NEWS AND NOTES.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume IX, Issue 1680, 20 July 1887, Page 2

NEWS AND NOTES.

More light from the Wanganui Herald : — " Repulsed all along the line, the late member for Egmont must by this time have come to the conclusion that his chances of re-election for Egmont are a forlorn hope, and that be must try some more pliable set of men than the electors of that district. The attempt to stem the ebb tide of unpopularity by bringing over a number of his Hawera friends to help j carry a vote in his favour at Opunake, Tecoiled disastrous^ cm h\s ovsn heart, and prevented nirn from getting a healing, a significant intimation to even the most abtuse, and one Major Atkinson will do well to lay to heart for his future guidance." The editor of the Herald must have stood on his head to view the Opunake meeting, at anyrate he has got things up siile down somehow. Mr. G. A. Marchant, one of the candidates for Taranaki seat speaks at Stratford to night. The new roll for Egmont has been made up, and contains 1580 names. When the supplementary list has been added the full roll will probably not be f»r short of 1700. In answer to a question put by one of our correspondents yesterday, we find, on enquiry, that county councillors, if they live outside the borough, get 10s a day expeoses, but in one ca6e, where the member resides 22 or 23 miles from Hawera, the allowance is 20s. We understand that Mr. Ballance is in receipt of a requisition to deliver an address at Patea, and that probably be will shortly comply with the request. We further understand that Sir Robert Stout will pi-obably speak at Hawera, but lhat will perhaps be fome little time hence. At any rate nothing is definitely fixed. The Victorian railway commissioners have settled ninety of tlie claims nrising out of the Windsor raihvny accident for £100 on the average, the largest single payment to date being £1500. In the majority of the unsettled claims the amounts asked are hold to be excessive, and these will be contested. In the course of his address nt Piliarua, Mnjor Atkinson Faid that he had received a deputation of leaseholder, who had thanked him for the action he had taken in the House in respect to those leases. TliHt deputation, be was pleased to say, was headed by Mr. Elwiu, who, he believed, was a supporter of his opponent, Bo that it seemed bis action in that matter had satisfied at least some of those interested. The American State of Maine has reverted to its former system of punishing murderers with life imprisonment instead of death. Id has been found that the extreme penalty is attended with many obstacles, arising from the amonnt of evidence often required by juries before consigning accused peisous to an irrevocable doom, and many of the worst murder ers bave escaped conviction. The Manchester Courier gives publicity to a letter which appeared in a New York paper over Henry George's signature, in which that centleman asserts that he was the first prrson to carry the news of the Phoenix Park murders to Mr.'Parnell, who was then staying at the Westminster Palace Hotel, London. Mr. Dillon and Mr. Michael Davitt were also present. All were deeply moved, especially Mr. Parnell, who, on the impulse of the moment, talked of resigning his seat in Parliament, and retiring from public life for ever. It will be observed that the Hawera Jubilee Minstrels intend giving an entertainment early in August in aid of the band uniform fund. The uniform, though certainly required to give the band a smurt and finished appearance, is necessarily an expensive item 5 and endeavors must be made to wipe out the debt. We understand the entertainment will be something after the style of those previously given by the band — vocal selections, conundrums, etc., and an after-piece bearing a popular title *, and k dance will be held after the performance. The affair is sure to be well patronised, as has always been the case. Mr. Orbell, the officer deputed by the Government to report on the alleged outbreak of disease among cattle in the Wairarapa, says : — I made an inspection of several mobs of cattle upon the estate. The simplest explanation that I can give of the disease, which attacked the lower limbs of the cattle, is to say that 21 head of purebred cattle h^d been put into a paddock of tall fescue grass badly ergoted. This grass had been allowed to go to Feed, and the seed was allowed to shake itself out upon the ground before the cattle were put into the paddock. After the cattle had been in the paddock nbout a week, their legs became very much swollen, lameness ensued, and some of thtir feet dropped off later on. Only six of the cattle out of the number that were put into the paddock escaped from the poisonous complaint ; six head were shot after their feet bad rotted off by dry gangrene. Ergot is known to possess poisonous qualities when taken in considerable quantities, which will produce dry gangrene of the lower limbs, and in regard to this case, I think there caa be little or no doubt th t the cause of the cattle losing their ieet wai by their eating considerable quantities of ergot with the grass. Theße twentyone head of cattle bad been mixed with a mob of other cattle previous to being put into the ergoted paddock of about 10 acres. I examined this mob, and to all appearances they were perfectly bealtby. The rest of the general herd running nt large on the estate were looking sound and in good condition. A peculiar case came before the New Plymouth K.M. Court, on Tuesday, when the Reserves Trustee sued A. Bayly for rent. Newton King deposed thitt lip was an auctioneer, and received instructions from Mr. Rennell to sell the lease by auction of part of Reserve " B," in the Hua. It was offered for sale under tho conditions of sala as produced, about two o'clock on April 30. It had been advertised for some time previously. Before offering it for leasa he read the conditions for the sale. There was keen competition for the , property between tlmo men, and finally \ it was knocked down to Mr. A. Bayly, he beiag the highest bidder. It wns " knocked " down in the u-ual way and he declared to be the purchaser in tlie tiMial way, and ho loud that everybody could hear in the room. It was done so that his (Mr. King's) clerk could hear the name of the purchaser. The sale was entered at the time in a book kept for the purpose. It was done in accordance with a declaration that Mr. Bayly was the purchaser, and at the time. There were other properties for sale, and be did not call upon Mr. Bayly to sign the agreement at once. As Boon as the sale was concluded they asked Mr. Bayly to sign the agreement and conditions. He demurred and said he thought that he had been buying a freehold. He gave no notice er said anything fill he (witness) asked him to sign. He declined to BJgn and also to pay the deposit, nor bad ho paid it up to the present lime. Witness signed the conditions immediately after the sale as auctioneer conducting the sale, Mr. Bayly's bid wns 5s above the next highest one. The court held tbat as tlje defendant had not signed the agreement properly, anl therefore it was not a signature, it was no contract, and could not come within the statute of fraudF, The plaintiff would be non-suited, with costs 21b.

