MAGISTRATES’ COURTS.

Globe, Volume I, Issue 75, 27 August 1874, Page 2

MAGISTRATES’ COURTS.

CHRISTCHURCH. Thursday. August 27. [Before C. C. Bowen, Esq., R.M.] DRUNK AND DISORDERLY. Henry Reeves, for this offence, was fined 10s, or 24 hours. OBTAINING MONEY BY FALSE PRETENCES. James McGill, arrested on warrant, was charged with obtaining £3, by false pretences, from Mr J. W. Oram, Chief detective Feast stated that he arrested the prisoner on the warrant produced. At the prisoner’s request the warrant

was read over to him. He muttered som«thing about a cheque of Mr Strange’s. J. W. Oram, landlord of the City Hotel, deposed to having come into possession of a cheque signed by the prisoner on the 31st of July. The cheque was drawn on the Bank of New Zealand, Ashburton, and was for £3. Witness paid it in to his account at the Bank of New Zealand, Christchurch, on Monday, August 3rd. It was returned dishonored on Thursday, August 6th. The cheque had not since been paid. Afterwards saw the prisoner on Bth and 9th August, and he promised payment in a few days. He (prisoner) had not since paid the amount. ' : o7 By Prisoner—You told me that you would meet the cheque when you could' get up to Ashburton. I have cashed cheques for you before. Detective Feast asked for a remand,until to-morrow, as he had four other similar charges against the prisoner. His Worship granted the remand; BREACH OF CITY BYE-LAWS. ' J . For permitting horses and cattle to wander in the streets and public roads, the following fines were inflicted :—Samuel Needham, 5s ; Robert Morton, 5s ; James Willis, 6s;'Daniel Burn, 5s ; M. Chaddick, 5s ; C. J, Foster, ss; George Rankin (three horses), 10s; Charles Fraser, 5s ; Thos. Dalton, 5s ; ( E. W. Millett, 5s : Geo. Beattie, 6s ; Robert Wilkin (4 horses), 10s ; William Hawker, ss; George Ell (6 head cattle), 15s. Albert Philpott for neglecting to place alight over a heap of gravel in Cashel street, 1 was fined 10s. ! i:: ; i kJ Richard Collins, for driving sir head of cattle through the streets during prohibited hours, was fined 10s. ' ■ Joseph Harket, for permitting his horseand dray to run away, was fined 10s. James Robbie for a similar offence, was also fined 10s. For driving three horses without sufficient reins, Joseph Sheridan was fined 10s. For causing an unnecessary obstruction td the footpath in Manchester street, by allowing two cases to remain thereon, Gilbert Butler was fined 10s. James Kearney was summoned for causing an obstruction in High street with his I ’bus, and was fined 10s. ;I '■ • 1 The adjourned case against Charles Anderson, for neglecting to keep a light on the scaffolding in front of the Borough Hotel, was called on. A witness called by the defendant stated that all the scaffolding was removed on Saturday, Ist August. Sergeant Kennedy, recalled, stated,.thflti his attention was called by constable; Smith to the lights being out on this scaffolding* From the report in the night-book,, he be-, lieved that the scaffolding was all round tha hotel on the 2nd August, Constable Smith went all round the hotel on the 2nd August. The scaffolding. wa« : still standing all round the place, and lights’ were on it both on the 2nd and 3rd ofAugiistF y ' u ‘ Sergeant Wilson was speaking to the defendant abbut the lights being nut on the 4th of August. The scaffolding was not down at the time. He believed the hoarding was taken down the following day. Defendant’s witness re-called, was certain that all the scaffolding was taken down on Saturday, Ist August. ~ ( His Worship said this was one of these cases that, very trifling at first, became very serious by the contradictory evidence given. Three witnesses were positive that the scaffolding was not down until after the 3rd of the month, and those for the defendant were equally positive that it was removed on the Ist. He would adjourn the case for another week, for the production of further evidence. . ; • BREACH OF POLICE ORDINANCE. Edward Sharp, for furiously driving his cab, on the 10th instant, down Cashel street, was fined 10s. Michael Hamilton and George Wells were summoned for furiously driving their cabs up High street on the night of the 14th of August. After hearing evidence his Worship dismissed both informations, allowing 5s each expenses to three witnesses. Horatio Hen wood was summoned fof leaving an excavation uncovered in a byroad off the Windmill road. Defendant said he was waiting for instructions from the City Council as to the depth the drain was to be sunk before he covered it. His Worship said he would adjourn the case for a week, and, if not put to rights by that time, he would then have to take the city surveyor’s evidence as to whose fault it was. Case adjourned. 