NO, MARRIAGE DIDN'T APPEAL TO JOHN

NZ Truth, Issue 1192, 4 October 1928, Page 8

NO, MARRIAGE DIDN'T APPEAL TO JOHN

Why Young McLachlan Engaged Private Detective To Shadow His Former Sweetheart

STAYER TILL IT CAME TO FACING THE BENCH

(From "N.Z. Truth's" Special Auckland Representative.)

Many moons have come and gone since John McLachlan tired of the damsel of his fancy, after a courtship of two years or more. Whether it was the probability of his being called upon to face certain responsibilities, or that his affection waned, was not revealed, but the fact remains that when the girl whose company he had sought finally took her case to the Magistrate's Court and related her story,' he baulked at the defence and never took his place m the witness-box. Magistrate Hunt, no doubt influenced by the candid story of the girl and John's reluctance to bring anything m the way of rebuttal, had no hesitation m making an order m favor of Amy Leslie James, the complainant.

LAWYER ALLAN MOODY, who appeared for Amy, opened by announcing that the child of which John McLachlan was alleged to be the. father was born m September- of last year; there had been a former hearing and then many adjournments, the case being filially struck out. •Amy took her seat beside counsel, with her bonny youngster m her arms, whereupon Lawyer Singer requested his worship to have .the infant cared for outside the small courtroom, so that the proceedings might not be interrupted by its vocal efforts. Magistrate Hunt replied that if it proved troublesome, Lawyer Moody might hold it— or else the cleric of the court. Hardly had the girl's lawyer commenced to address the bench than the infant made its presence heard, being promptly carried from the room and given into the charge of a woman outside. "I thought I was not a bad judge," said Lawyer Singer. Being given her place m the witnessbox, Amy Leslie James, who gave her age as twenty- two, replied m answer to her legal sponsor's questions, that John was the father of her child, She had known him for about five years. He was clerk or buyer for a wellknown cement works and lived at Kingsland, while she lived at Epsom. ; "He kept company with me and called nearly every night; he came by tram and. would stay to tea. In the evenings; we would go out together to pictures, walks and dances. "How long did this continue?" asked Lawyer Moody. . Affection Waned "About two and a-half years," was the girl's reply, and. she. added: "His attentions ceased about February or March, 1927.-' There had been frequent intimacy. "Where?" Lawyer Moody wanted to know. ■•'.-;.•• "At places we'd go to," said the girl. "Home, for one place." Asked what. time he left, she said he would catch the last car as a rule. "Would this happen with the parents m the house?" asked the magistrate* "They'd go to bed early," was the answer. Lawyer Moodyf Did you go out m a motor--car with him? — Yes, lots of times. > In whose cars? — In dozens of different 'cars. • She added that the drivers were usually the owners. Lawyer Singer protesting that her counsel should not lead her m her evidence, complainant Baid.that she discovered her condition early m 1927. The' girl was reluctant to give certain particulars, but Magistrate Hunt assured her- that the court heard lots of sinlilar cases and pressed her to answer questions of an Intimate, nature. Abbut three months before the baby was born, she told John of her condition. She heard that he had spoken to various people about it and said that she was blamittg him; "but," said the girl, "I had said nothing about it. I mentioned his name to nobody." 'Then -she. wept on to tell how she had called him up one night, when she was with some friends at Kingsland, Didn't Blame Him and asked John to meet her on her way home, about seven-thirty. "What took place?" inquired Lawyer Moody. "He asked me If I blamed him," related Amy.. "I said I hadn't mentioned his name. Then he said it didn't look as if- anything was wrong with me at all. I told him I was going to have a baby. He asked me if I was going to blame him, and I said I wouldn't." With one voice, Lawyer Moody and the bench asked: "What did you say that for?" .•-... "He said he didn't want me to blame him," was the reply. "Were you fbnd of him?" asked her lawyer. "I was at one time," was the girl's answer, with a glance ;at John. She assured the court that she had not been intimate with any other man. Questioned as to her one-time lover's visit to see her, Amy replied: "He came out to see me because my father asked him to. I think my father had arranged to meet him several times." I ' This visit, said, the girl, took place at a ; house-at which she was staying, not long -before the child arrived m this world of woe. They were m the dining-room together and he had suggested ; that she should adopt the child, putting At to her that she could go into court and say it didn't belong to him — then' they could do nothing to him. After this conversation she went with him to the, front door. . Lawyer Singer: "To say good-bye to him?" : Amy only smiled m answer. "He was going," she remarked a moment later. . "Did you blame him?" asked Lawyer Moody. "I said I couldn't do anything else," replied Amy. ' t' '■'.'. s '

