INVOLVED CASE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1810, 24 July 1913, Page 6

INVOLVED CASE.

BUT GLARING SIDELIGHTS. (By Telegraph—Frees Association.) Auckland, July 23. Mr. C. C. Kettle, S.M., gavo judgment to-day in a somewhat involved case. Tho plaintiff was James Meredith, farmer and postmaster of Cabbage Bay, and tho defendant A. A. Preece, Native agent at Paeroa, and sometimes Maori interpreter. The action was one to recover a memorandum of transfer (from several Natives to plaintiff), tho signatures having been obtained by Preece, who claimed that lie had a lien over the transfer in connection with certain work dono for plaintiff. .There was a counter-claim for ,£33 16s. 4d., alleged to bo due to defendant for services rendered to Meredith in connection with two transfers. Tlfo hearing had been a tedious matter, remarked tho magistrate. Ho had conio to tho oonclusion that ft very large proportion must bo taxed,off. Ho held that Preece liad a lien on the transfer, but, iu t'lie circumstances, ho was not going to allow costs. Judgment would be for defendant on tho claim, without costs, and for defendant on tiro counter-claim for the' balance assessed, also without costs. Tho revised amount was .£27 ss. 6d. Sinco the case liad started, Mr. Kettle wont on to say, the Registrar of the Native Land Court had written to take exception to certain statements that bad been made by Preece. l'rceco had said on oatli that ho bad frequently paid search fees and had not signed tho search book or received any receipt whatever. Mr. Kettle wished to say that lie did not accept that as a statement of fact. 110 understood that tho Native Lauds Office would call upon Preece to prove or withdraw the statements. Tliero was another matter arising from tho same case to which the magistrate referred pointedly. Defendant had admitted receiving a large number of rpceipts with signatures obtaiued by Native agents, and sent blank and' without stamps. In one case he had admitted dating "May" on a receipt fixed up in September. That sort of thing was wrong. A document might easily deceivo the Land Court and cause gross injustice to bo done. It was very important that there should bo no tampering with documents, but that they should be truthful in their contents in every particular. Ho condemned the practice of ante-dating documents, and observed that it must be discontinued. "