1 . BREACH OP DOG NUISANCE ORDINANCE. John Taylor, for being the owner of an unregistered dog above the age of three months, was fined 20s ; John Stillman, 20s; and a similar summons against William Patterson was adjourned for a week. BREACH OF DOMAIN BY-LAIfS, , . r H. W, Atkins, for permitting a dog to follow him through the Canterbury Domain, was fined ss. , . BREACH OF PUBLIC-HOUSE ORDINANCE. J. Oram Shephard, landlord of the White Hart Hotel, was summoned for permitting a drunken man to be served with liquor in his licensed house. Sergeant Kennedy stated that on last Saturday evening, about nine o’clock, it was reported to him in High street that a man was drunk in the bar of the White Hart Hotel, and had been served with a nobbier of brandy. He went into the bar of the hotel, and saw the man there, very drunk, James Rosser stated that, on Saturday night he was in the bar of the hotel, and saw a man there helplessly drunk. He saw the men supplied with a drink of brandy. It was not an ordinary nobler but three parts of a tumbler full. Mr Sheppard was not in the bar at the time. He (witness) said was a shame to give a man such a drink. By defendant—The man asked the waiter for a bumper, and seemed to be shaking in a dangerous state. Heard the man say before drinking it, “ I hope you’ll all attend my funeral.” The man drank the brandy right off and before the sergeant came in. Mr Sheppard was not in the bar. Lee Wade stated that he was in the bar of the hotel that night, he saw the witness Rosser in the bar at the time half drunk. The man who drank the brandy seemed to be very cold and shaking, and he asked for a good nobbier of brandy. By defendant —The man appeared to me to be sober. To the Bench —The witness Rosser might not have been drunk, but he had had a drink or two. Mr Sheppard called his waiter, who stated that the man came to him on that night,

said he was cold and asked him for a nobbier of brandy. f iHe might have given hira ; a good nobbier as he was cold, but judging from tjie man’s manner and bearing, he certainly thought he was sober at the time. The barman of the hotel gave similar evidonee# r The inspector told his Worship .that the police had endeavored to serve the man Tracy, who.ba,d .drunk the brandy, with a subposna, but he had left town. Sergeant Kennedy, recalled, said that when Rosser spoke to him on Saturday night He was perfectly sober. HiS Worship said it Was very hard to draw tfye line as tq . the evidence of .intoxication but : his opinion was' that the ! mad was intoxicated at the time, but it might have taken a more experienced man that the waiter to know whether he was so. From the evidence, it'was proved' that Rosser was sober enough at the time to know all that was going on. If it had been distinctly proved that the man was served with liquor when it was Known he Was drubk, the penalty Would be a very severe one, and in such a case he should like to see it fall upon the servants who had disobeyed instructions. The defendant would’be fined 405.: 1 V f s:' : ? I ’ ILLEGAL RESCUE OP CATTLE, Samuel Frisk was summoned, at the instance of Elijah Gadd, for illegally rescuing four head of cattle which were being driven to a pound. 7 Idr GeorgeiHArper appeared for the defendant. This-vvas-q most. trivial case, arising,out of a misunderstanding "'between' neighbours, nnd, after hearing the evidence, his Worship dismissed :i se n 6ase,' : each party to pay his own costs, vibrng: hi bn a ATTEMPTING TO COMMIT SUICIDE. Jqhn, Jordan on remand for the offence, up.ij. Mr Reston, chief gaoler, said the man had now perfectly recovered. The accused promised that if let off, he would take the pledge to abstain iftoin drink during his life, and on that promise his Worship discharged hhhr> 1 IL ASSAULT. William Foster was- charged; with paving violently assaulted' Terence O’Loughlin. This case had been called on the, previous Thursday, but neither of the parties had appeared, and hi? Worship,, who learnt that the’ complainant - had received- a monetary consideration from the defendant