RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Evening Star, Issue 3395, 8 January 1874, Page 2

RESIDENT MAG ISTRATE'S COURT.

, v , IHUBSDA\% XiNUARY 8. ' ' ' (Befor J. Black, Esq , and J. Brown, Esq., J.P.’a.) Drunkenness— John- 1 Ancus '.anA Joseph Bukby were each fined hs, - with the option of 24 hours’ imprisonment; James APhedie, 10#, or4Bhours.—Francis O.South, .the, man who had .been acquitted at the Supreme Court 'on ihe previous day on a charge of stabbing Constable Vernon, was now charged with being drunk and disorderly at the hospital at 6.30 last evening. Prisoner :’pfeaded , that he was ; not' in his right../niind. ’/After bring discharged yesterday morning: be only had' a little drink, whehlie was taken bad: and proceeded to the hospital, and on. Arriving there-was locked up.—He ■ t^al‘> tlien :< 'dhar|ed‘ with rff! sitting a police ’constable While in f! the execution of duty. .. Constable ‘Gilbert stated the charge. Oh arfestihg him, prisoner bit his, linger (marks of which! ho' still boro) and kicked Tjiih. Thhre waVA Jurthbr (Shairge of vAgrimcy against South: • Prisoner said, he could means of the Telegraph Department that' he ' Had ’received money from his lather yesterday. He’ was ■ tiot a Vagrant.—Sergeant Golder took- the prisoner to.the gab'P aboub six months' a»o, affd'ne ’expressed ! his ■ inability to teave • 'A k® had no ‘'Weans, Witness hacL : since taken him to the upspital, but had not known him to do any v work from that! time.:"' Prishner’s : conduct last evening at-the time of liis arrest was, positively.'disgraceful,. and: the row he \ was making at the hospital couldbb heard 1 right _along :tho stre&t as far as the North' Dimedm station. He had no money bn him.; —On the chafgebf drunkenness prisoner was -fined LB, in default fourteen days’ imprison-, nient; on that;, of resisting;,the constable ■ LlO, or ;u one calendar-' month ; and for: vagrancy,, six creeks? itnprisohment with .hard! labor the sentences to be,cumulative. ■ Alleged Highway OBSXRuexxqN. —'Nicoll' Booth, carpenter, of Water of Leith'Valley, complained: that John Parker, dairyman, did .on the 17th November, without lawful, authority, make and maintain a certain fence across a publicihighwaV situate in the Waikari district, whereby the said public - high-; ij'W h?canie obstructed, Air Harris appeared for tho complainant, and Mr Hqworth for the.rdefendant.— draughtsman Jn, the department,!* produced the Grown grant and working line of block II,i js or th ;Harbpp, : jind: Blueskiu districts. A road line passed through the land referred to in the direction . of. the Water 1 of Leith.—; Joseph . M.-, Masgey w;as -preceding up tie valley of the Leith,in company With some friends; on, Spring Day, and, after crossing the stream: ;^as M informed by Parker that they were trespassing! Th.erb was au obstruction in the shape of a gate, which was 9P?b-~H- Niched Booth, the complainant; saM the road,line referred to . was on the original map; at. the time he purchased the . Thu .r.oafi where the obstriictiofa now oxista was bn the plan afc ; the tiihe lie puri chased .the land., /There is, an obstruction at each end, as also a board intimating that trespassers would be prosecuted. In consequence of tliisf tObstruction, ho had been prevented using this road for about three months. He had not brought this action from any vindictive motive,-but merely to be enabled to use the road, as its being obstructed had entailed loss to him to tHe extent of L2o, Mr Skey, having been recalled, stated in answer to the Bench that the difficulty was caused by the river not bring shown in the same place on the map and tracing. --Andrew . Ross, servant to Parker, remembered; a person named Jeffs going 1 through his employer’s .-property about t the 1 fab November laht. Knew, the Bend, iff the river on tHe sketch, as also the gatei.- - Acting on Parker’s instructions, he-spoke to Jeffs, whb ttiok the panels down and walked’ through; Witness putting them up afterwards. To Mr Howdrth: • He had ibeea in .Parker’s employ for two years,, and no one‘had parsed ibrohgh tlie .prpperty. : —\yil) Lahi it DouglSs, 1 who /; 4iad‘ known the Leith Valley-for thirteen years . gave' corroborative'' /evidence;—sl r 1 Harris' having intimated / that was-his base, ; their Worship's'constilteß' for a few moments “ after which-Mr-Black eaid th&t he wm mstructed by Mr Brown to state that,; in com Sequence of the presiding Justices not having' had '-much cxpeHence in*;conducting ; such cases, they would like to, Lave a short,time -to consider their verdict.n-This seemed to take Mr-Howorth by surpritte, and he said ‘‘surely" worships were not to ignore ,thj4‘'deljndant’s *case ” He ' had 1 " sonde Witnesses' 1; to- i'bail whp 1 had lived, id the, neighborhood for nearly twenty years, ’ 'and*: 'who. / knew, imarly every inghr6f the land.—Mr Blackasked to _b§ ekedsed, as he was not yery welL informed in such matters; add ijfwasj ddctdb| : not; to enter intathe defence for.half-amhoari an Adjournment being granted for that time. —On resuming, several Witnesses for the der ffence were caHed,:aH ‘of whom stated .-that the proper .roadway. was through property •owned by a man named Campbell, and not tmough that of the defendant.—Judgment' ,reserved. 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