RESIDENT MAGISTRATES COURT.

Westport Times, Volume II, Issue 321, 11 August 1868, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATES COURT.

Monday, August 9, (Before J. Giles Esqr., li At.) TIOLENT ASSAULT. Darmstadt was again brought up, charged with having assaulted John Smith. The injured man was still too ill to appear. Thoevience of Inspector Franklvn was taken bub was not material.

' Dr Thorpe deposed : —On the afternoon of tha 4th Smith and another man called upon me Smith appeared to he suffering great pain and complained of having been beaten between 12 and I o'clock that morning, and at that time he was suffering from the retention of urine. I sent him to the hospital and attended him there. He is still there and unable to attend the Court. I found a quantity of blood in the bladder of the injured man, and at that time Smith was in a state of collapse and was suffering severely from loss of blood. There seemed to be little chance of his recovering and I thought it right to have his deposition taken, as he appeared likely to die. Since then he has rallied, and I think he will survive, for he has improved daily- The only external injury, was a slight bruise about the left hip bone. I think that the serious injuries were occasioned in the manner described by Smith, a kick, a fall, or a strain would do it.

By the prisoner:—The symptoms could have been occas.oned by a strain, but it is unlikely. The effluvia from a closet could not give colic, and occasion the symptoms. The prisoner was further remanded. OBTAINING 0-OOD3 IXXDER FALSE PRETENCES. John Leathern on remand, surrendered to his bail to answer the above Charge.

Detectiv Lambert said—Ou the the 17th of last month I was in company with detective Howard oftlte N". S. Wales police force in Sydney and charged the prisouer—at the Central police court watehhouse—with the ofFence contained in the warrant produced, that of obtaining goods under false pretences, from Messrs Ehrenfried Bros, of this town. Howard read the warrant to him, after which he said, T did receive the goods mentioned. We searched the prisoner and found a purse with 16s Gd ; and some other articles on him. I proceeded to a house in Wooloomooloo where prisoner said he lived. In a room there which prisoner said was his Howard searc'ied some boxes and found only clothes and papers. A letter that we found we were about to read, when prisoner snatched at it and tore half of it, saying he would not allow his private letters to be read, and destroyed it. It was dated Nelson, May 29th, and was addressed to a female, stating that he was going away that it was no use for him to hide, and that he had not done so. The signature had been torn up, but the writing was that of prisoner. Prisoner asked me once or twice if he paid the amount what would the consequence. I think ho meant to enquire if the payment of the money would be sufficient to release him. He also told that he had sold the hotel he had in "YVestport some time previous to his leaving. He was brought before the Court at Sydney on the 18th of July, and remanded to the Colony of New Zealand.

Louis Ehrcnfried deposed—l am a merchant trading with my brother under the title of Ehrenfried" Brothers. On the 22nd of May last prisoner came to our store. He had been previously there on the 21st with a female, and bought some trifling things there. He pulled out a large roll of notes and tendered me a £lO note in payment, but they only came to three or four shillings, and I had not sufficient change in the house. I remarked you seem to carry a large amount of money about with you, and he aeplied yes, I have just sold my share in the Quartz Reef for £-150. The next day the 22nd, he came again by himself and he said " I've sold all my interest in the Quartz Reef, audi intend to make my hotel in Westport a first class hotel, in fact the men are working at it now. The wines and spirits I have bought from other parties I am not satisfied with, and I wish to give you a trial, but I must tell you you must put the things as cheap as possible as I am buying for cash." Subsequently on that day he ordered 5 gallons of port wine and a case of brandy, the first worth £4 10s, the latter £3 3s, and they were sent to his

hotel on the Esplanade. There was nothing further said. I had known him previously as the proprietor of tho Steam Packet hotel: 1 sola for cash, and thought I should receive tho money on tho goods delivered. Had I not thought ho was the proprietor of that hoteh I should not have given the snoods, and ho specially told me he was the proprietor. I have not been paid anv portion of the money. On the 23rd he ordered a case of porter which was sent, its value was £3 }< and this has not been paid. A few days later between the 23 id and 27ch. 1-presoutod the bill of £lO lis, witch he said that it was all right, that 1 was to send him two "aliens of brandy, and that he would come up and pay the bill alt gether. Ho came to the store a short time after with an empty keg and told me to give a man, who was with him, the brandy, and he would be in again in a minute or two and pay me. I the brandy which came to £2 8s and I never saw prisoner again till after his arrest. The same or the next dav I went to the Steam Packet hotel and asked for him. I. saw the woman that had been at our shop with him, and was led to believe that he had crone to the Caledonian. 1 could not find him.

