Untitled

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIII, Issue 6, 20 March 1878, Page 2

To Messrs Adams and Kerr, Eunholders. Sirs —Your letter of 17th—whose contents virtually amonnt to nothing less thau accusations of felony —came to hand some days ago. 1 deny most emphatically each aud all of these charges as lies and falsehoods, being trumped up to injure my character and position. I have nothiug to compensate for and nothing to compromise. The charges respecting the bul lock and the wool I shall defer till the proper time, but the other accusations being of less moment I shall answer in full. I deny having detained stock. Cattle, horses, or working bullocks of Messrs Edwards and Kerr have at any time beeu straying at the Tophouse run; iv various instances such cattle or horses wore hanging about my establishment during whole seasons. I endured patiently and for the sake of peace their breaking iuto my crops or doing other damages, and were only removed by Messrs Edwards and Kerr at their leisure and convenience. Men of Messrs Edwards and Kerr have entered Tophouse run in search for cattle and horses whenever they missed them, and even now (unless recently shifted) several cattle of theirs are or have been since the last eighteen months or two years grazing at the lower end of Tophouse run. Respecting " cow and calf now claimed by Messrs Edwards and Kerr ".matters stand thus: Off and on, strange cattle (that is, cattle not of my own breeding) may be seen at Tophouse run, which are either wandering about on. their own accord, or may be left by drovers. Such strange cattle may either disappear again after a while or may take up and stray with my own little herd. " liv that case it has been afc all times my practice to fiud out their respective owners, and in most cases make a purchase. At the present.time there are nine head of strange cattle in my nerd; seven head of them I have bought, and two beasts remain still unbought, became I had no opportunity yet to meet their owners. Several of these strange cattle have beeu with my cows since several years, have been daily about my milk yards, are well-known to Tarndale people, but never —and for good reasons—claimed by them. Now quite lately Mr J. Kerr sent a Jad named Charlie Kirkland to claim by way of feeler a cow and a steer. This said Charlie —who found some time ago inducement to run away from my service under forfeiture of his wages aud lived since with Mr J. Kerr at the Lake—knew about these " strange cattle " in my herd, but was not sure which of them were bought, or their respective owners known to mo. My cattle were brought in the yards at once, and after I had listened to Charlie's sayings, I ordered him out of the yard with a message to Mr J. Kerr to send a competent man or come himself with statement in writing respecting brands, description, and right of ownership. I deny ever having trespassed on the Rainbow run. If I have hitherto anxiously, and often under neglect of other business, sent a person to remove small numbers of my sheep from the ground between Tophouse run aud Messrs Edwards and Kerr's woolshed, so was that done at the request of. Mr J. Kerr, If Mr J. Kerr ever