MAGISTERIAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1736, 15 December 1887, Page 3

MAGISTERIAL.

\i ASHBDRTON— THUBSDAY. 1 (Before Mr John Oliver, R M.) A first offender waa discharged with 2 8 oautioa. VAGRANCY. Thomas Glenn was charged with having no lawful visible means of support. The man, who is totally blind, has been befon the Court several times, he refualDg to gc to the Old Mod's Home, preferring lnoarceration m gaol. The Magistrate thought the most merciful way of dealing with the case would bo to commit the man for the longest term the law would admit. He therefore ordered him to be imprisoned for twelve months. DISMISSED. J. O. Duncan was charged with having failed to supply a horoa wltk sufficient shelter on {Saturday, December 3. — Mr Caygill appeared for the defendant, and submitted that there was no wilful negleot, the fact having been that during the night the weather suddenly and unexpectedly changed. The horse was mMr Duncan's auction yards, but the first thing m tho morning, Mr Duncan, when he ascertained the nature of the weather, gave otdera to have the horse removed to shelter. The Magistrate said the oase was not one m which he coold oonvict. HOEBF* AT LAR»E. W. Bryant and R. Lancaster were each fined 5s for having allowed horses to wande? at larga. ASSAULT. Fdward Price waa charged with having assaulted Richard Cameron. — Richard Cameron and Leonard Price were also •barged with assault, but they had not been carved with summonses, — Sergeant Felton said that Cameron and L. Price were eluding tbe police, and he would ask that warrants be issued for their arreßt. He applied for an adjournment of the case against Edward Price for a week. — Mr Caygill, who appeared for the defendant, pleaded guilty. He said the affair srose out of a free fight that had occurred oo the racecourse. On race night some of the men, who had showed up prominently m the fight, were boasting of their achievements and expressing their willingness to fight all and sundry, High words ensued, a blow was struok, and a fight took place, which wbb, however, interrupted by the police. His ollent was drawn Into the affair. — A fine of 20s and costs was Inflicted and warrants were Issued for the arrest of Leonard Price and Richard Cameron. AN IMPOUNDING CASE, G. Hitchinga. a youth m the employ of the pound-keeper, was charged— (l) with having cruelly overdriven a oow, tbe propatty of Robert Meaclam ; (2) with having used threatening language towards Meaclam. There were three cross Informations charging Meaclam — (1) with having permitted a cow to wander at large; (2) with having illegally resaued a oow which was lawfully m custody for the purpoie of being impounded ; (B) with having used threatening language towards Spencer ComptoD, a son of the poundkeeper, wherefore an application was made to bave Meaclam bound over to keep tbe peace. — A great deal of evidence was taken, but It waa similar m general character to that ÜBnally given m such cases.* Tbe plaintiff alleged that the cow was taken out of hiu son's custody and while he waa endeavoring to regain possession Hitchloga threatened and mado an attempt to ride over him. Hitchlngs drove tho cow away at a furious rate, but It run into Fawcett'a placa, and Mr Fawcefct refused to let Hltohinge go among his cows to get it out. The evidence on the other Bide was that Meaolam'a boy waa playlDg with another obild and not looking after the cow ; that there waa no over-drivlDg, that the threatening language was on the part of Moaclam who, when the cow went into Fawoett's, put up the rail an I refused to allow tbe animal to be taken out. On the charge for overdriving a cow Hltoheni was fined 2s 6d, and ordered to pay the costs of the c»ee j m that of using I threating language a fine of 10j and costs was itflcted . Ihe charges against McLean were dismissed. A SCHOOL OASE. H. Cape Williamson was charged with Davidson— Mr Crisp appeared In support having assaulted sad beaten one J. of the information, and Mr Wilding for defendant — The defendant In this oase 1b schoolm&Bter at Flemlngton, and Jas. Davidson, a papil attending the school. — The following evidence wss taken :— Jas, Davidson, 7 years of age, who was not sworn, remembered being m the playground at Flemington sohool about three weeks sgo. At playtime at eleven o'clock he vraa playiog with another lad when Thornton Williamson, the defendant's son, a lad nearly as big as witneso, hit witness and witness hit him back. Mr Williamson then whipped witness with a goree stick, which he got out of a gorse heap used for firewood, He put witness over his knee and gave him a goad " whacking." Witnasfl was bruised, and these bruises were the result of the beating — By Mr WildiDg : The fchoolmaater asked vritnesa if he had hit his boy. — Witness at first denied ever done so, — Mr Williamson then appealed to the boys standing round, and they Bald that wltnees had hit his boy. Mr Williamson then " licked " witness for telling the lie. Witness sat m eohool the same afternoon that he received the flogging. He was m school the next day,— S. JBoaaton, a lad attending the Flemington school saw DavidBon getting a thrashing. Ho was thrashed with a goree stick about a foot long and rather more than the thickness of a finger. Mr Williamson hit him five or six times moderately bard. Davidson waa held acroQß tbe maßter'B kneo. Never Baw Mr Williamson bit any of the boyo with a goree Btlck before. The trouble waa because Mr Williamson's boy hit Uavldoon and Davidson hit him back. — By Mr Wilding : Witness did not hear Davidson deny hitting young Williamson. — James McQallkin, 10 yours of age saw the thrashing. He never Baw Mr Willlameon tbraab anyone bo hard before. — Mra DavidaoD, tho mother of tho b^y thrashed, caw Boveral bruieea on her boy that night, which looked like as if tboy had been inflicted by a thick stick. The boy for two or three nights could only sleep on his stomach ; he could not lie on his back. Witness took him •to Dr Tweed, — Alexander Davidson, father of tho boy thrashed, saw the bruises on the boy next day. One m tba small of the back was abont 2| inches wide and 3 or 4 incheß long. Thero woro several other severe bruises. Witness thought the beating was not a fair one end therefore decided to takn legal proceedings. — -By Mr Wilding : Witneßs did not know If there had been an enquiry by the Committee, Witness woald have not brought tho case into Court had Mr Williamson apologised and paid the doctor's and solicitor's expenses wbioh had been inenrred. — George Cowan, a lad attending the Flemington Bohool gave evidence as to the thrashing. The stick w»b of abont the same sub&tence ai the oane Mr Williamson generally used. After Bckool was over saw one brulee on the boy. Tho " licking " waa for telling a lie about the fight, not for the fighting itself. The boy had previously been beaten for ant ruth, — John Cowan saw the boy Davidson on the evening of tbe day that ha got beaten. Saw four or five braises, one was about an inch and a half wido by two or three long. Thought the thrashing was too severe. — By Mr Wilding : Thought the thrashing was too aevore, for even a boy m the habit of telling untruths— Dr Tweed remembered the boy beingbrooght to him. He waa braised over the buttocks and right thigh.

