WELLINGTON NOTES.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXXV, Issue 11560, 13 June 1900, Page 3

WELLINGTON NOTES.

[special to hawke's bat herald.] [by telegram.] , Wellington, Tuesday. LIBEL CASE. A great deal of interest is being tafeei iv the case in the Supreme Court in whiol Mr Byrne, Mayor of Kuuiara, is claiming 1 £1000 damages from the Auckland Oh sei-vcr for remarks made in reference t< fcho notorious " charwoman case," in con nflction with which Mr Byrne was ouf night lodged in the Wellington lock-up but who subsequently was able to provt ; an alibi before the Magistrate. Mi Skerrett put the plaintiff through s searching cross-examination, during which it transpired that the money for the pay- , ment of the fmo inflicted on Ellis, who came forward during the trial of Byrne and claimed that he was the man who assaulted the charwoman, came from a number of people in Kumara through Byrne's solicitor. It is said that there will lie some rathor sensational evidence adduced before tho termination of tho trial. BETOENED INVALIDS. The public gavo a hearty welcome to the returned New Zealanders to-day. They were cheered by crowds which lined the wharves, on the way to the Council Chambers, where they were entertained at lunoh by the Mayor. Of the five men Troopers Harding, of Woodville, and Sealye, of Dunedin, are practically convalescent. Taylor, of Lyttelton, is a martyr to rheumatism, and will be sont immediately to the Hot Springs. Trooper Young is still suffering greatly from injury to his apine, and his final recovery seems doubtful. Sergeant- Farrier Neilson ib partially paralysed in his right arm, owing to exposure after disablement owing to injury to his hip. With care he will probably make a good recovery. Harding has brought back a Mauser rifle, picked up on one of the South African battlefields. Trooper Toung has a unique trophy. Attached to his leather waistbelt are specimens of the regimental badges of nearly every battalion engaged in the war. Some of the badges wore found on tho battlefield, others wero gifts from wounded men whom Toung met in the hospital, and others again were obtained by exchange E buttons from his own uniform. INTERCHANGEABLE TICKETS. Some time since the Wellington Chamber of Commerce wrote to the Minister of Railways, suggesting that annual tickets for the Wellington-Napier line and annuul tickets issued for the Wellington-Mana-watuline should be mada interchangeable. The correspondence on the subject between the Railway Department and the company has been forwarded to the Chamber. In response to a letter from the General Manager of Eailways, Mr T. Bonayne, asking for the company's views on the proposal. Mr Hannay, general manager of the Manawatu Company, said that he was inßtruoted by his directors to say that while they would favorably oonsider any equitable arrangement, they wero not in possession of sufficient data to enable them to make any proposal. They would, however, favorably consider any proposal made by the department. In reply Mr Eonayne forwarded a copy of the amended rates for annual season ticlcets, and asked what proportion of the fares the company was pared to accept for the use of the tickets over theEß lines. To this Mr Hannay replied that there was still insufficient data to enable the directors to make any proposal, but they would, he again said, carefully consider any proposal made by tho department. This ended the correspondence, and Mr Rouayne in forwarding it to tho Chamber of Commerce, said the Ministor could not sco his way to take any further action in the matter until tho directors of the Wellington-Manawatu Company indicated what proportion of the annual ticket rates they were prepared to accept for the use of the ticket over the company's line. CASUALTY LIST. The following is a casualty list of our troops in South Africa to date :— Killed : Trooper Bradford, Jasfontein, 28th December, 1890 ; Sergeant Gourlay, Jusfontein, 15th January, 1900; Trooper Connell, New Zealand Hill, 15th January ; Trooper Booth, Een3burg; Sergeant Byrne, Johannesburg, 18th May. Total died of disease: — Trooper H. Burroughs, enteric, Kimberley, 6th March ; Trooper Patterson, enteric, Eendeboosch, 18th February ; Trooper .lenks, enteric, "Rendesboosch, 21st March; Trooper Hempton, dysentry, Carnarvon, 3rd April ; Trooper Morris, enterio, East London, 11th April ; Trooper Tiirrant, typhoid, Pretoria, 20fch April; Trooper Anderson, enteric, Bloemfontein, 20th April; Sergeant Brook, enterio, Bloemfontein, 25th May ; Farrier-Sergeant M'Kinney, enteric, Bloemfontein, 25th May; Trooper Wyllie, tumor, Pretoria, 18th May; total, 10. Besides the men who arrived yesterday, the following have been or are to be invalided home by the Waiwera -.—Private P. N. Hunt, Paparoa; Sergeant Bond, Corporal Symes, Captain Hayhurat. By the Monowai : Troopers Irwin and Marsh. MAIN TRUNK LINE. Tho Government appears to be pushing on with the construction of the North Island main trunk railway. Over 500 men are at present employed on the work, and good progress is being made, both with the Makohine and Mangaweka viaducts. A large portion of the earthwork beyond Slakohine is finished, and for several miles it is well in hand, and the platelaying is about to be begun. At the northern end the earthwork is being constructed as fast as the season of the year will permit, and platolaying will be commenced early next summer. GOLF. In the final for the Ladies' Golf Championship of the Wellington Club, Mrs G. Pearce beat Mrs G. Todd by one up.