IMPOUNDED CATTLE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 319, 10 December 1910, Page 5

IMPOUNDED CATTLE.

UNLAWFUL RESCUE. At the Magistrate's Court, Te Kuiti, on Thursday, before Mr F. O'B Loughnan, S.M., Revvatu Hiri- ! aka was charged by George Darby- ! shire, for the Borough Council, with ! having rescued cattle lawfully im- ! pounded on November 2nd. : Mr Hine for plaintiffs, said that on ! the date in question Mr Darbyshire | found seven bullocks lying down on ! the Awakino road. He waited some | time-and no one appearing to be in ! charge, he was taking them to the j public pound when defendant came up ! and attempted to seize the cattle. •Darbyshire said he had no right to do that and warned him of the consequence, but Rewatu drove them away. George Darbyshire, town cierk, j gave confirmatory evidence. The I cattle were in a position calculated to be dangerous to passing traffic. Mr Finlay, for defendant, said Rewatu had sold the cattle to Albrechtsen, and was driving them down. When he got to the police station he remembered he did not know which gate to put them in and went back to find out. He submitted they never became stray cattle. If otherwise, drovers woulci constantly have cattle impounded. If his client left them a quarter of an hour, he quite agreed they would be straying, but if they were left for live or ten minutes it was straining the meaning of the clause to say they were stray cattle.

Rewatu Hiriaka gave evidence. When his boy returned he saw the town clerk driving the cattle away. The boy then came back and told him what had happened. There was no difficulty in seeing the cattle some distance before they were reached. The affair happened between 8 and 9 a.m.

Plaintiff here said it was just after nine a.m. when the cattle were found. He knew the coaches were due to leave which was why he went to look after the cattle.

J. M. Albrechtsen, butcher, said he bought some working bullocks from Rewatu. Rewatu's boy came down to him, but he could not make him understand where to put the cattle and told him to go and . fetch Rewatu. Rewatu was somewhere down the street before that. He did not know how long he had been there. The cattle were going up the Awakino road to the '2-mile for his paddock when seized.

The magistrate thought it was rather extreme measures to take. The man had only left them for a short time. He fined defendant Is and ordered him to pay the costs amounting to 28s.