MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXVIV, Issue 79, 9 March 1916, Page 7

MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

HAW ERA, TUESDAY, MARCH 7 (Before Mr W. R. Haselden, S.M.) LABOR DEPARTMENT CASE. (From the Hawera Star). Mary Cramp, licensee of the Central Hotel, was proceeded against by the Labor Department for alleged breaches of the Shops and Offices Act (1) for failure to keep a wages and time book in the prescribed form; (2) for failure to keep a holiday hook ; and (3) for failure to post in a conspicuous place the award of hotel servants as to their hours of work. Mr G. Ryan appeared for the defendant, who pleaded not guilty to the first charge, but guilty to the second and third charges.

Mr J. F. Arnold, who appeared for the Labor Department, gave evidence in support of the prosecution, stating I that the time and wages hook had 'not been kept in the prescribed form, 'while no holiday book,had been kept; | Mr Ryan said that the breaches i had been of a technical nature so far ‘as the keeping of the time and wages book and the non-posting up of the I award were concerned, while the holi,day book had been lost, jfhe defendant had had some difficulty with the servants, and so that was why the books had not been properly kept. A clerk had since been engaged to j keep the hooks, which would be kept I in future in accordance with the statute. The claim of £lO penalty by the Department for failure to post up I the award was a heavy one, considerI ing that the breach was of a technical nature. The Magistrate said he would give his decision on Tuesday next. THE LICENSING LAW. J Riley, brewer, was proceeded against by the police on three charges of having supplied liquor to a Maori, and which liquor was taken into a ■ pa. Mr O’Dea appeared for the denfendant, who pleaded guilty. Counsel stated that with reference to the first charge the defendant had received a note (deliveied hy a. Maori) from a pakeha, a respectable farmer, asking him to supply ten gallons of beer. Defendant had received similar notes before. Senior-Sergeant McNeely : I _ cannot conceive of Mr Riley supplying a Maori with ten gallons of beer simply because the native was armed with an order from a white man. The Magistrate: 1 should like to see that order. Mr O’Dea: Unfortunately the order is lost. The • Magistrate, to the Senior-Ser-geant: Have you any reason to be-' lieve that this man has been carrying on a trade with the Maoris?—Yes. Mr O’Dea called forward the pakeha who had given the order for the liquor who stated that it vas foi supplying hay-makers - Europeans and Maoris—a ushal practice m Taranaki.

The Magistrate: These things are all right until they are abused. The Senior-Sergeant said that with reference to the last two charges, to which the defendant had pleaded guilty, the Maoris gof the liquor without an order. The defendant was further charged with having sold a bottle of "hisky to the Maoris, without having a lie

ense to do so. Evidence was given by James Matanci and Ramanui as to purchasing liquor and a bottle of whisky at the defendant’s brewery. The defendant went across to his house for the whisky, for which the witness said they paid the defendant 7s fid. Marakopa also gave evidence as to giving the previous witness th»> money with which to obtain the liq-

uor. , Mr O’Dea called Pokere, who deposed that Marakopa had said he was unable to get any whisky from the

brewery. The defendant also gave evidence, in which he denied that he had ever sold any whisky to the natives, as he did not keep it. In reply to the Senior Sergeant, witness denied going across to, his house for whisky.

Mr ()’Don addressed the Court, and pointed out that the defendant for several 'years had been a hotelkeeper, and for four years a brewer, and tins was the first occasion on which ho had appeared before the Court. ! The Magistrate said he would reserve his decision until Tncsray next. ! Arthur Nisbett, for whom Mr O’Dea appeared, pleaded not guilty to having supplied Honor to natives. i The Senior Sergeant said that the defendant, who was a respectable farmer, had supplied liquor to hi.-> Maori workmen who were haymaking. . Ho understood that it had been customary to do this sort of thing, but the practice was a had one. The Magistrate : The evil is quite patent to anyone. After hearing the evidence tendered by the police Mr O’Dea said the defendant would admit that the liquor was brought on to his place. The Magistrate, said he did not Hue to convict a respectable farmer, who had acted quite bona lide. He would leave the matter over -until next Tuesday, when he would give Ids de- ■ ■ i vision. Matangi, Billy Ngeru, and Turiakina Ngeru each pleaded guilty to having taken liquor into a Maoii kaianga, while Mawrangi and Ramanui each pleaded guilty to a. similar charge. The senior sergeant explained that these charges were the sequel to the. prosecutions in the previous cases. The Magistrate said he would hx the, punishment next Tuesday, when dealing with the other cases. Hauparoa and Ramanni were each charged with having supplied liquor to a female native.

Hauparoa said ,he did not give the woman the liquor, but he conveyed it to the .place where she was staying. The defendant Ramanni pleaded not guilty. I The Magistrate said he would decide the cases with the others next Tuesday. Ramanni was further charged with having supplied liquor to a native, to which he pleaded not guilty. He subsequently admitted supplying the liquor. The case was allowed to stand over until Tuesday next. Marakopa pleaded not guilty to supplying liquor to natives. He said he gave them the money to buy the liquor, which they took into the paddock. | Decision was reserved.