BREACH OF THE ARMS ACT.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5020, 26 April 1877, Page 3

BREACH OF THE ARMS ACT.

We take from the Wanganui Chronicle the following report of the hearing at the R.M. Court of the case against William Moffat: —

Saturday, April 21. (Before E. Hardcastie, Esq., R.M.) BREACH OF THE ARMS ACT.

William Moffat, on remand, was again placed in the dock, charged with the above offence.

Mr. Fitzherhert appeared for the Crown. The accused was not represented by counsel.

Colonel McDonnell was sworn as interpreter. Mr. Fitzherhert applied to have the information amended, by altering the 16th of November to the 16th April, 1876, the date on which the offence was alleged to have been committed, which application was acceded to, the accused offering no objection. John Richard Piako deposed ; I know the accused ; I have seen him at Teo Teo, a place just above my own village (Koriniti) ; I saw the accused on the 21st April last year, inside a large house at Teo Teo ; there were a great number of other natives present when I saw the accused, some of these are at present in town and the others are up the river ; there was a large table in the house, about the same size os the barristers’ table iu this Court House, covered with powder; there were three dishes on the table that he had finished with, and there were three dishes outside drying. The accused had been sifting the powder, separating that which was for double-barrelled guns from that which he was going to use for “ minies.” When I saw the accused he knew I was a man of the law, and he did not say much to me, but I seized one of the dishes on the table ; he knew I was a loyal native by my wearing a haversack and pouch marked with a crown ; I took a handful of the powder in my hand and told the accused that I would have him condemned by the law, and adjudged by this proof of his guilt; the accused made no answer, and I told him that there were three things which the law did not tolerate, viz., distilling spirits, making guns, and manufacturing gunpowder ; X wrapped up the handful of powder I had seized and put it into my box and locked it up ; I intended to bring the powder before the law, and consequently I took extreme care of it and locked it up ; I kept the box at my own village (Koriniti); I took the powder out of my box when I was coming to town and brought it with me; I gave the powder to the Collector of Customs, Mr. Woon, R.M., and the Sergeant of Police, who were all together; Mr. Woon gave it in charge to the Collector of Customs and tho Sergeant of Police. I know this packet (produced), which contains the powder which I got from the accused ; I recognise this packet by the marks that I made upon it (witness here opened the packet), tho present contents of this packet are similar to its contents when I handed it over ; I gave some of the powder to Mr. Woon, R.M., to try it, and the result of the trial was that the powder exploded when it was thrown on a burning log of wood. The article I handed to Mr. Woon and the others comprised the packet of powder produced and marked A, a flask of powder marked B, and the small notebook (produced) iu which the accused wrote down the quantity ot powder that ho had made in the _ Waikato ; he appended his own name to it in my presence at Korini ; he also wrote in it a

receipt for making gunpowder; this art he wanted to teach me, for the purpose of making gunpowder for the men of this island. Witness read the memorandum contained in the pocket-book, which was as follows ; Oct, 1481ba., 1671b5., 2561b5., 3911b5., 3221ba., 7631b5.,1781b5., 6431b5., the aggregate quantity representing 28641b5. of powder. Then followed the receipt for raakinggnnpowder: 81bs. sail petre, lb sulphur, fib, charcoal, and concludes thus: “ 'Phis is for Piako,” and signed by William Moffat. The accused gave me the flask signed B, which he brought down from the Waikato. The flask was full of powder when he gave it to me ; I loaded my breach-loading carbine with part of this powder and fired it at a puketea tree ; the bullet penetrated it about the length of ray lower arm ; I judged by that the powder was very strong. The sizes of dishes of gunpowder that were on the table were of the ordinary size, about a foot in diameter, there was also a large parcel of powder in a cloth on the table. The first time I saw the accused it was at Teo Teo ; he was then in the midst of the natives making powder, and they were all collected round him. By the Court: lam not a native assessor. The accused stated that he did not wish to cross-examine the witness. Tuhaea deposed : I live at Teo Teo; I know the accused ; I have known him for some time ;he lived at my place; his occupation was that of a man who makes gunpowder ; he told me he was a millwright—this was after he had commenced making powder. The tribe had at first heard of the accused's reputation as a powder manufacturer from the Waikato ; I have seen the accused make powder about the first time he came to my place ; he first put the salt on the table and rubbed it fine with a smoothing iron, he then put some charcoal, made from a willow tree, and ground them both up together, and mixed this with sulphur, and when this was all mixed together it turned out powder ; I saw three small dishes made—this was about last autumn, when we were digging up the crops. The accused sent back the powder after it was made to the people of hit (the prisoner's) tribe. When the powder was in the dishes, Piako was there. Witness heard what passed between him and the accused ; Piako held up some of the powder in his hand, and I heard what he said. The powder that was in the dishes when Piako came in I saw the accused make ; I saw no other powder made but this. When Piako took the handful of powder up he said to the accused, " This will condemn you." He then wrapped it in paper and fastened it up and took it away. I only saw Piako take away powder on this one occasion.

