R.M. COURT.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 4, Issue 1107, 23 June 1882, Page 2

R.M. COURT.

MASTEETOK^THUESDAY ■.: w?" ■•'A'! ' ' "'--^THEGREAtSHOEING CASE .

Yesterday afternoon the oase of 0. Dixon, v'TonY'Hill, clajm'' r £7 10s, was'proceeded with before Mr Wfltdell, E.M, ..T. Hill': ..Wh'at/jJjoVaeg '.were'the twelve plates 'charged lfor|;',o.' Dixon: ;Gfineral, .Buccaneer, and JCQrpeSo, 'as far'ab ! 'I r ,6aii re'collect.' ; '>VsiVlA \\'\'i ■ .'■ "■: T. Hill: Who brought them foyou?-C. Dixon;: Wintcringbarn.and young.,Lnjadq* virtjl'think;..'/. ."'•}■*''■" V'i ■■ V l ' ;• j. .•TvHill: You say. you think.;; Have, you askei,your man Kibblewhite t—o'. • Dixon: Ihave spoken to him, ■ '■■'■«■'.-■ T! Hill; "It is then what Kjbblewhitfl says, not what yon say ?- -C, Dixon.: Kibblewhite reminded mejOf Buccaneer.' ';--,'' T, Hill: Are- you positive that these; were the horses? ,-Wie'don't want'guess...work, I'B'n't it cu.stomary to enter the nanieVoi the horses'that are shcd?-G, ; Dixon: At times it is.; bu.t.'.you alwayß paid .before without requiring such'particulars; 1 ", : * : .' T..HIU:': Yes; I paid till it cfinp to piling on the agony too much'; a worm' will turn then. It is.very charitable of you to-put down twelve .'plates when, you might; have put down twenty, Who had the new shoes' on the 14th?.. • , ... .',„,' .:•'. ; : -v ''

. 0. Dixon: You had them 1 , caniyou prove that you didn't?.'" ",'. : , ; ~T,; Hili:,lt is.iiot.my.part to do this;, if isypurßtoprpyethaVlMtVthem, ... . C. Dixon "said 'ho*could ■< not' say.-what horses ;were shod on the -,l7,th'.and.24th of the month. Ho knew the' horses iwhen he saw them, but could uot rccolleot their names and colors. .■ .. ■;■'. ■,./ '.•; : :;,; i ~,

T, Hill: It is no use wasting the time of the Court j he.doesnot recollect who brought the horses in, ' ' "" '" ;-, >.■,..■. ■ , C. Pixon: I do., ■-,. ; '*' T. flill: Who brcught the horse for.whioh an old shoe is charged? " ' ',"■• 'V ,0. Dixon':- Your daughter brought it., i ". T, Hill: And what horse came for two shoes on January.llth? '.' '•;.' .;: .'. ■' O.Dixon:' The' same hoisev ;';'■•': , :,

,T. Hill: What horse is charged .for ou January 13th?.•',■: , '■', ■' [,' '.; v;. • ('. Dixon-1 believe horsecalled;Queen Corn-hut you have somaiij horses, rt. cannot be euro of the names'of all of them

.T.Hill: So you tbin&jou can pop.the g down in your book indisoiiminately ?.5..:.. i The Court: You are totf 'rapid iwith your questions, Mr Hill, j \ ~. • T. Hill; The answers are so vague that I thought your Worship was not' taking thorn down. . /V , i ;;, To Witness': What ivere the four removes, for on the 16th hist, '"• ''"■ '•■ I

0, Dixon: I cannotsay; '. r '■■■'■.■, ,T. Hill.f Hay'nt you had; a lot 'of tori horses in and'popped them 'down''against •■■' ' ' '•'' "■■■'. -\\ •• '' 'O. Dixon: I have a soul above thai; the t hpisea oameto me whenever" they .were in itown,- ',; ':■'•■'

\ T. Hill: When they wero'in town; if they ;were not in. your shop you thought, they ought to be I ■•'

,f he' Court: Was each months' account rondered separately ?

~.0. Dixon:.Yes. •■ T. Hill; Is it not true that I had but one account prior to the present one ?,, > 'v ;

C, Dixon :.I have rendered five,

T. Hill: Then you must have, some of them' in your waste paper basket! What did I say when I paid you Uon account!. •■' , C, Dixoi: That yon were short of moneyj and would pay more when you were'able. T. Hill: Did you have aliy pressing, bills about that time? ; !

G< Dixon: No, I had not; I only wanted .my money. '•'.■■■■ T. Hill V Did *j'6u say thonthat what : L owed you was something, under ten pounds ?: • .0, Dixon: I Had rendered you 'ari account the previous month for £9 ■ 10s.

;' The Court: I can only give you another .qnarter of an hour for this interi sting case. T. Hill:.I have got about a dozon witneses to : call; your Worship,

The Court: Then the case must be adjourned' till. to-inoriqw, and the witnestes will have a claim for two days' attendance. I inijit take ilthis evening, but judging from the stylo of examination, it might keep the Court till midnight.

It was arranged that tho case should stand-over till ten a.m. on the morrow. After the Court rose the case was settled privately, the plaintiff accepting £5lO.

THE. DISTILLERY CASE.

[Before H, S. Wabdelt, E.M., and

A. Bisu J.P.]

Walter Essex Cross answered to his bail, and was charged with having, in ;his possession, apparatus used for distilling. ,Mr Bunny-- appeared for tho informint, ahd'Mr Board for the defendant, who pleaded' not guilty.- . ••' At the request of Mr Bunny, tho information was amended by inserting the word worm beforo apparatus. . Mr Bunny said the information was laid under Seotion 111 of the Distillation Act of 1878. ■ For some time past the. Customs Authorities had 'reason to beliove that illicit distilling was carried on, and in consequence of information received, an officer had visited the premises of the accused and found apparatus consisting of a worm and a funnel. ...

