STRANGE TRIAL

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 362, 25 October 1932, Page 7

STRANGE TRIAL

dumb man charged WEIRD HIEROGLYPHICS PERFORMED IN COURT. FINE TO INTERPRETER. Something unique in the way of a police court trial was the ^hearing" of the evidence against four deaf and dumb prisoners at Ontario charged before Magistrate Jeffs with being intoxicated in a publicr place. Herman St. Anoint, Cyrus D. Young, C. W. Evans and William Brandoji, mill hands working at Embro, were taken into custody when found wandering the streets in a drunken condition. Earlier in the day they had enquired of several people by means of writing their question, where they could procure buttermilk. Failing to locate any of the lacteal beyerage, they evidently decided to slack their thirst with a quart. bottle of scotch. Because of their condition and the magistrate's inability to make them understand the reaso:i of their arrest, they were sent to gaol for the weekend to give them a chance to sober up. In "the meantime the police located a young lady who could conveirse fluently with one hand and was willing to act as interpreter for the accused.

The fingers of the auburn-haired miss flew as they conveyed to the four men the charge read by the ma- j gistrate. In reply to the question, j "How do you plead, guilty or not 1 guilty?" the right hand- of each of j the accused perfprmed weird hiero- i glyphics in the air to th'e effect that they were not guilty and would not do it again. "ThiV is a peculiar situation," said His Worship. "The men do not seem to understand the nature of their offence. They have been in custody over the week-end. That is same p«unishnient, Just collect a dollar from each of them, chief, and pay it to the interpreter." The men smiled their appreciation of the interpreter's services as if she had succeeeded in getting them off, and after digging up the odd dollar, silently went their way.