THE RIVER BANK ACCIDENT.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 11045, 5 September 1903, Page 7

THE RIVER BANK ACCIDENT.

Q ""- Ctfse Before the Local Court. The " hearing of the charge against Malcolm Sydney Birchley in connection with the recent accident "on the Eivcr Bank, was continued yesterday afternoon. After we went to press the defendant, continuing his evidence, stated that lie ■went to Mr Michie's placp on the NO. J • Line. .He told Mrs Michit all about tho accident. v Next day he went on to Turakin'a, and he believed he told Mr Fred " Young about the accident. It was uot till tho' following Saturday night, when he was some twelve miles on the other side • of Palmcreton, that he heard that the - irl had been injured by the accident. His brother came out to meet him, to help him" drive gome sheep, and brought out a> ' newspaper clipping with him. As soou as hcvfead it he decided to come on to Wnnganui. aud he would have come there and ttu?nTif ho could have caught -a train. lie would hatve come to tell the police that it wjHsfhe who was wanted. He was arrested next, day, when he reached Palmerston. He had no.- opportunity to communicate by ■ telegraph or otherwif p. He was arrepted as soon as ho reached Pnlmerston. nb, had no idea that, the police at Palmers-tpu-'were looking for him, or that they knew he was- the man connected with the accident. "By. S&rgeant Norwood: He had never had, «ny liquor other than the port wine and lemonade ontoide the Aramoho Hotel oh that night. He did not think the yomijj woman was seriously hurt, when rlic was 1 sitting on ihe aido of the 'road. He . would never have loft her had he thought she. had been hurt. "S By the Bench: He caiitere.'! about seven or oi£ht chains after he collided with the young woman. He went back to the young lady to see if there was anything wrong with ,her. She had had time in the inter-val-to get. up from the. ground. He spoke to her and when she did not answer he th'oxight she was not hurt,, and that she di,d,.n6t want him to know who she wa,s. - She, just muttered something, and held he-r head down, and he thought she did not want him to see her. He rorlp- up the bank; and called out for Jack Higgie, aa he 'thought he might have known her. He was going to get him (Higgie), and then he thoujrht he wouldn't. Aa lie was go-hiE.-twick he spoke to the girl again, and she did not answer him. He then cantered axray, believing that she was not hurt. She bad not moved during this time. Ho felt perfectly sure that sh< 1 was not hurt, and -lie did not think any more about it untile he saw the reference to the accident in "tire' newspaper cutting. , '•" ■

it against the Borough, and as he is a member of the County Council, and cxchaifman we do not for politic reasons at the /present time wish any conflict with any'ii^embcr of the County Council, who are with us in carrying out the bridge repairs .;4-Yours faithfully. Gco. T'o^m "Clerk."' His Worship said' it -was an extraordinary application, and he would reswl^e his " decision until the morning, wheftjie hoped tho police would be In a posrfibu to lay all the facts of the case befoTtrfinm. v • I S£zffi?eaini Norwood intimated that the uoln^i'wero , prepared with tho facts and ha^t§?ir witnesses ready, but he had been in«fsjMed to «i»ke the application for the wifclsi[i|wal of the- information. He (Ser- , gea|w|Nbrwood) simply made the applical^f;}Worship said the matter would stawtp^r until the morning. j9i(pihi\ case being callcjrt on this morninelKJ&eaut Norwood said he had been instructed not to offer any evidence. Mr Baruicoat nnid he had been asked to attend on behalf of the. Mayor if the information had been laid by the borouch authorities, but as the police had laid the information he was therefore out of Court.. The Magistrate said the application which was made was for leave to withdraw the information. -Ho could not see his way to oecede to tho 'request. According to section 6!) of the Justices of the Pesv.:« Act "Every information mn- be withdrawn by the' informant either bofovo Ihe time- fixed for the hearing thereof, by permission nl tho. iu^tu-e who 'In 1 ! V^vo reccivpd such information, or at the time and Dlaco of hearing mid before tli» ssnuo bhall hoivo boen idi'idicaW vno», by permission of the Justice who f-MH then b" thn'ro." Tho Jn for nWion was laid npsunst ihe defoiiflnnt-on -tho 29th of August by Serorp. nu t Norwnod.'and vo application for withdrnwal \ws. bo«n made to Mm i«io" +o the «-a=e cmniutr before the T'ourt-.- Tho grounds upon which iho nrnlieaHon vis made wore stnted in f he lottor frcn +ho Town Clerk to the Inspector of P<-l"-e. The latter ins«-ructed tho. Sergeant of Pojico tp make the a«v»liction, and tho frgeant in obedionco to his orders ponli^d ve-sterdav for T)orniis.«>on to iviihdmw the information, and whon a^^d by th" ■Bei'ch to sta^o reasons for w'tlulnwnl hni vprv proper! v protiuo/?^ t 1 " 1 letter to whicli ho had yfpr'wi. Tli" i^;Ui^n wliioh Justices ov Maffißtrates fshould- take up i •»•> n matter of fins kinti wore laid down as follows in ~\fv Justice Johnston,'* work

