RISIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 51, 25 June 1879, Page 2

RISIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

TUESDAY, Jtotb 24, 18*$ [Before B. Ward Esq., R,M j and H. "M'Neil JBq., J.R] ix&ostrs. Mada "Peteraen was placed m the charged with Stealing from <Seprg» Ifissen the sum of £22 on tha 12th day- of March last. "'_'.' '■■■ . ';; V: . "' V S/ ■: ■.-;;- ".'-'^ .' '" ' ' -'' ; .- : ' : Aocu>ed wai defended by Mr. MacLefm ; w^d Mr,- Stft.it? appeared qq behalf of iaformwi** : ; ":..c ;J : ■ v - :: .";a ■■" V 'V- ■■;■;.:■

The informant and a whole host of Scandinavian witnesses were called by Mr. Staite m support of the charge. After a careful hearing, the case was dismissed. . BBBA.OH 07 THB ASMS ACT, 1869. George Matbew Snelton was informed against by Sub-Inspector Goodall for a breacd of Arms Act 1860, by disposing ef a double barrelled gun to. one John Ebse Brandon, without haying the necessary license. ' ; ' - John Rose Brandon sworn' deposed, I lire at Palmeraton and remember purchasing a gun from Mr. Snelson about fire weeks ago. The receipt produced is signed 17th of May and wa-for the gun m question. It was sold by auction and was knocked downtb me for £3 ss. and I wai charged one shilling for . the license. I bought other things bes.de the gun and I gave a cheque for the total amount of the goods. The receipt produced 1 received from the clerk. When I got the receipt the defendant was not present, at least I did not see him. I got delivery of the gun after the sale was over — the same evening.' I asked Mr. Snelson if I could hare the gun, and he said something about requiring a license, but when I told him I wanted to gp duck shooting, he paid Leonid take it. I: don't think he was present when I did take it, but I thought I had his sanction. The gunhaSbeehin my possession ever since the day of the auction. I could not say whether defendant held a license to sell the gun or not. I had not obtained a license sto: sell or tpsdeal with it— l merely paid one shilling for a license. vi ; ' To defendant :l.was m the auction room when the conditiin? of^sale were read. To the Defendant : after several things had been sold, you said you had a doublebarrelled gun for sale, and you distinctly stated that whoever bought the gun should' pay a shilling for the license. I remember you reading out the condition of sale they were—" ;■ '" „ - - }■■' \- -■ \- /■ ' , Sub-inspector Goodall objected to any written document being submitted as evidence. . : .'_ To the defendant : I perfectly understood that until the license. had been obtained the sale of the gun had not been perfected. Whenrl paid my bill I took the gun,~ as I, thought it was niy property, but Mr. Clarke did not give it, and as he "was busy writing he might not hare seen me. I remember you coming out of your office when I r was talking to a man who was going to buy -my bargain, and also you saying" understand Mp. Brandon,if you sell that »un you will require a license, or otherwise you will get into, trouble," and you further said that it wai not my gun until I had the license; When-I said I wanted the gun to go .duckshooting, you >aid yon fdiA jais want to be against my going shooting, so you supposed I could hare it for that purpose. I certainly considered the gun was my property" although you said it was not, I remember going ir to you^some days afterwards for the license, because I had been spoken to by Constable Gillespie, and also from what^you said at the saie. I remember afterwards you saying, "I hare the license now and -the gun is yours." "*"'■: To the Bench.* Mr. Snelson announced at the sale that whoever bought the gun would have to pay a shilling for the license. • -. George McCarthy, sworn, deposed : I remember being .present at an auction sale, about five weeks since, when Mr. Snelson said a double-barrelled gun. It wai knocked down to Brandon. It was sold for £3 ss. I wss not present when the was given, and 1 know" nothing more than that ..a shilling would hare to be paid before do? livery was given^ Had I bought the gun I should expect to hare paid rthe shilling for the licensed I meat before (he- gun w.as> obtained. • ■'• • .;, .• - '■ -' ."■ ■■■' ■'-.[■.- i .. To. the defendant j I was not present when the first conditions of sale were read, but you said two or three/times that the gun could not be sold without the license. I hare known you to take all precautions m selling guns on previous occasions. ■ Constable Gillaspie deposed : From something that I heard I went- to the defendant's office, and I told him that I had . heard he had sold a gun to Brandon on the 17th of Hay, He said, "Yes; I did." I then asked him under what authority he sold arms. He said under the /authority'of his auctioneer's license,, and by getting a; shilling license from a licensing office. I aaked' him if he had got a shilling license' to sell the gun whioh he had sold to Brandon. He said that he had not ; that it was the practice to sell the arms first* and get the license afterwards; I told Mm that I was under the impression that by his: so doing he was c6mmitting a breach, of the Arms' Act, and that I would" hare to report the matter. He said it'had been the practice m Wellington to do as he had done, and he knew perfectly well what hV was doing. A shilling 1 license is for Porm A in' the schedule pi the Act It was teu days, after the sale that I called. To defendant ; When' I went your office! had not the Arms Act with me. I .did not say that two licenses were' wanted. I may have said something about "two licen ses tut I could not tay what. I dont think I stated from whom I received instruction*. It was on the 27th, Tuesday, that I called on you, although I had been there on the previous Saturday inspecting your licenses. You pulled a paper out of your drawer and said something about Pepper. I could not hare said anything about two licenses, as I knew nbthiiag about it at thai "time. \ '■■' To the Bench : The practice, has been particularly loose; an.d whole .bunches of shilling licenses hare been procured at One. time. . ... ■ ■,[: •••'■ .'■ -' ■ •■"• ■ ■-'■• ■". , This closed the case for the prpsecutien. Mr. Scelson having expressed .'a wish to address the Court, the precautionary was then road over to him when he made the fqlloynng statement •—" I beg leave to, state that I held a sale on the 17th.; that the restrictions at that sale were that the. gun to b» offered is sold subject : to a license being granted from the customs authorities, and one /shilling; over apd. ahoire the bid, will be charged to procure the transfer of the same. In reading over these poriditioris I gave the< persons m: the aucr tion room perfectly to understand that the gun ceuld'not be sold without tins license:; that it was a conditional sale until the license had been obtained.- This was. understood perfectly- by th# whole ptjb'ie company then present^ whioh will be proved by witnesses; to be called. The gun was sold \o. Mr; Brandon , upon these conditions, and delivery of it never, gitfn to him. He ? acknowledges himself; that he took iti, as a' loan jT understood, for the purpose of shooting duclcs. I haT» always been most i carc£ il m advocating th» company which . attends my sales, to obtacft licensee for any I warlike weapon thai may be offered, m nv»t cases to the detriment of the sale, The. license m this particular case was some-, what delayed through my ? anxiefcy to see the difference- between the i licensing-" offices of Wanganui and -WeUington, &r«ugfl the' , constable hintjhg that two licenses were wanted " ':. , : •■• ' '-. " ' ■ Mi\ S,n,els6nthe» called Alfred Clarke, who^deposed si am m Mrs Snelsou's employ *B«elerk m th'e^auction.room. '■. I remember a, isale taking place on tha 17th. May, md.t he conditions pro■dueed are those which were read. ; They were, 'read by Bfr, Snelson. I did not de-^ liverthe gup. to Mr* Brandon after the sale, I WTt?fese : |^«|?Qni^h i j| tisw;ifexr««

