RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Southland Times, Volume III, Issue 35, 27 January 1864, Page 3

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Moxdat, January 25. (Before M. Price, Esq., E.Tvf.) Duuxjcenxess. — Twelve persons were charged wit] i this ollencs. Some of tlicm wei'o discharged, having been looked Tin from the previous Saturday night ; the others wore fiuod. THE ItECEXT CASE OJ? STICiaXG-TTP IN TAYSTKEET. j John Murphy, a man about forty years of age, was charged with an assault and attempted robbery on Saturday niglit. The prisoner was undefended. Mr Weldon conducted the examination for the prosecution. Louis Bcrrick deposed to the following effect: — He was going home on Saturday night, about 10 o'clock, with a box containing a quantity of jewellery. He resiled in Clavke's-lanc,Tay street, about sixty yards from the entrance to the lane. There was a full nioon at the time. As he entered the lane he could see no one in it. He had proceeded half-way down the lane, when the prisoner and another man rushed out from a. now building and walked rapidly towards him. He kept on, although lie had suspicions of the men.- He saw that the prisoner carried a handkerchief with sometliiug in it like that, produced (which had some stones tied up in one end.) When they met him they divided, one taking one side and one the other. After they had passed about a yard, the biggest of the two men turned, and put his arm round pi'oseeutor's throat, when Murphy rushed up on the other side and seized him by the throat. He tried to call out i but could not; they threw him down on his back, still keeping a grip on his throat ; he felt his sight and hearing giving way, and that lie was losing all consciousness. Previous to becoming insensible he heard one of the mon \ say, " get his money." One of them then made olf towards Tay-strcet, while tho other held prosecutor down. Finding that his grip was getting freer, and that in a little time it was loosened, he got up and rushed in the direction of Tay-street, calling' ■' murder" and j •' stop thief." The next thing he saw was the prisoner in custody on the other side of Taystreet. He had suffered so much from the violence that he had not been able to eat anything all tho previous day. The prisoner Mur■pliy was the one wlio took the box. Cross-examined by the prisoner : Ho saw ■the prisoner on Saturday night; ; his dress was a monkey }ackefc and " wide-awake" hat ; the collar of the coat was up ; it Avas about four minutes from the time he was seized until prisoner was in custody. The two prisoners .thought that he (prosecutor) was more " cooked " than lie really was. The box was in the same state when ho identified it as when he took it from his shop. He had had no communication with tho police about the matter. j By the Bench. — The box contained the following articles of jewellery, viz : — Forfcy gold and silver watches, thirty gold chains, twenty gold brooches, forty gold scales and keys, twenty gold "charms" and lockets, eighty gold rings, twenty gold breast pins, and fifteen gold thimbles. Ono of each of tho articles produced was in tho box at tho time. Sergeant Shuroy, of the police force, deposed as follows : — On Saturday night, about ten j o'clock, he was on duty in Tay-street, near the j Union Hotel, -when lip heard tho cries of " murder." On crossing the road to ascertain the cause, ho hcaad tho cry of " thieves." Ho saw the prisoner running from tho direction of Olarko's-lane with what appeared to boa parcel nndcr lvis arm. On gaining tho centre of the road -he set it down and run past witness,

who sprung after him, aud seized him by tho jumper. He thoii brought linn back to where the box was lying in the road, when the pro- . sceutor came up find iudeutiiied the box as his property. Cross examined by the prisoner. — He would swear that ho saw tha prisoner put tho box down on the ground, and that u> one went nearit until he brought him back. Prisoner was dressed as ho then was in the dock. Did not recollect asking prosecutor if he know prisoner. By the Berieh. ; — There was no one else near at the time. Wa3 positive the prisoner was the man who put down the box identified by the prosecutor.' Mr Weldon asked for a remand for eight days, as there was a probability of the police arresting the other man. The Bench remanded the prisoner until that day week. Indecent Exposure. — A man, named James Biggaus, was