THE BITER BIT.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIII, Issue 1613, 6 October 1873, Page 2

THE BITER BIT.

An example of the manner in which | ouv country storekeepers sometimes) f settled withi" wheii newrushes are ; afloat, ; was given rat Ahaura on Friday. '' A man! named R6bert Stephensbn was summoned;to j the Resident Magistrate's .Court by| the representatives of Peter Mulvey for! L 9, fprjstpresand when Mulveyy^as /.^inh'jbusniess near! Ahaura. Stephensbawas oDseryed pass-i ing through town by the bailiffvof >.the[ Court, and that, energetic; and wide^a wake; oflicer, instinctively suspecting it^at the' traveller -was^ skedaddling^ at once attached him. On appearing in C6urt, he; was asked if he owed. the ? m6ney,jind he at once admitted: itfiaif . r 'fie : •'^"'firmly hel reeved he did; ?> ; i; Pn ; bemg ? fur|lifer'j,ques-j "tip^^jh^^no^dg^^^h^'ne had: sold 'his' share that. m6rning'forLl7, but he refused to .say rj w.ha.t he did with the money.^teUing Staite, who appeared for fche v piainfci9V that "ife knew' What he "was"^^^^"^^^^^ and if He wahte'd 'further; 'informaubri' J "he .had "better 'go 'look.^o^ it." At this stage 'the defendant, whb was evidently under the influence of rliqupr^/was sont ; .t6!the;lpck-up^ ; Further 'on in the' day he was' brought lip. and fined,, 10s, or 48 hours' imprisorimentj Tlie hearing of the ! civil case waa^then.rei sumed, and the defendant was examined; He said that he sold his share for Ll^j and" after paying a grog .score "of "L 5 at Ahaura/' ; hV^gave^- the^ balance of .the money to "a man named Sam," • a])f)ut : whom; hje'inbw; nothing;' : exbept 1 that both had : ; agr^ed : tb go-t^;the paast rush. He ,had, previously, gb^e 1 ' to iL Mrs | Mulvey, .and !i given' hpr the ponsola,tory assurance' that ifhe ! had ii}ck jr i'n'his new s^here'-of enterprise send her back her moneys ma'am-^tipon'hisword he would j" biit, he cp'uldn'tthihk bf'going ■, ' to' 1 ' a iie w f usE^withbut a' J few •'jjbunds'ih . his pocket, no .matter .to whom the "nioney belonged. ' He refusb'diio give the address of' his"|u.tiirei partner, f( Sam," but tife . wf or mcd ' the r Cfpurt that he 'had [ interviewed that individual arid bbtaihed. .Sfcephenspn's money; frpm .him. Tlife 'f endant 'here looked round with' a cpinical expression of bewildered aatonishmerit, .^d'ejaculatedjaijth^ba^ifl^^^ the, crowd in Court, wlio' "enQpyed 'ihe :littie nplot; ,and cpunter-plpt:immenseiyj 3obj ! i you've thejmoney j; haye you ■l-'Ht. so,i itfs incase with'it!" : A verdict vas giveuifor ■the plaintiflf 'for the fullamounfc claimed with costs and professional costs^ aridiby • time ; the ' :<iperatipn "of ; ' ' iambing- , "down" to which b!ef was i ifcheri ; subjected /completed, : he' was brought ''in ife ip! _debt_tb'ihe Gforerameni;, or fco'the pjain"tifl^or- to -'-her'" lawyer, or ' to /somebKdEy ."elsepbut to'wh'bni exactly he' says he has, not been abl^. to. plgawy undejjstandiv ,:iAs" a fitting afterpiece tQ this 'f coinedypf errors," the defendant :w^s geeu alj tlie , afternpqa i^ ; the^tpwnship .trying, his,leyel ( best Jib get into' debt^p the "extent of iH,' so that he 'could 1 liquidaV his liability to the bailiff, who, he said, f /iwasia flrie -fellow, and he, shouldn't , like^to .see him lose anything by the transaction."