SUPREME COURT.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 5, Issue 1498, 2 October 1883, Page 2

SUPREME COURT.

CRIMINAL SITTINGS.

(Before Mr Justice Richmond,) (From N.Z. Times'.) Thequarterly sittings of the Supreme Court commenced yesterday morning. ROBBERY AT MASTERTON. William Smith ; a young man who had been a sailor on the ship Oxford, pleaded not guilty to a charge of stealing and converting' a cheque of the value of £26 7s 6d, together with a pocket book, the property of Gregor McGregor, a shepherd at Castiepoint, Mr Bell conducted the prosecution, Mr E. Shaw being for the defence. The prosecutor had been drinking in Masterfcon two or three days, and on August 10th he met the prisoner at the Club Hotel, and they had one drink together, which prosecutor paid for, the prisoner saying he had no money. About two hours later the prosecutor, who was partly drunk, discovered that his pocket book was missing, and with it the cheque in question. The prisoner met a man in the street (Henry Clark, 1 who did notappearj and asked him to read a cheque, identicals in amount. The next incident was that the prisoner purchased clothing at Mr : McCarthy's store, tendering a cheque for. £26 7s 6d, and receiving in change four £5; notes and other money. The prisoner said to the storeman, in reply to .. an inquiring ' remark, that it took him six months of very hard work to earn that cheque, The prisoner was apprehended next day, but denied any knowledge of this or any cheque. On being searched, four '£s notes were found on him, and he then volunteered a statement that he found the cheque, and after inquiry about the owner, changed the cheque to buy some clothes. Evidence to the above effect was given by the prosecutor, by T, Hall, accountant at the clothing store, and by Sergeant McArdle. No evidence was called for the defence, but Mr Shaw submitted there was no evidence of felonious intent, as the presumption was in favor of the prisoner's statement that he found the cheque. Mr Justice Richmond directed the jtiryas to the law on the finding of a lost article. They must infer, from the'circumstances, whether the prisoner, if lie found the cheque, converted it to his

own use a felonious intent, or merely did so after exhausting all means of discovering the owner. While it might be difficult to identify a lost coin, there were; facilities for tracing the owner of this cheque, his name being on; the face of it. Did the prisoner make reasonable effort to discover the owner 1 The jury retired, and after a short deliberation, returned with a verdict of " guilty of appropriating the cheque." 'J his was construed as meaning guilty of felony, and the prisoner was sentenced, as a first offence, to six months' hard labor. EXPERIMENT IN BUSHRANGING. Job Littler, a young man, pleaded not guilty to a charge of stealing £2, a silver watch, arid a gold chain, from John Dromgool, settler living near Carterton, and also violently assaulting and beating him, the charge amounting to robbery with violence. Mr Bell prosecuted, the prisoner being undefended; The story was told in a confused form, one or both parties having been drinking when the affair happened. The prosecutor went to the Taueru 'Hotel, near Masterton, on the 14th September, and remained drinking about eight hours, The prisoner was alleged to have represented himself as the, stableman at the hotel, anil had a horse placed ; ih his care. The horse was not forthcoming woen wanted in the evening, and prisoner tried to get money from prosecutor for finding the horse. About 10 o'clock at night, the two men left the hotel, the prisoner promising to take Dromgool to 1 where his horse was; but on the way, and in the darkness, the prisoner tried to pick a quarrel, and when the prosecutor would not-tight the prisoner, struck him unawares on the ear, knocking him down stunned. The prisoner then rifled his pockets, taking money, watch, &c, and left him, saying this was not the first time he had done a bit of bushranging, and that he had a bulldog in his pocket. When the police apprehended the prisoner soon after, they found the watch and chain on him. -Tho prisoner now crossexamined the prosecutor, to show that Dromgool was very drunk, and went out with a lewd woman from the hotel.—The jury retired, and returned to ask if they could find a verdict of larceny alone without the assault and violence.—His Honor directed that they might do so.—The jury eventually found tho prisoner guilty of larceny of the watch aud chain from the person.—The Judge said the sentence would have been much more serious if the prisoner had been found guilty of violence.—Sentenced to one year's imprisonment with hard labor.