PERSONATING A FEMALE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, 27 October 1879, Page 2

PERSONATING A FEMALE.

[From the N.Z. Times.] A considerable amouut of interest was evinced yesterday morning in the case of the young man arrested the previous evening for appearing in the streets in female dim On leaving the police station for the Resident Magistrate's Court, he was at once surrounded by an enthusiastic sciatch escort of several hundred persons, and on arriving at the Provincial Buildings found the Court-room and every approach densely crowded; the constant habitues of the place being strongly reinforced for the occasion. One adventurous' youth, indeed, had clambered up by a door to the ceiling of the gallery, but his hold not being secure he suddenly dropped on to the heads of the men beneath, whose consequent profanity, though not loud, was deep. On the youth making a second attempt to elevate himself his former victims objected. The interest caused by * this little diversion had scarcely subsided when the case was called on, and the accused stepped into the box. He proved to be a youth of the John O'Gaunt order of physique, with a stride like a Grenadier, and a general deportment not wholly unlike that of a Maori belle in the few minutes subsequent to her first donning the raiment of civilisation. An uncontrollable burst of laughter escaped from every person in Court except the learned R.M, (who at the time was obscured by a large paper which he was intently readnig), as the accused stepped into the box to answer the charge preferred against hnn-namely, that of being an idle and disorderly person, and with wearing certain articles of disguise, to wit, female apparel, On being asked his name, the prisoners answer showed that he belonged to the great clan Smith, but from a remark dropped by one of his admirers, / it appeared that he had given a fictitious name, The laughter, which had somewhat subsided, broke out afresh when Smith first spoke, as his voice nearly approached in depth the organ of that celebrated basso, the late Mr Burleybumbo. Smith's habiliments consisted of a pair of highlows, a grey cotton dress, a long black coth jacket, a child's muff, a blue neckerchief, and a veil, the whole beim? surmounted by a broad feather-trimmed hat, j inclined at a considerable angle. ther, the attempted personation was pro- > bably the worst ever made, and would - certainly have deceived none but those M lacking the faculties of sight and hearing. Had Smith stood motionless and silent in a badly-lit place, a casual observer might perhaps, have been deluded ; but the first step, or the first word, would have shown ■ that the garb in which he was dressed was an assumed one. The proceedinog Luted only five minutes, during which however, the most vigorous efforts of the constables could not suppress the laughter of the spectators, and Mr Mansford threatened to clear the Court, remarking that he could certainly excuse some slight risibility on such an occasion, but the course of justice should not be impeded by continuous and demonstrative cacchination. The prisoner himself appeared to enter into the feelings of the spectators' and seemed complacently to plume himself on the interest he had evoked, and was only disconcerted when told by the Resident Magistrate of the seriousness of the charge. Mr Mansford said, however, mi was a first offence, he thought that six hours hard labor would convince the prisoner that man could not attempt to reverse the settled garb of the sexes with impunity; but a second attempt would inevitably be followed, by a long term of imprisonment To judge, however, by Smiths penitent appearance as he left the Court, he fully acquiesced in the magistrate s opinion, and will probably be satisfied in future to adhere to the orthodox kind of dress worn by the sterner sex