FORGING A DELIVERY NOTE. John Willam Briggs, a carrier at Opunake, was charged with forging a delivery note received from tho j Railway Department on December 23rd. A second count charged him with similar forgery on December 27th and a third count charged him with getting £3 6s 9d by false pretences through such forgeries from a Chinese storekeeper, Gl Opunake. Mr Weston for the prisoner pleaded guilty to the charge of false pretences, which plea he believed the Crown would accept. Mr Kerr said the Crown was prepared to accept the plea. Mr Weston called evidence as to character. Constable Hickman of Opunake, stated he had known the prisoner for 15 years. Up till now prisoner had borne a good character. The prisoner had a wife, seven children, and an aged father depending on him. Recently the mortgages had seized the prisoner's horse and waggon, and cows under bill of Sale. There was a mortgage of £130 on the property. Since the committal of prisoner the Chinamen.- who were the prosecutors, had employed the orisoner to cart their goods. Constable Salmon! also testified to the previous good character of the prisoner. His Honour said he would like to ask Ah Hong, the prosecutor, some questions. Mr Chew Chong was sworn in as interpreter. Ah Hong, who took the ordinary bible oath, said he was manager for Bang Chong, storekeeper at Opunake He said prior to the cases he had suspicion about prisoner. MrWeetan put in a letter he had received from Mr.H Wagstaff of Pihama, testifying, to the prisoner's good character. Mr Weston then asked His Honor to apply the provisions of the Probation Act to the case, Mr O'Brien, probation officer, put in a report which was satisfactory. His Honor said that in these cases it was usual to order the prisoner to pay expenses, but in this instance the prisoner had been deprived of his means of living. Addressing prisoner His Honor said the prisoner had put himself in awkward position for the sake of defrauding foreigners of £1 in fact it might be said that he had ruined his character for life. It was an unfortunate position to be placed in. Under all the circumstances he would admit prisoner to probation for 12 months. Taranaki Herald, Volume L, Issue 11909, 6 March 1902, Page 2