SHOCKING MURDER IN TASMANIA.

Evening Star, Issue 3775, 31 March 1875, Page 2

SHOCKING MURDER IN TASMANIA.

A shocking murder case, by a boy, aged twelve years, named Hazel wood.is reported from Hobart Town. The victim is a boy named Hooper, son of Mr-Hooper, of George street, Battery Point; Hooper being missing, Hazelwood wag interrogated by a party in search,, which went to tiaielwood’s hut. On looking round'the hut, seme of the party discovered blood and a portion of. brains oh the chimney and on the bark of Which the hut is composed. This aropsed suspicion, but they could not elicit any information from Hazelwood. They, again proceeded "'to the bush, and after some search came on traces of blood, which they followed |up. About 150 yards feom the hut the body of Hooper was discovered. He had been dragged from the hue and placed under, a log and covered with scrub and boughs. On uncovering the beds it was discovered that the i back of the head was almost blown off, from! which it was assumed that deceased wks shot from behind, ' The face was but slightly dis-1 figured ; in fant the anly injury was the loss of a. few teeth. Si ear the body throe holes' had been dug by the. murderer,'apparently i with the intention of jurying the body. His! progress ja sinking the holes was evidently; I staved by dfonaing. ppj solid pook, and iej; had' chosen .fche lug: ns the nearostabd most expedition*' means efoonoealment. J

THE RETIREMENT It being known* that bis Raoor man, having forwarded blsrtsigtftSioti to the Governor, wonld retire; fifth' the DMoh after the proceedings in banco 6f this die-. pos«- of, nearly all the membitM tb* Supreme Court, barristers, and attg&fte, resident in Dunedin were iprsApit. Tmsirtiames were—Mesas Anderson, 1 Adamh, GitE. fiartoh, S. Brent, :0. B. Barton, ;F. R C. R. Ohapmam G. Cook, I ®. Cook, J. Ru Harris/ B. C. flaggitt, W. M. Hodgkin*’ H. floworth, W. Hehderson, A. flolmev .£ Joyce, P. Kenyon, 0. 0. Kettle,-J. Lewis, J. Maeassey, S. Muir, J. Mouat, w. D. Stewart, R. Stout, J. Smith, A. W. Smith, J. R. Sinclair, and G, K. Turton. There were also preeent Mr Rsgiv trar Ward and Mr Sheriff Watt.

Three’applications by Msssrs W. D. Stewart. R. Stout, ~ and' J. Smith havjng besttlisard'sna disposed of, , Mr G. Coox rose and, addressing ti« Honor, said:—

Sin, —This being the day appointed for your Honor’s final retirement from the Bench, and «is no fresh business can therefore be conveniently entered upon, it may be considered that, your Honor’s judicial career has now endedH As this is so, I have to ask ; ypur Honor’s per- : nussion to say for myself, and Tor my brethren pf the bar, whe have selected me as their Spokesman far i this* 6ecaeien, ; a few bitting ]rords expressive of our esteem for your Honor, and of our regret at your departure from fmong ns as a body of legal practitioners. Sir, if some of tho*e of my.brethren who have been engaged iu the more exciting litigation that has at times occupied the attention of this Court have ever hastily said or done anything that has caused your Honor the slightest pain, I am sure they wish that what they eo said or did wetfe r unsaid or undone, because I brtieve they notv heartily join the rest of us ih this tribute of respect to your Honor. Sir, it ia nbw just •leven years since your Honor became a Judge of the Supreme Court, of <thie Colony lor the second time and took your seat on the Benoh for this district. During the greater part of this your tenure of office,.yeur Houorhas been unaided in your judicial duties by any other Judge, The business of the Court has always been considerable and, at times, heavy, both in character and quantity; but your Honor’s industry, added to considerable powers of endurance, has always enabled your Honor to get through the work with comparative ease, j ‘‘Sir, we are, and cannot bat be sensible of your courtesy towards us on all occasions, of the great patience with which yon f have always listened to our arguments, and 0 f y our efforts always t6 endeav. r to grasp the time joints of every case brought before yott for adjudication. Sir, for all this wethank you, not only for ourselves but on behalf of those whose interests have from time to time been committed to our care. We feel, and the Sublio most feel, that yonr retirement will eprive the community of an experienced and able Judge, and that the loss will be theirs, whatever may be the merits ef your Honor’s successor. “ Sir, you canx with you into, your seclusion our best wishes for your future happiness, both individually ancf in your domestic relations. May you be long Spared the use of nil your faculties entire, to enable yon to enjoy that repose you have earned so well, .and to follow those pursuits that, are congenial % your tastes—pursuits that tend, when property followed, to elevate and adorii the mind, and to lead those who : follow. them' hopefully on to the time when addresses suoh as these are futile and useless.

