WHY GREEN WENT BLUE

NZ Truth, Issue 1181, 19 July 1928, Page 8

WHY GREEN WENT BLUE

| But There Was No Smile On The I Face of Niger

s ■ ■ ' s (From "N.Z. Truth's" Gisborne- Representative.) H Nearly 1 2 months have elapsed since Magistrate Levvey expressed a = very J^een desire to once more gaze upon the countenance of Niger Green — | • not that there is anything particularly attractive about that young man. No. H Niger's claim to distinction lies not so much m his appearance as his odd 1: habits. i ' ' '

H OIS habits were irregular for a long H O time — m fact, the public first heard H I of him through a little oversight 3 on a question of proper procedure — and H it Is 'quite fair to assume that the H regularity of his future actions will be H a matter of force rather than volition. H Even if Niger cannot claim to be a H real sheikh, It must be admitted that H everything points to. his having a "way H wid him." His public, history goes H back several years. M With a companion and two , young H ladies he was located m. a house ,at s Gisborne's fashionable seaside resort, ~ Wainui Beach, where: the party had H spent the quieter hours. H Unfortunately, they not only forgot s to pay the rent, but even overlooked H the courtesy of at least obtaining the H owner's consent to their tenancy. H The male members of the unorthoH dox escapade appeared before the court = m- due course, and Niger's name apf§- peared for the first time on the roll of H fame, or infamy. . , H There's, a logical sequence m H Niger's subsequent appearances. ' H The next occasion on wnich he" was jH haled , before the bench wa^ when = he was calle.d upon to answer an aps plication to have him adjudged the 1 father of an illegiti-' , - -

H mate child — unfor- ■ H tunately not his 1 first. H Had it been §§ the first, Niger's

= defence might have §§ been more successful, but having j§ admitted paternity of the first §=. offspring of the woman with whom he H had been living, he found it ;hard — H mpossible, m fact — to convince the H magistrate that he was .not equally reH sponsible' for the second little unwant§l cd.- : .'■■'■'■■ is And so the young man found himself H saddled with the legal responsibility s of providing so much each week for §| the vrpkeep of- his family. • H Perhaps it is not surprising, m = the circumstances, that, the next H time Niger's name was called m s court, it was because'he had failed §§■ . ito obey the terms of his mainten- . H '..an^e order. '■ • ; s But Niger's name was called m yam. = :H^ had; folded his tent, like the | Arabs, and as silently slipped away. =' So .silently, m fact, that no one saw s.ihim go, and none knew. where to find a'Tilmv- ' -■'.' . ' ■■'■•".'■■. §§ ■ -. ■■•His responsibilities, however, did not = disappear with him, and when Niger §| could not be found, action was brought = agalrist his -father, and "maintenance H .was obtained from this ; convenient •= source; ,-■ ' / .' '■■ '■'■ ■-'■■.■': '■ :•.■ \ H On the . last occasion pn which .s Niger's unfortunate, domestic tangles s were aired m "court, Magistrate Leyyey = was incredulous when it was suggested & I that the young man, after his already H stormy ventures into paternity, should H have embarked upon the even more = difficult— though more regular—jours riey of matrimony. ; & "I should like to have that young s man before me again," said the'magist|jp trate, and 'his tone clearly indicated

Niger Confesses

that it was not just the pleasure of Niger's company that he wanted. His worship had to wait a long time, but m the end the prodigal returned, with a constable as a travelling companion — and there was no fatted calf. When he did give Magistrate Lievvey the very doubtful pleasure of meeting him once again, Niger was asked to explain the reason for arrears which, as far back as October last, had amounted to £39 10s. With the aid of Lawyer Jack Wauchop, Niger made a very clear statement of the position. ' He admitted that he had made no maintenance payments for quite a time. Nine months ago^ m October, he had deprived, or relieved — according to the viewpoint — Gisborne of ' his company. In the same month he had married, and his wife was now m St. Helen's Hospital, Wellington. They had travelled round a bit after leaving Gisborne, his wife, who had about £30, paying the expenses. At one stage they had a job as married couple at £3 a week, but he conr sidered that the job was worth more, so he joined the ranks of the unemployed, until he secured. another job at Master- . ton ,at the same

salaryOne week was enough this time, and they returned to Wellington.

. ■ r .. . Alter doing a bit of' toil m the city he joined the x^elief workers at 14/- a day, but he had only had a fortnight of this when he was arrested. Since October he had earned about £60, and ail he now had was 4d. Lawyer Stan. Bcaufoy, who put up a fight for Niger's two little bita pf trouble, tackled the young, man about the manner of his departure, but was assured'that it. was not prompted by a desire to avoid his obligations. It was true that he was told to report to the bailiff, but he did not "think it necessary to tell th'a*t gentleman that he ; was going away, or that.he was about to get married. When Niger confessed to spending 1/6 a week on .tobacco, v Lawyer Beaufoy. remarked that the painting of his fingers had been acquired very cheaply. Describing it as one of the worst • maintenance cases he had heard of, Lawyer Beaufoy told the court that the mother of Green's two children had a good position, but all she ■ earned went,to pay for the upkeep of. the children. :• A final assertion from Green that he ; was not trying to get awayl prompted the magistrate to : remark: "Wereii't you"! I'm not going to say what I think of you; I've -already expressed my opinion pretty plainly." . He 'added that as his parents had heen good to him before, they might again come to his rescue. If he did not find £20 and police expenses, he 'could go to gaol for two\ mpnths. If that payment was made the arrears would be suspended for six nfontha.