The accused declined to cross-examine this witness.

Piako recalled, deposed : I only saw the accused make powder once ; this was in the big house belonging to the last witness, and Tukematu was present. Te Pika being asked by the Court—before the usual oath was administered—if he was ever baptized, replied in the negative ; he then made the usual declaration in such cases provided, and deposed, I live at Koriniti, and know the accused ; I have seen him at Teo Teo, but I do not remember how long ago it was when I first saw him ; I know Piako ; I do not remember any interview between Piako and the accused ; I heard from Piako that he had spoken to the accused ; I had no conversation with the accused ; I did not see him till after Piako had told me something ; when I saw the accused he bad an iron pot on the fire witl something like crape over it; he was steaming some powder over tha pot, which be afterwards spread out on a platform to dry under the sun ; the quantity was not very much ; the accused gave me a pinch or two in the palm of my hand to inspect ; I kept that and have got it now in my possession here (packet produced) which was marked by myself No. 12 ; this packet has never been out of my possession since ; I never opened it since I tied it up ; I never saw accused having powder after that occasion.

Hone Wabanui's evidence was immaterial to the case.

Te Ao deposed to assisting in the arrest of Moffat; prisoner had, a revolver in his waistbelt ; it was loaded and capped ; witness removed it, and then, with the assistance of Winiata, secured prisoner, who was struggling to get away. Winiata gave similar evidence to the foregoing. When arrested prisoner sat down and fell for his gun; witness lifted him up, threw him over his shoulder, and afterwards they brought him to Wanganui. John Nott deposed to having known prisoner for five years ; he saw him at Teo Teo in April of last year, when he was making gunpowder; he had quantities of saltpetre and sulphur, but the charcoal was burnt on the spot; he saw him go through the whole process of weighing the different ingredients, putting them in separate dishes, crushing the saltpetre and sulphur to a powder with a flat iron, mixing all together with water, and making into a cake, then removing the water by means of an improvised press, after which the cake of powder was allowed to dry in the sun; the powder so made was very strong, in fact much stronger than powder bought in Wanganui; he saw the natives use it; saw them shoot pigeons with it; prisoner told him he had made a large quantity of powder for Ropata, the chief at Te Fapapa. Andrew Oookson, jeweller, deposed to seeing prisoner at Teo Teo about the end of May last year; prisoner told him he had made large quantities of gunpowder for the natives for their protection against whites; he said he had made some at the Waikato and some at Teo Teo.

J, G. Woon, Collector of Customs, deposed to his being the only officer in this district empowered to issue licenses under the Arms Act; he never issued a license to prisoner; this information was laid at bis instance; be knew Piako well, and remembered his bringing down a packet of gunpowder and other things about three weeks ago; (packet, flask and book produced and identified); he made an experiment with the powder—put a thimbleful on the table, and applied a match, when it exploded, with an unmistakeable smell of ignited gunpowder; the articles were taken charge of by Sergeant Reid. Sergeant Reid deposed to the articles produced as being those handed to him by Mr. Woon.

Edward Bezar, drill-instructor in Wanganui, deposed to having served in the Imperial army, and having had considerable experience in the use of powder. The powder in the flask and packet produced by Sergeant Reid he should call a coarse but strong and serviceable gunpowder ; he believed it would send a bullet with equal if not greater velocity than would the powder from an ordinary Government cartridge. After the Clerk had read over the evidence, prisoner declined to say anything in answer thereto.

Prisoner was then fully committed for trial at the forthcoming sittings of the Supreme Court, and the various witnesses entered into the necessary recognizances to appear and give evidence when called upon.