Sir, with these few valedictory words,-per* mitusnow to bid yon, in your judicial capacity, a respectful and final farewell.*’ -

, His Honor, after listening to this address, jrose to reply, but spoke with much difficulty through the emotion with which he was affectedl He .said; —Mr Cook *and -gentlemen of .the Bar : I beg you will accept my very wirdfel thanks for the kind expressions which have fallen from Mr Cook, which I know echo the feelings of the Bar. I have had a long teanto ,of office in this Colony, extending over nineteen years, with the. exception of a short period. Eleven years have been passed in this district, with the exception of a short time when I was absent. Donng such a period it is almost'has* possible that a number of men could meet in contests, involving perhaps a good deal of human passion apd argumentative annoyances, without expressions falling from them that should not have been used. Ido not at all forget that a Judge is subject to similar infirmity, and that occasionally expressions may have _ fallen from my Ups which, though not intending it, may have caused some pain to the minds of some. These inadvelS' tences are much too well known and understood to last long in the minds of counsel. A man must, indeed, be of very weak mind if he supposes he can pass through the world and not take those little expressions as mere words which should be forgotten as soon as felt, ; Generally, I may say, during the whole of the nineteen years I have sat on the Bench, toy relations with the Bar have been of a satisfactory and even friendly nature, and therefore it is | that I feel this retirement from the office I hold, Some philosopher, I think it wa* Dr Johnson, said, “we never do anything far the last time without regret. Even a prisoner who his prison, looks back with regret on something that has occurred—some loudness perhaps that he has experienced there which has mitigated his sufferings. I, too, regret that tins is the last time I shall sit as Judge in this Court. Sitting as I have done in the' exeroise of a profession of which I have always been fond and proud, which has led me into studies congenial to my own feelings and tastes —studies not only pertaining to. the teobnibattties, of my profession, hut which were necessary to the clear conception of the cases which before me—the woik I have had to do, although sometimes a Uttle pressing, has on the whale been only such as to keep the mind'alive 'and iii a healthy action. It has not been so oppressive as probably it may time be when the Colony has doubled its present population. Perhaps one or two words as to my experience in the Colony will not be quite out of place in connection with the office J have so long held. I came to New Zealand in 1843. At that time there were only 11,000 Europeans in the coimtry. There was no production 'for trade ,in the Colony. Tho only article of export was whale oIL We in Wellington did not know anything of the Middle Island. The West- Coast wae tOtaUy unknown, although now' proving a mine of wealth. We knew of this part of the country only that there was a Port Coeper. and that a gentleman lived in this neighborhood legally known as John Jones, Esq., of Waikousitf. We were totally ignorant of the whole of this Island and of its resources. Now we have m New Zealand a population of 300,000. That feet explains, the variety, of operations which have created the laws which we have for the last eleven years been engaged in dispensing to the best of our ability. One testimony to the prosperity of this Colony.is to see the. number of wigs and gowns I now see before xhei My earnest wish is—that in your profession, addin your domestic privacy you may have health, happiness, and prosperity. Although it is the last time I shall ait on thfc Banck* I hops it is by no means the last time I shall have the pleasure of seeing yony-though not as Judge bat as Mr Chapman.” His Honor then retired.