RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Grey River Argus, Volume IX, Issue 659, 9 April 1870, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Thuksday, April 7. (Before W. H . Revell, -Esq. , R. M. ) Mrs Rice wa^ charged with making useof obscene langiiasje in a public place. She did not appear, and was fined 10s. civil cases. ' L. Jakob v. -A. S. vDreyei*. — Claim of L 64, for board and lodging and cash lent. . J.udanQent by_ default, with-costs.— - -'- _ Wilson v. Hayland and party. — Claim of tl 16s for newspapers supplied/ -Jaidgment by default, with costs. Skoglnnd and Purcell vv- <'Metcalfe, South" Beach.— Claim of. , Ll9 16s 9d, balance of account for drapery goods supplied. Judgment by default, with; c05.t3. ., Morrison v-; Bailey- and Wills;— rThis was a claim for carpenters' work done at 18s per day. - ; The : defendants paid into Court L 6, and pleaded a set off for L 7 03 6d for board, lodging, and cash, lent, and pleaded that the work was to be done by . contract, 15 pieces of furniture at 8s per piece. Judgment was given for the defendants, 12s 6d and edsts. - I Mayor and Councillors of the Borough of Greymouth'V. Captain Rae of' the schooner Rapid.---This was a" claim of LI lls for tonnage dues, payable in August, i 1869, and sought -to be recovered under, the old regulations, in pursuance oJthe • Grey mouth Quays 1 AVct, : 1869. Mr Perkins appeared for the plaintiffs', and Mr Guinness for the defence.. The clause under which the action was brought read as follows ;— -■" All wharf ages and tonnage rates and charges made, by the Borough Council of Greymouth, prior to the passing '-■ of ; this Act,' and which might: have been levied if this Act had been in foipe, shall be deemed to ;be rates and made underi the provisions o£ this Act, and shall be ; recoverable accordingly." J. W. Hall, Jate wharfinger;, .proved the arrival of the. vessel, in Ajignst. last, her tonnage, the amount due, the demand for payment, and the refusal. '.He. also .put in the Gazttie notices of the levying of the wharfage and tonnage, dues. Whe n the vessel returned the other day he again demanded ; • the . -back . r dues, . . ; when the master refused payment bemuse the vessel had since . changed hands, and he would have to pay it out of his own pocket! No eyidehce was called for .the defence, the case hinging upon a legal' question. -Mr Perkins said the. bye-law >yas made on the 6th. April, 1869, and •regulations were made under it and duly gazetted. Afterwards the General Assembly passed an Act validating, the made by the Council, and, therefore^ the objection which arose^ih a'previous case, decided by the Supiettie Court> did not apply? in ; thisj becauseit; had- » been i done aWay r 'wil3ii Mr Guinness^ -in- ; defencej said it mtlst be in the fefcollection of ;the Court that in a fbrmer case (Mayor and , Councillors, v. Glenn Bros.), which must be Quoted as a precedent;' it was* decided by the Supreme Court that the Council • Had iritf pb wee to; make -any such bye-law for the levying of tonnage dues. Before that decision, was giyen the Greymouth Quays Act, was 1 ' pas&d by thb General Assembly for the purpose, it was thought, of validating the bye-law. 1 Baton carefully looking at the seotions of the' Act it was seen: that the Borough jCotincil' had power to charge and recover wharfage arid tonnage rates upon articles ladded, or upon vessels loading,, unloading, or refitting at any : wharf, at such rates as the ! Clouncil might frbmtime t6 tithe ;detetmine ; : but the ii'exts section said that ; before any such be.recqye'rr able a schedule Vof " the ' aame, ! aud of the articles .and .vvessela- in respect of which the same-are fak^ne-levied.. shall be published' in, the 'Cojiaty of Wept- ' land Gazette. Nov^.the #ozsti&joS. November had been put in, and it be seen that the Council had simply publishfed : the^regulations made under \\\q

bye-lay, and not tho bye-law itself. Hr Perkins Baid he had also put in the Gazette containing the bye-law. His learned friend should fnot make misstatements to the Conrt. Mr Guinness was not making misstatements. He refened to the Gazette of the. 16th November. The Magistrate remarked that the case he was referring 1 to occurred prior- to the publication of that Gazette. Mr Guinness said ihe other Gazette of the 2nd June contained the byelaw, but the Act which gave it the effect of law: 4ireetedatha>it^aha^fe^lifthiid^^ and this had not been done. 'He" 'Bold HT" " to be absolutely necessary tha>^hejfe|iilar o*'0 *' tions and byerlaw as previously p'uhushea sloulcfUFrelJehfedr that the re-gazetting of the l-egula^^ was in. conformity, witli the Greyjpoyjfh,,Quays Actj V 1869..-; The i orjtifc eiAVw;^, that Act madb"^^)^^ that j^l;wharfag&x and tonnage rates levied pasiing of"that Act shallbe deemed 'to'; Be ! rates arid 'charges under j the -Act,* 'and;.recoverable accordingly. Judgment would therefore be given for th'e'amomit claiiiie<i,; ■> •and cos's. ' : . : .' "■'■ • ij ; : --' 1 •'- J - .:■.•■:•■'■.'«:?. , Coates vlEussell.