ALLEGED CARGO BROACHING.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume L, Issue 12145, 13 March 1908, Page 7

ALLEGED CARGO BROACHING.

CASE DISMISSED.

r At the Magistrate's Court yesterday aiterncon, William During an.;l Harry ltobinson were charged with stealing on tho 18th day of February two bottles oi beer o fthe value of Is 4d, -the property of Messrs A. Hatrick. The information Was laid by the first mate of the s.s. Muritai. Mr Mackay appeared for the accused1 and Mr Treadwell acted1 on behalf of the informant, whom iie called as a witness. A. PaiTis, first mate of the s.s. .Mui*itai stated that the two men (During and Robinson) were unloading cargo from the after held of the Muritai-on February 18th, Amongst the cirgo were 116 cases of beer and 16 cases 'of stout, the 'beer heaving the Hancock label. While the cargo was being unlojuied one case .came on, to the'truck with some of the...board* knocked out, ?, 11(, ll« ranway men refused to handle it till he had seen it. He found1 two bottles of beer missing, an< i the case ttrclvtm. H& then asked the two men who were in the hold if they had seen two botbes-of.-baer, and they :S aid'they had not, so lie^ told them to keep their eyes open as two were missing. 'When the iwo men had! gone away't^ lun,ch the captain and the first mate watched innr (witness) as he. searched the hold lor the missing bottles of beer. He tound one bottle with the.neck broken' and about an egg cup full of beer left in the bottle. He also found the other bottle but it was neither broken or tampered with, both: bottles bore Hancock s labels. After lunch he sent the same two men down into the hold, but shortly afterwards, he, sent them into the fore-hold, and he decendX 1« I 6;l^ 8r ,hold! again, and "-found that the bottles had not been touched me two men then returned to the amter hold and finished unloading the car^o During the whole 'time the men were working no one but himself had'" entered the after hold. On the arrival of the Mnntai at Onebnnga 'he personally watched tl)e unloading of the afWr hold and on searching for the bottles which had strayed, he found a bottle of stout, which tli© captain and himself jhad opened to as certain what th» ■contents Avere. '■-'."

To MrMacKay.-Do not count- the bottles when-they sro aboard. The cas° "'.gooiß condition when shipped at Onehunga. There is a small trap £<x>r leading front the saloon . into the iiolri, but it has .been nailed up'for some

. Captain Richards stated he was standing on/ the wharf when, the first mate called .him. The time was twelve .oclock. He went alono; to the-after Hold and watched the first mate,.: who innnd a bottle of baer brokev and about a wine glass full of beer left. To Mr Mackay—The trap door liar, been nailed up for the last six months, and to his knowldge, had not been open-.

R. C. Norr:s, secon-1 offic.-.v ■aii>-aH fche s.s. Muritai. saH th- two nr-n' i n Uiurt Mere voiki-ig in, th» afto" hoi 1 -Ho «as wjlcliiuQ.' the fvit ivat«i who wa-: down the h-ojd, and-saw Llic broken l-oit^o and full boLtb of bc^-. This clospl the ca~c for tho iifj nitiiit. , •>

Mr Mackay t n7on called - Harry Robing Avho st itod that 'his mate and himself were working do,\ n the after hold of tl'e Muritai and aiPoivrst *.ho cases they s*nt up one.-var broken, so he called to the men, above thit the caso.was broken. About ten minutes afterwards, he heard someone sing' out to them.to keep their eyes op2n as half a dozen bottles were missing out of the broken case, He did not'ljnow anything about tha beer »o.in°astrav. , - ."■

To Mr Treadwell: Was working- the after hold aft-if dinner. Later on he, was sent to the fore hold-and returned again to the, after hoklL _ Charles Cresswell, manager of; th.c Wa.ngan,ui Meeting: Freezing; Works, said he had known, Robinson for 12 orb 14 .years,;andl during the whole time he wa 3 a sober and steady workman, ami < viob the sort of man who. would steal j beer for his own consumption. „ j William During, c-lle:l. forraboratei \ the evidence adduced1 b/ Roln-son. This closed the case aiidi 'his Worship, j after reviewing the cvidenco, stated fhat while the circunis^a-ivo"!.' were suspicious the evidence did not justify, a conviction, ami the information would therefore be dismissed.

Mr Mackay appealed .for costs. ■ His Worship consHerad that the informant had beei?, justified in Kringip.se the action, and therefore would not grant any costs.