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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 71

II.—Hohepa Waikori's Case

II.—Hohepa Waikori's Case.

Hohepa's dog worried and killed nine sheep on a station and Hohepa was threatened with legal proceedings and con- page 4 sequent imprisonment and his dog was confiscated. Hohepa went into Gisborne and arranged to give his share in this block, Puhatikotiko No. 1, "in payment for the crime of his dog" The value of the nine sheep was not proved to us, nor was it shown that any sum was agreed upon as the value of the share, but Hohepa suited that he was "satisfied his dog did the damage," and also satisfied that "his share should be given in payment for that damage," and "was quite satisfied with the transaction when it was completed," and he said that he signed a conveyance selling the share for £12, the price then current for shares in No. 1.

It is urged against this purchase that section 5 is not complied with because "the Native owner has not received the £12 stated in the deed as the consideration for the alienation intended to be effected." This transaction, however, appears to the Court just the same in effect as if the purchaser had spoken to the vendor as follows:—"Your dog worried nine sheep—our damage for that worrying is £12. We are buying shares in Puhatikotiko No. 1 for £12. If you sign a conveyance of your share for £12 it will square the transaction. When you sign the deed I will hand you £12 for the price of the share, and you will then immediately baud me back the same £12 as the price of the worried sheep." Now the parties do not appear to have gone through this pantomime, for they did not foresee in 1882 that in 1892 an Act of Parliament would be so worded that the omission of this empty pantomime could be raised as a fatal objection to an exceptionally honest and straight forward transaction.

We shall therefore certify that this trans-action ought to be validated. It is certainly within the spirit and intent of this Act, although outside the words of section 5.