SUPREME COURT

Gisborne Times, Volume IX, Issue 871, 22 April 1903, Page 3

SUPREME COURT

a vur, si if risas. (1.50,!!,, ilu’i ,e .Ur Jiioi® Cormily ) At the Sup, ouo Com 5 yf.-.o /Oii Y the fir .1, civil cor,;; Cti:,'!! V.oiill.lf oi C' ■ I, CO ,; oi her. V. it ,[>!•,- k. 1/c I"! II fu 11 (t Cii, i 111 '-I'' tfifos ill I I'l'O O VO- if if) il-ivc I, ,|. I'eoourl'. 1 11 Jl' I, U-l-l f! S' •< oi 4 "■■■ lor l ' >p , . , | r w. IkiS „|ipo o i l fur bit pi 110. . oil i .Ur k. U.jJoiu-.our 1;r tin; dcf nlllilll:-. .U ,• IS knniOiir s tbl tint*. .Ur k Ihnko'i • :: -i i.ot i*i c: h. cl '■. m.'ii ill'' IJl'i'tim H liny I ill'i 1i fo H-.iwr (leeid-l to t, i him in tii jui-ii iio n oil not been s i veil.

fri'op'i'iino t!;o c..Sr if -ot -a" ■ c were two sni.-fiiVl i-.-':i 1,1 W.tiilV'it which bc-ionm 'i In fi 1 rii'innir uiri of,mm Ai'ing ;i io i), (.fi m i.v 11 [in: K I'liukumu bmek, ' ■ no, : , of ;n, , ;t no nc "'whieb h nl Ve :mi bn - 0 i;; in i . it !■ H ’ .n- Int'l , ,1 ■ mill cin-r; ) 'no i, .i.mki. 'V line Of ,0 to,o !,.(,"!c. in c.' nor mu'" ■' ti, v i OIL o .mo Oil ik.m t.mnm w mum 1 ; r .1 "I" S ,:.o,■ T.n < mm win o,r .IkiOIJ un i .tloii for tt'Cifpa',',:. In -''f'P" 1 ~ ;nc ~:mn.,i c i.-c .', nl. v.mi given i V .1 15.0 kill", li V.mmi' ' ! mm -ti Vf i.oM ('•«!, hi'niii. o'.-nr- |. , ,r. ,; o I .'null non 'i. nu,l

V. '.II 11 1./Mlll* i.; 1-: :• i:. i. i:"uml e: i rll o i. who -.1. ,i ...w i,e ill. i li lit c■ I ill. h" '- '■■■ - p-:. III!) Hi U ■■l'll. WU 'I 1 i: -l tin: r.gm to :' l iiui'u r l:i i.i'i• t ,:l in; iio.i, in.-; expert -m:'. hum,; ii-i 1.,71. iO: knew I hn4l- s UO ior w, iirnl imil been ak -i H yww ago to i lit:: I 1,(00 eve by .Messrs J ihUCS OI |‘ nod Graham. Witness was last in tin: bush in October, bcloro the mill was erected, and he had scon it since it was erected. Last October he had ridden along the dividing line. It was a track eight feet wide. The mill was right on .lie dividing line. There could hn no doubt at all as to the dividing lino. Is had evidently I icon re-surveyed lately. To: men working at thn mid nad their houses oo Kumukuniu. lie mok notes of the marketable umbra' fallen, about four oi live chains in from lie' track. All the umber gut had not iicii taken away ; ok,'.'Of: It had been carried away, but there was Id.OOllft of good merchantable timber left on the ground, l’urt of the timber was list d for sleepers for the tramway to ! he rod:. .IMr,.-rice. It settler, residing at

i’, Kji itk i, .1 i,;-!,i it wis tii [ * e t u■ I■■ s ■liiUJ ’I.V K ti':.k;t lit W.li'i not. lie knew rmc Kumukumu and Vv'amora, biocus. '.VIIIICCS Cllt till! 1 i 111: -t. ■ll * I-I Ml' M.lttheWS was £.l to surveyor. Witness hud bi.'oii over ne lirif.-i this your. Tbo lino was out in ■ tbotiL LdSti, »ii’l win again ro cut it few V,. ;u -.s „j» >. Wii,r.-nA weal With -Mr Oxenv ,i ~i i.nufotiic ihi) butts of the trees, that nut bo hi cir.. \Vi■'iic:• s li.-.d it eouversau,„ ..villi Alt- Cooper a few days nit of their lifst visit, and pointed out to him that he ,ad out a tree nut on ids own side, and on a asked why ho did s > tin reply that it nave was that tin tree was hanging , la: i ; 1... i’>o‘\VCi U Mi: oil HUti

