previous day. She had no knowledge then that her "stock had been removed from accused’s section. Charles Fail-brother, auctioneer for Mr. Newton King, said that on December 11 last ho conducted a sale at the Okato salevards, and on behalf of the' accused Ngatai ho sold four 15montbs heifers for £4 3s 6d each, and 26 steers at £7 17s. The steers had been advertised but tho heifers were not. Accused was present at the sale and told witness to sell tho heifers. AVitness did not take any account of tho brands or earmarks. Mr. Gill purchased tho stews and Mr. Greenway tho heifers. Accused was paid for the stock by cheque. ■ ' ' David Pryor Greenway, farmer, and stock-dealer, residing at Okato, said that on December 11 ho purchased six heifers at thersaTe. He took them homo and earmarked them tho following day. When ho commenced to mark them ho found that three of them—one white, one blue, and one yellow,—bore Te AVhiti’s earmark. They were at present in charge of the police. He would not have the slightest difficulty in identifying them again. Patrick Carey, farmer, residing at AVarea, said that at the Okato sale on December 11 a pen of five heifers were put up—four of which were sold on behalf of accused. Two days later Mr. Greenway drew his attention to tho fa?t that three of tho heifers bore Te AVhiti’s ear-mark. AVitncss assisted Greenway with bis marking. Carlin Gill, farmer residing at Okato, said ho purchased a. line of 26 steers at the sal© on December 11. One bad since been claimed by Te ’Whiti. After .buying.it ho noticed that To AVhiti’s mark was on it.

William B. Smith, farmer at Newall Road, said the accused had been a neighbour of bis for five or six years. He leased accused’s property as from December 14 last. He was present at the Okato sale on December 11, when accused told him he had been instructed to sell some heifers for To Whiti. Constable D. J. O’Neill, stationed at Rahofcu, stated that on Jantiary 9, in consequence of information received, he took T« Whiti to Gill’s farm and took possession of a steer bearing Te Whitrs ear-mark. Previously, on December 22, he had taken To Whiti and his wife to Greenway’s farm wherp they identified three heifers which also bore Te Whiti’s ear-mark. He took possession of'them, and with the steer they wore now in bis custody. Plain-clothes Constable T. Fitzgibbon deposed that after making inquiries into the interviewed accused at Tikorangi on January 8, and told him his wanted to see him about some cattle he had sold at Okato on, December 11, and which had since been claimed by Te Whiti and Wi Kupe, He made a statement which witness took in writing, and in which Ngatai said: “On August 20 last Billy Te Whiti put 60 bead of cattle, mostly steers about 12 months old, on my place to graze. He agreed to pay mo Is per bead per week. About the end of October, Te Whiti took the cattle away again. I think it was Hie day after I went away to Auckland for a month’s holiday. I had 27 16-months steers running on the same section, and thev were with Billy Te, Whiti’s cattle. ’When I re. turned from Auckland, all Te Whiti’s cattle fyad gone from- section, ex-_

cept three heifers—one white, on© yallow and one red. The AVhiti came to my'-place and saw the three heifers. I told him not to touch ffoem, as I intended to keep them to help" to pay mo for the grazing. When I agreed to graze Te Whiti’s cattle, he paid me £1 deposit. Te AVhiti agreed that I should have the three heifers, and on December 11 I sold them at the Okato sale. I also sold 26 steers and another heifer that day. This heifer, along with two steers, 1 bought from Wi Kupe about two months ago, the price being £l4. for the three cattle. Te AA’hiti’s heifers were ear-marked, but I don’t remember tho brand. The two steers and the Heifer 1 bought from AVi Kupe were ear-marked, but there was no brand on them. I was present when the cuttle were sold. Cariin Gill bought tho steers, and 1 think he also bougut the heifers. Collins drew my attention in tho saleyards to Kupe’s car-mark on some of the cattle. Betore the sale I told my neighbour Smith that I had three ot To \uiitrs heifers. 1 only bought two steers and one heifer from' Wi kupe; they had been running on my plach for eight months. After I sold the cattle on December 117 I went to Te AVhiti’s house, and told Mrs* Te AVhiti that the three heifers were' mine. She would not agree that they wore mine. She paid me £2O for grazing. 1 did not oiler to buy the heifers from her. 1 told her they were sold for £4 each, and that she only owed me £7. Before X saw Mrs. Te that day 1 paid Wi Kupe £lO for the cattle 1 had bought from him.' I sold a steer to Pat. Carey in October last; it was one that followed some cattle on to his place. AVhile I was away I sent four wires to Te AATaiti asking for £2O for tho gearing. The reason 1 did that was that I heard while in Auckland he had taken away all the cattle® AVhen I returned I asked Te AATpti for the grazing money, but he asked me to wait until he saw the lawyer. Then I told him to leave the heifers for me and he agreed.” Continuing his evidence, Constable Fitzgibhon said that when arresting the accused at Tikorangi last Friday, lie read the warrant over to him, and accused replied: “That's right, but no steer from Billy Te AVhiti, only three heifers.” Sub-Inspector Hutton stated that the Mr. Collins mentioned in accused’s statement.had been subpoenaed, but was\ in the hospital. Accused, who had nothing to say, was committed for trial at the session of the Supreme Court commencing at New Plymouth on Monday, • February 4, SECOND , CHARGE. Tho charge of stealing two steers and one heifer from AVi Kupe was then proceeded with. AVi Kune said he had some land on the Newall Road adjoining Ngatai’s. In July last ho took about 46 cattle to the section, and previous to .that there were ten cows there. In October last ho missed some of the cattle. He subsequently saw Ngatai, who wanted to buy four bead—two heifers and two steers, offering £l3 10s or £l4 for the lot. Witness laughed at him, and refused to sell. AVhen he went to look for the cattle; a week or two later, he saw two of his heifers and a blue one of Te AVhitr* in Ngatai’s paddock. On December 11 accused came to witness' place and put a £lO note on the ground, saying “That’s for tho cows,” and away ho went. Witness had no idea what the money was for, as_ he had not sold him any cattle or given him permission to sell any. He had not sold him any for five years. Accused came to the home again _ and said ho had sold tho heifer. AVitneSs did not know what he meant. Ho remembered going to Greenway’s farm on December 27. when ho saw the heifer (rod) which he identified us his property because of its appearance and brands. It was worth about £4 10s. He had given no one permission to sell it. On "December 30, at Gill’s farm, ho saw two of his steers, which) he had not given anyone permission to sell. They wore worth £7 10s to £8 each. The fence between his property andNgatai’s was a good one, except when a tree fell across it and broke it. Then his catWe would stray among Ngatai’s, and Ngntai’s would stray among his. An adjournment from ,six to seven o'clock was then made, and on resuming, C. Fairbrother. D. F. Greenway. Constable O’Neill, AV. B. Smith, and Plain-clothes Constable Fitzeib'hon gave evidence on similar lines to the previous case. Carlin Gill also gave similar evidence. He added that while tho steers were in the yards at the sale he noticed there were two that had AA T i Kupe’s ear-mark on. He drew the attention (if Mr. H. E. Collins. Newton King’s agent at Rahotu, to that fact. Mr.' Collins mentioned it to accused, and accused said that they were all right. These two steers were included in the line of 26 that witness had purchased, and he took them to his property. iSince the sale AVi Kupe had identified tho steers as belonging to him, and as a result they were handed over to Constable O’Neill. Accused had nothing to say and was committed for trial at dijie Supremo Court session commoncini*in New Plymouth on Monday, February 4. Bail was allowed in self £25 and one surety of £23. ‘