ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

Evening Post, Volume LXX, Issue 71, 21 September 1905, Page 6

ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

DELAY IN APPEAL CASES. SYSTEM OP COLONISATION. A CLAIM FOR DAMAGES. (FROJI OCB OWN COBRESrOJ»DENT.) LONDON, 11th August. "One may hope," says the Globe, "that the Chief Justice of New Zealand was incorrectly reported when he was represented jis saying that appeals to the Judicial Committee are pending for' two or three years. The Lord Chancellor, questioned in the House of Lords concerning the -statement, has described it as 'manifestly a ridiculous exaggeration,' and this is not a pleasing phrase for the head of the Judicinry in the Mother Country to have to apply to an allegation by the principal Judge in a colony. The Judicial Committee, which has risen for the Long Vacation, has succeeded in hearing nearly all the cases in its list. Only two remain unlieard, one of which, a New Zealand appeal,, has for some months been standing over for the convenience of the parties. "Sir Kobert Stout," continues the Globe, "would have been better justified in attacking the Judicial Committee if he had confined himself to complaining of the frequent delay in the delivery of its reserved judgments. Among the cases still standing for judgment is an appeal from Tasmania, which was heard so long ago as the beginning of last December. Eight months have already passed since the case was argued, and, since the Committee has risen for the vacation, the interval between the hearing and the judgment must now be little Jess than a year. The Lord Chancellor, in his statement in the House of Lords the other day, 'did not pretend that the state of things was absolutely satisfactory.' Perhaps it was the remembrance of this undelivered judgment that led him to make this confession. There was a Judge in the Chancery Division in recent years who once took a whole year to make up his mind how to decide a, certain case. A strong protest was made against the delay, and it was fondly hoped that such very deliberate methods had been banished from the judicial world." REPORTED EMIGRATION FROM NEW ZEALAND. A correspondent of The Times, noting that Mr. Grogan had been writing about the outflow of New Zealand farmers to the Argentine, and that Mr. Reeves stated there was no emigration whatever from New Zealand to South America, thinks that Mr. Reeves must be misinformed in this matter, for, to his own knowledge, within'fche last few years a number of Now Zealanders have emigrated to the Argentine. "Curiously enough, "'he adds, "too, just before the publication of Mr. Reeves's letter here, the same subject happened to be dealt with at a meeting of the Royal Commission set up by the Government in connection with the- land laws of the colony. -A delegate from one of the trades and llbour councils was giving evidence before the Commission, and his policy was of such an ultra-socialistic character that various Commissioners failed to oonceal their astonishment as he set forth the party's platform. This delegate was subjected to a severe 'crossexamination, and Mr. M'Cutchan, one of the ablest members of the Commission, , inferred, in his examination of the wit-ness,-thnt desirable colonists were leaving the colony because of the agitation set on foot by the Labour Party and others. At a later stage, Mr. Paul, who is the representative of Labour on the Commission, cast some doubts upon the accuracy of this inference ; but Mr. M'Cutchan substantiated his statements by reading a lettor which he had received from Mr. Georgo M'Lean, an old and respected settler, who had faced the troubles of the Maori War in tho interests of his country, and who had spent his best years ill New Zealand. "The letter referred to the departure of four young New Zealand farmers for the Argentine, and one extract ran as follows: — 'My son's and his friends' primary reasons for leaving the colony are, first, the uncertainty of land tenures, owing to the demands of Socialists. I love New Zealand, ' and believe the sun docs not shine on a' better or finer land, and, as you know, have worked in it for whatever I have ; but I could not ask my son to stay, though he is my only son, and hard to part with. The young men who left for tho Argentine took about £20,000, and if they report favourably more intend to follow.' Mr. M'Cutchan even went the length of giving tho names of the men who had emigrated to the Argentine ; and ho told the Labour delegate for his own information, and the information of

others, that there was a feeling of insecurity from end to end of the colony, not only among freeholders, but among leaseholders as Troll. He added that these men whose names h© had given — excellent types, all of them — had gone out of this country to live under a foreign flag, where property was more respected."

Several months ago a firoi of printers named Johnson and Co. wa-- mulcted in £100 damages by the Stipcc-.iary Magistrate at Wellington for hawing printed for one Donovan a racebook whifh in its contents was adjudged to bo matter piratea from the official racebook i.«sued by the Wellington Racing Club in connection with its January meeting. Appeal against this decision was made to tins Chief Justicei and to Mr. Justice Coopw, who some weeks ago heard argument -.nd reserved their decision. This aftern*nnn Mr. Justice Cooper read the judgment oi the Chief Justice, which set out that tV.w Magistrate had properly found that the .mauthorised book contained information tfiat was got from the official book; but inasmuch as there was not sufficient proof that the authorised book was published (in a legal sense) before the unauthorised one appeared, the protection of copyright did not apply ; and, further, that the J»iok did not sufficiently resemble the authorised book to be misleading to the obsanant public. Therefore His Honour was o< opinion that the appeal must be allowed. Mr. Justice Cooper's judgment was thai f- could not be said that appellants had it, any time published or offered the bwi*. for sale; they were merely the printea^ and Donovan was the publisher. Mr Sell (counsel for respondents) sought leavw to appeal. Dr. Findlay objected on behv# of the appellants, but Mr. Justice Co*«*r said the question of copyright invoked was an important one, and he wousm grant the leave asked for. Answering a question put by Mr. Fisher in the House yesterday afternoon, the Premier stated that the number of unemployed in Wellington had decreased rather than increased during the past month. Interviewed on the subject this morning, Mr. David M'Laren, Secretary of tie Wharf Labourers' Union, said that theTremier was quoting the experience of the Labour Department. The figures merely indicated that the number of applicants at the Wellington office of the Department had been reduced, but the) did not prove that those actually in want of work were fewer. Many men went to the bureau once to apply for work, but did not go a second time. Why? Because the class ol work offered was not such as the intn ivanted, or such work as the men could find for themselves. Other men, again, were told to call again, so often that they thought their time could be better spent in looking elsewhere for work. As a matter of fact; judging by tho experience on the wharves, there were still many men out of work in Wellington. During the past three weeks there were 300 men who daily found it impossible to get a job on the wharves. Work was more plentiful today. Work had been so 'slack on the whaives of late that the average earnings of wharf labourers during the past month or two were about 16s or l?b per week. That there were plenty of men offering was proved by tho City Engineer and contractors, who had a large number of applicants for jobs on tramway extension works. Mr. M'Laien persona'iv had been requested by dozens of men *-o find work for them. A ■start was made by the Corporation staff this morning with the preparatory work of opening up the -roadway in front of the Town Hall, Lower Cuba-street, which is to be paved with wood. The area to be ' paved is about a chain in extent immediately in front of the main entrance to the Town Hall. \The City Council decided to pave thai portion of the roadway because in wet weather passengers by the tramcars who were attending meetings or entertainments at the hall had a very muddy pathway to walk over in crossing from the cars to the portico. To-morrow, at 2 p.m., Messrs. Levien, Shallcrass and Co. will offer by public auction about £150 worth of glassware and crockery, lines suitable to the trade and the public.