By Mr Cohen: He thought it was only Ihb foot that hod touched the girl, and he ft- It sure that his horse had not gone over her. , , By the Bench: The bell on the bicycle was not rung. Witness was on his right side, and tho girl was on her right side, and when within eight or tf nine yards of him the pulled out and came straight for him. When well down the road, some little 1 Umo- aflev the accident, he met a man üm horseback. At tills fecuige 1 the witness Higgie. far the prorpcution. who was not ill attendance on the previous day, was called. Jack Hiorcie, sworn, said he lived at Aramoho. lie was at the corner of Glasgow Street and the "River Bank between 8.30 and 9 o'clock on the evening of August 7. Dan O'Leary and Jim Clark were with him. He saw the accused cantering down from Aramoho towards town; he was riding close to the chains. Witness believed Bivcllley was standing up in his etirrups, and the horse wa<? goiii» at an ordinary canter. Witness called out "Crdtid night, Sid," and .Birchley pulled up and crime across to witness. - There were no sigr.s of liquor on Birchley. After a. brief conversation Birchley turned his horse on to his proper Fide amd cantered away. When witness k*t raw him he wa* crofuuig the r<ia.'l to Me chain aide. Witness knew tho &hop at the ArgylC Street comer, which was, he should say. about lsoyda aw?y from where they wer.c talking. No one except. Constable Camnbell, Jim Clark, and Dim O'Lcary had spoken tq him about ihe case- .since Ire returned from Taranaki. By Mr Cohen : He would swear positively that he had seen nobody connected with the defence. There wan no reason, so far a<t witness knew, why a. horseman ridipg on his proper side where ho fow Biichley should cros§ on to the wrong sido a little further down the road. Continuing? tho evidence for the defence. Me Cohen called Helen Michie, wife of William Miehie, I of No. 2 Line, farmer, who said she had , known Sydney Bi"chlcy for 2£ years. He was ait her house on the night of August 7, and told her about the accident. He said a lTdy on a bicycle had bumped against his kiipe. and that iw she didn't fall over he didn't think -she was hurt. He said he had gone baefc to ask her if she was hurt, but that she didn't speak very loudly and he couldn't catch what she said. She was quite sure he told her that a lady had come appiiist him on her bicyelpp that his horse had bolted, and that as she (the lady) did not .fall over he did uot think (-he was hurt. lie said that whfen hei rode back the young lady was sitting on her knee with a hand on her bicycle. From what Birchley said about the accident witness did not think there was, anything serious, fihe understood ,

on "Justices of the Peace": "Questions < often arccc before Justices respecting the 1 propriety of sanctioning compromises or : the withdrawal of charges, and there was i no little difficulty in laying down rules 1 for their guidance on this subject. Dcsir- ' able as it is to reconcile contending par- ' ties and prevent unnecessary litigation, t the law is very jealous in matters where '< the interests of. the public aro concerned, • and is slow to sanction or permit arrange- i incuts or compromises between, accuser < and accused. No compound or comprom- * ise in any charge of felony or misdemeanor, * or an information on a penal statute, v where the offence is wholly or partly of a i public nature (as in this case), is an in- i dictable oft'enco, bohi? a conspiracy to obstruct, prevent, or defeat the course of ' justice. . . . Justices ought on no occasion to sanction the withdrawal of a < charge when they have reason for believing that au illegal compromise or composition lias taken place which is likely to ; defeat public justice." Continuing, tho Magistrate said ho considered the reasons set forth in the letter wero absolutely in- ; sufficient and he did not think the application should be granted. Serprp#it Norwood said he would offer no pviddncp. Those wore his instructions. Tho "Magistrate.— The case will be struck out.

from what the accused said ihat he dv not knink her off the bicycle, but that she had fallen off as a result ol" the collision | Frederick Fovd Black, of Aramoho, saio 'ho lived at the sanno lodging-house a? James Uirchley, and saw Sydney Birchlej | ai tea at the 'house on the 7lh. He had • not scetl Hydney Eirchlcy before, and on 1 that occasion ho was perfectly sober. i Joseph James Birchley. drover, of Fa}merston North, eaid" he knew Ihc horse ln« I son Sydney was ridino;. It was a good1 tempered animnl. When Sydney came horne — they wore sitting at tea — ho said "There ought to be some law <o ptop girls from riding bikes at nicrht time." Witness saiid "What's up now-2" and Sydney • told him that after leaving Aramoho a I lady ran into him with a bike. Witness ■ said "Were you on your rfcht side?" and ihe said "Yes." He" told witness the girl • was also- on her right sido and when she paino close to him the bike- swerved and Jic callpd out ."Look out !" that she either I Shrieked or Raid something, and that immediately afterwards tho bike came ripht i over to whore he was. -Witnss asked if the ! cfirl wa 4 ? hurt, and ho rcr>liep that he /Wu't think si, and gave him the same information as he had given in Court that day. After reviewing the evidence, his Worfhip considered it. was his duty to send | thn accused for trial. Ho added that it j wan not for. him to express an opinion on 1 the ov.ido.ncp. h Bail, was al'owed.