MAORI MAIDEN'S ALLEGATIONS

NZ Truth, Issue 1291, 4 September 1930, Page 9

MAORI MAIDEN'S ALLEGATIONS

Bachelor Plows Denies He Made Indiscreet Love To Dusky Maid In His Cleveland Whare "A GIRL SHOULD STICK TO ONE BOY" (From "N.Z. Truth's" Special Auckland Representative.) It was the old, old story of maidenly indiscretion which Eliza Hama, an attractive Maori girl of nineteen, told Mr. E. C. Cutten, S.M., when she asked him to fix paternal responsibility m respect tb her illegitimate child. It was no man of her.own race whom Eliza blamed for her betrayal, but a pakeha, Frederick Plows, a young bachelor, of Cleveland, and he, when confronted with the girl's allegation, gave it an emphatic denial, at the same time declaring that the dusky maiden was most indiscreet and indiscriminate m her associations with other men.

THE story of this, pakeha and' his alleged love for the company of the Maori maiden took two full days to tell. Mr. J. F. Dickson appeared for the giii and Mr. T. J. Fleming for Plows. Eliza Hama told Mr. E. C. Cutten, S.M., a pathetic (ale. Only nineteen years she lived with her mother and father at Cleveland, where Plows also lived and worked. Plows was on her list of friends and during the two years she knew him, that friendship ripened with the result that on March 6 last a child was born to her. Plows, she emphatically declared, was the father of her child. The gii'l told Mr. Dickson that m March, 1929,. she, together with her parents, went by train to the Ngaruawahia regatta. Before this, however, she had met Plows who had taken her to dances and pictures at Cleveland. There had been no m-'sconduet before the regatta,, hut imnroper conduct occurred two months later. The next occasion was after a visit to the pictures and subsequently she found that she was to become a mother. In June she spoke to Plows about her condition and he replied, "I don't care, I've plenty of money." At this stage the girl gave the magistrate complete details of her alleged association with Plows at his shack and : n his lorry at night time. Mr. Fleming (cross-examining): Now, on May 28, you met a sailor and he asked you to spend the afternoon with him and you did? The girl replied that this was correct, but that there were four of them j m the party. Mr. Fleming then Questioned the girl about an alleged incident after a dance following a football match at New Brighton on July 27 last, between the lads of that district and those of Cleveland. Eliza stated that she and her sister Rachel went along to the New Brighton match m Plows's lorry along with the Cleveland footballers. Mr, Fleming: Now, Plows didn't want you to go ?■ — Yes, he did, he asked us to go and sent Paul Pompey to pick us up. Eliza denied that she and Paul Pomney remained m a lorry from 9 o'clock till 12.30 the night of the football dance and "did wrong things." She knew that Plows was engaged to Miss Brown, but declared she was not iealous of the girl and had not asked Plows to marry her two years ago. The girl said she knew a man called Johnnie Rueben. but was unaware that Johnnie had plenty of girls arid she denied the allegation that she had occupied the same room with him m his own house. Eliza declared that she had slept with Rueben's sister. Tt was- not true, she added, that Rueben left his wife becausje he wanted to marry her. Mr. Fleming challenged Eliza with having gone out frequently w'th other boys and with having blamed a Maori for her condition. To these allegations strong denials were given as also the fact that because. Plows was known to have plenty of money she wanted to have him. To Mr. Dickson she said that when she met the sailors m Auckland on May 27 she spent an hour with them aboard the "Dunedin." Nothing out of place occurred. Later Plows took Mrs. Joyce and herself home m his lorry, and that night misconduct took place. This concluded the girl's ev'denee and her father. Parauri Hama, sleepily stepppd into the witness-box and said that Plows, whom he knew well, was m his daughter's company. He had objected to the girl associating with Plows. Mr. Dickson: Did you speak to Plows? — I asked him whether he was aware that he was the father of my daughter's child. Plows said. "I am not the only one responsible for it. as there are many others who have had something to do with this girl." j Hama remembered Eliza staving with Johnnie Rueben. It may have been for three or four days, but he ; took her away. He was not aware that Eliza was the cause, of. the trouble between Rueben and bis wife. ' Mr. Fleming: Why did you take

Eliza away? — Beeiiu.se people complained to me that it was not a proper thing for the girl to stay there so I came and took her away. John Rueben jauntily stepped forward next and said he was a farm hand. He told Mr. Dickson that it was eighteen months prior to March, 1920, that Eliza's father took her home. Rueben told Mr. Dickson he was employed as lorry driver by Plows "on and off," and lived about five miles away from Plows. ■ He had seen Plows and the girl Eliza at the shack several times. He had stayed at this bach with Plows three months this year and three weeks last year. The time he stayed there last year was after the Ngaruawahia regatta. Mr. Dickson: Did you remember an occasion when Eliza squealed? — Yes, it would be about a couple of months after the regatta. The -time this happened was when Rachel and Eliza were there. Rachel and nic went along to the bridge and we heard a squeal. We went back to tho bach

