RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT. POST CHALMERS.

Evening Star, Issue 3923, 20 September 1875, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT. POST CHALMERS.

Mo. DAT, Sli u T£MfER 20. (Before H s Worship the Mayor and Captain Thomson, J.P.)

D huxKE.VNEsy.—John Parker, Ceorge Jones, iiiu J a., nek Wiiijh were lined ten shillings, or tweii~y-f >u r ami Henry Cooper twenty shillings, or forty-eight hours. ■ mbmzmnq ship's a\noo.-J..hn Clark and ( ,eoigv -'t-nh.-y. wo huh* belonging to the ship , dV-m- 1 ’ we }!l charged upon the information ot Worster. with having, while at. sea during the voyage from London to New Zealand, embezz.td four tins of confectionery, of the value of 1.4 Both plea -«d not guilty.William Worste. said he was matter of the ship ■yVd.imea. Hut ween twelve and one on the morning of the Bth of .September, the chief olhcer informed him that, one of the single men paSbiiitiora hau been two men go down the fore hatch with a naked light. Witness immea atciy ordtTcd tli- cbifcf und the quartermaster to go down, who found the two prisoners. About 9 a.m. witness went down m company with two others, and found four tins produced close to the mam hatch, ai d on searching further found the empty case produced right aft. Witness said he did not think oi the value of the confectionery so much as of the danger of carrying a naked light. Every pi.-caution had been ink. n during toe voyage to keep anyone from -citing down in the hold.—By the Bench : tdark a behavior during the passage had been * bad ihe forehatcii was always kept locked.— Alex. Pollock said he was assistant storekeeper during the voyage Between twelve and one mi the morning of the Bth of September, while ly.ng m his bunk, Clark cmne down the ’tween decks and opened the lore hatch lock. Shortly atier Stanley came down, and they both went im o the hold. Witness called to them to come back or he would call the constable. After calling the constable he wont and told the chief officer, who snortiy ah or came down with <ne of the quartermaster, name : Dempsey, who vm.t down ai d fecoheo. up hj two hoys.’ bv Aeigeant Neil: At tlie iiiiithe prisoners curae down witness tlmu.ht they were going to get some charcoa' 1 , but when he saw Mm naked light he consideiod ;t ids duty to report the same. Witne-s had seen the prisoners go d-.wii before but in the day*ime only. It was not m-ual for anyone to go down the hj, Id ; t night.— Henrv Demptey, quarter-master, sanl Stanley was in his watch in the morning in question Winiess misled him, and called him sovetal times, but c-uld get no answer, shortly after the chief officer came and tmd him to go down the hold and fa id the two boys and alter some time wi m S s found them do e to the main hamh, Uark h<d a naked light in his hand. There were sever d small tins close to where they were standing, bur witness did not see any rf the t.ms now' pi-duced. Clark then asked witness it the mate knew anything of their being down in the hold. Close to where Clark was standing there was a quantity of loose straw. By the Bench: It was a -mil pnee of wax cambe about an Vv t:l1 - , !‘,' ng that ( ’ lark was holding. Daniel Harr saui he was acting , s one of the constables. Bn-we n twelve ind one on the morning in que: tiou Pollock woke him and in-uirnuol-l.ua th.«t twomtn hj -dgone down the mud with a naked light. Witness immedint.ly g>t up and cad- d the other constable who wont .-md informed the chi f officer. Witness short y after vent down and saw Clarke with a naked light in his hand —ln defence, the prisoners stated that the doctor had giv.n fclu-m pennisKiun to have any charcoal til y could nud down in the hold, as the s.-amen were always of the forecastle being damp, ilie, were not aw&ie that they were ooing any harm in taking down a naked light, as they had oft- n seen the s-eond mate and others do the same. They were discharged, io a, further charge of carrying a naked light into ine ship’s hold, thereby endangering the shq> and all on board, they pleaded guilty, and were sentenced to three mont hs’ hard labor.