ns uexii vi-i:, ! • a l-bituniiv, anothef inv it. net II out dov.-n inside Kumukumu. lie .ii -.sui-( d the trees, nut Ala Oxeiiliiina re ,t ,-ti ti" ill In qintuniics. Some of the it-, s feiieti on Ktiniuliuiiiu w.-re three, four ~ jive ciniiiis l. .dt from tin line. Tin v, had been picked, and not taken in a a; i. i-tv Alt' l). LauUmr: Witnt.su cut trees ~ii 11 u< iersoru hin cutting tin hiio. Tile ~...i:j. 1 ,vy Jiiie was about W chains from :iu> eight feet truck. Anybody could sec i or line. I'hr.viii'd Lionel DoLautour staled that •dr i.'nLcrsun. Or Ihickrridge, and himself aaneii the Iviriik-t sovynlilling syndicate, fit January .Mr it per was a partner, but witness had since benight ins inUnOsLs. lie it t u.st teci ivcd word tiiat- timber hud .cell taken nit Kumukumu by iiio receipt ,1' a w rit in Sydney. The statement made „y Mr OxeiJiimu as to the conversation tiiat ho lmd received notice us to taking umber off Native blocks was not correct, rhey claimed no right to go in anil cut timber oil Na.tve land. by ihkii hritsui': Witness acquired Autimrii Ii block fro u Me Trice, and then made urrtiiigt-meii'.s to associate with

(J hers to mill the timber. Witness nrranged with Air Idop v to come and put in 'ne mill, and he. wai; r paid manager. Abuying the block witness went up to a to meet the steps to arr,,uge iiic boundary. which was pointed out by Air Trice. Witness could not see hull ii.ia l ./ clearly. Arrangements wore u; with Alaj.jr Winter to havo the- lino ,1 -ii,uni, SO as to keen ids own mil;[llr. - on proper ground. T.ie mill was in I jiit'C of construction before witness left

lor Sydney. Fur the defence it was submitted that it was accidental and defendants had paid into Court IMS 10s, value of the timber, and £lO for alleged trespass. Counsel pointed out that the damage was amply compensated by the amount paid into Court. They had paid la per 100 T royalty on the quantity of timber they would be prepared to prove was the maximum amount taken or uailiagetl. tie prupoiK d to call Major \Vir.ter, woo would toll the Court that ho tumid much difficulty in finding tiio boundary lino wnien Hr Oxenintut said was so easily

iiis Honor puintod out tho discrepancy between the parties’ estimate of the timber taken or damaged. Mr Oxenham made it 70,000 ft, while the defence put it down as only 30,0U0ifi. George doin'. Winter, surveyor, stated that ho lord surveyed tho Waihora I>Kumukumu bnuiulary. The boundary line was jagged at each on 1 and with a lock spit. Tiie scrub was cut, but none of die huge trees. This would be 17 or 18 years ago. Too time this line would last would depend on the size of the trees cut down, and whether it whs disturoed by emtio or other things. It might last for dll years. In November, 1902, he received instructions to survey tho lino oetwee 11 toe two blocks. He found it entirely overgrown, and throughout the whole length lie only found two or three indications of the previous cutting. An unprofessional man would nor have found the line. Lie hail been up a second time to aseor,.MU what quantity of timber had been removed from the bunk. Witness carefully examined all slumps of trees that hud os-'.n cut over the Kumukumu line. lie ex miined ail merchantable timber* with ,do exception of one tree, which he could not find. There were 20 trees and S :n;,! nckers,” making a total o'. 2S. i'ne cot ti quantity of timber was 31,985 i' or. The ~ e, r ihat were left we.-e igooh ~:irs, and were free ours to split, Loyalty o ; l: 1,1 oer of tiiat class had been paid from •jld Is. T.neve was no damage done to L,.e iv.imukumu block. The trees taken u re it very small proportion to wuat WiiS

