G.—s

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Stobeme Court (Ceiminal Sittings).—Feiday, 23ed Apeil. [Difore Mr. Justice Richmond.] His Honor took his seat on the bench at half-past 10 o'clock. Native Land Purchase Case. ■ John Charles Young surrendered to his bail to answer a further indictment (the third) for that he, on the 26th of May, 1878, being employed iv the public service of the colony, and, by virtue of that employment, being intrusted with £7 in money, the property of Her Majesty, did feloniously steal, take, and carry away the said money contrary to the form of Statute, &c. There were two other counts charging the prisoner with stealing £10 within sis months thereafter, and stealing £10 on the Bth of September, 1879. The Crown Prosecutor (Mr. Brookfield), before the prisoner was called on to plead, addressed the Court as follows : I beg to inform the Court of the course which, representing the interests of the Crown, we have decided to adojit in this case, after mature deliberation. The indictment upon which the prisoner has just been arraigned is only one of five which were preferred against the accused. They were all found to be " true bills " by the Grand Jury, and two of them have already been tried by your Honor and the common jury in this Court, and resulted in verdicts in favour of the prisoner. On the part of the Crown, I may state that there is no desire to appear as a persecutor any more than a prosecutor of the young man at the bar. As he has been tried on. two indictments and acquitted, if the other indictments were proceeded with it would perhaps look, in the minds of some, as if persecution was intended, instead of prosecution. After consultation with the Attorney-Creneral, 1 think it advisable, on the part of the Crown, to enter a nolle prosequi in respect of the other indictments, so that the prisoner, if your Honor should coincide in that view, may be discharged. His Honor : As far as I can judge of these cases, the Crown, it appears to me, has taken a proper course. I see no reason to deprecate the decision at which the prosecution lias arrived. [Addressing the prisoner] : John Charles Young, it becomes now my duty, in consequence of the Crown having resolved to enter a nolle proscqui, to give you your discharge. But, while I approve of the course the Crown has taken, I would not have you think that, in my opinion, you have reason to complain of the prosecution that has been instituted against you. It has been proved that you rendered to the Crown a number of accounts —of fictitious accounts —which you must yourself have known to bo fictitious: at the same time, strangely enough, it has been proved to the satisfaction of the jury, and to my satisfaction also, that you were a party to such fiction without any fraitdulent intent —without any intent to put money in your own pocket by your conduct. The fiction to which you have been a party was this : that you sent in accounts, supported by vouchers, of payment to the Natives, whilst you must have known that the payments were not made; but you did so for the purpose of passing the moneys to Warbrick's account, to be by him, as you thought, disbursed. In doing that you committed a gross breach of duty —in endeavouring to hand over the responsibility which lay upon you of disbursing large sums of money to any other person. This was, however, done openly and aboveboard, as the balance in your pass-book would have shown at once. The payments were made to Mr. Warbrick. Under such circumstances, anybody would suppose that, in malting yourself a party to such a fiction, you intended to put the money in your own pocket. It has been proved to my satisfaction that you did not. I fully believe that you did not; and, from the evidence adduced at the previous trials, as well from what I have known of you, I feel justified in the belief that the other cases against you would turn out in the same way as the previous cases, and would show that you were innocent of stealing this money. But you have been guilty of a gross dereliction of duty, and you cannot complain that you were suspected of a more serious offence. You are discharged.. The prisoner was released from the dock, and left the Court with his friends.

[New Zealand Herald, Monday, 22nd March, 1880.] Police Coubt. —Satubday. [Before E, C. Saratov, Esq., X.M.] Public Revenues Act. r " Abraham Warbrick was charged with a breach of " The Public Revenues Act, 1878," by neglecting to attend at the office of Charles Thomas Batkin, at the Government Building, Shortland Street, whereby he incurred a penalty of £100. Mr. Brookfield appeared for the prosecution, and Mr. Dufaur for the defence. The case arose out of the investigation of imprest account in respect of which J. C. Young, of Tauranga, is charged with embezzlement. Mr. Batkin, acting as deputy for the ControllerGeneral, issued a precept to the defendant—who was understood to possess certain requisite information, books, &c. —to attend at his office in Shortland Street. He declined to do so, and proceedings were taken under the 84th section of the Act. Mr. Batkin put in his appointments, and gave evidence as to having, after first requesting Mr. Warbrick to attend, issued a precept under the Act requiring his attendance. He wrote an answer, declining to attend unless a solicitor was present. Mr. Dufaur pointed out that the Controller, Mr. FitzGerald, was absent, and Mr. Batkin's appointment did not show his jurisdiction or authority. He quoted several cases. The Magistrate adjourned the case until Monday, to give him an opportunity of looking into the cases quoted. This was all the business.

At the Police Court, on Saturday, a prosecution was instituted against Mr. Abraham Warbrick, of Tauranga, well known as a Native Interpreter and an old resident in that district. The proceedings were instituted by Mr. Batkin, Assistant Controller and Auditor of Public .Accounts, under " The Public Revenues Act, 1878." The alleged offence is that Mr. Warbrick neglected to appear in answer to a precept of the prosecution to give evidence in regard to certain public accounts. The affair arose out of the land-purchase agency of Mr. J. C. Young, who has been committed for trial on a charge of embezzling certain funds intrusted to his charge. Clause 34 of the Act, which gives to the Controller-