WESTPORT NOTES.

Evening Star, Issue 14117, 21 July 1909, Page 3

WESTPORT NOTES.

[Special to the Star.] WESTPORT. July 21. Mr Rawson, S.M., delivered judgment yesterday in the ca.se of Marsden v. the Westport Coal Company, a claim for £ls. the value of goods lost on the Denniston incline through a truck breaking away. The magistrate held that the plaintilf had entered into a special contract with the company whereby the company carried bis goods '' at owner's risk," and gave judgment for defendants, with costs. The magistrate also delivered judgment in the case of Brown v. the Westport Borough Council. Brown is an old man, and going home about eight o'clock at night in one of the back streets of Westport, he missed his footing on a n.v-ov,- crossing over an open ditch at the .<■■' .f the road, and fell into the ditch, i.aaging his clothes and the goods he was carrying, and losing two days' work. Formerly the ditch was covered with brambles, but the borough had just removed this, and had placed no handrail or light there. Part of the defence was that plaintiff was guilty of contributory negligence, it being alleged that his fall was caused through his having had drink that evening. The magistrate held that defendant had created a dangerous nuisance, and had failed to take reasonable precautions against the accident, also that no contributory negligence had been proved, and allowed'plaintiff £7 9s and costs (£4 6s).

The fact that Westport has this month put up weekly records twice shows that the coal trade is in a pretty healthy condition. The State briquette works are idle at present, owing to delay in the arrival of pitch. It is expected that work there will shortly be resumed. The Seddonville State and Stockton mines are both doing fairly well, but the trouble they are finding is in getting rid of the slack coal. Screened coal is in strong demand, but it does not pay the mine to be producing only screened coal, unless,of course, a particularly high price is obtainable. An action for alleged slander arising out of a recent fire in Westport is promised for settlement at the next sitting of the Supreme Court, the plaintiff being a night watchman and the defendant one of the parties who suffered by the fire.