' At the request of Mr Bunny all witnesses were ordered but of the Court. Cbristable Fleming deposed as follows: 'I went yestorday to the houso of the accuMwithMr Bowen, and sea'chod it Mrs Cross and Mrs Henry were in the hou o. We'found nothing on the ground floor, and then went in tho bedrooms upstairs. In one of tho latter we found under a small 'bed,' the worm and funnel produced, The Court (indicating the worm),: What do you callthat.thing ? ' . Constable Fleming: I don't know what to call it.

', The Court: (Indicating the funnel), what call that?: Mr Beard: A fog-horn I think your Worship. > Constablo Fleming: When tho articles ' were found Mrs Cross said that they did not. [belong to her husband. Wo then proceeded "to the Waipoua Brewory, and searched that, but found nothing. Mr Smith and Mr Cross were there. At the request of Mr Bowen I took the articles produced and Mr .Cross into custody. At the police station the defendant said he found the worm on the road between Masterton and Carterton.', His horse shied at it, and he pioked it up. (To Mr Beard),l don't know what the arlicles were except from what I heard. ■ • Whon wo went to the house we walked straight in, and commenced searching without letting Mrs Cross know what wa were looking for. We searched about the room some timo before,we found the articles, I told tho prisoner when I arrested him that ho was charged with a' brpach of the Distillation Act. '

Edward Bowen deposed: lam an officer of the Customs residing in Wellington. As siioh I came up to Masterton .to make certain enquiries relative to illicit distillation, I visited the dwelling of ..the defendant. 1 went first to the' brewery. Afterwards I ' wont to the house and knocked at the door. 'I asked Mrs Cross if she had'any pipes belonging to a brewery or distillery in the house, and she .answered that .there was nothing of the kind, I told her then I would search the house, She asked me : if I ; had any authority "to dp so. I - shewed her my authority and she made no further objection. I fhen asked the Cofistabld; who was behind me, to accompany, mein.the search. We found the worminthe upstairs-room under the bed partly in the.- saok and the funnel under it.. I. ani not an expert in distilling machinery. : (To the Court) I have tad no practical experience as a distiller, ~.'. 'The Court: Is your experience sufficient to enable you to say whether the funnel is a portion of a distilling apparatus. • .Witness; I don't suppose that it is.' I have been in large distilleries, and have seen them at work'. ■■■'

■ The Court: Is there' anything about the worm to distihguishatirom an ordinary coil of lead piping? , Witness; Yes.' The brass connections for joining it to the boiler. I should say the

worm produced could a still. •■JVhen I found the worm I Baidjt(|Mrs Cross; like:what I for," and flhe These thing? jonjc&long to ;Mr Crpsa.'Aw She then made .an obsetv&tipn that it would be ratHer'r6ngli' , Smith;' but did not any what Smith she referred to : I then went to. the Waippua- Brewery aid saw.Mr Smith;and Mr Cross;; ;I'.'told the accused that.'theworm had beeh*found in his house, and: he replied that ho found it on the day witness-met himiiwhen Mr Smith and' h 3 oat - shooting mbar • the Waingawa some', five weeks agoi;|;(To Mr Bear!) The. accused accpmpanie%ine .to the police station .without;: any ( troiible., I have seen a funnel like the': .one'jikoourtj'' but not at work.. I 'havo seen yrarrhß of copperaud galvanised'iron. ■;';.';■; ; : 'V ' U „'■ Mr Beard: Have you'ltnown any (person to be convicted for having'jtwp portions of a distilling apparatus in his possession ?./ Witness; T have known ;a. person t convicted for .;■ kayjng. a, woi™ only in his' possession. ; A similar v pip'o tho connections might be found in toy plundbor's shop. ''"'■ '.Y ;■...- : 7-Y.'\ A ■;:'';-■ Mr Beard':- What constitutes a worm ? ■ Witness':' Thponnebtions which are attached to it for the purpose of joining it to the.still.: ■' '■'' ;

. .Mr Board : If it, were joiued to a tank in a private dwolJing,.would it still be a worm ? Witness: It would still be 1 suitable for distiilery purposes,. ' Mr Beard: Are ,nofc. sneh pipes' used in hotels?.- .'■; ..,.•"..

Witness: No|'a flexible pipe-is usually found in them.; j haveJiad occasion to visit all the hotels intho town and-found such pipes in use. ■: .-'."'■'.

... .The.Court: Can you assign to tlw funnol its proper place in the distillery, apparatus ? '; Witness: I dan from what I have heard, but not'from practical experience. . ■', ' Mr-Beard .'Have the funnel and worm any connection? "■ ■ Y. : . ' Witness:' The.'tyo will not unite without some intermediate,joint; "■:■',■ ■'• ,Mr ; Beard.::Sh6ulJ the funnel for 'distil■le'ry purposes have a steam joint ? j .. Witness:, Fdoh't' understand What a Bteamjointis, : : ' •

■|. Mr Beard: 'What niade you visit Masterton:? -.' _■'■'■■ '■.•

Witness: Ica'mb up in consequenco of in :Struetionß received from the- Collector oi Customs, who had received information. ■Mrßeardi-'Whb.gave him the information? ■'■ '- -'.. ',.■■

Witness: I decline to answer that question,' ... .

Mr Bunny at'this stage applied for an adjournment in-order to obtain the evidence of anoxDert. •■";,

After some discussion, as to, .the most convonou: d:ty for continuing tlio case, it was .ariuugud to staud : oyer for a fortnight.