lined 40s for indecently exposing himself. CITII O.VSE3. M'Roey r. GhTNx. — £6, for goods sold. Mr. Button, who appeared for the' plaintiff', would accept ..a nonsuit, as he had only then seen the summons, 1 and ascertained: that it was informal. Tapper v. Castle. — £19 9s 9d, for goods sold. Mr. Weston appeared for tho plaintill". This was an account, some of the items of which were disputed by the defendant, who was not satisfied of the delivery of the goods, which the plaintiff alleged had been received by a carpenter in defendant's employ. Defendant denied having ordered the goods, or that he had given any orders to anyone to get them from plaintiff. Ho had employed a carpenter, named Bone, to build a house for hiiii, but never gave him orders to obtain any goods from plaintiff. The case was postponed to Friday, for the production of the witness ]3cme. Smith v. Fishek. — £10 Is, for goods sold. Verdict by default. Mitchell and Company v. Brout'e. — £100, for a dishonored bill. Verdict by default. Hoyvte v. Price.— £l9 10s G;l, for goods sold. Verdict by default. MiUiisii BitOTJiEiis v. Sttt/mvan. — £19 19s, for goods sold. Verdict by default. Cauey v. DaTiTOX. — £fi 12s Gd, for goods sold. Mr. South, who appeared for the defendant, applied for an adjournment, in order to prove a set off, Avhich the defendant had been delayed in preparing. The case was remanded to Wednesday. . ■Bkoad v. Martix. — £9-jGs, for goods sold. Verdict by default. Murdoch v. Camero>\ — £19 10s, for wages. Mr. Weston appeared for the plaintiff, who, proving the debt, and the defendant not. appearing, a verdict was given by default. Pattison' v. Russell. — .61 2s GJ, cash lent. Verdict by default. | The Court adjourned to next clay. Tuesday, January 2G. Drunkenness. — Only one person was fined 5s for this offence/ BREACHES OV THE HARBOR lIKCrULATIONS. Charles Cook, master of the lighter .Friends, was charged, by Captain Groig, the liar bo rMa«ter, with a breach of the Harbor Regulations, in not having a light hoisted on his vessel from sun.set to sunrise, while the vessel was lying out in the rive: 1 . Tho pilot Jonos gave evidence that he went aboard the vessel at sunset, and found they were only then about to hoist the light. The Bench mitigated the penalty to 20s, as the defendant had only shown a slight neglect in not hoisting the light exactly at the proper time. Edward Purss, the master of the lighter Salamander, who was summoned for a similar offence, did not appear when called on. The Assistant Harbor-Ma-'tcr proved that the vessel had no J-ight during the hours she ought to have one hoisted, while lying in the liiver. When he went aboard he wa.s told -there was no lantern aboard tho vessel. 'The Magistrate said as the oJlencs had been ■proved, and (he defendant did not choose to appear in Court, lie would inflict the full penalty of £10. After the case had been dismissed, Mr Bonar (of the firm of Henderson, Bonsir & Co.) inailc an application to the Bonch for a mitigation of the penalty, on the grmind that the defendant' had only received the summons at half-past 5 o'clock on the previous evening, avid lie was under the impression he should have twenty-four hours' notice. The magistrate would not accept the excuse; the summons specified that the defendant must appear in Court that morning, and if lie had done so, when -the case was (failed on, and then asked for time, it would have been granted. George Green was summoned for permitting the wreck of the Guiding Star to obstruct the navigation of the river. Captain Grcig gave evidence that the wreck of the Guiding Star was lying in the IScw liiver below the Bombay Hock ;. she was lying below low water mark. On the 27th November (when the information was laid) he did not know Avhether the wreck belonged to the defendant or not ; she belonged to him in the month of Juno, about a month after he was served with the usual notice. Mr. Weston, who appeared for tho defendant who was in Dunedin, denied his responsibility, as the wreck of tho Guiding Star no longer belonged to him. As it Avas a criminal information it would be for the- complainant to prove that tho vessel was tho property of the defendant on the date when the. information was laid. The Harbour Master said lie was not in a position to prove that the vessel was the property of the defendant. Under those circumstances the Bench could only dismiss the ease. The Court then adjourned.