RESIDENT MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1541, 18 January 1887, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

Geraldine—Monday, Jan. 17, 1887. [Before H. 0. S. Baddelay, Esq,, B.Mii wd A. H, Brisco, Biq„ J.P.] ALLBGBD ASSAULT 'WITH INTBNI, Thomas Squires was charged with' haling assaulted one Eleanor Brett on Friday, 14th inst., with intent to commit a rape. Mr White appeared for the defendant. : The case ; wis heard with closed doors, On the application of Mr White, all the witnesses were ordered oat of Court. ’ Eleanor Bfettj swdrni said; lam the'wife of John Brett,, saddler, at Orari Gorge station. r The accused came to my house on *, the afternoon of Friday, 14th inst. He itayed at my house for about balf-an-honr. When he got up to go away he held out hit hand to shake hands with me, and then he stooped down to kiss me. I pushed his faes away and told him to stop. He still kept hold of my hand. He made improper pro* posals to me. He still kept pulling me about, and had hold of my hands the whole time, and wastrying to push mii'Op >the';Sofa. I was standing np, and he pulled me about while standing. l: v wao sitting down on, a chair by ,the door when he was going away, and he dragged me aeross jto the sofa, which is on the other side of the room. Itold him to stop, and threatened to tell his wife, I pulled Wm outside, and then ho left. My husband and Accused wer# always on frisndly terms. Aoonsed had been to my house on several occasion!. My husband was away mustering, and oame back on Saturday. My husband informed the police. Accused came to the houie.to see why we had . not been np to his house lately. Wswere talk* ing principally about a cow. My wnsts were a little bruised by bis holding me. (Witness showed the marks to the Beneh.) The only other thing we talked of was he said his wife had had a baby three weeks before, There ws» no indecent converse* tion. ! To Mr White s i am sure it was three, and net noon, when he called. We hare been on perfectly friendly term* np till now, I was mending a stocking at the time he . came to the door. Whoa he oame in he told me his wife had asked him to ball and fee how I was. It is a very lonely place whore we lire. I had a little sister living with me, but he knew she was at Mrs Lambie’s, because Itold him. ’ Mrs Lambie lives about a quarter of a mile from us. 1 did not sersam;, it was of no use to! scream, there was no one to come. The house is about ten shuns from the road. I was not afraid of, him, therefore 1 did not soream. I haw been married owr two years, and I am now JO. I haw one child, about, 18 months old. I was married bn January 19tb, 1885. The child was born in May of the same year. I palled him Outside because' I thought there might be someone aboat, and I might ste. It was not at all likely someone might be. about, but I felt safer outside. 1 wee frightened he would maeter me. He .did uot mention Mr Wadlow’s name to me. We were both by the door. He did not take hold of me otherwise than by the wrist, be* osuse I was struggling so much. ~ To the Bench : He acted in such a manner as to maks me afraid he would use force if I did not comply with his wishes, I think 11 this beeanss he kept pulling me towards ths iofa. No one can see into out house from ! the toad. ; ' Elisabeth Emily Lambie, sworn, deposed i I am the wife of William .Lambie, end; ;llvo at Orari Gorge station, near Mr Brett’s. Thera is aboat a quarter of a mile from our house to Brett’s. I was going acitosr ths paddock with Mrs Brett’s little sister. At we got half way across I aotiosd Mrs Brett coming hastily towards ns. She made a complaint to me. She showed me a;scratch on one of her wrists, and was very agitated. There was a bruise on the other arm. The scratch was bleeding. To Mr White: This was between one and two o’clock. I could not be quite certain, The little girl had juet coins over with a massage, and I shut the home up and went to sit with Mrs Brett. Ths girl had corns about some fruit Mrs Brett had promised. I should ssy that Mrs Brett Would have ex* peoted me to walk in at any moment. If I was outside my boos# I expect I should hear anyone scream. It I was at tbs' house and screamed I think anyone would hear me. To the Bench : I judged the time by the Hma Mr Howard, the grocer, left. I believe that I saw the aoonsed that day passing my house. I think it was about, ten o'olook. X did not see him anywhere near Mrs Brett's. I am not sure it was him. Eleanor Brett recalled: The aoonsed was Serfeotly sober, I know him well, snd I ave never seen him the worse for drink. John Brett, sworn, deposed: I am a ■addicr at Orari Gorge Station. When I came home on Saturday my wife made a complaint to me," In consequenoo' of that i complaint I lodged an information with the police. She was Much hgitated, and showed marks on her wrists. -One wss a bruise and; the other a small scratch. Our .clock is a bad time keeper. 1 have known it to gain as much as two hours iu the tnenty-lour. As a rule it does not lose. lam an ordinary, acquaintance of, the I haye known him. some ytiariU We - have visited each other once or twice. The nearest neighbor ia about a quarter, of a mile away. To Mr White V I have known accused always as a steady sober man. Mr White said he could call abundant evidence to prove the respectable character of the. accused., He then addressed ' the Bench at considerable’ length on behalf of aooueed, He contended that there was nothing in the conduct of accused to support the charge. The Beneh; were fully of opinion that thou was not inffioient evidence to enpport the graver charge. The evidence could not support the charge as laid. They would dismiss , that and order another one to be laid for common assault. The charge of common assault was then heard; and Mr White called the following evidence for the defence T.-Squires,the defendant, sworn said: I have been in the Geraldine district eight or nine years and in the Orari district for five or six. I have been married for five or' six Jeers. I know Brett very well. I called at trett’s house on Friday, 14th.' .Shook hands with Mrs Brett. She asked me to eome in and sit down on the sofa. I sat down for fivs minutes. We had a converse* tion about a cow. Mrs Brett said she was going to Christchurch. 1 asked her if she had heard that Mr Wadlow had been about. 1 I raid, “ I suppose he has been about seeing his old sweethearts.” Seeing Mr* Brett did not like it T said I hoped she was not c {fended at what I said, as I would not like to offend her. When going away I shook hands heartily to show I bore no illwill. I then left. 1 heard no more of the matter till 12 o’clock on S 'turd ay. night, when Brett oame to my door, ; and when 1 opened it ha struck me with a heavy stick, which laid my head open. The blow stunned me, and, covered the room with blood. I could not sweai* it was Brett, as it was night. ‘ - Constable Willoughby, swornisaid he had known accused for about five years, and had always known him sis a decent, respectable, steady man. Mr White said he would ; not oall any farther evidence as to his character, The Bench said they quite considered that a common assault had bean committed. They cautioned the accused, and fined him £lO, or, in default of faymtßt, two mouths’; imprisonment.