Mr. Fleming: Why did you not tell me, wheiVyou came to see me before this case, that Plows had tried to • bribe you ?— Well, because I did not want to tell you. Are you quite sure, Mrs. Joyce, that Plows offered you that money? — Absolutely sure, absolutely certain. Mrs. Joyce also told Mr. Fleming that she objected to Eliza bringing men from the Public Works Department to her home (Mrs. Joyce's). She was Eliza's cousin and she objected to one girl going with a lot of men. "A girl should stick to the one boy," she added. Mr., Fleming: Have you seen anything familiar between Plows and Eliza?— No. Two young Europeans and incidentally brothers by name, Warwick and Ivan Renall, gave evidence m favor of Eliza Hama. Both had known her and Plows and had often seen them together. Neither had seen Eliza m the company of other men. Eliza's sister, Rachel, was the next witness. She said that when Plows was courting Eliza he had often called at the Hama household. Reverting to. the night of the Kawa Kawa incident she corroborated the version given by Eliza and Rueben. Rachel spoke of another occasion when, after the same f.our had returned from the pictures and a dance they went into Plows's bach. /Plows asked EJiza to go inside which she did against her will. Rachel then said that she and Johnnie Rueben went for a walk and it. was a short while after that a 1 scream emanating from the bach rent the still air of the night. As a result the strolling couple went back to the bach. Eliza was upset. This would be about May or June of last year. Rachel told Mr. Fleming there' was a tangi at her father's house and Johnnie and Dick Rueben were there. She denred that her sister and Rueben had occupied the same room on that occasion. Opening his case for Plows. Mr. Fleming said his client was a hardworking, s:ngle man of good repute, possessed of three lorries and was engaged m cream contracts and a healthy carrying business. At present he was. engaged to a halfcaste Maori girl which had created extreme jealousy m the mind of the girl, Eliza Hama. who was seeking an affiliation order. As a matter of fact. Eliza had even •proposed to him and suggested that he discard the girl he was engaged to m order that she might marry him. The Maoris m the case had put the'r heads together and had brought Plows to court on a trumped-up charge. It would be denied that Plows had conducted himself improperly with Miss Hama, who, on the other hand, was most indiscreet and Indiscriminate m her associations with other men. Small of stature and thickly-built, Frederick Plows soon after he had settled himself m the witness-box strenuously denied that he was the father of Eliza's child. In fact, although he had ..taken her on his bus on occasions, he had never behaved m any other manner than as a gentleman. Plows also' recoljeoted the time when the Hama girls were m his bus going to the footbail match at New 7 Brighton. He asked them what they wanted to

[ and Eliza was sitting on thc bed crying^ Neither she nor Plows spoke to us then. Rueben a/ided that Eliza and Rachel were at the bach on other occasions, and that Plows would take them home m his lorry. Mr. Dickson: Did you ever see anything peculiar m the whare? — Yes, Plows used to fool about with Eliza. "When did you see- this fooling going on? — Sometimes m the day time, sometimes m the evening. One evening when he came home, said Rueben, he saw Plows and 1 Eliza asleep m one of the rooms, and added that he had seen, the same thing so many times he couldn't remember how many. He had never seen Eliza with other men. A man named Pomp'ey stayed at the bach sometimes. Mr. Dickson: Do you recollect a night when Plows was with Eliza and you were with* Rachel? — Yes. Tell us about it.— Well, it was m Plows's truck. AYe went from Cleveland to Kawa Kawa Hill and stopped the truck there. This would be about two months after the Ngaruawahia sports. Plows told me and Rachel to go on ahead whilst he and Eliza stopped behind. Ido not know what happened, but Rachel and I went home. Mr. Fleming: Now, you mention some things that took place m the bach which Miss Hama didn't, why is that? — I am telling you what I know. Rueben, I put it to you, you have had trouble with. Eliza yourself? — No. Wasn't Mrs. Rueben jealous of Eliza? — She had no reason to be so. -Did you suggest to Plows to make over a payment of money and so settle this case? — No, I did not. Telling her version of the affairs existing between Plows and Eliza, Mrs. Marama Joyce, a full-blooded Maori, was most emphatic m all her statements. She told Eliza's solicitor about the day that El ; za had met the sailors. This was on May 28 of last year, the date which she remembered because it was the time when she paid a visit to a doctor. . Plows drove herself and Eliza into town and she remembered Eliza meeting some sailors about noon. There was a sailor and his cousin and another lady. Mrs. Joyce did not go. with them. Plows drove Eliza and herself home and they arrived at Cleveland about 6 o'clock. Mr. Dickson: Did he let Eliza off j when he was passing her father's, place? — No. What time would this be? — About 11.30. Did Eliza tell you to tell Plows to stop when he was passing her place? — I ' Yes, but I told

her it had nothing to do with me. Witness told Mr. Dickson that about a week before the case came on Plows offered her £50 to give evidence for him. He had also denied that he was the father of the child.