for the assault committed, > instructed that both parties should be advised to appear before him tq-day. : )[. y >;;.; r Defendant admitted to his Worship that he had .paid P’Louglim £1 to settle it ; the acceptance J of 'Which money by complainant,, his fI Worship characterised as a! scandalous- 1 transaction, after he had laid a I criminal information, and administered a I rfOvferfeHdctdlodcAUdth individuals. The evidence was then gone into, and | .defendant <had struck t£e com-! plainant twice in the face, inflicting two; black eyes, he j-oorpplainqnt) } had called him a crawler. ’ ■ ' L j _ i On the application of Mr Thomson, this, chafes of SLAUGHTER-HOUSE LICENSE, * flppliealjlpn Of; dyilliam ; Jeffree for a slaughter-house license, near the ; Riccarton road, and about half a mile from the belt, then came on, (J 'PM Inspector of ■ Slaughter-houses stated , to the B’en'ch tlrat the Riccarton Road Board hqd,giypnj;heix surveyor .inatrqqtjops to repotfon this Bflafter 'at the hext meeting of* the Board. His Worship' saidi theillicense would be granted for six months, but he would advise: the applicant not to go to any expense, as it! might be found necessary to prevent slaugh-l tering in that locality.; 0, T i IJ; > r • j j Wednesday, August 26. [Before W. Donald, Esq., R.M.] DRUNK AND ILLEGALLY ON PREMISES. | v; (jfohn Hqq.ter, arrested : by: Constable! JSm-. son, was charged with being drunk and ille-i gaily on the premises' of Messrs Sutton andi Weastall, HA was’sett tehcedto pay a fine of 5s or twenty-four hours’ imprisonment. Nolj having the money, he was imprisoned. ASSAULT. t !Mrp 'Boyd charged her husband, Robert Boyd, with this offence, and also with cruel The defendant did not appear, and a warrant was immediately issued for his arrest, j ■ ». jM. VI 1 i »■ 1" , y ! 1 »■! 1 '■ i "* ~T rr GBPAT-FIHE.il* DMJSPIN. j I CcijfZi i < I..»uyi (;ou. The Otago Guardian of the 24th pub- ’• lishes the r following additional particulars of '" the late fire in Dufledjn’:— ! ' > • ’ j - ■ On Sunday,’hundreds-visited the scene 'of the fire reporteddn our issue of that day to have broken out oh the premises of Messrs Guthrie and Larnach, Hundreds too, who, |iqHhgfb§fen-present'When it raged fiercest, could hardly have failed to contrast with the f ■ calm of day the; hurry, , the confusion, and (the dip of early-morning. Scorched and blackened masses showed how mercilessly the fire had done its work ; smouldering and hissing timbers indicated an extreme unwib lingness to relinquish its prey ; long lines of serpentine-Uke. hos,e lay here and there, sugi gestive of the peril that had passed ; while the fatigued and almost exhausted appearance of Captain Wain, and his hard-working and gallant band, together with the almost .untouched appearance of adjoining buildings, presented additional evidence of their great value as a fire brigade. The fire was first discovered by Alfred Hamilton, the night-watchman at Messrs Guthrie and Larnach’s, after going the round of the premises between a quarter and half-past 3 o’clock. He first saw flames, about 4 ft high, issuing from the vicinity of the'boiler,' situated at the north side of the building. The exact spot where the fire was supposed to ; haye originated was carefully examined by him about balf-an-hour before it was discovered. On observing the first indication he ran up the yard, opened the front gate, and gave the alarm. He afterwards turned on the water, and endeavoured to extinguish the fire by playing on it with the firm’s hose. His efforts, however, as the result! ’proved, were . futile. Near the spot where the fire broke out were shavings and light timber. The flames quickly spread from one piece of timber to another, “ leaping higher, higher, h jgher,” until the scared watchman, with his face badly scorched, was compelled to retire. Soon a great deal of the closely-packed inflammable material was all aglow, and soon too the appearances were most alarihing. A short time afterwards one portion of the large chimney was absolutely redhot; and it will be necessary, it is said, to take ,i \ i s i! A ,: -i! ,I i.ji i

