LIQUOR AND MORALS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 171, 14 April 1919, Page 6

LIQUOR AND MORALS

REMARKS BY SIR ROBERT STOUT

A BIGAMY CASE

j Before His „ Honour the Chief Justice ! (Sir Robert Stout), ,in the Supreme Court on Saturday, Harry 'Blandford, a returned soldier, and ' Kiito Winstanley, who had previously, pleaded guilty to having j ' committed bigamy in Wellington, came f up. for .sentence, and the prisoners were j- represented by Mr. H. ]?. O'Leary, who j. said that in .pldad'ih'g for the prisoners ! one must admit that they had not shown | respect for the marriage tie. There were, I- however, circumstances which differentiatj, ed-.the case,from, others. There was no }•• deception by. either, party., Each knew ! what the other was entering into, and j both knew that the marriage was not a I legal one. In tho woman's case there i was. umple evidence that she undertook !•" "T'g? 'through U form of marriage as the I result of Blandford's entreaties. He was ! very ill, having returned from the front i ma crippled condition through shrapnel j and she took pity on him, and ;. at His earnest Solicitation wont through a i - form of marriage. She was a ha'rd-work- ; ing woman, and after going through the !'• form of marriage she received Win- | Stanley's ..allotment money, which she used in paying Winstanley's debts and j educating his sister. Blandford, Mr. ; OLeary said, was one of war's wrecks; _ his right arm was withered, and he was , in receipt; of a: life pension. About 13 !' .. years, ago ho was convicted of theft, but [ in-view of hisexcellent record since conn- ! sel thought that the earlier conviction i should be overlooked. Mr. O'Leary stated i that there was a woman prese'nt in i Court who had known Blandford since j ,i boyhood, and was willing to provide him i'■; with a home. !.. The Chief Justice (Sir R. Stout), in j admitting Blandford to probation for | three years, said:-"I have obtained a j special report from the Probation Officer |. in this case. Tho report stales that the j male accused.has done good service for !' the community. At Foxton he was the i means of saving life at great personal ; . risk to himself, and on another occasion i lie saved two or three lives in a fire. He j is a returned soldier' with a withered [-' arm, and is In such a i.ripnled condition !'. that he cannot do any l-ard work. Unf ' fortunately.. However,-he is a drunkard | -he lias given way to drink a?d is an. i other drink victim.- Ido not know if he is to blame for that. If it be a fact t i? at , om ' Army authorities have been in | the habit of giving rum rations to our | raldiers.nnd "his training them to drink, it may be this is another example that I ™ lt ,'s said in the old proverb comes : true, , That the chickens we have reared ; have come home to roost,' and that wo f are now getting soldiers who have acI quired these drinking habits coming I, amongst us and doing injury to them--1 selves and injury to tho community. The i prisoner apparently' seems to bo one of | that kind.„ However, this is not' a cas« i in' which he married- the woman on a ! false statement. The woman knew she :• was married, and he married her know- | mg she was married. It is under the j second branch of the definition of bigamy j that, he .is. charged, that knowing tin, | w;omah was married he marries her. Coni sidenng the poor position of the accused, V his inability to work at ordinary hard ! work, the fact that the injury he received j at the front from shrapnel has rendered ! him weak • physically—and lam afraid . there is want of moral strength, too, I brought about perhaps by the habits he ! has learned to acquire in our Army—l j shall admit him to probation for three , years on condition that he reports to I the ■ Probation Officer onco every twoj , months', arid takes out a prohibition or- ! der against himself." Addressing the ! prisoner. His Honour said: "Now I hope, i Blandford, that this leniency you have been treated with will rouse' you to do , -. something better and give up, liquor, h ; is liquor that has brought you to this, and will bring you to ivorso| and iinfot. j tunately in our colony, you can'appari ently get liquor when you Tike. - i "As to the female prisoner, I shall al1. low her also to go on i-robalion, bei cause it is- clear that she apparently ■ ' married the male accused out of kindness r. for him'on account of his'crippled cwndi- . tion, but-I hope this will not bo thought , to be a ground for treating cases of bigj amy with leniency. If it had been an i , .ordinary, case of. a woman marrying a !.' : '.man, he not knowing.she was married, I I should certainly have sent the female ac- | oused.to gaol,for some time."