RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Evening Star, Issue 3453, 17 March 1874, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Monday, March 16. (Before J. Bathgate, Esq., R.M.) P. Towers v. F. Wi Is.—This was an adjourned action for L 49, damages sustained through breach of agreement, and monov lent. Mr M'Keay for plaintiff, and Mr Johnston for defendant The following additional evidence was taken:—B>ank Towers bad written to Mr Burford, who is at Tuapeka. sent a subpoena, and paid his passage money. A letter was received in reply from ;< r Burford, who regretted having lost the agreement, but was able to state the terms, which were similar to those contained in a copy of the agreement in witness’s possession. Witness said the document produced was compared with the otiginal by Mr Wills. On account of Mr Burford leaving the company through private affairs, Mr Wills undertook to carry out his engagements, and made a new agreement with witness similar to that with Mr Burford Before leaving Invercargill a benefit was due to him, but Mr Wills said he was not very

flush of money, and asked him to wait until they arrived at Tuapeka. On the evening of Friday, .the 13th February, while at witzers, some slight dispute occurred between Mrs Towers and Mrs Wills behind the scenes during the performance, and witness advised Mrs Towers to retire to her room, which she did. Whilst in a billiard-room, about twelve o’clock in the night, witness beard a noise as though a door was b : -ing smashed in, proceeding from the bedroom of his wife On going there, he found Mrs Wills had burst open the door, and she was standing in a threatening attitude in the room, and using abusive language, IJe yen nested her to retire ; said she had nq right in the rpom, and she could talk about the rqatter in the morning. She thereupon struck witness a violent blow in the face with her clenched fist. She said, “Neither of you shall loaf <m me any more.” Mr Wills was present the whole time, and remarked that the\ should not play any more for him, and he would spoil their goings on. Witness was naturally very vexed, bat did not strike Mrs Wills back ; he could not do such a thing. There was a great deal of abue followed this.—Mr Bathgate : Your wife would be getting pretty hot ? Witness: Yes. The following morning, the 14th ult., Wili« packed up all his wardrobe, paid the board and lodging for witness and his wife up up to date, saying that he would not ba

responsible for any f cither debts in curred by witness’s wife .or himself. Witness said something about suing for money that was owing, and Wills answered that if he sued or annoyed him he would go straight to town and file his schedule. After they had left the district, witness had to engage the only vehicle in Switzers to carrv him and his wife to Tnapeka, and for this he was charged L 9 10s.—Mr Bathgate : Did you try to take him down a peg? Witness ; Yes, he first asked LII, He had also suffered the loss of a clear half benefit, about LI& What was meant by this was that he should receive a clear ha ! f of the gross re ceipts of the house.—Mr Johnstpn asked ihr cause of the quarrel between Mrs Wills and Vlrs Toners. Witness said the reason of it was that Mrs Wills was in a state of intoxication, and seeing Mrs Towers pome on tin stage by the wrong side ; but this could not be helped as they were obliged to use blankets or anything in the country. Mu Wills said she had no right to come in by the side. Mrs Towers replied that she could not help it, and it was too late to remedy it

