MAGISTERIAL.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2687, 17 November 1882, Page 3

MAGISTERIAL.

CHRISTCHURCH. Friday, November 17. [Before J. Ollivier. Brown, Esq., J-P-J ~ Housebreaking.— Henry ' : known criminal who has not lon 0 e leased from gaol after having served.for burglary at Dunedin a term of twenty years, was charged with breaking into the Lop of Edward Longman, m Armag street, on Thursday evening, and with committing a felony therein. The police not being ready to go on, tho prisoner was remanded till Monday next. -p Larceny. —lp the case of Jat Ryan charged with stealing wearing apparel valued at .£l, the property or John Lam, prisoner was remanded for .wenty-iour hours. „ ... Wife Beating. —George Smith, on bai , was charged with having, at lai iapu, on October 23rd, violently assaulted and beaten his wife Hannah. Tho case had been adjourned from time to time, Mrs bmith being unable, from the injuries she had received, to appear earlier ; her Lie a > at one time, been despaired of, and ner depositions had been taken as oi a ay.ng person. Mr Button appeared for the prosecution; Mr Joyco for dofondan . Prosecutrix now deposed that on tho day in question, about uooa, sho was tying up a flower at the door of a wharo, and after lifting his hands in a tarcafcemng manner, an altercation arose about a he wished to rido, his wife objecting. o picked up some weapon and said iave a good mind to run this through J on. returned to run, when prisoner struck her in the face and knocked her down. When she was on the ground she saw the servant girl run screaming out of the rvhare. She then became unconscious. V» non she recovered her senses she was Ij mg on a hod in the house, bhe did not know how long she had been insensible. In a short time the prisoner came in and for a long time bathed her head and face. She was very sick. She vomited blood, and there was continuous internal 'heeding ; many towels were used to absorb what came from her mouth. She asked prisoner that night, and again m the morning, to send for a doctor. lie said she would soon he hette. Ho did not send for a doctor. Prisoner afterwards went away to his own farm. A neighbour came in and sent for Dr. Preston. She had been ill ever since. Cross-ex-amined —Prisoner was her second husband. She had three children hy her first husband. She spent her second honeymoon in Dunedin, that was ten months ago. They quarrelled on the second day alter mar riace. She had been a widow for ten months. She had taken a cold in her chest soon after her first husband s death, and had been rather delicate since, but was quite able to take care of her home. Prisoner quarrelled all tho time with her. They had two farms, and after five or six months ho went away to Broadfields, which was his own. He wanted her to go with him, hut she refused, as she knew they could not agree. Her brother-in-law managed her farm. Her husband wished to take charge of it. She objected to this. They had not quarrelled over it. Margaret A. Elmers, domestic servant of Mrs Smith deposed to having seen the assault. She said that after some quarrelling, of which prisoner was the gator, prisoner picked up a “ drag and threatened to run it through Mrs Smith. [-- Drag ” produced. It was a four-tiued bent fork, with a handle lOlt long. It was used to clean out ditches.] After that he struck her twice iu the face, knocking her down, and then stooping over her, knocked her head from one side to the other/’ after which he kicked her. She then rose and staggered a few paces, hut fell down insensible. Witness screamed and struck at prisoner with a broom ; prisoner went away, and witness lifted Mrs Smith up, took her into the house and laid her on a bed. Mrs Smith was insensible for five hours. During that time prisoner got his dinner as usual, and afterwards bathed Mrs Smith’s face. When’ Mrs Smith came to herself she asked for a doctor. Prisoner said, “ You can get well without a doctor.” Witness wanted to fetch one, and prisoner prevented her. He said he would murder Mrs Smith if witness went out. That was said while Mrs Smith was unconscious. She afterwards vomited and spat a great deal of hlootl. [Witness identified the clothes which Sirs Smith had worn, they had on them largo patches of blood.] Cross-examined —Mrs Smith was kind to her husband, hut he was of a violent disposition, and was continually quarrelling with her. She heard prisoner say something about taking a mare, but that was about nine in the morning. Dr. A. C. Preston gave evidence as to the condition of the prosecutrix. l£e was called in at 4 p.m. on the clay after the assault. He found her suffering from great bodily prostration. Both eyes were blackened; the attendant bruises were large; one of her eyeballs was much injured. The hone below her right eye was fractured, she had a bruise on her right temple, and she was expectorating blood. She complained of soreness all over, but he found no other marks of violence on her body. She had been dangerously ill ever since The spitting of blood might have been caused by a fall as described to him, it was so persistent as to be very alarming, and ho had communicated with the police, who caused her depositions to be taken on Sunday, October 29th. Mrs Smith seemed to be a delicate woman, especially as to her chest. This was the case. The prisoner, whose defence was reserved, was then committed for trial at the next sessions of the Supreme Court to ha held at Christchurch. Robbery from the Person —James O’Hearn, alias Yankee Ryan, alias Cockney Jem, was charged with the above offence. Edward Millan, carpenter, of Reefton, deposed that in August last he mot prisoner at the Waiau bridge. They came to Christchurch in company. On the 18th he was with prisoner in some hotel in Christchurch. He was drunk and fell asleep. Ho bad on him the watch and chain pro luced. When he woke up the prisoner and the watch were gone. The watch was worth .£9 15s. E. Paynter, assistant to S. Stewart, pawnbroker, deposed to having received in pawn for’ £1 5s from prisoner on August 19th last the watch and chain produced. The prisoner gave his name as Mullins. This was the whole of the evidence. Prisoner then pleaded guilty, and was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment with hard labor. The expenses of the prosecutor, who had been brought a long distance, were ordered to he paid, and £2 13s, which had been found on the prisoner, was ordered to be used in rc-imhursing the pawnbroker, &c.