ECHO OF A TRAGEDY.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 March 1917, Page 7

ECHO OF A TRAGEDY.

A WOMAN'S BRAZEN CONDUCT. LEADS TO IMPRISONMENT. "The most brazen woman I have over mot," was Uio comment of Mr. F. V. Fraser, S.M., at ""Auckland recently, respecting a young widow, Mrs. Amelia, Perry (31), formerly of Ramaranm, wlio was charged that on January 23 she stole a \ gold bangle, value £3 10s, the property of Thomasiwi Barrett, ami that on January 28 she stole a chip's dress and a pair of lady's hoots from the washhouse of Stanley Rickards. The evidence showed that about Janir. ary 2,3, Mrs. Perry visited an aged aunt, Mrs. Barrett, at the latter's house in new North Road, and after the visit the old lady discovered that a treasured cameo bangle was gone. A few days later Mrs. Barrett discovered the bangle in a'second-hand shop, and, on inquiry, she found that the dealer had purchased a pawn ticket from a woman for' 5s and redeemed the brooch from an adajacenrpawnshop. Then came, a complaint to Sergeant Rock, at Newton, that, a woman with a child had begged an old pram off a Grey Lynn resident, telling a romantic story about the child being that of a friend's who had had the increase after seventeen years of married life, and was very ill in consequence. The woman had taken the pram to another resident, told a new story about the clii!d, and got another old pram. Then Ehe had gone to a third resident, got | permission to lea!ve her pram, which she had broken down, in a washhouse, and had stolen a dress and a pair of boots from the wash house. The sergeant's inquiries revealed that after Hie theft the woman had endeavored to cover up her tracks by exchanging the wheels of the two old prams, and eventually he discovered Mrs. Perry, whom ho suspected to be th'c thief, in a train ready to go South. She was identified by one of the residents, and was arrested, the child having before this been given into the care of other hands, which was satisfactory. Against definite and positive evidence of the pawnbroker and the dealer that Mrs. Perry was the woman who had pawned the brooeli and sold the pawn ticket, and of two other people that she had been concerned in the theft, slit maintained a protestation of mistaken identity, which evoked the magistrate's comment about her eflrontery, as well as the remark that she was also a daring thief. His Worship convicted the woman and sentenced her to three years' reformative treatment, adding that if there were any mental peculiarity requiring special treatment the Prisons Board could decide on the matter.