BUYING FROM SAILORS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 77, 15 October 1942, Page 5

BUYING FROM SAILORS

EVIDENCE OF FREQUENT PRACTICE CASE AGAINST STEVEDORE FOREMAN Wellington, This Day Evidence that it was a common practice for watersider workers to buy all kinds of goods from the crews of overseas vessels without inquiring where and how the goods had been obtained, was given in the Supreme Court, Wellington, yesterday, when Robert James Smith, foreman stevedore, aged 39, was charged with the theft of two bolts of suiting valued at £146/1/1, or with receiving them knowing them to have been stolen. The offence was alleged to have occurred from the hold of a ship of the Federal Steam Navigation Co., Ltd. Mr Justice Blair presided. Mr W. H. Cunningham conducted the case for the Crown and Mr R. I. ' M. Sutherland represented accused. After an all-day hearing the case was adjourned till this morning. Francis Joseph Miller, woollen merchant, identified samples taken from a loose bolt of suiting found in the hold as the same as the material he had ordered. There would be no other material the same as that in New Zealand as the orders were exclusive to him. To his Honour, he said that it would not be easy to identify the case as one containing j suiting. The bolt of material in the 1 hold was intact, but slightly greasy. The difficulty of carrying anything up the ladder giving access to the hold concerned was mentioned fey

Kenneth Alexander Martin, shipping clerk. During the four years the accused had been with the company ; he had been found to be a competent foreman, said witness. John Mills, watchman said it would be impossible for anyone to carry anything up the 60-foot ladders from the hold without being seen. There was much damaged cargo and a considerable number of loose articles was found in the hold. The offer of a suit-length by Smith was described by Harold Grantham. . stevedore, who said he had been told later by accused that it came from i an overseas vessel. Details of articles of men’s and i women’s clothing made from suit ing found when the police sea;cued Smith’s home were given by Detective W. J. Hedley. Smith told the police that he had bought the suit-length from a man on the wharf. Cross-examined by Mr Sutherland, Detective W. Harper said no trace had been found of the rest of the material missing, about 120 yards. Accused in evidence said he was offered suiting on June 3 and bought live lengths for £lO. He understood that it came from one of the sailors who had goods for sale on every ship that came to port. Two foremen stevedores, William Henderson and Charles Munn, testified to buying goods such as silk stockings, from members of the crew* of overseas vessels.