CONSTABLE SMYTH'S CASE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1779, 18 June 1913, Page 6

CONSTABLE SMYTH'S CASE.

HIS DISMISSAL AND WHY.' (By Telojrapli.—PrCES Association,) Chrlstchurch, Juno IT. Seen by a press representative to-day on the subject of ex-Constablo Smyth s case, the Hon. A. L. Herdman, Minister for Justice, made a statement' dealing with the grounds for Smith's dismissal from tile force. . . ~ „ "The facts in Smyth 8 case are those, • said Mr, lierdman. "Ooinplflints been made lo the. Greymouth police that timber had been disappearing from trucks on tho wharf, and Constable Smyth was specially instructed to watch these trucks, and to report to tho senior sergeant at his (the senior sergeant's) house at 5 o clocK in the morning. Tho constable, without any satisfactory, explanation, left his Mat between 3 and 4 o clock in" the morning, , came to tho station, and was found thero: by tho senior sergeant about 4 a.m., « lien ho should have been on his beat. Iho senior, sergeant, inspected the book in which it is the duty of constables to tocord tho time when they como off dutj. and found that Smyth bad made an entry, in tho l>ook (bofore 4 a.m.) that ho had come off duty at 5 a.m. y,) 101 * i nuestioned ho put forward the pica that ho did not know tho time. Tho to that statement is this: there was a dock in the watchhousc a few. feet awaj from the table at which Smyth made his record. and. lio must have known cot to the station that lie had arrived there before 4 ft.ni. It is ridiculoustoOTlilwM that a mau, ivlien lie came off • would not look at tho cbck ikwndly, ho could quite well have heard, on tuo wharf the striking' of the town clock. X • went down to the wharf ' iv\nfc woro workinc. when rtiilvsA,y irucK were being shumted, a eencral clamour, and both the lmspmnr anfmyself distinctly heard ho stntang nf tho town clock. Smyth lias toirasys