Melbourne Supreme Court Criminal Sittings.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume X, Issue 3281, 13 August 1889, Page 2

Melbourne Supreme Court Criminal Sittings.

Tho following'sentence were given pn Friday, July 20 ;-.Charles Albert Sinclair, a man of respectable appearanoe, who had pleaded guilty to breaking into the house of Mr Chimsidc, at Werribee, and stealing property therefrom was brought up for sentence. He handed in a written statement to his Honour, in which ho said he came of good English family, and up to two years ago was a ; wol'l-to-do coil" ■h ltei 'ia Ceylon, but lie lost all his money by the general ruin which fell pn tho coffee plantation' industry. 1 After that he pame to tlij's colony, and was a'seene 'shifter at tho Bijou Theatre.' He then obtained a situation as butler with Mr Chimside, at Werribee, and afterwords wits a cleric with Messrs Ball and Welch. The reason why he committed tho crime to which he pleaded guilty was that ho had got into the hands of a well-known money-lender, and was very much pressed and wanted to get out of his difficulties without letting his wife know of them. Messrs. Ball and Welch would give him a good character for tho time lip was ■ in their employment. : 'i'iio Crown prosecutor informed the Court tli'at 'Messrs'Ball and Welch'had spoken very favourably of tho prisoner's conduct while he was employed with them, His Honor, in passing sentence, said tho offence of which the prisoner had been guilty was'a rnost serious ohoi It was Very deplorablelo see a limn of the prisoner's 'training-' itiul "b'ltictition toniiiiitting'sucipa ci'tojjj,''aid' : ]ie ought to' have' been proof flgaiiist tiic temptation 'to "which he' ha : d been submitted. He would, however, con. sderiiig all the circumstances, accede to tl>e'prayer nf the prisoner"anefpass as light i sentence' a r s jie' '.cpulcj jjonsistently'with uplioldiijg the'laV and inet||]goutpunislimontfor'tl|eofle)ice. I'll? sentence was ttvp yours' juiprjs)iimeru, fifil ¥ x &*■]* °f t-acji

sixth month to bo passed in soKiry" confinement. William Devinc, who had been convicted of robbery with violence was placed in the dock. The prisoner bad attempted to steal a purse out of the band of a woman named Nina Esbie,who was looking in at Robertsoh and Moffat's shop window one afternoon, hut she held on to her purse, and lmthonknccked her down and took is from her. Tho prisoner, in reply tj the Court, said that he stole* the pul'sc, but did not use any violence. There were' nine prejbus convictions agniust the prisoner; Hia Honor, in passing sentence, said ho wished that he could believe the prisoner's statement'Jmt he could not. Ho (the prisoner) proceeded in a cruel and brutal manner, and knocked down a young lady, and the medical evidence showed that she bad suffered an injury to the hip which might be permanent. There were nine previousconvictions against tho prisoner, and it was necess*-"., fcbat a severe sentence should' '' passed on him. As lie had inflj&fc bodily harm, and perhaps life, bodily punishment would be inflicted on him. The sentence of the Court was seven years' imprisonment, and two Hoggings of fifteen strokes each, the floggings to be administered during the first six months of imprisonment. John Donnelly, a man about 40 years of ago, who had been convicted of carnally abusing a girl between the age of 10 and 12 years was brought up. His Honor said tho prisoner had committed in a most outrageous manner. He undertook to take charge of tho girl and then committed offences on* her which might have the most disastrous effects on her after life. The sentence of the Court was five years' imprisonment, and one dogging of lfi strokes, to be inflicted during the first six months of imprisonment. Annie Mary Williams, licensee of the Railway Hotel, Saubury, who had been convicted ot perjury, was placed in the dock, She had sworn at the local police court that (vrcds were not played iu her houodflfo certain Sunday in April last,r \ eucbro was not played miton'tua sao,e day, and that no drinks. were sold in it then, She was prosecuted and convicted of having committed perjury iu making those statements. Sir Bryan O'Logblen now informed the Court that the prisoner had a baby only four months old, and asked that she should be dealt with by fine only. His Honor said he would havo been glad if he could inflict a fine only, but tho law must bo viudto/led, and the offence of which the pflßoner ■ had been convicted was a most serious one. There were circumstances in the case which called for consideration, and he had given them it. _ Why tho woman was allowed to go into the witness box, and why her husband, who had been playing cards with her, did not go into the witness box in tho police court, instead of permitting her to go there, he could not understand, unless it were her husband coercod her. Ho had come to the conclusion thai the husband did coerce her. If ho had been a man be would have gon<|jtoo* the court himsolf, and have wife out of the witness box. Sheud a young child, and also other young children, but it was his duty to vindicate tho law. The sentence of tho Court was ono month's imprisonment,