go for as the bus was required to bring the footballers out. The girls replied that as Miss Brown was going out so were they. Relating 'what he knew, of the lorry incident after the match Plows said he saw the Hama girls m the lorry around which a number of men were hanging. Later he saw Eliza under one of the sheets m the lorry with Paul Pompey. Plows denied ever stopping his lor.ry on Kawa Kawa Hill when Rachel, Eliza and Rueben were with him. Though the two girls and Rueben were

with him he asserted that he had not asked Eliza to stay behind as stated. Mr. Fleming: Now. on May 28, 1929, you remember the allegation that you carried Eliza past her own house m your lorry? — Yes. Did you do that? — No. What happened? — Every time I stopped the lorry she said she did not want to get out, saying she was coming with me. Plows admitted that on this day he had done a hard day's toil, finishing up about 11 o'clock. It was after this day's work that he took the Hama girls home, and there was absolutely no foundation m the accusation that he had committed impropriety with Eliza. Mr. Dickson: Now, you say that Eliza asked you to marry her two years ago? — Yes. Were you engaged to this . halfcaste Maori, Miss Brown, at this time? — No, but I was going with her. In further reply to Mr. Dickson, Plows said he had taken Miss Brown on a fifteen days' tour. He was not sure of the actual date he got engaged to Miss Brown, but it would be about six months ago. Plows did not deny that the Hama girls had at times been to his bach. Mr. Dickson: You never acted m an improper manner with Eliza? — No. Did you offer Mrs. Joyce £50 to clear the case? — No, I did not. Mrs. Joyce must have got mixed up. Plows admitted that when he was touring with Miss Brown he had kissed her, but as for Eliza Hama, he had nothing to do with her. Speaking of his knowledge of Eliza's association with other men, Plows said he saw her with others after the football match; also that Eliza had lived at Johnnie Rueben's place for a month. He knew this to be a fact because when he passed the house on his rounds collecting cream he saw her there himself. Mr. Fleming: Eliza said that when she found out she was m a certain condition she. told you and you said: "Oh, that's all right! I've plenty of money!" Is that true? — No, it is not true. Trevor Brown, brother to Plows's fiancee, said he remembered the football match between Cleveland and New Brighton. After the match he was waiting for the dance ' to follow. Plows's lorry was about half a mile away, and about nine o'clock he saw Eliza and Paul Pompey and Rachel and Rangi Pompey m it. When the dance was over he saw, about 12.30, that Eliza and Paul were hidden under the canvas m the lorry. Mr. Dickson: Now, concerning this incident after the football, who asked you about it? — Plows did. When did Plows see you? — He came to our house. Brown said, that when they came up to the lorry after the dance Eliza and Paul Pompey crawled from out the canvas and then jumped on it. Edward Brown, father of the previous witness, told Mr. Fleming he knew that Johnnie Rueben and Eliza had lived together about September, 1928, for three weeks. Altogether there were four people m the house at that time, including Eliza and Johnnie, a man named Thomson, and Rueben's sister. The witness declared that a meeting of Maoris had been held m connection with the trouble that Eliza Hama was alleged to have caused m the Rueben home. Eliza got a thrashing from her mother as the result. Brown added that Eliza was "too easy" for the men. Johnnie Rueben's wife told Mr Fleming that she had married m Maori fashion the young man whom Eliza was alleged to have enticed away. She asserted that Eliza at one stage had been sleeping m a room with her Johnnie for three weeks or more. 1 As a result of- this, Eliza's father came over and took her home because il was causing trouble. Mr. Dickson: While Eliza was m the house you were not there? — No. Miss Eliza Roberts, a dusky maiden of 14 years, still at school, said she remembered the day when Plows made an alleged offer of £50 to Mrs. Joyce to give evidence on his behalf. . It was only that day that Mrs. Joyce asked her if she heard what was" said. The girl told counsel the conversation about the money took place m Plows's car, and there were only thr.ee people present. Mr. Fleming: What answer did Mrs. Joyce give to this suggestion? — I didn't hear. This concluded all the evidence, and both counsel intimated that they had .no desire to -address the bench. The magistrate remarked that he had taken enough notes on the question and that he .would later give his decision. X