The Parliamentary Union meets tomorrow evening.

The photographs of the West Const Football Team, which recently beat Auckland, have been received and a copy was on view nt Mr. KivelPs today. It is a nice group.

An Auckland firm (McLeod Bros., Albert street) are the successful tenderers for the supply of parcel post baskets to the Government. This firm are engnged in the cultivation of oisers on an extensive scale, and supply Southern firms.

An elector in Waiknto (Mr. J. Forrest, of Cambridge), speaking at a political meeting the other duy, snid he saw there were ladies presout, and he was glnd tosee them, because it was a sign that the election was not going to be so quiet as nsual. Tho ladies were indigiant..

Lately householders in Hawera have bpen nnnoyed by visits from a man nsking or rather, demanding, employment or food, and making very rude remarks when he met wiih refusal. The timid will be glad to hear that the police have had him in view, and that he has departed to fresh fields.

At Adelaide the police have laid an information against certain people for attempting to impose upon Mountedconstable Shegog and other persons by pretending to hold conversation with the spirit of a deceased person by means of mysterious knocking upon their leasehold premises in the hundred of Moockra, in order to depreciate the value of land which, being held under lease from the Crown, had become liable to forfeiture.

A young man, in Auckland, named Charles Aickin who was charged the other day with uttering a cheque, and whose case broke down through a legnl objection raised by Mr. O'Meagher has been re-arrested and charged that he did feloniously offer, ntter, dispose of and put off well kuowing the same to be forged, nn order for a payment of money, to wit a cheque, on the Bank of New Zealand for the sum of £65 with intent to defraud. It was explained that this was a fresh information, nnd on his application the case was renmnded till Monday next.

The New South Wales Government have determined to proceed civilly against all the defendants in the railway wool fraud ca=es, as they believe they can recover the whole of the amount the State is said to bave been deprived of. With reference to the stamp frauds, it is said that the parties got the land transfers stamped, valued at £2500, and then altered the figures to .£12,500, thus defrauding the Ftnmp office of duty on £10,000. Since the discovery, the parties alleged to be concern'd have offered to make good the difference to the Government, bnt the offer has been declined. The matter will Ko to the Police Court. Tlie fraud is one of many reported.

The Titnaru Herald is responsible for the following : — About two months ago one of the Government departments sent a voucher to tho Audit Office in the ordinary course, and it was reported to the AuditorGeneral by one of his subordimates that the claimrnt of the sum named in the voucher was dead. Whereupon the Auditor-General turned np tlie corner of the voucher and wrote on the back ot it : *' Cannot pass this^ the claimant being dead," The voucher conseqtieutly went back to the department whence it had comp, nnd was there pigeonholed for a while. It came to the surface again in a few weeks' time, nnd the tnrned-up corner having got flattened oat again, it was not observed that it had already been sent to the Audit and refused. It wa^ therefore sent to tlie Audit again. Thereupon the Auditor-General said unto himself " The Lord hath delivered them into my hands," and reverting to his original turned-up coiner he wrote upon it: "Cannot pass this yet, the claimant being still dead."