CHINESE ASSAULTED

Evening Star, Issue 23374, 18 September 1939, Page 14

CHINESE ASSAULTED

YOUNG MEN'S DRUNKEN ACT PRISON SENTENCE IMPOSED As the result of what counsel for the defence (Mr O. G. Stevens! described as “ the action of two drunken, stupid young fools,” William John Phillips (27) and Hugh Vincent Flack (2i) were this morning jointly charged before Mr H. W. Bundle, S.M., in the Police Court with having assaulted Harry Yee and with having wilfully damaged fruit and vegetables to the value of 10s. Flack was also charged with having assaulted Chin Yew Koong. Both the Chinese were in court and exhibited their injuries. The accused pleaded guilty to each charge. The story told to the court by Seniorsergeant Claasen was that the two accused bad come to town on Saturday, but had been unknown to each other until they met that evening in an hotel, where they stayed drinking until after 10 o’clock. They then proceeded down Maclaggan street to Rattray street, where they entered a Chinese fruiterers’ shop and threw vegetables about. The Chinese followed the accused when they left, and attempted to detain them, whereupon they were assaulted, suffering injuries to their faces. The assaulted men proceeded to the police station, and the accused were located at 2 aim. on Sunday by the police at Mount Cargill, where they had been taken by a taxi. At this stage they had sobered up and gave no further trouble.

Mr Stevens said that both accused had hitherto borne unblemished characters. and they now deeply regretted their action, which would not have occurred but for the fact that they had been allowed to remain drinking in a certain hotel until'late at night. Flack had picked up some of the vegetables from the doorway and thrown them into the shop, and, said counsel, the infection evidently spread to Phillips, who had acted similarly. Their conduct was quite unwarranted. When the Chinese attempted to forcibly detain Flack the latter’s tie was wrenched off and lost. Then it was that the trouble began. One of the Chinamen received two black eyes and the other an inlured eye, and the accused asked counsel to apologise both to the men and to the court. Both accused were labourers, Flack having been employed on a farm. They would pay for any damage done as the result of what was really s the action of drunken, stupid young fools. The Magistrate merely remarked that the assault was quite unprovoked, ami sentenced each of the accused to seven davs’ imprisonment on tins charge. 'On the charge of mischief thev were ordered to make good the damage done (10s). in default a further three days’ imprisonment.