RESIDENT MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5741, 23 August 1879, Page 3

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

FBIDAT, August 22. (Before T. A. Mansford, Esq., B.M. INDECENCY. Join McClure was brought up on remand charged with, having indecently exposed himself in the presence of several young girls and women in Wingfieldstreet. A witness spoke to the prisoner’s character. He said he had known him for five years, and that he was suffering from a disease of the head at times. The Bench remarked that but for the character given by the witness the punishment would have been much heavier than it was. The offence however was one which could not be lightly passed over, and the prisoner would be sentenced to three months’ imprisonment with hard labor. EMBEZZLEMENT. Morton Quin, late district secretary to the Foresters in Wellington, was charged with embezzling the sum of £9 10s., the moneys of the Oder. The allegation set up was that the prisoner had received the amount from a court of the Order in England on behalf of a brother belonging to that court, who had died in Wellington, and that he had hot accounted for the same. Mr. Stafford prosecuted ; the prisoner was defended by Mr. Allan. Mr. J. T. Bovis proved the fact of there being no entry of the money in question in the books kept by the prisoner. Mr. D. B. Morris, clerk in the money order office in this (own, deposed that the amount of

money had been received by Post Office order from England, and fcfi >t it had been paid to some one who had applied for '.t, hut that he was not in a position to swear that it had been paid to the prisoner. The advice received was to the effect that the money should be paid to Quin. Mr. A. Whiteford deposed he was treasurer of the district at the time of the transaction referred to. The amount was then due by the court in England. Often received lump sums of money from prisoner without any detailed statement with them. Could not swear that he (witness) had not received the amount in question from the prisoner, who was not in the habit of giving him particulars of any moneys he might pay over to him. The present secretary always gave such details. Witness merely kept the account of the gross amounts received, and it was the secretary’s duty to appropriate the amounts to the different accounts in the books. Would swear that the signature on the post office order produced was in the handwriting of the prisoner. The Bench considered a -prima facie case had been made out, and prisoner would therefore be committed for trial. Bail would be allowed, two sureties of £IOO each, and prisoner himself in £2OO.