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from again going aft to the captain. The second officer was quiet enough. He took no part in the quarrel, and caused trouble only when he was arrested.
Sergeant Langley gave evidence of the arrest. Accompanied by P.C. Taylor, he went to the dry dock at Aberdeen, and found Axtram there. The captain pointed him out as the man who had committed the assault, and they arrested him. He was very violent, and had to be hand- onffed. Witness then went on board, and found P. C. Taylor struggling with Marshall. They got him on his feet, and both men latterly went quietly to the station.
P.C. Taylor corroborated.
The captain of the Topgallant gave evidence regarding the assault. His statement bore out that of the first officer. In the struggle Axtram seized hold of his coat and tore it. The coat was worth $10.
Three seamen from the Topgallant were called for the defence. Their evidence, however, practically went to convict the accused, it being simply a corroboration of what the captain and first officer had said.
His worship, on the first charge, ordered the men to be put back on the ship; on the second charge, that of assault, his only reason for giving them the option of a fine was to afford them a chance of getting on board before the ship sailed. The sentence in Marshall's case would be $50 or six weeks' imprisonment, and in Axtram's, $25 or a month's imprisonment.
BEFORE ME. HAZELAND.
A WEAKNESS FOR OPIUM.
Lung Wing Kai, who resides at 200 Queen's Road Central, has a weakness for opium. The other week he was fined $500 for being in un- lawful possession of prepared opium, and on the 2nd inst., on the information of a lukong, he was asked to explain a little matter of the finding of fourteen taels of the drug on his premises.
Lung Wing found the explanation rather difficult, and parted with $250 as a consequence. Mr. Gage prosecuted and Mr. Thomson defended
THE WILMER STREET FATALITY.
An enquiry was held into the circumstances attending the deaths of the two women who were killed by the collapse of a cockloft in a tea-drying shop in Wilmer Street. Over twenty persons were employed in the place picking tea for export, when the cockloft, owing to the heavy weight bearing on it. gave way, burying the workpeople in the debris.
Dr. Thomson in his report said that on the 12th alt. he examined the bodies of two Chinese females at the mortuary, one that of Ching Sui, aged 48, and the other that of Ko Tai, a girl of about 13. In both cases death was caused by suffocation.
A finding was returned accordingly.
A GAMBLER'S SUDDEN END. An enquiry was also held into the death of a Chinaman who expired from injuries sustained by a fall over the verandah of a house at 23 Cross Street, where the police were making a gambling raid on the 23rd ult. The man was sent to the hospital, where he died two days
later.
The finding was that he died whilst escaping from the police. No blame attaches to anyone.
Saturday, 3rd November.
BEFORE MR. HAZELAND.
THE BURGLARY AT WANCHAI.
The two Chinamen who were so smartly ar- rested by Sergeant Ritchie, No. 2 Police Station, Wanchai, in connection with the burglary from military premises there on the 12th ult., were brought up, and charged.
After formal evidence had been heard, the case was remanded until to-day.
BEFORE MR. HALLIFAX.
GERMAN SAILORS IN TROUBLE.
Two sailors of the Kaiserin Augusta, after a spell at sea, got ashore here on leave on Friday. They had a good time-that is, they got drunk -and wound up the day's enjoyment by “going for" their rickshaw coolies.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
for the coolie. The second denied the assault- in fact said he knew absolutely nothing of any row with rickshaw coolies. He and his comrade were looking at some shop-windows preparatory to making purchases, when suddenly a crowd of coolies collected and the police arriving shortly afterwards, they were both arrested.
The explanation was original, but he had to | pay out $5 just the same.
GERMAN CAVALRYMAN NEXT.
The German army was next represented. A cavalryman was charged with assaulting a Chi- nese unfortunate in a house in Ship Street.
He pleaded not guilty, but the evidence of the complainant secured his conviction.
His worship said the defendant had not even the excuse that he was drunk. The fine would be $15.
All the fines were paid.
A TASTE FOR BOOKS.
John Booth was charged with having stolen books to the value of $51.90 from the firm of Brewer & Company, by whom he was em ployed as an agent.
A representative of the firm stated that the defendant disappeared on 1st October, and as he did not turn up on the day following, the matter was reported to the police, who succeeded in ar- resting him.
Defendant, who pleaded guilty, said he had no intention of stealing the books. Through giving extensive credit on board ships, and so on, he had for some time past been earning nothing, and thinking to better himself, he ap plied for a situation at the dockyard, where he was told that he could start on Monday. His pay would be $60 per month, and out of this sum he was willing to pay the complainants $10 per month until the debt was cleared off.
This arrangement being approved of, defen- dant was discharged.
[November 10, 1900.
asked defendant if he had not paid the fare, and defendant replied that he had not, and would not. He also told witness to mind his own business, or he would knock him down. Defendant was drunk, and used very obscene language. Witness arrested him.
Inspector McNab said defendant was very violent in the charge room, and refused to be searched. The rickshaw coolie said he had re- ceived a bad ten cent. piece from defendant, who refused to give him a good one.
