Bridgeton pioneer., 1903-05-21
TERM OF
COUNTY COURTS.
One of the Shortest Sessions in
Recent Years Trial Of Cases
E and Sentences Imposed by the
Court - Some Go to State
Prison.
[From Daily Pioneer Thursday May, IA

[From Daily Pioneer Thursday May, 14l
Court reconvened yesterday after
noon at Las o'clock with the opening
of the defence in the case of the
State against Capt. Leonard Hand, on
indictment for violation of the rough
Gull oyster law.
The last witness called on the part
of the State at the morning session
was Justice of the Peace Samuel M.
Hall, who testified to issuing the war
rant for the arrest of the defendant.
"What plea did the defendant make
when he was brought before you? ?'
asked the Prosecutor.
81 object, came quickly and vehe-
mently from the counsel for the de-
fendant.
Following this came long pro and
con argument but the objection was
finally overruled and the witness per-
mitted to answer the question.
He plead guilty. said the wit
ness.
This ended the States case and Mr..
Carrow made a motion to have the
Court instruct the jury to return
verdict of not guilty, giving for his
reason that the State had not made
out case against the defendant, cit
ing number Of technicalities in the
act under which the indictment was
found as pertaining to the point at
issue.
The motion was argued by Mr..
Bacon for the State, who met the
points of Mr.. Carrow in manner
sufficient to have the indictment
stand, and the Court ordered the case
to proceed, hy-eEerrusing the nastssn
and granting an exception.
Mr.. Iredell opened the defence to
the jury, and outlined the defend
ants side of the case. ''We have a
case from legal standpoint as well
as case Of facts,'' said Mr.. Iredell,
and we are going to prove it. Con-
tinuing, Mr.. Iredell said that Mr..
Hand, the defendant, was just as
much interested in having the oyster
industry protected as any other oyster
man in the county.
Capt. Hand, the defendant. was
placed upon the stand. He said he
was "a years old and lived at Port
Norris. Has been in the oyster busi-
ness for more than thirty years. On
the 10th OF April last witness said he
was above what is known as the
northwest line dredging oysters for
plants. He described how the oysters
were culled after they had been
dumped upon the deck, separating the
oysters from the loose shells. Wit.
ness told of Mr.. Pagan coming aboard
his boat and the conversation he had
with him. The oysters and shells
which Mr.. Pagan measured were not
those caught above the north west
line. The oysters and shells measured
py Mr.. Pagan came largely from
Maurice River Cove. There were
perhaps 60 bushels of cove shells in
the hold of his boat when Mr.. Pagan
made his measurement The oysters
IN the hold of the boat had been culled
before Mr.. Pagan came aboard his
boat In reference to pleading guilty
before Justice Hall, the witness said
ne thought he was answering merely
TO having the shells aboard.
Prosecutor Fithian put the witness
under heavy fire of cross examina-
zion and succeeded somewhat in con-
Iusing him as regards to some of the
answers given to questions on direct
examination.
Joseph Perry was next sworn. He
700 was working on Capt. Hands
boat on April 10Th last, and said that
the oysters caught on that day were
properly culled.
The defence rested it's case. and the
prosecutor recalled number of the
states witnesses in rebuttal, after
which the case was summed up by
the attorneys, Mr.. Carrow making an
unusually strong argument in behalf
OF his client Prosecutor Fithian's 8
argument was likewise very convino-
ing as to the guilt Of the defendant.