RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXX, Issue 4540, 8 October 1875, Page 3

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Thursday, October 7. (Before J. C. Crawford, Esq., R.M.) DRUNKENNESS. Alexander Montgomery, charged with dz-un-kenness, was fined 55., or in default twentyfour hours' imprisonment. Thomas Mulligan, charged with the same offence, was dismissed with a caution. ASSAULT. A cross-action for assault between Philip John Mnrtagh and Richard Duigan was adjourned for a week. desertion. Charles Ross, charged with deserting from the ship Rodney, was ordered to be sent on board. CIVIL CASES. In the cross-action of Robinson v. Walton the defendant confessed judgment. The cross-action of Walton v. Robinson then came on for hearing, the plaintiff claming £3O damages for losses sustained by the alleged deviations from the plans on the part of the defendant, who was employed to fit up the plaintiff's wool-scouring machinery at Ngahauranga. Mr. Izard appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr. Travers for the defendant.

Henry Walton, wool-scourer, at Ngahaxiranga, deposed : Some few mouths ago he imported machinery from England for the purposes of his business, which was accompanied with plans for its construction. These plans were shown to Mr. Robinson for his guidance. Witness gave Robinson the plans a month previous to the arrival of the machinery, as he was anxious to lose no time. He instructed Robinson to follow the plans strictly. He did not agree for any particular price. He wanted the work to be well done. Robinson sent a man named Spiers to do the work. Robinson did not attend to the work constantly himself, but came and gave directions to Spiers on two or three occasions. Robinson did not do the work strictly according to the plans. Robinson instructed Spiere to set the boiler nearly ten inches too low, and this threw the whole machinery out. The eng'ne-bed was made seven inches too forward, necessitating either the shifting of the boiler or the engine. The most economical plan was to shift the boiler, and this was done. This was charged to witness as day work. The expense of this removal was £35. The pump was not fixed in the right position, two inches had to be cut off the eccentric rod, and it was necessary to rearrange the bearings of the pump fixings altogether, causing a loss of £3O. Witness did not consider Spiers to be thoroughly competent, and witness wrote to Robinson to thateffect. £3O was about the total loss by these alterations.— By Mr. Travers : Russell prepared the bed of the boiler according to Robinson's instructions. Blocks were sent out to support the boiler. Witness never refused to open certain cases for the purpose of seeing whether these blocks had been sent or not. The boiler had to be raised eighteen inches when the circular bricks were found. Robinson had to fit the boiler on the bed prepared by Russell. Robinson told witness that the pipes were not according to the plans. The bricklayer did his work according to the instructions of the engineer. He could not say that the bed of the engine was raised six inches above the level, as shown on the plan. • The boiler bed proved afterwards to be too low. He expressed dissatisfaction with Spiers all through the job. He set his own men on to do the work, and requested Robinson to take Spiers away from the job, by a letter dated the 19th July. Spiers was at the work for ten days. A man that came out with the machinery came to witness two or three days before he discharged Spiers. He paid him £3 per week and a free house. Robinson came out and offered to carry the job through and take all responsibility, but witness took the job into his own hands, and refused his offer. The cost of replacing the eccentric rod would be about £ls.—By Mr. Izard: The bricklayer worked under the direction of the engineer. He sent with the order for the machinery plans showing the position of his premises. Witness measured off the work, and found it did not accord with the plans. Elihu Russel, engineer, deposed that he saw that the work had not been done according to the plans by Mr. Robinson, and that either the boiler or the engines would have to be moved seven inches. They should have been placed iu a line according to the plans. The eccentric rod had to be shortened two inches. Witness saw these alterations made. A good deal of time was lost in making these alterations. He thought that Spiers did not understand the plans.—By Mr. Travers : The engine and boiler according to the plan should have been on the same level, but they had been placed on different levels.