Bv Mr Tyler —The last sale was on the 27th of May ; on that day, or the day after I tried to find him, and was then told that he had been called suddenly to the Caledonian. I made enquiries to see if he was there, but could not find him. After going repeatedly to the Steam Packet hotel, I was told by a man at the house that it was his, and that Leathern had gone. This might have been a fortnight after the 27th, and I spoke to the police on the subject. On the 19th of -Tune I laid an information. I did not lay it before because I knew Smyth and Co had got a warrant, and wanted to see if he was brought back on that. If he had been brought back, I should have laid an information. I went to the police to see as to the expense of bringing him back several days before I laid the information. Buying for cash I consider payfor the goods the following week, any time within a few days. _ If I do not get the money the first time I call for it I do not consider it a cash transaction. The reason I did not insist gu having the money when I first called for it, was because he ordered more brandy, and said he would be at my place in a few minutes and pay altogether. At the time I went there, there were people in the house painting and working in the house as well. At that time I supposed Leathern was keeping the hotel. I never had any transaction whatever with the woman on the 22nd she did not buy the case of brandy. The only representation he made as to the present was that men were working at his hotel and that he intended in future to make it a first class hotel. I went there a few davs after, and men were working there." It was because he was going to spend a large amount of money on the hotel, that he represented as his, that supplied him with these goods. He used, the words " my hotel " I positively swear. It is usual for persons renting houses to speak of them as theirs. I saw Mr Martin on Saturday evening last, but said nothing of importance to him. Mr Martin said that he was very much afraid that Leathern would put them in for damages for bring iug him back. By " them " I mean parties who signed the paper to pay the expenses of prosecuting prisoner. I think there were ten or twelve subscribed a certain amount of money in conjunction with the Government to bring prisoner back. In all there were thirteen or fourteen. They selected me to swear the information as my goods were cleai'lygot under false pretences. I did not authorise Mr Martin to compromise the case by payment of 10s in the pound. I was careful what I said as I knew what I said would be brought up to-day. Thomas Ashton, a miner, said that he was the owner of the Steam Packet hotel on the Esplanade, and believed that he was the owner prior to the 22nd of May, but could not tell as his papers were in Nelson. He bought from the prisoner, and paid money for it to him. Leathern had no interest in it after witness purchased it, and he never leased it to anyone. At the time he purchased it was a licensed house, and Leathern was the holder of the license. He let the place to a man named M'G-uerin at 30s per week, on May 25th. "He was the proprietor of the hotel a month or so prior to May 25th, and during that time Leathern was conducting the house and renting it from witness as a weekly tenant. By Mr Tyler—Leathern's tenancy expired on or about the day that M'Gruerin commenced. "Whilst his tenant Leathern had men employed makiug improvements in the pJace. Thero was an arrangement that if at

any future titne Leathern could pay the money Leathern owed witness, the latter would convey it back again. Leathern owed witness £155 at the time the property was transferred. By tiie Bench —There wa3 no covenant in the deed relative to conveying the property back to Leathern. Win. .Robertson, auctioneer, proved that the Steam Packet hotel was put into his hands for sale ou the 20th of June.

Caleb Whiteford, Warden's clerk, proved that the license of the Steam Packet hotel was transfered on the 16th of May last from John Leathern to James M'Gruerin-

James M'Gruerin proved that he took possession of the Steam Packet hotel within a day or two of the time the license was transferred to him.

On being a died if ho had anything to say, in the usual way, prisoner s-ud 1 did not leave the place with any intention of stopping away, previous to leaving I had been warned on the jury, and I called on Mr Harris and told him that I should not be in the Buller on the day I was warned on the jury. I also asked the bailiff to strike my name off the list, but that it was my intention to return any time, as when I came back the place would be given up to me. There was an announcement made in the papers that I had sold out my share for £460, and the only money I received was £4O cash, I sold out on the condition that I was to receive assistance from Mr Martin in the first gold that came from the reef; the consc;queni'ie was that there were no returns and Mr Martin even went so far as to offer me his bill to settle with my creditors. I received the goods from Mr Ehrenfvied aud admit owing him the money, but under no false pretence; I used no false pretence whatever. Part of them, the case of brandy, I did not order myself. Also, two gallons of brandy were got by simply asking him to serve me. That is all I wish to say. Mr Tyler made an able speech in defence, contending that the prisoner had been guilty of no false pretence whatever in the eye of the law, but the Magistrate thought it was a case for a jury, and committed prisoner for trial, bail to be allowed as before, viz, self in £SO and two sureties of £25 each.