RESIDENT MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

Evening Star, Issue 3462, 27 March 1874, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

Friday, March 27. (Before J. Bathgate, Esq., R.M.) _ Drunkenness.-John Campbell, Charles Campbell, and Thomas Kerr were each fined os, with the option of twenty-four hours* imprisonment; James Mahone, 40s or three days’. A Betting Row—George Belcher and Alfred Drake, the well-known book-makers.; wei e placed in the dock charged with assaulting and beating one Garden Sinclair, in High street, last evening. Mr E. Cook defended. The complainant. Garden O. Sinclair, a stockman, was put into the witness-box, and immediately Mr Gook objected to the prisoner* being jointly charged, but his Worship held that the information was quite legal, fbub ai a question of fair play, he would allow the prisoners to be separately • tried. ~ The charge against Belcher was then taken first, and Sinclair gave evidence as follows’ Between nine and ten last night I was in Princes street. I saw Belcher there. \ “mobbed” mej catching me by the boatcollar ; he also made use of the most' abusive language he possibly could. He said, “ Are you going to pay me 7” and I said “ YeS. bub not to-nighfc.” I had had a betting transaction with him. He cursed and swOpe f ’foi‘ between a quarter and half an hour,and wai f m P,.oyed all the time he was swearing in kinking ,ine on the shins.with his thick boots, •le had not hold of ine, but was evidently trying to get me down, so that he . and his mates might get the advantage of me'. Alter

knocking off my hat, he said “ Turn him upside dowo, and shake the money outsf sum. There -was a great crowd--about twice as many as in the Court. No one came to my assistance, because he and his mob were too strong. He did not strike ini because there were too many witnesses, bub pushing and pulling me about. Then catching hold of me by the coat, he you dent pay me the L2:twill rip rag off your back. 1 ! lie then proceeded.' id conjunction with Drake, to push me along Princes street towards a oab. : Belbhet said; “ Let ns take him down George streetiu a cab, and we'll take it out of him there.”- I hato r a moral certainty that if they hid taken me down George street they Would have t&ked nu m ? n ?y from m « and mauled me besides; They half got me in the cab, when I sang out that if there was a fair man there hj would not see me so treated. Some of the bystanders then interfered, getting between Belcher and me, and I got a slant to ; £Ah away, I got as far as Kattray street, and then ran as hard as t could to the police station, and there gave information. I have heard that they ran rafter die. Prior to being taken to the cab I was forcibly taken by Belcher and Drake tothe stmpue Hotel, and there Belcher tried .to bounce money out ofme. I vy&s pushed into a room, and there Brake kept pulling me by the ooat, while Belcher shook his ■fist in my face. The landlord came in and turned ,me out. Drake took an equal, 'if not the greater part in the assiult; Belcher was doing the kicking part quietly (Laughter.) My only acquaintance with the prisoner resulted from my betting' with him at the Bail and Mouth Botol ou the second day of the races, and he “bounced" me into that bet.—By Mr Cook ;lobtaihmy living as a stockman, ahd by “ shepherding. * I never u shepherded ” Belcher; I have thore sense than to do that. 1 saw Belcher at the iuap-ska races, and there bet him a'Ll,

which I paid. At the .Bull and Mouth I&et him L2 qn tfanjq against the field, anditriaa appointed that it should be paid at the Empire hotel on “settling night/ whickii generally the day after the races } but \ in this instance to-night is the advertised ‘‘ settlihg night. Bslcher won the bet. I was in- the Empire last night, and saw Bsloher there. 1 went to pay and receive. I xeceived shine money, and was *sked by Belcher and Drake to pay them the Lfi 1 was pwing then*. .> f had not the means of paying them on iue; | paia tha bets I lost to persons leaving town, L2 from Prihcb, and wouldhaVo paid Belcher if he had asked me oiyiuv. By saying “mobbed’* I mean that 1 was'so lammed into a corner of the room that unable to move. I was not turned but of the empire because I did not pay my bet, but be* .cause Mr, Dodson did not desire to have axotr in his bouse, I have never been .“posted” yet. —Sergeant Pair deposed to seeing, a crowd m Princes street, and Drake and BelcheV pushing Sinclair along forcibly, .thp latter resisting. Heard one of. them say, “.Take bun to the jetty and- duck him,” and saw both Drake and Belcher run him towards the cab-stand and lift him into a cab. Drake told the cabman to drive off and he would P a ,y ; !> ufc witness went to the cabman ‘and told ium not to move. Witness then went to the back of the cab and told Drake and Belcher to leave him alone, which they did. Saw bmclair at the Polioe Station; ho seemed to have been badly treated.' in cross-examination, witness said he did no “ w atd aiQ clair call for the police. He did not think it safe to wre wfr Ch . aa Boloher single-handed. hrSl- at «- M i Guire B ? id ■ Be,oh « r Dralfe brought Sinclair to hi? oah by fproe last evening. They were .not able ' to put .Imn into the cab. Drake told witness to'drive on and he would pay.—Mr Cook, after ad. dressing the Court at considerable length, called Alfred Drake, who said; l amf a book-maker, and also engage professionals and take them round the country.—His Worship • What, professionals like Belcher ? (Laughter). Theatricals I mean. I knew Sinclair by making a bet with him. 1 was at the Empire last evening. “ Belcher. off °thp vir a 1 we ™ tLe “ f “® Mbard - room the “ settlingroom - they call it. ! In the passage, •[ said to Sinclair_ “y ou owe me =siwi money, please pay me,” and he strid he would as soon as soda as he got paid by Prince. The !fu and P« d him. Whereupon L2 h«o to pay him (Belcher) the an • {smolair B »id he could hot, and I rec / IVed aQ y Belcher We him , Pet moQe y from Prince. ~®f Ada Mr Dodson turned “S'. 0 * Either Belcher nor I^wS I BWear ' that Belcher ever laid a hand 1 on him in the room. i n • ou .^ s,do we hod some wrangling I asked him if he would pay me part of the money and leave the rest stand'over, and he / 8 , Ba \ d be ‘would not. , I then said‘l wotud shake it out ; -that isfthe long and short of it. Belcher did not « any*