it down. Fanned into greater fierceness by the pursuing wind, the fire soon approached the Spanish restaurant, belonging to Mr Guardiolo, a building of three storeys, in which there were that night sleeping fiftyfour persons. And now a scene of great confusion was witnessed. The boarders—all the property of some of whom, it is said, pecuniary and otherwise, was in their bedrooms, —endeavored to remove what they could before the flames rushed in to prevent them. But with nothing to facilitate their progrt ss beyond a staircase only about, 2 ft wide, they almost of necessity met with many hindrances while going in and out of the building. Some had even to get down from the upper storeys by means of ropes. Meanwhile the fire continued to spread with alarming rapidity. It ultimately communicated with the restaurant, and soon that, with the adjoining building, in the occupation of Mr T. W. Haworth, was enveloped in flames. The brigade were promptly on the spot, but many complaints were made that there was a good deal too much delay in the ringing of the fire-bell. No time was lost by the brigade in endeavoring to beat back the advancing enemy. And what a hissing, crackling, and spluttering was then heard I Shortly after the last of the inmates left the restaurant, the buildings and timber ignited were one vast sheet of flame. Then, indeed, the Brigade had great difficulties to cope with, amongst them heat almost unbearable, and smoke almost stifling. Continuous streams of water were poured into the burning mass. The main jet was pointed against the Prince of Wales Hotel, on the opposite side of the street, which building is surrounded by wooden houses. The close proximity of the hotel to the property destroyed, and the fact that it escaped almost unscorched although protected perhaps somewhat by a timely change of wind, and the brick portion of the premises first attacked—bears testimony to the often admitted efficiency of the brigade. As on all previous occasions, thejr efforts to prevent the spread of the fire were arduous and continuous. At last the roof and side walls of the restaurant gave way, and then flew up from the burning mass an immense body of sparks that heightened in no small degree the terrible grandeur of the scene. The immigrants located at theold barracks, aided by many willing persons, succeeded in getting their clothing out of the depot; but this building was fortunately not damaged, the fire being confined entirely to Messrs Guthrie and Larnach’s, Haworth’s,' and the Spanish Restaurant. A. number of women, halfdressed, were seen rushing about the street with children in their, arms, excited and naturally much frightened. The only explanation that can be given regarding the origin of the fire is, that a spark from the engine must have fallen amongst the timber. One of the most painful results of the conflagration. is the fact that 200 men have been thrown out of employment. The Corporation, however, have made arrangements by which ; Messrs Guthrie and Larnach will be able to erect temporary premises between Bond and Crawford streets, in a very short time, and most of the hands, with the exception of those in the manufacturing department, will be almost immediately employed. We understand that on Saturday the agent of the New Zealand Insurance Company intimated 1 that a cheque would he handed for the amount of the insurance, £3OOO, due to Messrs Guthrie and Larnach, directly it was applied for. Permission -was also given by; that company .to remove the debris. Arrange- 1 meets have been made with different timber merchants in towp by which there will only be a short delay to the .customers of the firm ; in, executing their,orders. The greatest in-j jury was'done to the manufactory, engine-' room, store, and offices ; the iron shed was not damaged. Quite recently the firm had received some improved machinery from Home. Luckily it was in premises which the fire did not reach, and it will, therefore, be. brought into operation immediately. Constable Murdoch, it appears, passed on the opposite side of the road a few minutes before the alarm was given ; all then appeared to be right. He proceeded as far as the Government house, and, on returning, observed flames issuing from Messrs Guthrie and Larnach’s premises. The police, under the superintendence of Sub-Inspector Mallard, were present, and rendered valuable assistance in restraining the progressive efforts of the crowd. The fire, if not of the most costly character, certainly sent forth the strongest volume of flames of any that has been witnessed in Dunedin for many years. The whole of Saturday the brigade were engaged endeavouring to extinguish