Thought the thrashing was rather toi severe for a punishment. — Mr Wildinf asked if it waa neceeßary to call any evid enc9 for tho defence. — The Magistral said that it would not be necessary tc 'enter on the defence. While he agreec that the master had been a little more vigorous and had used a little less discretion, than perhaps he should and while he agreed that a stick was hardly a proper weapon foe the purposes oi scholastic fligellation still he thought that we lived too much m an age of " fad " and if it was to be part of our eduoation system that boys wore not to bo flogged it would result he thought m their turning out bad citizaus. A good sound flogging m sohool days very often had the effect of restraining vice and preserving virtue. The vied of lying was perhaps tho most despicable that a boy could fall into, and a Bound thrashing awaiting the detection of an untruth would act aa a wholesome check. — The oase would be dismissed. ASSAULT, Thomas Magee was charged on the information of Wm. Monro with having assaulted the informant. — Mr Cuthbertson appeared for Monro, who aaid that Magee some time ago endeavored to obtain a lean of £5 from him, but witness was not satisfied with the security. This caused unpleasantness between them. On Saturday last witnees was going through a right-of-way between Moore and Tancred streets when Magee asked if he were going to give him that (presumably tho five pounds). Witness replied that he was not, when Magee caught him by the beaid and also kloked him. Witness was sure that Magee pulled out some oi his b«ard. Witness had been subject to a good deal of annoyance during the last six weeks,— Mrs Stevens audjMrs Finlay gare corroborative evidence as to tho assault.— The defendant denied having asiaulted Monro. He ulmply pushed him out of his way, «nd the damage to complainant's beard he asorlbed to the latter coming m contact with a barbed wire fence m the locality. — The caße was a trivial one. — A fine of 5s and cost* was Inflicted. [Left Sitting.]