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Auction: 23113 - Orders, Decorations and Medals - e-Auction
Lot: 131

Queen's South Africa 1899-1902, 3 clasps, Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Transvaal (1768 3rd CL. Trpr. O.C. Hayward. S.A.C.) very fine

Oliver Charles Hayward was born on 14 January 1877 at Lakenham, Norwich, Norfolk. His father was a Watchmaker and Oliver followed into this trade along with other members of his family. He enlists into the South African Constabulary on 1 April 1901, and took the oath on the 1 June 1901 with the view to serving three years. Whilst in South Africa he was fined £3 on 10 August 1901 despite pleading Not Guilty to a charge of Irregular Conduct on Guards and not long after on the 23 August 1901 was found guilty of being "Absent from a Working party" and fined £1. He suffered a knee injury in October of 1901 as a result of slipping over. Service in the S.A.C. was obviously not for him as on 17 March 1902 he purchased his discharge at Heidelberg for the sum of £20, a mere 301 days after enlisting. On 22 April 1902 he signed a statement to the effect that he had "agreed to forego the passage allotted to me on the S.S. Victorian on 21 March 1902" and that he had no further claim against the S.A.C. for passage to England and that he wished to stay in South Africa on his own responsibility. There would appear to have been some controversey because, on 21 April the Office of the Commissioner of Police, Johannesburg wrote to Major J. Fair, Divisional Commander, Heidelberg stating, "... I beg to inform you that O. C. Hayward was sent to Cape Town on the 13th instant under escort by order of the G.O.C.- L. Of C.; Elandsfontein. Why he was under escort can only be surmised.

Hayward made his way to Germiston in the Transvaal from where he wrote, on 6 october 1902, "If you are paying the war gratuity yet, I should like to have mine sent to the above address, if I am not to apply to Heidelberg for it, will you kindly let me know where and when to apply for it".

He re-appeared in 1910 in a court case entitled Rex versus O. C. Hayward - Contravention of the Gold Law. He was apprehended on 7 February 1910 and committed for trial on 8 March at the Krugersdorp Circuit in Roodepoort. Bail was found for him. It was a complex case with no fewer than ten witnesses being called. In the Preparatory Examination Walter Cunnington, Constable in the Transvaal Police at Roodepoort stated that, on 7 February 1910 he had received certain information which led him to the Roodepoort Railway Station to wait for the train coming from Johannesburg. He was the accused (Hayward) arrive carrying a leather handbag. He followed him to the storeroom at the station where he obtained his bicycle. He asked if he was Hayward to which the answer was "Yes". Having identified himself he proceeded to search Hayward to which the answer was "Yes". Having identified himself he proceeded to search Hayward as he was suspected of being in possession of gold. The accused handed him the bag and said "You will find a lump of gold in there." Cunnington found a button of gold in it and asked if Hayward had a permit. He said "No" and was taken to the Charge Office. On the way there he said that "the gold I have is what I have taken from my mine and I have taken it up to Johannesburg for safety's sake as I had no place to lock it up".

Cunnington added that he knew the accused to be working on North Hill Mine and that he was on patrol 2 or 3 months ago but did not notice what work was being done on the mine. Next came William Christopher Loftus, Superintendent of Transvaal Police at Roodepoort. He stated that he had taken Hayward to the National Bank to have the button of gold weighed. It weighed 49.1 ounces where after he handed the gold to Detective Waters who parcelled and sealed it in the presence of the accused. He stated that he knew Hayward to be the Manager of Hill Roodepoort Mine which had a 10 stamp battery and an engine. He had also, on previous occasions issued the accused with permits to transport unwrought gold but that no permit was issued for this particular piece of gold.

Detective Waters was next up. He stated that he was a Detective in the C.I.D. Gold and Diamond Department, Johannesburg. He had visited the site of the mine that Hayward claimed was his. There was no work going on there. He then visited 4 or 5 of the claims that the accused was working on. They were in the names of Neilson and Muratroyd. Jacobus Frederick Steyn was also called. He stated that he worked for the accused for the past seven or eight months and lived at North Roodepoort, living on North Roodepoort Mine. He added that there were no other white men working there now, alongside 4 natives. Excluding Sundays there were 3 or 4 days in every month when the battery did not work.

Herbert Bottomley, Deputy Inspector of Mines at Krugersdorp appeared next. He stated that he knew the Hill Roodepoort Gold Mine and that the claims originally comprising it were held by North West Rand Mines and abandoned in 1907. It was then pegged out by Murgatroyd who had two partners with him. They put up a 10 stamp battery and started crushing on 5 March 1909. On 24 September 1909 he had gone out to the mine and found the accused there. Hayward had told him that he had taken charge of the thing and was manager and had been acting in that capacity for some time. "I have seen samples from the mine and the gold the accused had is out of all proportion to what the mine is capable of producing." He stated.

The matter dragged on with additional witnesses called all adding to the Crown's case against Hayward. Finally, as per a confidential letter from the Gold and Diamond Detective Branch of the Transvaal Police to their Headquarters in pretoria dated 27 April 1910, the case was finalised. The letter read as follows,

"I beg to report for the informataion of the Commissioner that the accused in this case, who was arrested on the 7th Feburary this year appeared before Mr Horsfall at Roodepoort today - the case having been remitted by the Attorney General in so far as the second charge is concerned - namely transporting gold without a police permit, when he was found guilty and sentenced to a fine of £10, or two weeks imprisonment with hard labour.

I am attaching hereto, for the Commissioner's perusal, a copy of the evidence in the case from which it appears quite clearly (vide the strong evidence of Colonel Bottomley, Deputy Inspector of Mines, Krugersdorp) that the gold found in Hayward's possession at the time of his arrest could not possibly have come from the claims he was working at the time.

Should the Commissioner share my opinion that the evidence is strong enough to warrant Hayward being charged with being in unlawful possession of the gold in question, I shall be glad if the Commissioner will please approach the law department with a view of having the case re-opened again, and that Hayward is indicted accordingly.

The magistrate left the gold in my possession until the Hon. The Attorney General has decided whther or not he will permit the case to be re-opened."

Hayward now free of the case and having paid his fine wrote on 19 May 1910, via his attorney's, to the Attorney General demanding that the gold, or payment to the value of £175, be returned to him. This was duly done and the matter was regarded as at an end. No further charges appear to have been brought against him. Hayward died in Bulawayo, Southern Rhodesia on 22 April 1949, survived by his second wife, Marthan Beatrice Hayward. His estate bequeathed a number of mining shares, primarily in gold mines.

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Sold for
£95

Starting price
£50