DUNEDIN.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 138, 5 March 1908, Page 5

DUNEDIN.

t / - 'March 3 > An- important: point :.aroso in tlio Police. Court yesterday;, David Morris was charged .with' having tno' visible lawful; means of sup- • port.According to , thoi procedure recently; adopted. by tho • Magistrate, under Section; 26 of the, Police OQencesiAct, a ; person chargcd : :with^-this''offence; ,: is;first;'brbught;.befofo..the Magistrate in.-his, private' roomi and required to, give an, account of his means.;.,;lf -lie . cannot,' do •..thjs, ho. ii>. then -to be tried , in' open court. . .. • •. . ■ -Mr.'J:- Bennet, M:P., is report-cd to bo a little bettor., . . .' '''' The,death ■of a- centenarian was. reporcii:l at to-day's-.meeting of r the Bpnovolcnt ;ln-. stitution;/Trustees,' in the person of.' Lbuis (Adolphus■ Beresford, who died, in the in-, stitution during the week, rtped 100. ' He'had' I resided for. a number of years in King Street, . where, heycarried von: a - second-hand shop. . Deceased -claimed to: bo well connected at *Homo. -' His one - desire iyaa to live to a 'hundred,.which age h'J reached, on Februaiy .17. . .-/His death was due -to ;iniluenza and .bronchitis..'.' ~ A :Polnt of; Procedure. >

•Mr. ■ Bedford, ■ who appeared for Morris, objected to>.-the .procedure in camera as likely, to projudico 1 the -accused,* and asKiiicbasis-: tent- with, tho principles of- British justico. The accused, -ho said, was' called in , before the--Magistrate.; -.tho .detectiv.b'/'reprbsehtingi tho-Crown- was present,' but' the accused's solicitor was not allowed -to bo present. In this caso tho private examination was baforo one Magistrate (Mr. Widdowson), and. tho, public: trial before another (Mr. .Graham):! Part". of : tho'.-'ovidbhco'i against l tho ' accuscd 1 hhro r had failed/to satisfy' Mr. dowson' that lip had. lawful means of support.! This-seemed: an. 1 improper,, prejudging of ; tW ca.so;'and if''tho-statute 1 required it it should be., forthwith amended. " , > Not : Privately Examined. ' - .The dofcct of tho procedure fromtho point "of viow of -tho' polico, was.shown when a niaiv was' charged.,with: tho same 'offcricb immediately"after Morris.;; Ho' wa& discharged because, ho had -not been privately examined.- Before an'-accuscd. can be pri- ; vately,.examincd;it'iecms that.ho must cither. bo brought before tho.Court,on:some other: offence, ■■ as-Morns was;;. or-first notified to appear before tho Magistrate in -private,• but: as, : this;-nbtifieatibn' .is not obligatory, it is not likely to' be. bv vagrants/ ;

Personal Jottings.-• . Mr. J.'.LouCon-lias declmod to stand-tor tho mayoralty for a second term., ' : Mr. Ji; J.'Ramsay, who has been a -very : iseful supportor-of-farming and mining in-vests,us:leaving,to-morrow.. for Wellington; .Maying 'decided,: to;settle in ,;tho North Island.' On Friday evening.: a larg? number of Otago ■ Central;-' residents', ( gavo --him . a at ■: Naseby, 'tlio-Mayor, presiding,,and presented Mrs..Ramsay with, a of sovereigns. ; Choral Society. •. . So- far the..public -have not come forward to Help, to set the Choral Society .■firmer.; on its 'legs,- but at - the, meeting' last ".night- it was 1 decided- to /coutinuo ; the- Society, and fresh oflicors. were elected. • The trouble is ■mainly the. want of young -singing .'members; Lionel Terry. :Lioriel Terry's transfer from an asylum to a gaol comes nono too. soon. . Ho tried to escape' on Sunday from-'Seacliff. It: wa;s npt .a planned attempt; but an. impromptu .iriove to take advantage, of an opon door, • which;- he 1 may have thought was -liot guarded. ' As tilings, happened,. he did not get to the oxitor side of the building. ; Those who saw hinuoii the station in charge of the head attendant and two others say that'he looked ■ anxious, anil somewhat thinner than . when, last captured. . * . ■ ' A Chinese Row. The result of a row between ,i3en Sing and_ Li Oii .in Walker Street ! morning ',was that the latter .'received .a" »v.,'.4id in the face, and the former lies in the police cells, charged with having assaulted him with intent to do .bodily harm. The affray seems tr have taken place outside Joe Sing's fruit shop; .just after noon; Exactly what led ! tvit is hard to say. It is alleged that-Ben s.Sing struck I.i On with his fist - chased hini out of the shop,-knocked hini over, arid

oith'or accidentally or of set purpose cut his nostril, with 1 a knifo olio foot long, n the blade.. A gontleman passing by is said to have 'wrested : tlio weapon from .Sine. , The cut inflicted was a'slight one, aiid Li On was-able to go homo almost, at once. Ben Sing will bo .charged to-morrow. , ,- Warr-ing to Blackguards.' ;<_• A warning to blackguards was given by Mr. Widdowson, S.M., at lr Mosgicl to-day. Walter Hughes proper' 1 - \ against by tho pr.lico-on two vVv.hg.himself *j girls.' . Ho .was 'Slffd 'sonteric-rt tj' ono year's imprison l ., • ,'U" • 1 V ■ NELSON. . ' March 3. , , Tho succcsses of tho Nelson -Garrison. Band at the r'ccent contest.at New Plymouth have been cause 1 for much, congratulation locally. l Although tho band only sccnrcd a middle; placo in the actual test selections, the individual membbrs did bettor than in any contest for many years past. ' . 11 .. 1 'Tho, Rev. J. Reed Glasson, of the Terrace" Congregational Church, Wellington, has been occupying the pulpit' of tho local Congregational Cmirch 1 during; the absenco. of its' pastor, the,ltov. B. L. Thomas. . The; funeral 1 of tlio late ■ Mr,. Stead Ellis look place on Sunday afternoon, when tliero was a very largo attendance of teachers, members of tho Masonic lodges, and other friends. A .short servico was held in tho Cathedral, and at the closo of his morning sormosi the Rev. , J. P. Kempthorne made special'.reference to tho' services'of Mr. Ellis. His connection with'tho 'Education Board had been'/a. long'and useful one, and few men in' the' eityWe're' moro highly respected., Tli'o'vital' statistics- for last month show 24 births, 12 deaths, and eight marriages.' : Owing to the dry weather very ,many trout have 1 died in the' yarious. streams. Some have, however, been rescued, and during tho past few days Mr. E. with a party of assistants, succeeded in rescuing 1500 from the Wai-iti and Wairoa rivers. Dr. 1 Mackie, of tho Nelson Hospital, who has been so seriously ill, is now making good progress towards recovery. " Under the conductorship of Herr Lemmer the Harmonic Society is now practising Coleridge Taylor's " Hiawatha " for their next concert. : 7 1 A : strong contingent of Nelson'riflemen willuphold tho reputation of the district ; atTrentham this year. Among those who i will compete' are ; two ox-champions,' and severalothers'who .have come, very near to cham•pioriship honours in past years.