Waipawa.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 5533, 23 May 1889, Page 3

Waipawa.

[OWJJ OOKKKBPOjrDFKT.]

The inquest on the recent firo at tbo old Wttipawa Hotel was hold yesterday at the Courthouse, before Mr. Samuel Johnson, coroner, and the! following jury :-MeesM. Btbbv (foreman), Shanly, Cog, McGreevy, Phillips, and Mathiaon. A most unusual incident occurred w soon as the jury had been sworn, when Mr. Phillip* .asked who was to pay him for hi* low of time ! Ihe coroner said be had never heard ot euch an application before, and knew of up wayu which the juror* could bo paid. Mr. Phillips eaid ho should apply fur Ins wages. The coroner said ho could apply it he chose. The jury conferred together, and the forenan again asked who th,.y were w apply to, m they re K arded it an a civil action. Mr. Cottrell, wh-. appeared tw the North British and Mercantile Insurance Co., then told the jury thatasnoevulence had been tendered, they woroMSiircclyiini portion to what the nature ot the cam.- was, and asked the coroner t<, rule on the point. The coroner said the enquiry »ns held under the authority of tho Coroner « Aft, and the powers were the same as in the cane of a dead body, so far as applicable : and he repeated tho oath administered b> thn foreman and jury, lowing that they were bound to find according to the evulence, and the only way in which they could move in the matter waß by presentment. It tney thought fit. to make one he would forward it to the proper quarter. The jury having viewed the site of the fire, the evidence.was then taken of MebWH. A. E. Jull, l> Guy, M. She.-han, J. Adams, J. H. E. Good. G. Abraham*, »? d w - M «' Dou-iill. The same brief facts already published were piveu a» to the hre, and the details of the purchase of the propertvofMr. J. Rose, including the hotel, of 2U acres, by Guy and for JC3.'.» and ,n >»i»mity of C7B who leased the hott-1 and two acres t» Mr. Ji.U for £(><) a-yw for fouitc<;n years. 1 ln.-r..' •wan also a'p-.i'i-ha.-irg clauff, wherely the lessee wir- entitled to purchase thy uotul ana wo acres of Umd !»r £70i) at any linic dining \lv curvnnc.'.- of the Umk-c, but ft Mtle could not bo iri'.'i'ii'.lunnu' lto.-r's HIV. ' J ' l:c ' le«>c-iiifui-ei t!i..' i>rrn,is.'s i-.r .£IOO, cousidwiiur thorn woith ,!>o<). JIo tifterwards entered i , ''" euntru-ts with Aiiani.s and Abi'HhaniH fin , certain iid'Htions nml rerairs t> the hotel, "'l'! painting s'.nd papering t l :r'Uih'Ut. He then incru»s<d th" msura-.< !• to H'v'iO. mi! ti'iik a huil.ifr's ris":;. A emi-id' i"il'lo nmouiiv "f work lmd hr;en done atl»ie tin - : tho fire. Th.- arnouht ro(iii'ri'd tot;p-aeethe bundmgs mi■: variously stat'd at £800 to £1000. Mr. Loughnaii

appearod for 55"r. Jull, and Mr. Cottrell for the North British Insurance Co. The proceedings lasted fmm 10.30 a.m till nbout 4.30 r , *"• The jury was absent about twenty minutes, when they found that " no evidence of the origin of tho lute fire doth appear to tho said jurors." They also wished to add a rider. Tho Coroner said it could not be added to the verdict, but it would bo made public. Tt was us follows : — " That the jury is of opinion that when an iii.siiriinue proposal is made, is the proper time to consider tho value of tho property and relative amount of insurance, and that a company, having acoepted a risk, and received premiums thereon, ought not in fairness to raise the question of overinsurance when a fire occurs." The question of payment of jurors was again raised, and tho Coroner said he expected that they would have mado a presentment on the subject for him to forward to the proper authorities, by which means only it »vould be dealt with, and if they choose to retire to their room again and draw up a document on tho subject ho would wait for them. As soon, however, as they had signed the customary inquisition, all the jurors cleared out and" left their grievance till a futuro case presented an opportunity for protesting. Mcsrs Nelson and Co. commenced making preparations yesterday for their new freezing works atWaipukurau.