£250 DAMAGES

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 212, 2 June 1920, Page 3

£250 DAMAGES

AMMON V. AMMON AND REILLY

MISCONDUCT PROVEN

Hearing of tho divorce suit of Charles Frederick Auitnon against Daisy Geraldine ■ Mary Aminon and William Eeilly was,concluded yesterday. Petitioner claimed noui tho co-respondent £500 damages for alleged adultery, aud asked: the Court to grant him the custody of his seven-year-The case was heard by Jlr. Justico Ed- ' wards and a jury of twelve. Mr A/ B. Sicvwright appeared for tho tictitiouer, Jlr. I'. W. .Tackson for the roJpondent, and Mr. A. W. Blair for tho-co-respondent. ■ , . ~ Jlr Jackson asked whether he might later call a witness from the Peoples Palace io gWo evidence about appearing iu tho guest-book and purporting to show that on certain dates Mrs. Amnion stayed nt tho Palace. (A:witness called for the respondent on. the previous day had produced the guest-book ; and had.admitted, in reply->to questions put by Mr. Sievwright, that tho. iiauic "Amnion" had been written;over-' another, name, "Ings.") . ■■'■■ ■>■ ' - His Honour (to Mr. Jackson):,lf yon want to call somebody to explain tho forgery you produced yesterday—- ■ Counsel: I don't say it was a forgery, Your Honour. I have: a perfectly good . explanation to oiler. '■ . , His Honour refused to determine the application-then. He ordered Mr. Blair to go on with the case for tho co-re-spondent. , . , ... In his opening Mr. Blair proposed, with His Honour's permission, to tender evidence with regard to.the same matter. ■ He submitted that, there wa3 nothing to lustily the statement that, the entries were forged. '~ . . His Honour: I will not allow you to sn> that, Mr. Blair. . . . Counsel: I do not mean it onensivcly. His Honour: But you arc using it ollcaCounsel: All that we know is that tho book has been altered. ; - His Honour: Yes,.the book has been altered in the three places in question. Counsel: Supposing there happened to bo a nerfcctly innocent explanation? His Honour: Then the innocent explanation could have been brought by Uic "person who oroduccd the book. Counsel: But it was the first we had seen of the book. I understand Jlr. Jackson had not seen the book before. His Honour: Mr. Jackson knew all about the book. Counsel: But he had not seen the book. Your Honour designates this a forgery. His Honour; I say it is a forgery. J say that what was there has bron removed and something else substituted to advance the respondent's case. Mr. Blair submitted that that reflected upon the co-respondent. ■. Ho urged tint if he had an explanation he should be permitted to tender it His Honour directed Mr. Blair to go on with his case, and call his witness in duo course. The admissibility of the evidence could then be considered.

Co-Rcspondont's Evidence. The co-respondent entered the witnessbox. He said he was a Wellington train-. ways motornian, residing nt No. 4 Moturna Street. He knew Jlrs. Amnion's family in Auckland some 10 yea's ago. He had met Jlrs. Amnion (then Miss JlWlUnni at a dance, and ho was not altogether a friend of the family, though he knew the members of it to speak to. In. 1917 ho saw rcspond°nt in Wellington. He was then a---conductor on the trams. Jfrs,. Ainmon was a passenger, and lie rccog niscd her. He spoke to her And she mentioned that she was married. It was about the end of 191 C. just after tho epidemic, tbnt he next saw her. He "'as in the waiting-shed nt Immbfon. «!"wi Jlrs. Amnion came in. 'He again addressrd her. Sb« nslced him if he knew of any place where she could- get board and lodging. Jt occurred to witness that he might, ask- his landlady if she would take Jlrs. Amnion as a boarder. Witness asked Jlr. Eden about the matt"r, and Jf' Eden referred'him to Jfrs. Eden.

"I explained to Jlrs. Eden." siid witness, ''that this yoniig women (Jfrs. Ainmon) had i husband who.had been n soldier, and was convalescent and in a h".rt way. She. was a- stranger in Wellington, and her hon-c wns In Avcklnnd. R'io had very few friends. I thought, knowing Jfrs. Eden- so long and so. well, that she 'would be a friend towards Mrs. Aminon till such lime as her husband had recovered."

3rr. Blu'r;. DJil yon indicate, anytninc to Mrs. Kdon about Mrs.' Amnion bring in a certain condition?— Witnes- "B«."

