OUTBURST IN COURT

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 87, Issue 64, 18 March 1943, Page 4

OUTBURST IN COURT

H4WERA MAN OBJECTS TO FINE (Special) Hawera, March 17.. "It’s no good, sir, it’s too tough; I am here and you can take me,” declared Wilfred Smith, of Okaiawa, farmer, when Mr. J. H. Salmon, S.M., imposed on him a fine of £2O in the Hawera Magistrate’s Court this morning. Smith was charged that, being a person belonging to the Second Division of the General Reserve, he failed to apply for enrolment within 28 days of the proclamation gazetted on June 16, 1941. Mr. Salmon (to Smith): Now listen to me; had I known that such was your mentality I would have dealt with you in different fashion; now you leave this Court. Defendant withdrew in silence.

Senior-Sergeant J. Edwards said that Smith was a married man with two children and did not apply for enrolment in the Second Division until March 4 of this year, his excuse to the police being that he kept putting it off. The man joined the Home Guard in 1942 but recently had not been attending parades. Counsel. Mr. M. J. Burns, said it

was an extremely serious charge his client had to answer but it could be shown that he had no intention of evading his obligations. He was 44 years of age and was not yet of those classes of persons who would no\V have been in camp. Smith had been in ill-health and his wife was away in 1941 at the time he was require 1 to forward his application for enrolment. When due date went past he became apprehensive on discovering ‘his neglect.

"Had you enrolled at ’the proper time you would not have been called to serve until now and probably, in view of your health, you would have been permitted to remain on your farm.” said the magistrate. Ho pointed out thar in the case of single men the courts had been imposing terms of imprisonment but in this instance the Court would inflict the penalty of a fine of £2O.