then. Mrs Wills then told Mrs Towers to «o to a warm place—to go to —Mr Bathgate : Did she warm up'at that?— Witness ; No. Immediately after the fall of the curtain witness told Mrs Towers to go to !ier bedroom, being anxious that there should be no more quarrelling. She was perfectly sober—always was. The Company were advertised to play that night at Switzers, and as the others left, be rode about the country and told the people there would be a performance that evening by themselves, meaning himself, wife, and children. The people knew that the others had left, and they consequently had a small house. He remembered Mrs Wjljs taking a benefit ; that was when she was Mrs’Bqpford.— Mj» Bathgate : Have there been mai-y tiffs between Mrs Wi Is and Mrs Towers ’—Witness mswered that there had been frequent fails out. Mrs Wills w-is considered the star of the troupe, and Mrs Towers a very useful actress - John Hoyle, actor, heard part of the conversation which took place between the parties in the bedroom. He was neither drunk nor sober, having had four or five glasses of beer. This closed plaintiff’s case, and its further hearing was adjourned until Wednesday, Mr Johnston not undertaking to finish the defence in one hour. .i’. 1 " 1 - Tuesday, Margij (Before J. Bathgate, Esq., R.M,) Drunkenness —John Sewell was fined Ba, or torty-eight hours' imprisonment. Assault —Cnarles brewer, a respectablyore sed man, was charged with assaulting and beating Alice Outred on the 15bh March —Prisoner said, in answer to the charge, that the little girl went and sat on his knee’. -Hjs Worship said that, although the charge preferred fagajnat the prisoner was of common assault, there were very serious elements in it. Itw&afor prisoner to say whether he pleaded guilty or ndl Prisoner: Guilty, sir.—H; a Worship - What is the age of this girl ?-Sub.lnspectcr Mallard: Above ten years —His Worshipsa:d that prisoner had adopted a very wise course in pleading guilty. Had the ci-cumstances a intending the case been slightly more aggravated, prisoner would have been tried under the Offences against the Persons Act, and wojilcj have been tried before the Supreme Court, and wigbj; ha*e been sentenced to a term of imprisonment pot exceeding

two years. As it was, he might be fined LJO or sent to gaol for two months. If any person was found guilty of tampering with a child of tender years, then he (his Worship) would nob pronounce a fine, but the sentence in such a case would be a term of imprisonment, Prisoner having pleaded guilty, he would be sentenced to six weeks’ imprisonment, with bard labor.—A second charge of a like nature, the little girl'being a sister to tlje gir} in the previous case, was withdrawn by the prosecutor. VAGRANcr.—Bridget Kapp was charged With haying »»o visible means of support (having been previously .convicted), and' with an disorderly person under the Vagrancy Act ishe stated that if she were discharged she would go to the Refuge as she was sick of the gaol.—His Worship could not believe her. The gaol was to make her sick ; it was not intended for a place of comfort. The full term to which she could bo sentenced was twelve months; three months been tried, but without effect. He would give her another chance by sentencing her to six months, to see if she would

reform. —Prisoner : Weil your Worship, I think that sentence very unjust Obtaining Goons by False Pretences.— Quia .'dong, alias Sam Queen, alias May Ping, alias On Say, alias Flash Jammie, alias Queen Mong, was charged with having on the IvtA by means-of false pretences, obtained from Messrs Herbert, Haynes and

Co , three handkerchiefs, one silk scarf, one scarf ring, three pairs socks, one box collars, one paget suit, one silk umbrella, and one pair of gloves, the whole of the value of 1-5 15a 6d. —Sub-Inspector Mallard conducted the prosecution ; Mr Ah Chow anted as interpreter—James ardy, clothier: I am in the employment of Herbert, Hay ms and Co., Dunedin. I remember the 17th of January last. On that day 1 delivered to the prisoner one paget suit,- three handkerchiefs, one scarf, one scarf, ring, a box of collars, a siik umbrella, etc., the whole of the value of L 5 15s 6d. When delivering them to him he said his name was Moy Ping, and that he was agent for the Chinese on the railway in Invercargill. I knew that Moy Paing was agent for the Chinese, and parted with the goods believing prisoner to be that person. I have since made inquiries and found that prisoner was not Moy Ping, and that his name was On Say. I have not seen him from that time till the l lth- inst.—Quan Foo, Chinese merchant residing in Stuart street, said that he knew Moy Ping, Chinese agent, at Invercargill. Prisoner is not Moy Ping. His name is On Say.—This was the case for the prosecution. His Worship considered that a prinvx facie ewe had 1e n made out. If the accused wanted at his trial to show that he had authority to get the goods, he would have ah opportunity of doing so. Prisoner was then committed for trial.