WHY THEY STOWED AWAY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 905, 26 August 1910, Page 4

WHY THEY STOWED AWAY.

COURT INTERLUDE. Rugged oratory was displayed by Ed« ward Dixon during a brief address to tho Bench in the Magistrate's Court yesterday. In company with James Scott' and Michael Murphy, Dixon' had pleaded guilty to a charge of stowing away on tho collier Ngatoro during the voyage from Greyinouth to .Wellington. Tha men were discovered on Wednesday morning on the collier after she had cleared the Greymouth bar, and were handed over to tho. police in -the small hours of yesterday morning, as they had no money to defray the. expenses of their passage. They were striking figures in the dock together. Scbtty'at one end, sis' feet in height, and of; comely build, Murphy, tho central figure, was about four inches shorter, arid Dixon could have been littlo more than sft in .height, but his., want of inches was more thou made up by his sturdyi build, and his very determined'-features.. The men did not look like misdemeanants, there .jvere no previous convictions against -them,, and, in a'way, they stood there, the victims of somewhat peculiar circumstances* Michael Murphy stated that they had been employed at the State Mine ai Dunollie—trucking, not mining—but as the Grey Bar was bad, and no boats were taking coal away, they had been put off. Tho reason why they Jjad no mousy was that they had "paid their debts before leaving Greymouth." Edward Dixon now took up tho story, and, speaking' in a loud, cleai voice, stated that they, had boarded the Ngatoro thinking that shel was going to Napier and Auckland, as they wanted" to go to Limestone Island.-, to get work. Any able-bodied'man could, generally get work at Limestone Island. ■It was not thoir intention to be landed penniless in- Wellington, and they were'surprised when they, found that the boat was coming here, and now that they hadcomo before his Worship they had pleaded, guilty and told him the truth. He (Dixon) reckoned that any man able to work "should try and go- to where he could get work."' It was no uso their stopping in Greymouth, as they had no money; and "hundreds and hundreds" Were out of work down there. ' ".' ... -

The magistrate remarked that he wag very loth to send snch men to gaol, whore ■ they lmist go if unable to pay the fines, but ,thc law gave him no option, and fines were accordingly imposed, with tha alternative of imprisonment.