thing tohim. ' Sinclair owed about L 15.0 for beta;; ; ; Ha, said ifwo would -come with him he*would pay;us a? he had no mosey witlj him. .The- crowd followed us, and. people, were hooting him and calling ; on him to pay the money., We were much pressed, 1 could hardly stand on my feet myself. I didn’t see any kicking, nor do I think there was room for any kicking. When Sinclair got on the cab step, Sergeant Fair came up and told ns to let him go, which we did. There wore .several proposals made by the crowd to duck Sinclair. I was close to him all the time, and never saw Belcher strike him Wh«n; he., said, he would settle, I was perfectly satisfied, and; wanted him to get mtot the cab to get out of the crowd. Sinclair was quite willing to enter the cab • bn t crowd pressed too closely. Belcher and Co, are only bookmakers. I only at tended the “big” meetings at Christchurch and Dunedin with Belcher. I swear I was not at Tpkomririro, Lawrence, Tapanni, or Liyde races with him. I am not a pugilist. “—Frank Hill, bookmaker, saw the altercatlo“* /Would swear that Belcher did not strike Sinclair. If the complainant, Sergeant Fan*, or the cabman said Sinclair was taken to the cab by force, they told a lie— His Worship, addressing the prisoner, said ; George Belcher, you are charged with assaulting Garden Sinclair, in High street, evening. The complainant swears distinctly that you pushed him into a the Empire Hotels iwhere the *WW®fd Very properly put. s him out., and you kept bp your inalidous ihtentioh of assaulting him by actually following him intpythe public street; and you then- and were .Attempted to put him into a cah for w; purpose of taking him away, so, that, you could .better get your will of him. He swears all that most distinctly. Then it may be said he,is a betting man ; there is no doubt he is.. Certainly if his evidence bad stood;alone .J. not ha,ye:been inclined to place the same weight oh it as (it being corroborated) I must now do.. I cannot' give 7 ’ in thia Oourt ttffc ijamh weight and effect to evidence coining from the nibhths ! of ’ persons following*- an I unlawful 1 employment; asH am bound to glve to -that of persons who get their livelihood in a decent,

respectable, and becoming manner. " But this case does not depend altogether on' Sinclair’s unsupported testimony. The se geant of police, Who; has no in giving an exaggerated account of what took place, tells a-plain story, which, corroborates Sinclair’s (evidence in - important pavticu lars. . . . Oil the other side it is true, -there is : the . evidence ,of Drake, the acpesspry and. accomplice,.-who .foliovgsof ;,a book-maker, and is a partner of the prisoner. Looking at t]be facts, the close, connection between ,|)rake and' Belcher . and the occupation of these men, I have ne hesitation in saying that Drake was-gnilty of gross and deliberate falsehood in witness box. Hill, who’ also follows the same discreditable profession, does not go so far as Drake, because he admits he saw Belcher take hold of Sinclair’s coat j but he says that the three witnesses referred to (Sinclair, Fair, and M'Gmre) had each sworn falsely ih. saying that Sin olair was pushed along to the cab. Weighing the evidence fairly and with every desire, if I could, to give the -prisoner the benefit of any doubt, 1 mast throw that evidence overhoard also, and say that Hill too was guilty of> gross and deliberate falsehood; We* Bsfta then, the assault clearly and distinctly proved. The question remains, what, is.the character of that assault ? In one ‘ sense, theassaulb is not of a severe character—the* injuries were hot severe—but -in another point of view the assault was of a very aggravated kind. What it was about is also an aggravation. , You actually 'attempts, to enforce in an unlawful and forcible manner the payment'of money. . . . Such things cannot be to’erated in a civili-ed dommnniity. tookihg, then, at the mature atxd;pufpbsiaj of the assault, I have rid-hesita-tioh 'in saying that it is one of - a-vbry 'aggravated character. Then I would be inclined ; in cases of this kind, to -take the. prisoner’s character into account. - It appears he ha?, sUnlawful calling ; is; what is called a bookmaker—a man not of the slightest use in' a young country like - this ; quite' the’irevorse. I can only characterise bookmakers as being very like hawkk br birds' of prey, and we know the fate those animals generally ex perience. i■■ ■ It,- is my. • duty,.. sitting here, to prevent by any means in my power any repetition df ! such scenes as these amongst those gentlemen who follow that calling—if I dare use such a term. I oarjudt accept a fine in this case, neither will I in any similar case. If book-makers' forget, themselves so far as to : endeavor by force am J *l. _ _ a.- _ _ • I .1 •■■ « .< » -

