PUTATIVE PATERNITY.

NZ Truth, Issue 130, 14 December 1907, Page 5

PUTATIVE PATERNITY.

Guileless Murdoch Campbell. A Letter-Carrier's Love Affair. The girl is the only person ' -who might reasonably be expected <o know who the father of her child is, and her testimony is the only one that can be accepted concerning v.hs particular act of sinfulness which gave rise to her regrettable condition. The guiding points before a court m such cases are not many, and are so variable ami uncertain as to be almost valueless. The child, for, instance, may be a six months' one; it rarely, lives at seven months; or it may even have gone over lha nine months, but, as, everybody doesn't think of inspecting the fingernails When it is . born to determine its age, the difficulty of fastening the kid on to a particular date when the girl was with a bloke is almost insuperable.. The girl knows, but tie law says that there .must be corrnbation of her testimony, as she is an interested party. A nineteen-year-old letter-carrier named Murdock Campbell was. stationed at Masterton. when he seduced Agnes Leitch m the golden slimmer time of the present year, and an austere Bench has decreed that he is the author of the resulting passion fruit. Agnes stated that she had given herself up io the sexual enjoyment of a new experience on three occasions. Her fall was accomplished a day or two after New Year's Day m the friendly shadows of the Park Oval, when the girl, "vowing she would ne'er con-sent-rconsented." The second excursion into heaven was under the weening willows of Waipoua , river bed, and the third took place towards the end of the month m the vicinity n[ the same purling stream. The ravished maiden, attributed her unwelcome youngster to the last act of indiscretion, and, if this ■tfas so, Mr Jackson claimed for the defence, that Campbell could not be father of the child. A DTotheMn-law of the girl "FOXED" THE PAIR to the WaiDoua stream on January 4, and remarked to Campbell, "You ought to be ashamed o.f- yourself." To this the spirited youth replied, "You would do the same if you were m my place," or words to that effect. Campbell denies this meeting, and avers that be walked all the way, tfc> Lansdiowjie wdth the tart a-nd spoke to no one on the way. Things were m this unsatisfactory state before Wellington Magistrate's Court when the case was adjourned .to permit of further corroborative evidence being obtained, if it we.a merely the flimsiest m the world. On Friday last the father of the girl travelled down from his Wairarapa home and testified that Campbell had remarked to Mm after the accident, "I only had connection with her three times, and didn't think that was enough." After hearing evidence, Riddell, S.M., said it was possible to attribute the little stranger to either the first or second lapse into sinfulness, and adjudged Campbell (who is now stationed at Martonr) the putative father. The letter-carrier is getting only £70 a year, and after navinp his board, has merely £18 a year to find himself m collars and motorcars, and the youthful official was ordered to pay seven bob a week from his scanty income. He was also asked to put up a surety of £50, and find two other sureties of £25* Leave of appeal was given-' '