SERIOUS CHARGE.

Waikato Times, Volume 100, Issue 16818, 9 June 1926, Page 6

SERIOUS CHARGE.

INDICTED BY DAUGHTERS. ROTOTUNA FARMER BEFORE COUR3! There was some extraordinary evidence during the hearing of the charge of incest preferred against a well-known farmer at Rototuna named Herbert Gothorp, which was heard at Ihe Supreme Court, Hamilton, to-day;, before his Honor Mr Justice Herdmaq and a jury of 12. The chief witness, the 18-year-old daughter of prisoner, said she was ai present an inmate of an Auckland home, where she recently became a mother. The girl was most inconsistent id her evidence, declaring first that sho had intimate relationship with olheE men, and later contradicting this statement. She also gave a varied account of where her father was first supposed to have interfered with her. Ques-t tions by the .ludge only produced fur* thcr inconsistent replies. She was put through a severe crossexamination by Mr .1. F. Strang, and admit led that her brother Jim had a deep haired of his father, who had cut him out of his will. 11 was her brother Jim who gave information to the police. Jim himself had previously been in trouble, and was now awaiting trial on a criminal charge. Witness said she did not tell heij mother of the happenings with lieu father, nor did she ever call out, although her mother was in an adjoining room. A sister of complainant admitted that after she had been interviewed by, the police she wrote the letter produced to her father, in which she saittj "A few lines to let you know how I got on. 1 did what you told me, and it seemed to work all right. I am afraid you .will get *caol from what ho told me. See me without fail, so that you will not get muddled up in what I said." Mr C. L. Mac Diarmid, who appeared for the Crown, was granted leave ta treat the witness as hostile. In answer to Mr Mac Diarmid witness said that her first statement to Detective Culloty was to the effect that her father had interfered both with bee and her sister. In the second statement to the detective she denied thai he had interfered with her. Two other statements by her to the detective were read to her, and she denied that any of them was wholly correct, as she had never seen her father interfere with her sister. His Honor: Why did you make these dreadful statements against you? father? Were you prompted by illwill? —No. His Honor: Did you want to do you* father harm? —No. Counsel for defendant: As a matte? of fact, you had a quarrel with you? father? —Not exactly a quarrel. Counsel: Anyhow, lie told you to get out? —Yes. Counsel: You understood that he had cut you out of his will?—Yes. Who told you that?—My brother. "' Counsel: I see. Brother Jim again appears in the matter. Detective Culloty put in a statement by accused, in which he denied the charge, and accounted for the statements of his daughters by the fact that they had conspired against him because he bad been bard on them, lie said be had had to be hard on them as they had been difficult to controL They used to return home from dances with Maoris. The detective declared that the brother Jim was of disreputable character. . Counsel for accused at this sta.-o asked his Honor if the case was one which should be submitted to the jury. His Honor said he would certain y tell the jury that it would be extremely dangerous for them to convict on the evidence before the Court. Counsel for accused, in a bnet opening to the jury, said he would endeavour to show that the whole caste originated through the « prisoner's son Jim, who bore his father extreme illwill because he had been cut out of his father's will. A voung man named John Edward Woodhead, engaged to one of the sisters said Jim Gothorp had his knife mio'his father, and had told fitness that he intended to land his fathei in U °Ttiomas T. Gothorp, son of Prisoner, said that When bis sister went C, tha Auckland receiving homo his brother j im said he did not know who was responsible, but be would "make the old man scrape over this. William Tanner, sol.citor, sal ho prepared a codicil to prisoner s will, m which he cut out from his will his son Jim, who had been convicted or crime. This codicil was prepared U wife said that she had asked her daughter who bad got her into trouble, and she replied, I won t toll you." Witness bad never noticed any 'impropriety between her husband and her daughter. Prisoner gave evidence, denying emphatically that he had ever mteiieied with his daughter. (Proceeding.)