RESIDENT MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

Evening Star, Volume VII, Issue 1918, 29 June 1869, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

This Day,

(Before James Fulton, Esq., R.M.)

DRUNKARDS. James Wynward, Margaret Forbes. Joseph Snowball, Jenny Howart, and John Robinson, were each fined 10s and costs, for drunkenness.—Elizabeth Hakman, for disturbing the public peace, having been previously convicted several times, was fined L5 or 14 days’ imprisonment. PETTY OFFENCES. John Hyman was fined 1s for having no light burning at his licensed house.—E. Lockey, for a foul chimney, and James Kirk, for riding on a footpath, was fined 5s and costs. APPLICATION. On the application of Mr Wilson, for Mr Barton, the case of Mary Kilmartin v. Hagan was adjourned for a week ; the complainant being allowed costs. THROWING STONES. Two boys named Brett and Lockhart were charged with this offence. Detective Thomson represented that the parents of the children were too poor to pay a heavy fine, and on the lads promising to abstain from throwing stones in future, they were discharged. BROTHEL. Catherine Mason was charged by Constable Taylor with keeping a house of ill-fame in Stafford street. Mr Wilson appeared for the defence ; Detective Thomson conducted the prosecution. Constable Taylor said that on the Presbyterian Fast Day there were three girls making a disturbance in the house, by which the neighbors and passers-by were annoyed and disgusted. He had heard various complaints from passers-by that they had been importuned by prostitutes living in that house. On the night of the Presbyterian Fast Day, a number of people passing up and down, and the residents in the vicinity, were very much disgusted with the disorderly conduct going on, and wished him to put a stop to it; but he replied he could not interfere. The witness gave a list of the previous convictions of various girls, inmates of the house. In reply to Mr Wilson,

The witness said that Mrs Mason's husband had been imprisoned twenty-four weeks for the offence with which Mrs Mason was charged. Detectives Farrell and Colder described Mrs Mason’s house as very elegantly furnished, but they had no hesitation in charact rising it as one of the worst brothels in Dunedin. Mrs Mason’s children were allowed to see all that went on. Several men had been robbed there. Reputed thieves had been arrested in the house. Robberies had been frequently committed there. Mrs Mason sheltered herself behind the delicacy of those who had been robbed, who did not like their names to be made public.

Mr Wilson maintained that there was no case against his client, for there was evidence she was a married woman, and that her husband had been convicted and liberated a week. Secondly, although the Corporation had pass d a bye-law there was no power given to enforce it. The bye-law was passed under Section 186, but that section gave no such power. Various powers were conferred by that section, such as naming streets, numbering houses, regulating spouts, drains from houses, crossings from footpaths, water channels, depositing building materials, obstructing the streets, water draining from roofs, places for public meetings and recreation, public gardens, regulations of buildings, foul chimnies, depositing inflammable materials, water tanks, nuisances, slaughter houses, carriage of persons and goods, carters, boats and boatmen, and other matters. The Corporation had no power to pass such a bye-law as that under which the information was laid, and if they had no power to pass the law, the Court could not entertain the action. Secondly, the defendant was a married woman, and therefore the information should have been laid against her husband. The Magistrate adjourned the case for a week to consider the points raised. OFFENCES AGAINST THE BYEKLAWS. The following persons were fined the sums and for the offences enumerated: —John Walsh driving without a light, 1s. ; Alexander for the same offence, 1s; James Edwards for leaving an express waggon in the street, 5s ; Janet Adams, a cow wandering, 5s ; Alexander Wood, riding on a twohorse dray without reins, 5s; Edmund Brown, a horse wandering, 1s.

INFORMATIONS BY INSPECTOR NIMON. J. W. Allen, throwing ashes in Moray place, dismissed,—Maitland Kirman, riding on a footpath. 55.—Henry Dickenson and Andrew Miller, driving on the footpath, 5s each.—Robert Hay and L. Solomon, charged with not keeping right-of-way clean, case adjourned.— Filthy premises : Hickie, 5s ; John Smith, 2s 6d ; John Jarritt, 10s; E. M'Liskey, dismissed ; John Briggs, 10s ; James M‘Donald, 20s ; Dennis Heenan, dismissed ; Frederick Harkness, 2s 6d.—Obstructing the Channel: A charge against J. Packham for obstructing the channel in Princes street and the Octagon was dismissed.