The Riverine Grazier, Fri 29 Sep 1893 1
HAY CIRCUIT COURT.
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The Circuit Court was opened at Hay on Wednesday morning, before Mr Justice Stephens. Mr Harris acted as Crown Prosecutor, Mr JE Pearce as deputy-sheriff, and Mr EM Stephen as judge’s associate. The other legal representatives present were Mr Moriarty, barrister, and Messrs Robertson, Norton, Kemp, and Tighe, solicitors. Mr Whythe, from the Crown Solicitor’s Office, instructed the Crown Prosecutor.
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ALLEGED UNNATURAL OFFENCE.
Ah You was charged with an unnatural offence [bestiality with a horse].
Mr Moriarty, instructed by Mr Robertson, defended the accused, who pleaded not guilty.
The accused and the Crown each challenged one juryman.
John Parr, publican at Oxley, stated that he had known the accused for 2½ years. On the 25th August last he had occasion to go to his paddock near Oxley. The accused left the township about the same time. His road lay in the same direction as the Chinaman’s, in parallel tracks for a time, and then branched off. He went to his paddock and returned to near the public road. When he did so he saw the accused’s covered waggonette and accused in the act of committing the alleged offence. (Witness described what he saw.) He was 64 yards from accused at the time.
By Mr Moriarty: He had some pigs, which may have got into accused’s garden, and he thought whoever shot them did quite right, as they had no business there. He did not think accused shot them; he though Ah Pack, accused’s mate, shot them. He was on the best of terms with the gardeners. He never threatened to send accused back to Hong Kong. He knew Mr Hill, of Oxley, who was a respectable man, and might tell the truth. The offence took place at noon, and he returned to Oxley about 3 pm. He saw the two young Mr Wilsons before he saw the Chinaman, but not after, until he returned to Oxley. He went to the barracks at Oxley, at 3 o’clock, but did not see the senior-constable there then. An hour later he saw the senior-constable, and gave him information. He believed that accused had a light felt hat, dark coat, and white moleskin trousers. He had no ill-feeling against the Chinaman.
By His Honor: He never had a row with the accused.
Constable Costello stated that he saw tracks on the main road where the accused waggonette had been standing.
By Mr Moriarty: He had only been at Oxley seven weeks. He had not heard of any row about pigs between Parr and the accused. The accused had check trousers, not white moleskin.
For the defence,
Ah You, the accused, by an interpreter stated that he was and had been a gardener at Oxley, near Mr Parr’s hotel. Parr’s pigs often went into his garden. He had complained to Parr and afterwards to the police of their ravages in the garden. Eventually he had shot the pigs. On the 25th of August he left Oxley to go towards Balranald, by the public road. About a mile out of town Parr rode up to his cart, looked in his face, and rode away. He met the two young Mr Wilsons on the road and also Mr Hill. He stopped and sold the Wilsons some fruit, and two hundred yards further on he stopped to fix his reins. He saw Parr about two minutes before he stopped to fix the reins. The waggonette and horses were now outside the court and the jury could see them. He denied the charge altogether.
By Mr Harris: It was two years and four months ago that the pigs were shot; Constable Egglestone was then at Oxley. Parr “cursed and swore” but never summoned them for shooting his pigs. When he went to tell Parr that his pigs were shot, Parr said, “You —— , this is not your country. I will make it hot for you.”
By His Honor: The reins appeared to be all right when he left Oxley—he was then going slowly—but when he started to go faster he found that one of them was longer than the other.
Re-examined: About the second month of this year Parr refused to buy fruit from him, saying “You ——, clear out!”
By Mr Harris: He had been supplying vegetables to Parr’s Hotel since the pigs were shot.
By Mr Moriarty: There was no other garden in Oxley.
John Wilson stated that he met accused on the road near Parr’s land, and bought some fruit from him.
Ah Pack, by an interpreter, stated that he was a gardener at Oxley. He had heard Mr Parr call Chinamen “Chinee ——.” he had heard Parr say to accused, over two years ago, “You Chinese ——, I’ll give you blooming trouble.”
David Hill, a blacksmith residing at Oxley, stated that he knew the accused. He was on Parr’s verandah on one occasion, and he heard a voice say, “I’ll hunt these Chinese —— out of Oxley.” He could not say whose voice it was.
By Mr Harris: He would not deny that he sometimes took a pipe of opium.
The jury were conducted to the rear of the court house to view the waggonette and horses.
Mr Moriarty addressed the jury at length, relying chiefly on the improbability of the accused committing the offence on the public road in the middle of the day; on the motive in Parr’s mind to revenge the loss of his pigs; and the physical impossibility of the accused committing the offence.
Mr Harris replied at equal length.
His Honor, in summing up, said that the case entirely depended on the view the jury took of Parr’s evidence. Parr could hardly be mistaken. If they believed Parr’s evidence they must convict the accused. If they thought Parr had perjured himself, of had any reasonable doubt as to the reliability of his evidence, they should acquit the prisoner.
The jury returned a verdict of not guilty, and the accused was discharged.
