Alleged Gaming.

Hokitika Guardian, 21 June 1922, Page 4

Alleged Gaming.

ARPEAL AGAINST CONVICTION

CHINESE AND PAKAPOO

WELLINGTON, June 19. Appeals wore made to the Supicine Court, before the Chief Justice and Mr Justice Hoskings to-day, against the | convictions and lines imposed by -Mr ' F. K. Hunt, S.M.. against six Chinaj me n—Ab Lyn, Yee Eon, Sing Tong, i Loo Tee, Young .Suey, pind Git Toni—j who were charged under the- Gaming Act on the information of Detective T. 1 E. Holmes, with having been concerned in February in the play or conduct of ; what the police style a pakapoo house in Haining street. Young Suey and ! Git Ton wore each fined £IOO, and the , other four each Co. ; The main difficulty which confronted ' the police in the lower Court was that no Chinamen or other person aide to road the characters on the bundles of tickets could lie persuaded to come forward and give evidence as to the meaning of the idiograms. When requests to the Chinese not only in Wellington, L„t in other centres, were all refused tin* police endeavoured to secure the evidence of a missionary who had gained expert knowledge of Chinese writing during her period of sendee in the East, but she, too, declined to give evidence, as to the significance of the characters. The Magistrate over-ruled counsel for the defence (Mr Jclliroe) in his contention that that evidence was I essential before convictions could he

| recorded, find imposed nncs uu 1 above. Mr Jellicoo at oneo gave notice of appeal on all cases. The appeal of Ah Lyn was first considered. Until the police had proved that tho premises No 7 Haining Street were used as a common gaming house, said counsel for tho appellants, those persons found in the place were not vailed upon to explain their presence there. Beyond the arrest of the appellants at the house, there was no ground for the evidence laid before the | Magistrate. Nothing seized on tho I premises was proved to be such as | brought the premises within the word- ' ing of the charges. Two sets of “doeu- ! meats printed in a foreign language”

wore' stated by the Magistrate to bo pakapoo tickets, lint upon that point H i admissible evidence was plated before Inin, lie contended tliat tbe Magistrate found as a fact that the tickets found in the possession of appellants wore pakapno tickets. Mr Macassey, for the Crown, rnntcinled that they were pakapoo tickets. • and that the Magistrate's judgment could not be interfeicd with unless tile appellants could show that there was no evidence to go to the jury upon tbe point. If then* was such evidence, the M agist rate’s decision must tie upheld. He submitted (1) that section 7 of the (laming ,\cl. limy, made the finding of the tickets in the possession of two of the four appellant- evidence that the house "as a eomincn earning house unless the contrary could be proved. (2) That the appellants did not prove that they were in the house for any lawful purpose, (.'ll To plane that tile tickets were pakapoo tickets, it was not necessary tu call expert witnesses to piovo that the tickets "ere made out in Chinese characters. (lj That, where an unlawful game was statute bailed, the method of playing it was common i-no" ledge. The Court reserved its decision upon the bust l.our eases, and proceeded with the consideration of the appeals et (lit Tun and Young Sucy.