BaqovmYOt roeemuioß. ( , Mrs J. Tindall sued W. Davey tor the lis* covery of possession of a oertain tenement. Mr White appealed for the plaintlfE, and Mr Hay for the defendant, Mrs Tindall deposed that defendant wae a tenant of hare for both a blaekamith’i ahop and a dwelling houie. She had only taken steps to recover theehop. The shop was let at 2s, and ths shop at 3s par week. The rent wae owing einee 21st of Jone ttll date. Vr Hsy contended that the rant had been Said by a contra The ahop had sen let to defendant for n|‘ months, with a right to kaep it on after that tima iHtfnitad him, The aix months vss up oq the lilt of December, and he inbmitted that the detea* dant was entitled to a month’s notice Instead of a week, which had beenihe only time liten. Mrs Tindall continued r At the expisatlon :of the six moothe defendant was to itey on if it paid him. There waa to be written agreement before .he entered on a - .new tenancy. Defendant, told,; her a fortnight before the time was np that he would neither pay the rent or go oat. I Georgs Philip*, sworn, iaid he hadhavd defendant say he would not leave! the place till it enited him. The csss was argued at some length-ho* tween Meisra White and Hay. Finally it I wm decided that plaintiff would give up thc building on the J4th insU com CASKS. R, Palmer v. Palmer—Claim £Blßs Bd. Mr White appeared for the plaintift < The facts of the ease were that some two or three years ago the. plaintiff beeamtsn* titled to reoeive eome money from Home, and a son of his jut it; for. him under mini of attorney. When the nioney wasoMaiqod defendant agreed to pay interest at the rale of 5 per cent. tor it. Mr White, 7 dh behalf of the plalntifrpul in a letter showing that £460 had been re* ceiled by the defendant ’ ■ ■'' The evidence of the defendant, which had been taken at Weiroa, was read. Judgment was given (or the amount claimed and costa. (Before A. H. Brisco and B. H. Pearpoint, ' Esqs., J.F.s) I J. Tindall v. W. Davey—OlaimfillßsSd, j and a cross case of Wi Dsvey y. J* TiudaV— Claim £9 9s, were beard together.’' ■■ Mr White appeared for MraTindalhand Mr Hay for Mr Davey. / The claim of Mrs Tindall included a Urge number, of drinks, and the defendant pleaqid the Tippling Act. . ; : n The evidence of both partial waa token at great length, with; the result' that; judgment was given for Mr Davey for £1- 9s, with solicitor’s fee, 'fil ls. \ M. Waterhouse', v. J. £4 4t, for board and lodging and -labor,— Judgment by default for the'amount claimed and solicitor's fee £1 ■ E. J, H. Fox r. T. Farrell.—Adjouraed to next Oourt'day. :i . L V’ ' f BBKiOH OT THU LlOlXllirf ACT.. Jane Tindall waa charged with keeping open and selling liquor* on Bnndayi this Snd Jannary laet. ' :i ~ Mr White (or|defendant, whejplaadednot guilty. ' ' ' • ■ tv;v W. Dsvey gave eridenoe to ths efMt that be had aeen one H. P. Jonet -go Into the hotel at eleven o’clock sober and oame out again drunk in about two houa time. He had also seen Jones’ boy go the hotel and obtain liquor on the ssme day. The witneea wae eubjeoted to a lopg atm* examination by .Mr White, ;i ; >)’> ’■> | .. 0. Davey, wife of the |previou| witnom, gave rimilar evidsnee. S. P. Jones gave evidence to the afleet he went to the hotel on the day named and had two drinks. They did not make him drunk. To Ml White : rDid not par for the lisnar. Miss Tindall gave , him a glass of beer Jor some flowers he had and gave, Mrs Tindall gave him the second glaaa as standing treat at the Mew Tear’s times. Hefdid.hot get drunk, B. Cbohrane: Sememheked meeting Jones on the day named. He eould not ’ley Jease had been to the heme at all v The Bench were satisfied the earn bad not been proved. They considered it was a east of psrsonal spite and diimicied it. . HSBDIKO BHKIP OB TEn BOADI. . Joseph Lswia ; wu chsrgsd wfth^’having on (he lOth January horded sheep bn the roads, contrary to sub-ieotion 9 of section 4of the Polio# Offence* Act. After hearing some evidence; ■' the earn was dismissed, as it was the first offense,' bat de« fondant was cautioned, thst if brought : np again he would bo severely dealt with* ; ' The Court (hen adjourned.