THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
(March 24, 1902.
Bank, to the defendant, who gave an explanation | whom they bought the notes without knowi which proved satisfactory; and the incident that he was a man supposed to utter excited no suspicion against the defendant. But notes. He would give this prisoner the on 12th February the defendant, voluntarily, sentence as the last man got, and would advi apparently, wrote to the compradore confessing him to give information to the police as to to defalcations and asking that a fresh check of the source where these notes came from; pro- the treasury might be taken. According to the bably they came from Canton. The sentence compradore, that was the first intimation that of the Court was seven years' hard labour on the defendant had been doing what he was now each of the first three counts, to run condur. charged with doing The matter was dis- rent, and three years' hard labour on the covered solely through his voluntary confession. fourth, algo concurrent-seven years in all. He had not attempted to conceal anything from the Bank.
His Lordship-Had they never found out that they had lost the money }
the Tung-kong got her stern on the mud (though her headway was never stopped) and that the Hong-chau keeping on collided with the Tung-kong as before described. On the other hand, the evidence for the Hong-chau is to the effect that the Taug-kong overtook the the Hong-chau and tried to pass on the port side of the Hong chau, but that finding herself in shallow water she sheered out to star- board and so collided. Now, which is the more probable story? To my mind there can be no doubt. Take the evidence of Captain Douglas, who was a witness for the Tung-kong. He stated -"The Tung-kong captain told me he did not know whether he had touched, but he get near ground and sheered over and touched the Hong- Mr. Sharp said they had not, though chau, The helmsman also of the Tung-kong undoubtedly they subsequently would have done. never saw the red light of the Hung-chau before The Bank made a practice of checking the the collison, which of course he could not have treasury every month. The defendant, he done if the Hong chau's story is correct, thought, might have offered several explana- but which he probably would have done in tions if they had discovered the shortage. the other CRBS. Again, the manoeuvres But he voluntarily confessed that he alone attributed to the Hong-chau by the Tung-kong was responsible. The charge, he submitted, are most improbable. Why should the Hong would have been very difficult, perhaps impos- chas keep on boring in to port and so getting sible, to prove but for the defendant's confes into shallow water when she had deep water on sion. This gold which was stolen had been her starboard side. After a full consideration depósited as security for loans to Chinese. The of the evidence, I am of o, inion that the Tung- bags were each supposed to contain a certain kong was the overtaking vessel and improperly amount and were labelled accordingly. It was tried to pass the Hong-chau on her (the Hong-perfectly clear that the bags might have been chau's) port side, and, finding herself in trouble, short when they were deposited, but defendant sheered out and so ocossioned the collision and did not allege that they were. Furthermore, is solely to blame and will be condemned in the evidence showed that others beside him had oost. There will be the usual reference to the access to the bags and he might have suggested Registrar and merchants if necessary.
that one of those others had stolen this money or The Court adjourned.
that some other person not named in the depo. sitions had got hold of the keys and gained entrance to the safe The defendant might have attempted to fix the guilt upon sone particular person or he might have stated that though the money had been stolen and he was liable to the Bank in that amount he could not explain its loss. But he took none of those lines. He admitted frankly that he alone did it. This, his Lordship would no doubt remem- ber, meant the professional ruin of the defen- dant, which in itself was a severe punishment, and what he would urge more strongly was that these defalcations were discovered solely owing to the defendant's confession.
Tuesday, 18th March.
IN CRIMINAL JURISDICTION.
BEFORE HIS HONOUR A. G. WISE (ACTING
CHIEF JUSTICE).
IMPENDING COURT CHANGES.
Before the regular proceedings of the Sessions were entered upon,
The Attorney-General (Hon. W. Meigh Goodman, K.C.) intimated that having regard to certain approaching changes in the con- stitution of the Court, he had asked two of his learned friends to assist him on this occasion. Mr. Blade would appear for the prosecution in the case in which a compradore's shroff of the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank was charged with theft and fraud; and Mr. Morgan Phillips would condnot the prosecution in the remaining cases appearing on the calendar.
BANK SHROff's defalCATIONS.
On being asked whether he had anything to say on his own behalf, the prisoner stated that he had nothing in particular to say, except to ask that his Lordship would pass a merciful sentence.
His Lordship remarked that the prisoner had pleaded guilty, and that was the best thing he had done in this matter. His counsel had said all he could for him, and all he could say was Wong Hoi Pang, until lately a compradore's that he had not added lying to theft. He was shroff in the Hongkong and Shanghai Bauk, a man in a position of trust, and while paai-h- was charged on five counts with having stolen ment would fall more heavily upon him than and obtained by fraud various sums amounting upon another man, his Lordship must consider to $54,000, under circumstances which have the community in general. He had seen in the already been made public through the proceed-papers, and presumed it was true, that an appli- ings at the Magistracy.
He pleaded guilty.
