PETERSFIELD
Agent — MR G. DUPLOCK
PETTY SESSIONS.—Tuesday.—Present: Hon. J. J, Carnegie (Chairman), Sir W. Knighton, Bart., J. Bonham Carter, Esq., M.P., and J. Waddington, Esq.
FIFTH OF NOVEMBER.—James Daniels, Henry Hearsey Bathe, William Brunnan, Samuel Head, and William Fitt, were charged with letting off fireworks on the night of the 5th. The two former pleaded guilty, and were fined 10s. each with costs 9s. 6d. The others pleaded not guilty. William Fitt called two witnesses, who swore that that they were standing close by him at the time the policeman came up and charged him with letting off a squib, and that he was not the person who did it. P.C. Abrahams spoke most positively as to his identity, but the magistrates gave the defendant the benefit of the doubt raised by the testimony of his witnesses, and dismissed the case. William Brannan, a boy of about 12, admitted picking up a squib which somebody had lighted and thrown on the ground, but pleaded that he was told to do so; and Samuel Head, whose offence differed from the others, the charge being that he assisted in making a fire in the square, admitted he kicked a lighted tar-barrel, but alleged that he did so to prevent its burning the hurdles which were set up for the market. They were fined 1s. each, with costs 5s—Mr. Bonham Carter, in announcing the decision of the bench, in the absence of the chairman, said it was to be regretted that the principal promoters of these dangerous proceedings escaped, while boys, who acted more from thoughtlessness than from any mischievous intention, were brought up for punishment. It was utterly unworthy of tradesmen and others holding respectable positions in the town to engage in such lawless practices, and it was moreover a cowardly thing to lead a parcel of thoughtless lads into trouble, and leave them to pay the fines which the law imposed. If their object were merely an evening's amusement, there could be no particular objection to this, provided they carried it out in some suitable place, and there were plenty of places where this might be done. But by persistently selecting the centre of the town, and the public thorough-fares for these annual displays, they showed plainly that they were actuated by a spirit of defiance of the constituted authorities. The magistrates had found it necessary some years ago to deal very severely with one or two cases that came before them, and it was hoped that this had put a stop to the dangerous practice. The worthy magistrate also alluded to an accident which had happened on the evening in question to the driver of one of Mr. Crafts' flys, who was thrown from the box and considerably injured, owing to the startling of the horses by the explosion of a squib in the street.
WILFUL DAMAGE.—Isaac Howse and James Weeks were charged with wilfully damaging a gate, belonging to Robert Henley Payne, Esq., of Bordean House, on Saturday, the 5th inst.—Mr. Payne deposed as follows: On Saturday, the 9th inst., about three o'clock, I put a padlock on a gate within 100 yards of Bordean House lodge. The gate is on my premises, and opens on a road leading to Sir William's-hill, which is also my property. There were nails driven in above the hinges of the gate. About four o'clock the defendants came with two teams, belonging to Mr. Mellersh, and I heard, as I thought, someone throwing wood into a cart or waggon. I went to see who it was, and found the nails at the top of the hinge had at been beaten upwards and the gate forced. The staple was drawn, the padlock released, and the gate lifted off the hinges and put on one side. I went to the waggons and asked the defendant Weeks how he got in, and he said he forced the gate.—Henry Pratt deposed: I work for Mr. Payne. On Saturday, the 9th inst., the defendant Howse came to me and said the gate leading to the sheepwalk was locked. I said "You'd better go and ask for the key." He said he should not go. I afterwards saw Howse and four others go up to the gate, and someone kicked the nails up and forced open the gate. I did not see either of the defendants kick it or touch it, but they were all close round it. I saw a young man named Tribe kicking the nails, but he did not force open the gate. There were two boys, but they could not have lifted the gate off. Witness here commenced fencing with the questions put by the magistrates' clerk (Mr. Soames), and was more than once cautioned by the magistrates and reminded that he was on oath. Hl said there were five persons present—the two defendants, a man named Tribe, and two boys. He knew it was not either Tribe or the boys who forced the gate, but he could not say who it was. He was on very good terms with the defendants, but he had not had any conversation with them about this business.—This being the case for the prosecution, the defendant Howse handed in a letter addressed to the magistrates, from Mr. Chamen, the tenant of the farm on which the gate in question is to situated. This letter, as far as its contents transpired, appeared to put quite another complexion on the case by raising the question whether Mr. Payne had a right to fasten the gate.—Defendant applied for an adjournment to enable them to produce evidence on this point, and the hearing was adjourned to next bench day.