Were yon aware of tlie fnct t)">t. tirs. Amnion was in that condition?—"* T o." .' Was anything paid to Mrs. Kdcn v-ith refer"iicc to-tlie paternity of. the' child?— "No." .'•;'■. ... ':' •.'V. :

you heard Jim., Eden swear that at thisinterview you said von vere tli* father of this unborn ehild, and so on. W»« anythlns of ilmt kind fnid?-"N.v"' witness stated that. Mrs. Amnion roado her own ar*"in cements -with .Trs. Ed'>ii He paid not'unp. fnr ti>c hoard nf Mrs! Amnion or the child 'hat she then'had. and his relations with resnoudent were merely fr«ndlv. I','itli r-"o.-<l to the house in Moturoa Street witness paid he took it because he nc"l"d a home for his children. He had nhilil-«n hv -. v-if'n whom hi> recentlv divorced. In t.he Motnroa Street house he at nveccnt emmoyd J r rs. Ammon -o do tl" i-iusct-i-n. inir for'J-t a week. He provided food for he- and her children. Ooss-examined. witness said that his children were not wi'h H"i .h. The miration of their custody hid not. yet hecn determined. Tie had tiken the linu>:e noon ..the adviee of lug lnwver, who sair !, at , l, M f , nrc lv! co,l,(1 "'''"in custody of !," children lie must have a.home for them.

f Wil'ipni Samuel Ridlcr, staff oW; nf '~" J, ,i . , . Wi,T T)eiiart""iit, w-as cMW by Mr. Blair to give evidence rpua'dip™ <•>!. mon's record «s an 'cimlnyce of the Department. i\ r i'"«ss'stnfM' fli a ; ,<«■■••-.„ worked for the Ben-Ttment for nbow fi vo years. Ke .mipnod o» the. end nf t'"i\ time, end the head office accented his )'"\sipnifion. Ammon was on one' fined 20s. and costs (75.) for camhlinir on railwa-r premises: he wis also reported once foe hcin" nh"cut from duty" In repl" fnl Vk fl'o—-s-w v-:»»».'. 5 c„m Ihet, fhn Department had not considered It. necessary to >ck" Ammon for the offences mentioned.. It was some 15 months alter th" comrmsj'on of ii>-- »•■-. ty;,, partment accepted Amnion's resignation ' i Entries in the Ouest Book; . Ruby Tiyford, office assistant at the I'coPies Palace. Cuba Street, described th* office practice in the entrance of names In the euest-book. She stated iiwt Minames of "permanents" were -.written In red ink. If a person hooked for a v>ci : his or her name would on each day froiii the commenccmsnt of the week'lie entered in Ted ink. for that duy. and .for one day nliead as well. Witness had before her tho eucst-book for 1913.

Mr. Blair: Now I want, you r.o turn to Thursday, October 17, 19)3.. TJo von see the name "Tnrfs" cut out and-the -mmo Ammon put In?— Witness': "The naim Inss' in red ink. is not in my handwriting. Tne pencilled name 'Amnion' i 3. 'liirs' was written- in by a Misc Hubbard, who was employed at the Palace ir I9IR" Will you c.vnlain what is meant, by the ftcures '7s. 6d"?-"She just booked for tne one night,'

How do yoii ltiiow. it.. was a )adv?-"Wo put. only ladies In that corridor." What is the explanation of the fact that the ml ink entry has h»<>n i-nt ont and the pencilled entry nut, in?—" The red ink entry would he put" in on the W.-d----nesday. The lady came- ond cancelled tier room, and her name was cut ont. ]f anyono conies and cancels the mom we just cross out, the mime. ITo His Honour): If a 'permanent' boarder cancels the room, we. strike out the red ink ',M>-y ond enter the nanio of the casual iii pencil."

, Witness nointed to cevcrnl entries whi'-h she said had hen altc-cl in the day i-\m hr>d just described. She showed n red St-atford" altered to a pencilled "Morgan": a red "Stratford" altered to a pencilled "White": and ton F-iday, October 18) a red "Ings" crossed out and -Amnion"- written In acain. Counsel addressed the jury and His Honour commenced his summing-un at p.m.

His Honour instructed, th'o jury that thn paternity nf jfrs. Amnion's second e'-ild was not the question tliev were called wUw C ?," le ' Tho »«eftion was merely whether if was ..roved that Mrs. Amnion had misconducted herself with Iteillv. If «in. W .'"'""l'lwt petitioner lmd"n,i,. S™' 1 '; Reilly, they niißiu av/ird l.y w „ v 0 f dnmnECS anv amount t'-at they ttiotnrht fit J at 59(i 3Ur TiJv tl r <1 ?* "- 30 ■^" 1,, Tt.m-iii.fi at i.M. thev found respondent and enrespondent »v-.i!i» 0 f adnlefy" id award, ed nstitiniicr £250 da maw* ™h\ ln?o°r n n?r dewd , tli " to be paid into Court, and ri'«i-vcd ~|| „iw puestionji for decision'to-day.