John Wenscott and Albert Tippett, engine- room artificers, gave evidence for the defence. They both agreed in saying that Matthews paid the rickshaw coolie, and that he did not use obscene language to the constable. They, how- ever, could say nothing regarding the incident in the charge room.
Defendant alleged that he gave the coolie a good coin. The ten cent piece produced in the charge room probably was not his. The officers in the charge room treated him very roughly, four of them knocking him down and holding him on the floor.
His Worship said it was clear that complainant had been disorderly, but as he was under the influence of drink at the time the sentence would be a lenient one-85 or 14 days' hard labour. The charge of refusing to pay his rickshaw hire had not been clearly proved, and would accordingly be dismissed.
CONSTABLE FINED FOR ASSault.
P.C. 48 Findlay was brought up on remand, charged with assaulting James Cuthbertson, a ship's cook in the Royal Navy, on Murray Pier, on the 2nd inst. He pleaded not guilty.
Complainant in evidence stated that at half- past ten on the night in question he was re- turning from Oliver's public house in a rickshaw. He had been to market, and had with him a basket containing two hundred eggs and two livers, for the men's breakfast next morning. When they Beves, the warder who is charged with neg-reached the pier, the coolie lifted the basket lecting his duties on the 2nd inst., and whose case we have already reported, was brought up and formally charged.
CHARGE AGAINST A WARDER.
He pleaded not guilty, and a remand was made until to-day.
Monday, 5th November.
BEFORE MR. HAZELAND.
FUSILIERS IN TROURLE.
out and put it on the pier wall. The defendant, whose back at first was towards complainant,
turned round, and when he saw the basket he went over and deliberately tipped it into the water. Complainant demanded his reasons for the act, and said he wanted compensation. Defendant ordered him to go away, and com. plainant refused. The constable then arrested him on a charge of being disorderly, and took him to the police station. On the way he kept pushing and dragging complainant, in spite of the latter's assurance that he had no wish to resist. A police inspector witnessed the inci- dent, and ordered the constable to leave go. Complainant had a parcel under his arm, which fell to the ground. He stooped to lift it, and the constable attempted to strike him, just shaving his nose. When they reached the station, complainant reported the assault.
Private Ladwick, R. W. F., was charged with having committed an unprovoked assault on a coolie in Queen's Road Central on the 3rd inst. The coolie was walking in front of defendant, who went up and deliberately hit him a blow on Defendant pleaded guilty, and was the nose. find $5 or 14 days. The fine was paid.
Private Wilson, also of the Fusiliers, pleaded
Defendant, by a clever bit of cross-question- not guilty to a charge of assaulting a Chinese shopkeeper on the 4th inst. on the latter's pre-ing, attempted to prove that complainant had been drinking from the time the market closed mises at 362 Queen's Road Central,
eight o'clock-until shortly before his arrival at the pier. Complainant, however, satisfied his worship that he had spent the greater part of the time in walking the streets.
out
Complainant's assistant said defendant came into the shop at about eight p.m. and asked for some silks. Witness, who was serving needles. to customers at the time, Defendant replied that he did not sell silks. then snatched up the needle-case, and extracting a packet, secreted it in his sleeve. Witness asked him to return the packet, but was met by a refusal. His master then came into the front shop, and on his demanding the return of the packet of needles, or payment for it, was struck by defendant.
The complainant stated that defendant refused to pay for the needles, nor would he return them. He seized the complainant by the collar of his blouse and struck him on the chest. Defendant was intoxicated.
very
His Worship said the assault was a slight one. The soldiers, he continued, had come down from the north very flush of money, but they must really behave themselves. He would let the defendant go on this occasion.
AN OBSTREPEROUS SAILOR.
Defendant-When I asked who owned the basket, did you not say—“What's that to you, you Scotch
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Complainant-That is a deliberate lie. Inspector M'Nab said he was on patrol duty in Praya Central on the night of the 2nd inst. He saw about half a-dozen Service men on the Praya, a little to the west of Government Wharf. When he came up he noticed the con- stable holding complainant by the sleeve. He was pushing and shaking his prisoner very much-using him roughly, in fact. The complainant did not appear to be resisting, and witness told the constable to let him walk quietly.
His Worship-Was the defendant quite sober? Witness-He appeared to be. Complainant was also sober.
Inspector Warnock, who took the charge, Henry Matthews, petty officer in the Royal said that at 10.45 pm. on the 2nd inst P. C. Navy, was charged with behaving in a disorder- 48 Findlay brought complainant to the station ly manner in Queen's Road Central and with and charged him with disorderly conduct. Wit- refusing to pay the legal fare for a rickshawness, when asked what he had to say about it, denied the charge. Witness asked the con- hire. He pleaded not guilty.
stable to describe the disorderly conduct, which ke did by saying that he had knocked a bas ket over the wharf, and that complainant had
to him, and called him a Scotch- "got on'
P. C. 73 said he was on duty in Queen's Road Central about midnight on the 3rd inst. A The first admitted the charge and was fined rickshaw coolie came up and told him that de- $5, with an additional 50 cents compensation 'fendant had refused to pay his fare. Witness
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