CAREER OF JOHN CRISP

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2150, 16 May 1914, Page 5

CAREER OF JOHN CRISP

AND HIS SENTENCE. (By lVjleftTtmh.—Press Association.) Dunedin, May 15. Keen interest was manifested in the cusp of Crisp this morning. Some interesting particulars of his career wcro given by Mi - . W. MacGregor, who split ared for tho prisoner. Counsel explained that Crisp was originally a journeyman tailor, and with tho ambition of becoming a lawyer, threw up £3 weekly and entered a solicitor's office in a junior capacity at a small salary. Ho remained thero for four years, worked hard, passed his examinations, and became qualified,/ His only experience was in Magistrate's Court work. He had no training in book-keeping or conveyancing, and had never been taught to appreciate the vital importance of keeping trust. accounts separate from his business income. He started to practiso in ISO 6 at Palmerston, but found a difficulty to make a living against the competition, and wont back financially, and at tho end of 1909 owed £300 to a rival solicitor, who left, soiling his practice to Crisp for £650, with a millstone of about £1000. Ho borrowed money. His practice was disappointing; having no training in book-keeping he could not got his money in, and fell into tho wicked habit of drawing on the trust account to pay bis way. Ho gradually got deeper into debt, and then conceived, in 1911, the idea of committing a sories of foolish clumsy forgeries. Hethen commenced drinking, neglecting his practice, and his affairs became public property. Then when about to bo arrested ho ran away on the advice of an injudicious friend.

Crisp was sentenced to three years' hard labour, the convictions against him being forgery ■ nncl misappropriation, and failing to keep proper books.