and violence to carry out their unlawful purposes, they unapt be. taught that; the is than they are. The q[ueatiqn remiuna in ;my mind what’ is the, proper punishment—the proper term of imprisonhot only punish you,- George Belcher, but to deter others from committing such /a crime jntjme to come. Probably this is the first pccasiph that the'law.has hpen: laid"dQwn in this way, and I am-not inclined to puah it to the .fnU extremity of three months. I cannot give leas than thirty dajs, and the sentence of the Court 'is that you, George Belcher, be imprisoned for thirty' days, with hard labor.

Alfred..Brake,,.Belcher’s ‘‘confederate,” was, oh the re-assembling of the Court at 2.30, charged, with assaulting Sinclair.—Mr Cook, who appeared for defendant, said the prosecutor was willing to withdraw the charge,—His Worship: la it prosecutor’s desire that the case be withdrawn f—Mr Cook: Prosecutor is here, and is willing to withdraw the information.—Sinclair then stepped forward,—His Worship; Do you wish this information to he ’'withdrawn i Sinclair replied in the affirmative. He only wanted to show the men that he was willing to deal honestly with them.—His Worship said, ; that in this case the' Court could not deal with it against the wish of the informaat. The Jaw had been fully vindicated in the case the other prisoner Belcher. He (his Worship) hoped that Drake would see the risk that he ran into. He had tried to screen Belcher by making false statements, but the law always looked upon the witnesses for the prosecution with greater favor, when false statements were made by the witnesses for. the..defence. Prisoner was following a hazardous life, and one that would receive no encouragement in a young country like this;—-Prisoner was then liberated, and as he Ipft the Court warmly shook hands with the prosecutor."-''< Vagrancy. —Kate Boyle, who appeared in Court with a child in her arms, was charged tyith b'avjng ho visible means of support.' It appeared that prisoners husband had to leave her in conscience of her intemperate habits. He wrote some time ago saying that be was filling to maintain her,’"but he was afraid that she would drink the money away. Nhe had also been in the hands of the committee'Of the Benevolent Asylum. She Wat sentenced fro ! tWo mouths’ imprisonment/''

'Neglected T title Ones', -Cornelius (8), John” (6), and Mary Ellen (2) Boyle, children ■ of the last prisoner, appeared hatless and bootless, to answer the charge of being neglected children. —Sergt. O’Neill tetind the children sleeping in an open place’ They were all "sent to the Industrial School ISF'eightYears, and ordered to be'brdught up in the Roman Catholic form of religion.. Labceny. James Porter was charged with Stealing from the Monster Arms Hotel, the . bight of the 7th of February, dhe* ~ irieertcfaatUß 'pipe, of ’ the value ’of lA, the property of Patrick’ O’Brien.—

i Prosecutor remembered SatuH ay night, th ;7th February. Prisoner slept in the sitting I room on that night. A pipe was lying oi I the mantleshelf when prosecutor went t< ;bed. He could not find it next morning : Pipo produced was the one referred to. I , ; was worth a pound. He saw it in the hand ■ the police three or four days after h’ missed it.—Sub-Inspector Mallard then ex . plained that it was a most impudent theft ; I’he pipe cot into the possession of on Whelan, who had either stolen it from pri ,soner or acted in concert with him, and oi the morning following the one on which pri ■soner slept in O’Brien’s house Whelan sold i to one Wright. Prisoner went to Whelai and accused him of stealing the pipe, in con sequence of which the two went to the polici station, and Whelan was given into custody by the prisoner. When the case came be fori the Court the prisoner could not be found The robbery was, therefore, a double one Prisoner was sentenced to sixty days impri sonment. \ CIVIL C 'SES Kane v. Meikle.—Claim, Ll4 9s 3d. Judg ment by default for the amount claimed,— M'Keuzie v. Thomson Bros —ln this case heard at Port Chalmers on Tuesday last, hit Worship gave judgment with costs. The remaining rases on the list were ad j ourned till. Wednesday next.