|iy Mr 1t..-os : Tiie trees hail been felled 1) [ore the mu: was cut. Witness aid not know Vhr til. r .Mr Matthews h>d cornicemb sub division at survey of Waihora 1). Tueru could bo no doubt as to the hue Mar witness iiad been o\ r cr it in No-

veuiber. Lavs W. Amundsen h id been contract iug for the Karaka SawmiUmg Company mice its commencement. A\vo otner liurop.nms were employed w.tli mm. tiny 1] id some Maori land where they lmi. a right to cut, ami Mr Uopcr tola them not 10 go too for in case they mig-it get- on to Nolive land. Witness thought they were cutting timber on their own laud, blit 11c ai'-erwaiTis found they bad gone over toe line. They took the poorest trees they e.mi.l iiod because they wanted the tiiuii. r for Lunula', ions aud mill purposes. No 0,10 had told him to take timber oil the

Kmii'ukumu block. Knoeli Uicnards, cl. 1; for the Karaka Sawmill Company, us-pused that no was acquainted with tin: methods ot measuring limbe!- t’ olll !lie slump. lie measured tile t-.- os pointed one to hull as being on the Native land. Toe defendant (Mr Roper) w ,s with witness. There were Hi ticcs suitable for milling and a number of - rickers.” There was 24.977 feet of timber in tho trees and IOSOio in tho eight '• rickers.. Mr Ilees : Witness took his measurement in the beginning of March. Ilclwill'd Roper, defondiint, p* sawmill ci, stated that camp was pitched on the oth November. Witness was informed that there was a boundary hue somewhere near, separating Waihora 1) from the Native property. Witness did not go there, with any intention of trespassing. There was no object in doing so, they had any amount of bush uf their own. He

ha I ordered toe previous witness to g t W mit uuiocr wfs nq.irei for me loundatiun. Majir Winter was up there on the 2d.el of November, uml when he came oaek he s f.v In at they h ad been tali in" jruiii tine Kumukumu b'oclc. lie had <ive.u i.i-truelions In have tine tree which was hanging over the line to be cut on iteew.mt o! it being dangerous to nit u in the Three trees were cut after .Major Winter measured the due. Witness ompull leabv m ined ti 11 1 he gave orders lor 'he trees i l ') be jiieiied, o raoec tn.ey tveto ea.sy to -p.lt. Witness osluua'od there were iwo good ye n's worii in Win l ira j ) alone There were ho I acre! in Wuiiiors, It of which were hush. The trees stood very loick, and there was an immense inuoum. of tiiijt)f;f, TfliifO was t lie same class of timber m Kumukumu. He did not think that the timber taken would a Meet the se.lmg value ol Kumuaumu. Witne-s did not receive notice or complaint oi having tre■ passed until after bring served with a writ. A. !•'. Matthews, licensed surveyor, etbed :,v Mr j tei -a statu! thal he surveyed ami cut ail tut; limsm the Waihura Jj Ho (■!;. lie surveyed it for the Tank of / a!.,i,it about Ihot',. Witihoru L) W4S » oilhdivision of the Waihura Jhuek. He surveyed tile line between the Waihura and Kumukumu Clucks. it was a clean cut. He took iliWii everything on the line. .John Morris was working for him. There should be no ddlieully for an expert bushmau to liud tuc iinc.

ill, Honor m delivering judgment said lint lie was g!.td thaL c lUnsei on both sides uad brought the iimivcr down to a questi on of damages. He considered that the amount claimed by the plaintiffs was excessive, whilst on the other band he thought the amount paid into Court was too low. The interest the natives had iu the case was next to nothing, and it wus very plain to him tiiat if he were to give judgment lor the amount claimed the natives would not receive a shilling of it. .Mr Oxtuiham was using them as a catspaw to got money out ul tuc alia.r. He considered Mr Oxonimm's evidence very discri ditable. In rag it'd to the amount oi timber taken, one \ put it down at al, UUOfl, and another at 70,000(1. Mo considered one estitiuito wus too nigh, and tlie other too low. and sonic filing between lhe two would be much mure iil:u the amount. He prelerred Major Winter’s suite incut to that given by the witness Ox.-iibiim, because tne latter was interested, and had also given his evidence in an unsatisfactory manner. In reguid to the question of trespass, tie inuught. that, it nominal sum should be awarded. The judgment of the Court would be for the plaintiffs for the sum of TOO, less XL.) iOs paid into Court, the injunction would be granted, and costs allowed on the lowest scale.