held up at auction— that is r from the time it was offered and, put back. No-delirft^ " of the gun was gir«n. "•..'.,.**> t.aty To Sub-Inspector GoodaU:; The receipt produced, and marked A, was^writtenby^ mejjand given -to Mr. Brandon. The 'auctioneer anaounced the terms of sale;' arid jT apparently read from the book prp^ucedi I cannot say where the gun was*p%^aft«. <. the sals. Ido not deliver goods when l •mi engaged drawing out. accouuts. It would be. quite possible to rem,ove the gun without my knowledge. I did not mi*f the gun, because I did not look for it. The carpet may have beenjctelivered at the same time as the guv, but I could not say for certafii; The bill marked A ia m my handwriting, and I made it out as I make out all bills. . Alexander Ferguson : lam a storekeeper m Palmerston, I am a licensed dealer m arms and ammunition, I have obtained licenses from Wellington upon the recom"» mendation of justices. I was m the room, when you offered the. gun, and you distinctly stated that a shilling should be demanded for a license for the gun, and also two er three times whjle the gun was being held up. Silvester Coleman : I have been an auoticneer and was m the sale room on the I7^b. of May when 'the conditions of the sale were read out. I understood that the sal* of the gun would not be completed until the license was procured. " The Bench retired 'and after about fly.* minutes' deliberation, returned into Coup, when the Chairman stated the Arms Act ' wa.« perhaps one of the most itringent measures on the Statute Book, and he.rif^it- ( ted'td*-say pfessedjinost h^aTilyuEon per.. sons m the position of the defendant. He thenlreadthe 28th seotibn bftlie "A6t, under whioh the charge was brought, stating when originally passed a breach of its provisions constituted, felony, but by a subsequent .Act- it was made a misdemeaaor ; still it was an indictable offe»ce. That Court was there to see if a prima facie case could be sustained— its functions were hot judi- . cial, but ministerial— and it was of .tm opinion that a prima facie case had been made out by the prosecution. .It was. with, deep regret it was forced to the decision, but justice had to be done without fear c pr favor. By the 58th clause of the Ac|"a provision had btenmade to meet cases such as the present, Where the offence had been bommitted errpr) there it 'to, -provided that it was comp«^nt for the AttorneyGeneral to cause ■.» nolle prosequi to be^nr. tered to stay further proceedings. If snbn' an application were made, the Court would -willingly give it its support, believing that the defendant never m the slightest intended infringe the provisions jofr . tHel Act. tlt was with deep regret he (the Chairman) took the only. &our«e open to him,, 01. committing the defendant for trial at the next sitting of the' District Cour, Palmerston, The defendant's own bail of ,iBIO woiild^a accepted. ,-.... ''"■■'.. ','■ ..i.^ , • ... : .'V ....--f.-'. '■

FGJGHJKGFGFJN