the slum bering embers in different parts of the yard, the material being removed from place to place by, men specially engaged for the purpose, so as to leave no chance of the flames being revived. Yesterday strict watch was also kept, lest there should be any further necessity for the Brigade’s services. During the day a large portion of the wall which divided the timber-yard from Crawford-street fell. A large number of persons were in the immediate neighborhood at the time, but fortunately nobody was injured, nor, so far as we have heard, was anybody hurt from the first alarm of fire until it was extinguished. What goes to justify in some degree the remarks made by many persons as to the delay in ringing the bell is the fact that the watching warder on one of the platforms at the gaol states that shortly after 4 o’clock, and fully five minutes before the bell rang, he saw flames shooting up in a great body, and heard people shouting as they hurried along the streets, A system which is adopted in many large places of business in the old country might with advantage be carried out here. It is that of placing a peg, or telltale clock, at or near the spot where a fire is most likely to originate. Forming part of the fixture are a number of pegs, one of which is removed by the watchman perhaps every half-hour. Should he fall asleep, or in any other way neglect his duty, the pegs, equal in number to the half-hours he has been neglectful, appear against him as evidence on the following morning. It has also been suggested that the sergeant of police on duty should be furnished with a key of such large establishments, and be authorised to visit the watchman every half hour, to ascertain whether he is on the alert; but here it should likewise be mentioned that the watchman was supposed to give warning every half hour during the night, so that the policeman on duty in that particular neighborhood might himself be satisfied that strict watch was being kept on the premises. There is no doubt, however, that the tell-tale clock would be the most efficient check that could be introduced. We understand that the watchman at the bell-tower has reported that the first he saw of the fire was a narrowshaped flame issuing from what he thought to be an attic window, at about fiye

minutes past four o’clock; and he then ran down the steps and rang the bell. One of the police officers on duty at the time has reported that when at the corner of Princes street and Rattray street ho saw indications of a fire. He paused for a moment to satisfy himself that the reflection was really that of a fire, and then ran towards the Bell Tower. Immediately after ascending the Dowling street steps he called out to the watchman at the tower. The latter asked about the precise locality of the fire, whereupon the constable said the glare which he had witnessed appeared to come from near the Gridiron Hotel. Immediately afterwards the bell rang. Captain Wain had 1 twenty-five men under command, five less than usual ; and we believe that this, the last fire, furnished further proof that the brigade should be strengthened by at least ten more men. Members of the brigade kept strict Watch until last evening, when they were relieved by Messrs Guthrie and Larnach’s own servants. While the fire was raging the brigade had between 12,000 ft and 13,000 ft of hose in use, and as many as nine streams of water were fighting for victory with the flames that made many think when they left their beds that a very great portion of Dunedin, and not merely a part of a block, was on fire. Fortunately, Dunedin has an efficient brigade, who on Saturday morning, were backed up by a good supply of water. As showing the intensity of the heat, it may be mentioned that several of the helmets of the firemen are reported to be literally shrivelled up. The foliowing were the insurances on buildings destroyed : MESSRS GUTHRIE AND EARNACH. Building. Machinery. Stock. Total Victoria Company South British ... £1000... 500... 250... 1750 Australian Alliance 150... 500... 350... 1000 Standard ! 750.. 750... —... 1500 Norwich Union ... 250... 1000.. 750... 2000 National 500... 500... 1500... 2500 New Zealand ... 1500... 1000... 500... 3000 Grand total ... ... ... £13,750 MESSRS R. AND T. HAWORTH. Royal Insurance Company ... ... £IOOO New Zealand ... 500 SPANISH RESTAURANT. New Zealand Insurance Company £6OO