^This wis «»; action. to : fix the liability for goods amounting to to Ll3 9s, allegexl to tiaVd been ordered by def endan t s' . agent 6n f his befh^lf ; f f For the defence the agency' wasf-dehied ,'and ' also the of haying ordered the goods. Mr Perkins appeared; for the'^Kin)iffi *■'' and Mr Newton 'for theiaefenda'nfcL ' '"Mr Perkins, in opening the case sfjHjed'iSiat Mr Russell,; .who. is. a storekeeper at Napoleon, had been fn the habit of emplbyMg^ 5 ■'■ Mr White, ,&, store,lceeper at Moonfight, as his agent in town in, srderni^'g6oßsf^ri-i him from time to time. On'the SOl'hJuly some goods were obtained from Mr Coates, and lostin transit: by< >the boat^japai^ing. Mr White went to the plaintiffs store and replaced the^goodsr jwhjch up, and the amonut ndie itied^'fyr.? ..M^e defendant that" lie receww9fhe goods as oi^inally order^_d^aiid;tna^ti&y were not re-ordefed-ohi.his^ae^SuitsV.'' ; W. J. Coates said: On the 3rd Augu3tth6 goods now sued for were ordered^ for Russell, and were' sent 'tip by Consiantine's ; boat. White had r been acting.. as agent -P for Russell, and had' br&eYed" 'goods for ■ him several times previously. Crossexamined: I: could,,, not,., say f .positively that I was in the store when the goodi ' were ordered. .. : When. White . ordered goods he usually had a list in his hand, ' but I r cannot say whether it was signed ■ by RtisSell."; Pcahnbt BpeaJkipogitiydy as to the order, and 1 do not think they were first entered in the waste-book to Constantine. Alex. White- said : I have been m the habit of bringing orders to town for Russell, and 'ordering goods- for him at Coates's. . lf ; he had not all that was mentioned in the list, 1 purchased the balance on my own. account, and charged them to Russell. 1 never r ffdm' this rule. I remember some' goods being ' lost { in Cons&ritinVs / boat X ; was up-country at the time, and., when I heard it, Invent ; tp Napoleon to see ; Russell,,,, and .told, him I did not know whether his goo'ds'were in the b«at ' or not. He asked,nie>togo,to town and see if his goods bad been in the boat; but he gave me "no instructions : to -replace them, if lost. When I saw Constantine, and we talked- overithe, matter, he said — ; . '* Well, the best thingjwecan do is f to get the goods again, and piisli 'ttiem 'Up fa him.- , as soon as popsible." We went to> Coates's;^^ and"th!e^^'ordet'^wasT'ta'kbu -dp*r, in .Oonstantitie^si . presence.. t . rMr Coates ■ was not present. ' I nn'dersf 00^ that ConBtantine :\vas; , replacing ..the. goods, as he had done many before.' 1 cannot' saiy it was mentioned distinctly, but at the time he had replaced goods 'f6t others which had been lost in .the same boat. The goods went up,' and Russell 'received them. Cross : examined": 1 did -nut order the goo Is on' Biissellfe ; (account^ jBy L thov Bench : It is the custom for boatmen ~foj replace goods whe'af 36St,; r l>iit it is usual for the storekeepers to. make an allowance in such cases. Cross-examination continued -: rJw GdatSs's'; store / Conatantine . asked me to mention the goods Russell was in want^bfi- '.I; n.eyeri,.ord«P?d goods on Russell's account without his written . authority. ' Some -time afterwards,. 9 dis* pnte took place Iri'Coateߥ store as to jlhei. payment; of the goods which^were Jost. Mr and Mrs Coa^es^. their *storemari," Mr Russell, Mr Cbhstantme^atM myself were •pfesent.' Itf ; -*a»'un'derstoftd,.Bgthe_ießult of that meeting, that j^opstan tine was to pay for tli^gppdsj'and'lie was prepared ;to do so, on condition 'tiisfc tibia- Coates and Russell made him an allowance. At the time of ordering the aecxiad supply of goods, i Constantine .asked,, Mrs Coates to make them' as Reasonable ys^poksille to him in consequence .of his loss. Constantine still says that he is prepared to pay for the goods If art allowance! is made by both plaintiff and defendant. Alexander Constantine, a boatman, said;: I recollect losing the* goods belonging-to the defendant?H I wenii^Qofttes's: f vith White, but I cannot recollect wno ordered the second l Sip'ply. of igOodsl I did not order them on my, own responsibility ; and I do not think I am responsible for : ' replacing Ihfeto;: - il. ; was/ jqq/ excited at the time that, for aught I know^'l^imay < i'ii«w:e:: Ordered the goods. Cross-examined : I have replaced some of the. .goods lioa^uppn that ocoasion. I say now that if plaintiff and defendant will maiceme an allowance I will pay for thegppds. They did formally offer to., make the ' 'alo^W^'but now refuse; Mr- Newton moved; for a; nonsuit on the ground that no agenc^rhad €e%a but a messenger bringing' a Written order to; astorekeepeß n-Lr.-.to^rn^r !M[r .^Perkins replied that the defepdant JnadTatified'the act of his agent deliveiy of the gbbds^abi'^iidb^esfelMj^ DH^ hhaself responsible;: 1 The Magistrate held that no agency- had been provedsufficient fcobirid Russell. Vlthad'oe^n proved that it was customary for boatmen to replace goods lost, andi;h£s together wiA the other.; e-iUdeaH*,'. establis^d ih* responsibiUly plaintiff T^.H^^^^p ) nau|te^ i> . ;