Edmund Field, bricklayer : Was employed by Mr. Russell. The engine bed was not constructed according to the plan. The boiler was nine inches too low, seven iuches too forward, and two inches out of the square. The bed of the boiler was shifted three times The engine-bed was not shifted. Witness was working there the whole of the time, and was in Russell's employment until Spiers was knocked off. The engine-bed was made nine inches higher than the boiler-bed. When Spiers left the boiler the pump was fixed. The boiler-bed was raised nine inches. It was easier to shift the boiler than the engine. By Mr. Izard : A partition wall was partly erected, and prevented it being seen whether the boiler and engine were on the same level. By Mr. Travers: He took the job from Walton by contract. Edward Burton, bricklayer, deposed : He was employed by Walton. Ho found the work did not correspond with the plans. By Mr. Travers : All that he found defective was in the brickwork. Where there is a plan it is usual for the bricklayer to follow it for himself. In other cases it is usual for the engineer to give directions. Charles Seager, engineer: Knew the engineer fitter Spiers, and considered him quite competent. He had not seen the machinery at Ngahauranga, G. R. Russell, bricklayer, had frequently been engaged in setting engines and boilers. He was employed by Mr. Walton. He looked for his instructions from the engineer. He built the boiler-bed exactly according to the plans. Walton told witness to keep the enginebed as high as possible, so as to keep clear of the storm-water. Everybody knew that there was a difference in these levels. On Saturday, July 10, Walton said he was satisfied with the work. The variations on the plan were carried out according to Walton's dirctions, —By Mr. Izard : The bed of the engine was raised 9in. above the bed of the boiler, according to Walton's instructions. The firebricks that were sent out were placed in their proper place. — By Mr. Travers : Witness set the boiler according to the plan. Mr. George, engineer; The boiler or engine could be placed either above or below the level. It was merely a matter of altering the pipes. The engines at the Patent Slip were fitted by Spiers under the instructions of witness.—By Mr. Travers: Witness would have no hesitation in employing Spiers. John Spiers, engineer, deposed, that ho was sent out by Mr. Robinson to fit up the engine in question. It was a small six-horse engine. Witness pointed out to AValton that the floor of the engineroom was lower than the ground outside, and witness placed tho engine seven inches higher, to keep it clear of the storm water. There would have been no difficulty in fitting the steam pipes. He could have had steam up in about another week had he been allowed to finish the work. Witness placed the pump so as to necessitate no shortening of the eccentric rod.—By Mr. Izard : The foundation of the boiler-bed was laid before he went there. The engine-bed was higher than the boiler-bed. The engine and boiler wero placed according to the plan. He worked there about two weeks.—By Mr. Travers : Anybody could see that there was a difference in the levels. Mr. Robinson, engineer, deposed : Spiers had been in his employment. He was thoroughly

competent. The chimney was altered in position by Mr. Walton's request. The boiler and engine appeared to be in their proper places. It was unimportant whether the engine and boiler were on the same level. He had fitted up a plant in about a month similar to that of Walton's, with a 25horse engine, for Mr. Tyer. He would have had no difficulty in fitting Walton's plant. By Mr. Izard : He trusted to Spiers to carry on the work Walton did not point out the difference of the levels until after he wrote to witness on the 19th of July. Witness told Walton that he would not make any measurement, but stated that he would carry out the work in an efficient manner, and that he was prepared to finish the work. Walton ordered witness off his premises. Mr. Tyer, woolscourer, deposed that Kobinson had put up a 25 and 8 horsepower engine for him, and they had given satisfaction. Mr. Izard contended that the deviations from the plan had been made under Robinson's instruction, and entirely without the knowledge or consent of Walton, and so a delay and expense had been incurred by Walton, and that he was therefore entitled to a verdict.

The Bench said that the evidence proved that the alterations had been carried out according to Walton's instructions, and that if the engineer (being left to his own discretion) had put up the machinery in a way so as not to avoid the storm-water, that the plaintiff would then have had some ground of action. The Bench, therefore, gave judgment for the defendant, with costs.