Then she added: "He said I could easily stand up m the box and say. it wasn't his . . . and nobody could Drove it was his. He didn't want his mother to know and. didn't want any fuss. He asked me if I'd keep the baby or have it adopted." To Magistrate Hunt: "I said I'd ■ have it adopted if I could get anybody to have it. He said if he heard of anybody who wanted it he'd let me know. He said his father would help me with a lump sum of money." I'Did you tell his father?" asked Magistrate Hunt. Amy answered "My father said if he didn't tell his father himself, he would." Lawyer Singer: How do you know that? — He told me. My father asked him. if he would marry me, arid he said he would not. "I'm not the marrying kind," he said. "My father's wife went out to see j his mother with another wpman the i night I went to the nursing home," Amy added. Lawyer Moody: Have you seen him [since the child was born? — Yes, I've passed him and he's raised his hat. Magistrate Hunt was curious to know why the girl had not written to John. Her answer to this was: "My father had been to Mr. Finlay and we I left it at that." .

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BETWEEN DANCES.--The two charming little fragments of femininity (above), chatting about tomorrow's styles for evening wear, . provide a striking contrast between the ragged hemlino (left) and frills. Below: A charming frock which droops at both sl.des. (Specially photographed m "N.Z. Truth's" own studio.) ( iiimiiiiiiiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii It transpired that the first summons had been issued m November, 1927. ■ . ' Lawyer Singer then rose to the fray. In reply to counsel, Amy said that her father was a boiler-maker and she was a dressmaker. She had been keeping herself. "Defendant is not the only boy you know?" And John's lawyer leaned forward like a hound on the .leash. . "No," replied Amy. Know a man named Gilson? — I don't remember. "Loach?" Lawyer Singer was a bit more aggressive. "No, I don't remember all of them." VBrindle?" Amyjs answer, was uncertain. "Purdy?" . ', "The boxer?" asked Amy. . Lawyer Singer didn't know. "Clive Clark?" "He's a cousin of my friend," said Amy. . "Her name?" demanded Lawyer Singer. •. '-Kaira Meaghan,'/ was how Amy's answer sounded to the court. "When did the defendant last go out with you?" asked counsel. \ "He never really stopped at all; once or twice a- month," said .the giri; but it transpired that counsel and fcomplainant were at cross -purposes and referring to different periods. Finally it was disclosed, that m February or March tliey had stopped seeing each other every night. Apparently the reason for this, according' to Amy, was that John was bad-tempered. "He was lawfully rough; when he has a few drinks he gets awfully bad-tempered," she explained. , ~ . . Lawyer Singer was insistent m discovering when the last indiscretion took place between the pair. Amy replied: "In January, 1927; He took me out m a motor to some friends m Parnell. Fred Parkes drove. There were a whole crowd m the car—everybody sitting on top of each other." | .' ■ . Counsel : Where • did you go? — To a party. To Magistrate Hunt, who askdd how misconduct could take place at a party, Amy answered: . "They weren't m every room." Counsel: Whoseplace was it?— Clive Clark's uncle's place. A man called Donnelly. . - ... Magistrate Hunt: Was the uncle there? — Yes. "Must have been a pretty free-and-easy sort of place!" remarked the bench. '

To Lawyer Moody, Amy said the house was m Ayr Street. Taking up the story again, Lawyer Singer asked: Was it a late party? — It was three m the morning when I got home. Lawyer., Singer suggested that it was not a very uncommon thing for the girl to come home very late. "I always caught the last car," she . rejoined. Thkt night, Amy continued, they parted, seemingly for keeps, though she admitted that she did not tell him so. She had not made up her mind not to see him again. She added, as if to finalise this phase of the aff&ir: "It was a bit hot coming home at 3 a.m." " Though they afterwards saw each other "lots of times," it was not to speak. To' Magistrate Hunt: "There was no formal breaking- oft! of the friendship." Cross-examination led along to the time when Amy discovered that her late beau had engaged a well-known private detective to make inquiries and watch her. On discovering this unpalatable fact, she rang him up. "Did you ask him why he had a private detective making all these inquiries?" demanded Lawyer Singer. "His answer was," said the girl, "that he had made the inquiries because he had heard I was m a certain

miimiiiiiuiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiimmmiiiiuiiniiiiiiniiiniiimuiiimiiiiiiiiiuiniiiiiiui condition and that he was to be blamed. I had told no one.'' "He wanted to see if he could blame anyone else," observed the S.M. Lawyer Singer: Did you deny that you were m a certain condition to him? — I mentioned the night at Parnell. I knew that was the only night it could have been. . She went on to say that she had never told him over'^the 'phone that there was: anything wrong with her. Why didn't you communicate with the defendant between April and August, 1927?— 1 hadn't told anybody, and I didn't like to mention it. Who did you speak to about it? — A friend of mine, Mrs. Rogers. Later, Amy said; "Clive Clark told us about the private detective. He told us that McLachlan had paid the detective £7 and had to pay him another t £7." . Lawyer Singer: What for?— For watching me. "He (Clive Clark)," the girl went on,' "said the detective visited some hotel and asked some boys to sign a paper saying that they had been . out with me." * . Lawyer Moody remarked:' "I'm not surprised at that detective!" "And did they?" asked Magistrate Hunt. "No, they wouldn't," replied the girl. " Amy denied that she had . slept at Donnelly's on the night of the party at Parnell.. The same man drove her home as took her there. Teddy Parkes was her escort." Counsel: "Do you know Frank Burse? —Yes. he's staying at trie same place as Clive Clark. ' '' N Defendant's counsel wanted to know if Amy had not been invited to a house m Manukau Road m December, 1926, or whether she had not gone out one night with Clive Clark , and Frank Burse m,' a "diamond" > taxi, with a three-gallon keg of beer, to Kingsland Road. But Amy denied any such excitement. ('Who is Frank Burse's girl?" . Insisted Lawyer Singer. "1 don't

know," .replied Amy. Then she added: "I've been there, but there was no beer, and it was not that night, li don't drink whisky." Counsel persisted: "Do you remember someone telling you to keep your voices down, as the, police were around searching for an escaped convict?" Amy's mind held no such memories. "Do you remember defendant remonstrating with you for using bad language — and you got annoyed and smacked his face?" asked the lawyer. "No," replied Amy. "And I remember nothing about escaped convicts. I was always too frightened to smack his face, because he was too bad-tem-pered. I suggest you never told him about the baby at all?— -Certainly I did. When I met him m Page's store I told him... After a moment, Amy continued: "I'm not on bad terms with my father, but with my step-mother. I do not keep late hours and I never slept m the summer-house because I was afraid to go into the house.' I never went on the 'Herekino' with a man Loach or slept on the ship." To further questions, the girl replied that she had never been to a party given by a man named Dickson or Beeson, and she had no recollection of a party at which two young men fought and Were later brought to court. "You didn't want to marry defendant, did ybu?" and Lawyer Singer leaned across the courtroom table. Amy replied* "No." In fact, you laughed at the suggestions—Yes. Went To Parties ' __ — ____ — __ — ■ • "i Mrs. Rogers, the girl related,, came from Wellington and later took a. shop at Epsom, but she never went to any parties at her hojuse.. .The woman .lived with her husband. \ ' Her only parties' had been with Molly Hawkes and Kaira Meaghan. Clive Clark was there .and Amy-con-ceded that she had danced with him. Watson, another man," was ' "always 'there." .-.■'■•' •,:.■'. "I never went outside," declared the girl. "It wasn't a house where you could wander into the bedrooms if you wanted to." At last, after a cross-examination which hadv probed, into eyejx; possible phase 'y'o_' Amy's v life or .'amusement, Lawyer Singer was compelled to re--linquish his questionings which thei girl had faced with smiles and great selfpossession; .-'• .'Her father was then called, Horace James, . boiler - maker, who told -how John, the fickle one, had kept company with his daughter for about three years and was a frequent partaker, of Sunday tea at their home. ■ "Was he keeping company, with your daughter all the time?" asked Lawyer Moody. "Very much," was the terse reply. . Going on to give some details as to the friendship which existed , between the girl and the man, and his visits, Amy's father, by way of explanation, remarked: "My wife is the girl's stepmother — not that she's a, snag — but the visits dwindled off a bit, thoughshe still took her to parties." The father described a mysterious telephone call he had received. A voice over the 'phone said: "Do you know ' _ t A 'Phone Message your daughter is m trouble? You'll look after her, won't you? Thank you very much!" Then the receiver was hung up. Following this, James went to see John. "Good- day, John," he said; ''have you seen Amy lately?" "He turned all colors?" said witness. "I' tried to get him to marry her. 'Oh, no,' he says; 'I'm not the marrying sort.'" James said .tljfat the question of money had nothing to do with it, as his girl, as he put it, "had a bob or two of her own." With reference to the expected baby, the 'defendant had said that something might be arranged about "getting it adopted." "You can get rid of them as easily as shelling peas," were the words John was alleged to have used. "Every time I. rang him," said James, "he came along quick and lively." To Magistrate Hunt: "I rang him up to see about marrying her; he had the use of her and he ought to marry her!" With considerable fairness, the father concluded: "McLachlan didn't admit misconduct out and out." The court adjourned at this stage until the afternoon, when counsel for both parties paraded before Magistrate Hunt. •Defendant's lawyer announced that . McLachlan had, so to speak, thrown m the towel; m other words, he was not prepared to go into the witnessbox and carry his defence to a finish. An order against John was made for 12/6 a week, to be retrospective from the date of the baby's birth. Expenses which were stated to be £20, were held m abeyance until Lawyer Singer had been shown the receipts.