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The Hay Standard and Advertiser for Balranald, Wentworth, Maude, Booligal, Wilcannia, Menindie, Bourke, &c, Sat 30 Sep 1893 2
HAY CIRCUIT COURT.
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THIS court opened on Wednesday before His Honor, Judge Stephen. Mr C Stephen acted as associate. Mr H Harris prosecuted on behalf of the Crown, assisted by Mr Wythe from the Crown Solicitor’s Office. Mr Pearce, PM, represented the sheriff. The other legal gentlemen present were—Mr Moriarity [sic], barrister, and Messrs L Robertson, PE Tighe, SP Kemp and H Norton.
The following jurors were fined £2 each for non-attendance:—J Witcombe, A Haylock, W Honeyman, C Mills, FW Ware, S Bennett and M Parker. Mr RW Ronald was excused from the Civil Jury. The following were fined £3:—E Davies, H Hill, JT Campbell and J Lamb.
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UNNATURAL OFFENCE.
Ah You was charged with having committed an unnatural offence at Oxley on the 25th of August.
Prisoner pleaded not guilty and was defended by Mr Moriarty, instructed by Mr Robertson.
The Crown Prosecutor stated the case to the jury. The facts of the case so far as they are fit for publication are simply these: John Parr, who is a publican at Oxley, was riding along the road about sixty yards from where the accused was with a waggonette and two horses. The horses and cart were standing in the road, and the accused was in the front. Parr, who had known the accused for about two years, described what he saw, and from his evidence it would appear that the accused was attempting to commit the offence with which he was charged. Parr, when he saw the Chinaman, said “What are you doing, I will tell the police”; the Chinaman then drove away; Parr was 64 yards away when he saw the occurrence. The tracks showed that one of the horses had been restive.
To Mr Moriarty: I formerly lived in Hay, and have been five years at Oxley; the prisoner has been living near me; his garden is near my place; my pigs got into his garded [sic] and they were shot; I do not know who shot them; I was not annoyed at this; I did not say I would send the accused back to Hong Kong; I did not say I would drive all the Chinamen out of Oxley; the offence took place about midday, and I gave information to the police about three; I saw no one until after I got back to Oxley; I have not the slightest malice against the prisoner; I think the accused had a dark coat and white moleskin trousers on, and a light felt hat; I have never had a row with accused.
Constable Costello deposed that in consequence of information received he went out on the Balranald road and arrested the accused on the 27th; when I told him the offence he said he knew nothing about it; I noticed that the track of one of the horses was peculiar, and at a place Parr pointed out me there were marks of two horses having stood, and one of the tracks showed that the horse had been restless.
To Mr Moriarty: I have been at Oxley seven weeks; I have heard nothing about Parr’s pigs getting into the prisoner’s garden; Parr took me out to the place where the offence was said to have taken place; accused had check trousers on when arrested.
The accused, Ah You, gave evidence through an interpreter; he had a garden at Oxley, and Parr’s pigs often got into his garden, and he complained to Parr and the police, and then had to shoot the pigs; when he left Oxley he was going Balranald way, and saw Parr, who rode up, looked at him, and rode away; he also met Wilson’s two sons and David Hill; about two miles out of Oxley he stopped when he met the Wilsons, and again when he fixed the reins on the horse; Parr was under his observations for a few minutes before he fixed the reins; the waggonette and horses are outside the court in the same condition as they were on the day in question; there was no truth in the charge made against him.
To Mr Harris: I was standing on the pole when Parr came up; it is about two years and a half since I shot Parr’s pigs; Parr cursed and swore, but did not summons me for killing his pigs; when I told Parr I had killed his pigs, he said “this is not your country, I will make it hot for you.”
To His Honor: The reins when I left Oxley appeared right, but when I wanted to go quick I found one rein was shorter than the other.
To Mr Moriarty: The clothes produced are those I wore when Parr came up; I went once to Parr’s place to sell fruit and he told me to clear out; Parr has bought vegetables from me; there is no other garden there.
John Wilson gave evidence as to meeting the Chinaman and buying fruit from him, but saw nothing wrong.
Ah Pack stated that he had heard “words” between prisoner and Parr, and heard Parr say he would give them blooming trouble and they ought to be sent back to Hong Kong; this was two years ago.
David Hill deposed that he thought he had heard Parr say he would drive all the Chinese out of Oxley; this was said at the hotel.
To Mr Harris: It is no common thing to hear Chinamen abused; I am often at the Chinese Camp; I have taken opium in various ways; I am on good terms with all parties.
After the jury had gone out to see the waggonette Mr Moriarty addressed the jury, contending that the charge not only had not been proved, but was most unlikely when people were passing on the road. There was no corroboration whatever in the case.
Mr Harris having replied at some length, His Honor in summing up said he had tried more Europeans for this particular offence than Chinese.
The jury, after an absence of three-quarters of an hour returned with a verdict of not guilty, and prisoner was discharged.
1 The Riverine Grazier, Fri 29 Sep 1893, p. 2. Emphasis added.
2 The Hay Standard and Advertiser for Balranald, Wentworth, Maude, Booligal, Wilcannia, Menindie, Bourke, &c, Sat 30 Sep 1893, p. 2.