Everyone on board a ship arriving from overseas has to make an official declaration as to the quantity of dutiable goods in his or her possession, but few, the officials say, appear to have any feelings of honesty in this respect, and smuggling is the rule.
The chief offenders are women, and it is distinctly stated by the officials that one woman in particular makes a regular living out of the profits earned by defrauding the Customs.
They know she does it, and they know how she does it, but without a female searcher it is a difficult matter to make a raid, and so far she has gone scot free.
But that is only one instance.
There are, however, evidences that the officials are getting tired of the frequent evasions of the law which it is known occur every day - recent prosecutions point in that direction - and it is understood that more drastic measures to prevent the revenue being defrauded are in contemplation.
• The self-conducted prosecution of Inspector Doyle at Wellington yesterday for boarding a tramcar while in motion recalls an incident with somewhat similar features in Dunedin some years ago, when the late Mr E. H. Carew was stipendiary magistrate.
By some mischance a chimney at his residence took fire, and in due course, at his own request, an information was laid.
When the case was called for hearing, Mr Carew was on the bench. There was no appearance of the defendant.
"Fined 5s, with costs 2s," said Mr Carew gravely, and amid an impressive silence the next case was called.
• A young lady was knocked down and rendered unconscious near the Chief Post Office, in Princes Street, yesterday afternoon.
An eye-witness of the occurrence, who is a well-known citizen, informs us that the lady stepped from the pavement and a youth riding a bicycle at a high rate of speed collided with her, knocking her to the ground with such force that she was thrown forward some distance before she fell, and was rendered unconscious.
Neither saw each other before the accident happened.
Our informant strongly condemns the too common practice of youths and others riding along the crowded thoroughfares at a rate of speed which is positively dangerous.
The young lady was attended to by a doctor, and afterwards sufficiently recovered to be able to proceed to her home. - ODT, 7.8.1909.
