THAT TWO-LEGGED THING – A SON

NZ Truth, Issue 1180, 12 July 1928, Page 9

THAT TWO-LEGGED THING - A SON

Raymond Lunn's Despicable Trick to Defraud Devoted Father of Hard-earned Savings BOUGHT HIMSELF UNIFORM TO IMPRESS PARENT

.<mniuimimintiiiiiMimumuHMuiiHuimcimiimMrmmnimimmmmmMuiiiiiMiiiMMiwimMmmiimiMmu^ MminilllininmnilimnimiimniiiilllimiimmmiiuiimiiiiiiiiiiliminiiiiiiMiiimmimninmnnnmimmuiiim^^ I^HmiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiniMiiiiMimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiuiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiuiiuiiiiiiiuiiiiiroiiiiiiiiitiiiniiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiniiiuiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiniii timnn miiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiintnmii umiiiiiiiiiiiiNitmmiiitmiiiMiimiraiiimMiiiiimiiiuiimiuiiiiiiiiiiiiimmiimimnimm ngf || (From "N.Z. Truth's" Palmerston North Representative.) if || To Ralph Raymond Lunn, of Palmerston North, the fifth commandment, or indeed, any other guide to j II moral principle, would appear to be unknown. The idol of doting parents, he has played upon their affection j II- —of which he is all too unworthy— to defraud them of their hard-earned savings of many years and bring his i || father to penury m his old age. || = iiuiiiitiiiiTiliiiiMTiiiiiriiiiiiiliiiiiMliiiii iuiMiii>uiiiiiiii<iiiiiilll!iii:itilliliMiiii!irillliltlilllllllilLlllllnt>niiiiiniiiMii>iiMiiiiiiiittiiiiiiriiiii<iiMiri[i[iiitiriiiiiiiMi<MiiiiMiuii]iriiiniiMtiiitiM liiiitiiiitiiintiMtiiiiiiiiitiniiTiiiiinriiiiiiiiiiiniiniiiiiitiiiniitiiiiiifr S liiiiiMUUUHiiiiiilrnniiiiinMiimiiruiiimuiuiuimmiiimnuniiiiiiuniiiniuiiiiMiitiuiuiiiMiMiiiMltMtMMlMuriniiniiiiiiiniiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiriiiiiiiniiriiiiitiiiiiiiiitliliiiiiillilltiillulilltiiiiilMiiiiMiiuilic liiililliiliiiiiiiiiiilflltillKtilfMiiliriliilliiliririllKtiilKlliriiiiili'tiiMiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniKiiii tiuiiiiiiEiiiiiiiiliiiiniiiiiiiiiiiilliliiuilllitiillliilillliuilllilllltllnnillillltUMlilllwillliiuniliiiililiitiiiiuilJluuiiiuir

SIXTY-SEVEN years of age, bent and white-haired, Stephen Henry Lunn has, through years of hard work and honest dealing, earned the respect of all who know him. Slowly, he accumulated his hardearned savings and won for himself a home m which to spend the autumn of his days m peace. And all, as Dryden wrote: " — tt to leave, what with his toll he won, To that unfeathered, two-legged thing, a son." Careless of the many years of toil and self-sacrifice his father had given to his welfare, Ralph Lunn has, systematically bled his father for' two years, until at present, at the age of 67, Stephen Lunn faces the world with his savings dissipated, out of work, his home sacrificed and his hearth dishonored by an unnatural son. Yet, strange as it may seem, the old man is still willing to receive iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

his son and aid him to redeem his character. He has shown him an example which might stir feelings of shame, even In one so dead, apparently, to all filial gratitude as Ralph Lunn. Young Lunn is well known m Palmerston North, where his treatment of his father has aroused considerable comment. The story, as unfolded before Justices of the Peace W. F. Durward and M. A. Elliot, revealed an utterly selfish and calculated dishonesty oh the part of the son towards -

a father who had never denied his slightest whim. The actual charge against the accused was that of obtain-

ing £65 by false pretences from his father, Francis Henry Lunn. In effect, it was disclosed that, during a period of two years, he had obtained well over £300. During this period, young Lunn has lived on the fat of the land, while slowly driving his father to penury. As outlined by Senior-detective Quirke, the case disclosed that, for the past two years, the accused had represented to his father that he was a member of a wireless school m Wellington and was m

iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiciiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii'iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiimtiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiimiiuiuiiiii aiiiiiiliuiiiiimiiiuiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iimiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiinniiiiHiiiiinimmiiiiiiiiiiiiiim « ' training as an operator on boats ' plying between Australia and N.Z. He had caused false documents to be printed m, .the shape of letter-heads, and had, by various means, month by month, steadily bled his father of his sayings. The actual £65 mentioned m the charge, he had obtained by representing that it was required as security for a position as a wireless operator. He had used the money to go on a fortnight's trip to Sydney and back' with his cousin. Accused's statement to the police, as read by Detective Barling, is an illuminating document. Ralph Raymond Limn stated that about the beginning of 1927, he had' become interested m wireless and had

written the N.Z. Wireless School, Wellington, for particulars as to their course. They had informed him that a three

months course would cost £18, payable ,m advance. At that time he had expected to become a wireless operator. His mother had given him the £18 to take the course and he had gone to I • Wellington only to find that the firm had closed down. About July, 1927, he went to Sydney with his cousin. In order to provide the means for this little jaunt, he hadj gone to Feilding, where he had a letter typed purporting to come from the j Wireless Schools, Wellington, and asking for a deposit of £60 to secure him a position as a wireless operator. "I told my father," ran the statement, "that -I was a member of the Wireless School and that I had a job as a ship's wireless operator on a boat going to Sydney. I told him that the £60 was a b.ond that I would fulfil my contract to take the job on. , "I was not competent to take'B\iob; ; a i. ' ' ■ . ' '■-'■■

Driven To Penury

Poignant Contrast

position, as I had no wireless certificate and all I knew about wireless was what I had learned myself. "My father gave me this money on this representation, and I used it to go to Sydney. I had no money of my own, but knew that my father had money m the Savings Bank. My cousin and I planned out the means together of obtaining the money, and ultimately I got £65. I was m Sydney, about a fortnight with my cousin." About four months ago he had had » about a hundred

letter-heads printed, to represent the notepaper used by N.Z. Wireless School. The statement

I goes on to describe how accused met a man named "Dick" m Auckland. This man represented himself as a wireless operator out of work and had eventually come to Palmerston North, where i he had suggested'various means of ob- ! taining money from his father by false representation m connection with the .wireless school. "Dick" had obtained about £15 from accused, who had eventually discovered that he was only a cook. The Bench: "Did you say cook or crook?" ,

iiiiiiiiiiiiinininiiiiiimiiiiicinninniimraiimHiiiiimiiiiiiiimmimiumiiiuuiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiimiiiiii' iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimniiiiiniiiiiimmiiiiiimiiiiii The signatures on all the letters had been false. "Dick" had signed one and accused the rest. The statement concluded: "If my father says that I have had about £ 500 from him by fraud m the last two years I will not deny it. When I found that I needed money I adopted these means of getting it. "I knew that he had drawn all his savings out of the Post Office Savings Bank and that he had mortgaged the house to make up the payments to the Wireless School, as he supposed, but which was really money for me." , When the father entered the box there was a very poignant contrast presented. , The s,on, tall, dressed m an expensive; suit, leaning nonchalantly on the

_ rail of the dock, the o1 d man, small, poorly- dressed, with hair • gone white and his face lined with care. Throughout he

never looked at his son, who continued to pose for the edification of the court. The evidence of the father disclosed the majority of the facts mentioned m accused's statement. Accused had spent the initial . £18 on a uniform which he wore around Palmerston. North, telling # his father that it was that of a ship's wireless operator. He had repeatedly received letters purporting to come from the N.Z. Wireless Schools and signed by the "secretary," F.M. Lewis, these communications containing requests for money. Detective Quirke: Would you have given him the money if you had known the letters were not. genuine?— Most certainly I: would- not. How much, approximately, has. he had from- you through false representation ?-T-Abput £300 (after consideration^ .; : ' ■■.■•'•... > .-. • ■■■'.'•.•

Cross-examined by Lawyer Petersen, accused's solicitor, witness stated that he had no complaints against the son. He had been a good boy and a good worker. He was not sure whether accused had passed the fifth standard or not when he had left school. „ He was prepared to give the boy a home and do his beat to help him redeem his character. Detective Quirke: Has this young fellow done any work for the past two years? — No, he has simply lived on me. Further evidence for the police was taken from Detective Barling, who stated that accused had given the* police every assistance m their inquiries. Pleading guilty, Lunn was committed ! to the Supreme Court at Wellington for sentence. An application for the suppression of his name was refused.