Mr. M. W. Slade, barrister-at-law, conducted the prosecution. The simple facts of the ease, he said, were that the prisoner was shroff in the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank and had access to the strong room where the coin and notes required for current purposes were lodged. When loans were granted by the Bank to Uhinese the prisoner was the man responsible for the counting of the contents of the bags of gold which were handed in as security. On two occasions he gave his certificate that the bags contained 1,0.0 gold sovereigos each, whereas they contained only copper cents, and on two other occasions he pretended that the bags contained 200 more sovereigns than they did in fact contain. These frauds were not detected until the contents of the treasury were checked through by the cashier of the Bank.
Mr. E. H. Sharp, barrister-at-law, who appeared on behalf of the prisoner, pointed out to his Lordship that there were certain strong reasons why the punishment to be inflicted in this case should be mitigated. It appeared from the depositions taken at the Magistracy that on 7th February of this year the cash in the treasury was checked, not because of any sus- picion that there was anything wrong but in the erdinary course of business, and a shortage was then discovered. The matter was referred by Mr. E. H. Saunders, an employee of the
cation was made to the Magistrate to deal with this case summarily. He thought the Magis- trate exercised a very wise discretion in sending it up to the Sessions, because any punishment he could have inflicted would have been abso- lately inadequate to the offence. The sentence of the Court was one year's hard labour on each count-five years in all,
UTTERING FORGED BANK-NOTES. Tai Mun was charged on four counts with attering forged H, K. & S. B. C. $10 notes and with being in possession of forged notes.
He pleaded guilty,
Mr. T. Morgan Phillips, barrister-at-law conducted the prosecution.
The prisoner stated through the interpreter that he bought the notes from a man for $5.50 each, knowing they were forged, and on the understanding that if he could not use them he was to take them back to the seller. He found he could not get rid of them and took them back, but the other man would not refund the purchase money. He was afterwards arrested while attempting to sell the notes. He did not know where the notes originally came from.
His Lordship, in passing sentence, said there seemed to be a great many of this stock of forged notes about the place. These cases were coming up every month now. He was not the first man who had been up before on this charge. A man who had been up the previous month seemed to know a good deel about it. They would not have gone to the man from
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THEFT ÓF JEWELLERY.
Chun Chi was charged with the theft of jewellery-a pair of diamond ear-rings, a pair of gold bangles, a pair of diamond hair-pins, and a pair of pearl hair-pins, a diamond hair-press, and a pearl hair-press.
She pleaded not guilty and Mr. M. W. Slade, barrister-at-law appeared on her behalf, Mr. T. Morgan Phillips conducted the prosecution.
The following jury was empanelled :—Messrs. J. M. H. Meyer, T. Arnott, M. S. Lima, B. Saxon, Fi T. Colson, W. Inglis, and A. V. Apoar.
Mr. Morgan Phillips, in opening the case, said that the accused was charged with. larceny as bailee. She had been for some years hair-dresser to Chinese ladies in Hongkong and latterly seemed to have become involved in some loan transactions and to have converted herelf into a sort of dealer in jewellery, having on various occasions approached Chinese Indies whom she knew and asked them to entrust her with jewellery for the purposes of sale to other people. On 6th January sho went to a lady who lived at 86, Wellin tou Street and was closely associated with a wealthy compradore, and told her that she knew a person who would buy a pair of ear-rings and, a hair-press which she understood this lady wished to dispose of. The lady handed over the valuables, stipulating for a price of $1,500 for them, which price the defen- dant undertook to get. Up till about the 16th of that month the prosecutrix frequently- saw the defendant and asked her for the money, but was always put off with some excuse. From the 16th to the 30th the defendant disap- peared. On the latter date she turned up af the house of the complainant and on being pressed for the money confessed that she had pawned the jewellery. Upon enquiry being made at the pawn-shop, it was discovered that the valuables had been pledged on the very day that she rð. ceived them from the prosecutrix. The other two counts on which the defendant was charged were somewhat similar in their attendant air- cumstances to the first. In the second case, the defendant got two artioles of jewellery from another woman ostensibly to sell and in the third she obtained a loan of the valuables. All were recovered in the pawn-shop.
Evidence was then taken, and the Court afterwards adjourned.
Wednesday, 19th March.
IN CRIMINAL JURISDICTION.
BEFORE HIS HONOUR A. G. WISE (AC:ING
CHIEF JUSTICH.)
ALLEGED THErts or jewellery. The hearing of evidence was resumed in the case in which Chan Chi, a Chinese woman, was charged with extensive jewellery thefts.
Mr. T Morgan, Phillips, barrister-at-law, conducted the prosecution (intracted by Mr. F. B. L. Bowley, Crown Solicitor), and the prisoner was represented by Mr. M. W. Slade, barrister-at-law (instructed by Mr. J. Hastings, solicitor).
At the conclusion of the evidence, the jury returned a verdit of not guilty on all three counts of the indictment.
A new jury having been empanelled, Chan Chi was put upon her trial on another charge of a similar nature, namely, three separate alleg- ed thefts of jewellery.
Mr. Morgan Phillips, in opening the case, stated that the three complainants in this case were Chinese women. On 31st December last, the prisoner went to the house of the first prosecutrix and got from her a pair of jadestone bangles, valued at $550, and a pair of pearls, valued at $90, ostensibly to mell to some one who she said would good price for them. Some days later, got for the
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