ECHOES FROM THE CAFE.

Waikato Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1645, 20 January 1883, Page 3

ECHOES FROM THE CAFE.

The Criminal Sessions of the Supreme Court were opened on Wednesday I belic.vc, the heaviest calendar that lias ever been presented to a Grand Jury here, the heaviest botli as regards the number of prisoners and offences and as far ab the gravity of the crimes is concerned. In his charge to the Grand Jury, Mr Justice Gillies told them that they must be satisfied from the evidence brought before them not merely that there were strong grounds for belief that the prisoners had committed the crimes with which they were charged, but that there were actual proofs that the prisoners had committed these crimes. This is a new phase of the Grand Jury system, and one which will not be at all acceptable to the public. Hitherto it has been believed that the duty of the Grand Jury is to ascertain f1 om evidence taken before them that a crime has been committed and that there is reasonable ground tor the belief that it has been committed by tho accused, leaving to the common jury the duty of deciding whether there is sufficient evidence to warrant a conviction. The remarks of the judge were directed particularly to the alleged Hamilton murder case. The Resident Magistrate was satisfied that there was sufficient evidence to wai rant him in committing the accused to take their trial at the Supreme Court, and the public have, without a dissenting voice being raised, acquiesced in that decision. Theie is no diiect evidence that the accused committed the ciimo, but, if the (hand Jury act in the manner indicated by His Honour, and bring m "no bill," tlieic will be &uch a howl of indignation that I vpnture to predict that next session of Parliament will see the Grand Jury system abolished. For my own part I would *be glad to see the law altered in the direction of abolishing Grand Juries, and substituting a public prosecutor in their place. Very little can lie said in favour ot the present system, while much can be and is s.iid against it. It lias been alleged more than once that Grand Juries ha\e been influenced by class prejudices and by outside influences. It has never, so far as I know, been actually proved that thib was the cose, but the mere fact that the allegations ha\ c been made shows the advisability of taking the power from an uicbponsible body and gi\ing it to a responsible individual. I am btrongly in la\ or of the appointment of a public prosecutor, who sltouldbeamanoiuudoubted piobity and ability, and who should bo paid a salaiy in proportion to the onerous and important duty he lias to pel form. He should be required to look carefully through the evidence, to see whether theic is a case to go before a jury. If he finds that theie is, he should be icquiml to direct the Crown solicitor and the police in the working up of the case, so as to make it as complete as possible for presentation to the jury. If he finds that there is not, he should inform the Com t that the Crown will not oiler any evidence, and ask that the prisoner be discharged. Being a paid official, he would be amenable to public opinion to an extent that the Grand Jury is not, and cannot be, and I believe that fewer miscarriages of justice would bo tllO result. It is u euiious f.ict that while the man who btoal.s &0111 C article ot no great value is at tested ami punished for his offence, it not unfroquontly happens that another man, who commits robbeiy and fraud on a large scale, m mages to escape unpunished. Theie is a man, !i\ing within <i hundred miles ol Auckland, who has lobbed people to the extent ot hundreds of pounds, and yet he manages to keep out of the clutches of the law . I know fi\ e ot his victims whom he has mined. In one ease he a man to accept an accommodation bill toi £430. A few days aftciwaul he went to his victim, told him that the amount was too large, that his banker would not discount the bill, and asked him to give him instead two bills for C' 225 each. The victim assented to the pioposuls, thinking, that tho man would be able to meet the two smaller bills with more ease than the larger one. When the fly had .signed the two bills for £225 each, w Inch the spider had taken with him, he asked him to return him the bill for £450. The spider replied that he was so sine that he would sign the two smaller bills that he had destioyed the large one. Soon afterwards the fly disco voted that all ot the three bills had been negotiated, and that he would be requiied to provide £900 to meet them The scoundrel " caught a tartai '" one day, however. He had been in tho habit of getting a respectable tiiulesman to exchange cheques with him. The Litter began to entcitain doubs of the&nftty of continuing these transactions, nnd determined to refuse to exchange any mote cheques. Soon after he had artived at this decision, the iasc.il called on him, and asked him to exchange cheques tor £25 with him. At first he refused to do so, but ultimately allowed himself to be cajoled into exchanging cheques, on the distinct; understanding that his cheque was to be sent down South, and so would not lequire to be met for a fortnight, and, in the meantime, the rascal's cheque would bo paid. The next day the tradesman went down to the bank with which he did business. As soon as the bank manager saw him, he said, " Did you give a, cheque foi £2."5 ?" "Yes." was the reply, "but I do not know how you know about it, as he Kent it drm n South aud it will not l>e paid for a fortnight." "Well," said the manager, "ho was waiting at the bank door befoie ten o'clock this morning, and got your cheque cashed as soon as the bank was opened." The tradesman immediately went to the rascal's office. Though he was told that he was not in, he went straight into his private office and found him there. He locked the door and told him that he must give him his £25 or go out of his office naked. The rascal protested that he had not any money, but when the tradesman began to strip him he produced a large roll of notes from an inner pocket of his tiousors and paid him his £25. That rascal is still at large, and, liko His Satanic Majesty, "seeking whom he may devour."

Very general satisfaction was felt last week when it became known that the first million of our new loan, had been subscribed for at such a satisfactory price. Many people feared that it, like the Victorian loan, would have proved a failure, but they were those who did not appreciate the difference in the terms offered, and who did not know the high opinion entertained in London with regard to New Zealand and her resources. The Victorians did not get their stock in. | scribed, and they fixed the minimum at par. , , The inscription of our stock by the Bank of England ia an assurance to tlie, bond-holder that that institution will see that we always have a sufficient sum, in London to pay our interest,' while' 'the fixing of the ininynum at 98J allowed the members of the Stock Exchange to tender f6r our loan, kjiowing that tliey'could' dispose of the debentures to' their clients jat a profit. There is another reason why our New Zealand' loans stand' higher in: the London market than those of r almost any other colony.' That is the fact /thai;, it is ' well-known that our coal /supply, ex-, "tends oVer-hundreds.of miles,! land £EnfcM •lish people know that a country with... what is apparently an .unlimited coal. Bupply,'is ! a landfof T^oviiioleaaresoviroesP