RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT, HAMILTON. Yesterday. [Before H. W. Northcroft, Esq., R.M.]

Waikato Times, Volume XVII, Issue 1445, 6 October 1881, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT, HAMILTON. Yesterday. [Before H. W. Northcroft, Esq., R.M.]

Civil Cases. McPherson v. Land, claim £1 14s 6cl, amount of judgment summons. Ordered to pay in one month. Qualtrough and White v. Palmer, claim £9 3s. Defendant admitted the debt, and said he would pajrvas soon as he conveniently could. He had offered a sum of money to the plaintiffs before he received the summons. Judgment for amount claimed and costs. J. and 0 Gould v. Caldwell, claim £19 14s, money paid on defendant's behalf. Mr O'Neill for the plaintiffs, and Mr Hay with Mr Speed for the defendant. Charles Gould, one of the plaintiffs, a farmer residing at Waitoa, deposed that he had paid the amount claimed in this action to Mr A. Laybourne on defendant's behalf. He had applied to Caldwell for payment, but the amount was still owing. In cioss-exatniuation, plaintiff said defendant hired cows from him, and was supposed to work for him during spare tune. He supplied him with goods to the value of over £30, but had not received any payment. He had not rendered an account for the whole, but had for part. Believed the amount claimed was included m the account sent in (produced). Mr Hay put the account in evidence, and submitted that the case could proceed no further, as by section 23 of the R.M. Act, the amount claimed, being- part of a larger claim beyond the jurisdiction of this Court, could not be .split up. Plaintiff must accept a nonsuit. His Worship said if he had no jurisdiction he could not nonsuit the plaintiffs. Mr O'Neill said he had come prepared with authorities to show that the. Court had jurisdiction. The section quoted by his learned triend was on all fours with sec. 63, 9, and 10 Vie. Cap. 93, and consequently the English law woald apply in this case. He then quoted from Barton, page 16, to show that in cases when .separate counts would have to be made in the Supreme Court for each item, it was competent to sue for each item separately in the lower courts. After some further argument between counsel, His Worship ruled that had no jurisdiction. He granted costs to the defendant. Peat v. Jukes : Claim, £4 16s 3d Judgment by default, full amount and costs. Hay v. Barton : Claim, £6 8s 4d, amount of legal expenses with interest. Mr Speed for the plaintiff and v!r O'Neill for the defendant. Defendant's counsel asked for a non-suit ou the ground that the bill of costs had not been delivered to his client. Plaintiff deposed that the bill had been posted, <md pioduced a letter from defendant acknowledging the debt. Defendant denied having received a detailed account, but only an account rendered. Had he seen the paiticuLirs he would have objected to pay item 1, which was for attendance at the Ngarnawahia Court. Plaintiff on that day was in Auckland, and defendant had been obliged to employ another counsel. Plaintiff deposed that the other counsel referred to had been engaged by him to conduct the case in his absence. The Bench overruled Mr O'Neil's objection, and gave judgment for the plaintiff for £5 7s 6d, with costs, £3 ss. An application for an order tor immediate execution was refused. Hay v. Hughes, claim £14 6s, amount of dishonored promissory note for £10, with interest. Mr Speed for plaintiff, and Mr O'Neill for defendant. The case for the plaintiff was that he had discounted a promissory note drawn by Charles Veith in favor of defendant, and endorsed by the latter, charging £2 ss, Defendant had received notice of the dishonoring of the bill. The defence was that the bill had been sold to the plaintiff for £8 ss, and the defendant had only endorsed it by way of giving a receipt. Mr Speed submitted that the Bench could not go outside the bill. His Worship said it occurred to him that there was a Statute rendering it incumbent upon anyone transacting business vrith natives of the nature referred to in the action to have the instruments, such as bills, deeds, etc, translated into the native tongue. Defendant was a half-caste, and the Resident Magistrates Act defined a half-caste to be a native, provided he lived with, or was a member of a tribe. He would adjourn the case till next Court day when counsel could discuss the point. Dey and French v. Deegan, claim £2 15s. Judgment for full amount and costs.

At th annual meeting of the Chamber ot Commerce Mr T. Brown stated that from a careful comparison of dates preserved by his firm he found that 32 consecutive sailing ehipa landed their goods in the -warehouse here in 107J days from date of sailing;, while 28 consecutive steamers landed their goods via Melbourne in 67£ days from date of bill of lading, thus making a difference in favour of steam, even when exposed to all the delays of transhipment at Melbourne, of -40 days.