RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 1, Issue 195, 19 October 1866, Page 2

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

This Day. [Before J. Poynter, Esq., R.M.] C. Bray v. J. Mackintosh. — This was a claim of 2d. made by the lessee of the Dun Mountain bus, the amount of extra fare, after sundown, charged by him, and which the defendant refused to pay. The case was brought before the Magistrate to try the legality of the demand, which custom had established. The plaintiff stated^ On Monday night last my brother was driving the bus; on arriving at Trafal-gar-street, and demanding the usual fare of the defendant, which was 6d., it being 9 o'clock, he refused to pay it. It has always been the custom to charge 6d. after sunset. The Magistrate: Have you any evidence to prove that it is the custom to charge 6d. after sunset? Plaintiff: There are several persons who can do so. All the principal inhabitants of the town know it is the custom. Mr. Pollock, addressing the Bench, said, by a clause in the Act the lessee was entitled to charge 4d. per mile, and the distance from town to port was over a mile. It had been the custom to charge 6d. after sunset, and two or three years ago it was usual to charge 6d. in the day, which the lessee was entitled to by the Act. Defendant: lam a stranger in the town. It was between 8 and 9 o'clock, and seeing the fare marked up 3d. in legible letters just under the lamp, and seeing no other fare marked, I refused to pay what I ; considered an overcharge. I Plaintiff-; My agreement with the company terI minates at sunset. After that lam entitled to charge an extra 3d. W. Weedon: I was once proprietor of the bus. I am not aware that the fare was marked up inside, it is marked 3d. outside, but I do not remember the precise words. The bus is bound to run, under agreement, from 9 o'clock till sundown. It has always been the custom after this to charge an extra fare of 3d. Ido not know if the charge of 3d. is confined to the hours the bus is bound to run. I never knew the double fare disputed before. To the Defendant : I had a card placed inside stating that the night fare was 6d. The bus is bound to run a certain number of hours. Defendant : I did not refuse to comply with the custom, if on inquiry I found it to he correct. I should have been glad to pay, and was going to tender the money before the summons was taken out. , Plaintiff was recalled, and requested to produce his agreement with the Dun Mountain Co. He did so. Mr. Pollock : I was formerly in the employ of the Dun Mountain Co. I arranged with the original lessee that the fare .'should be 6d., the clause in the act fixing it at 4d. per mile, allowing this charge. Subsequently the day fare was reduced to 3d. ; the

Agreement with the lessee being tqlrnn from 9 .^.m. "till sandown. After sundown he was entitled to charge more. I know it has been thefgustom to charge 6d. after sunset, and three or four years ago, it was the custom to charge ls. . » . i Defendant: Being a stranger and 'seeing the fare marked up as 3d.,T objected to pay; more till I had conversed with my friend. I said' l would pay the extra 3d. if they did, and told the plaintiff so. I objected on the ground that if an article is ticketed at 3d., either in a bus or in a shop.jhe person is bound to sell it at 3d., and not at 4d. or Bd. In this case the fare was distinctly marked 3d.,- : on this ground I objected to pay more. ... The Magistrate : It appears by the agreement between the lessee and the company, the former is bound to run from 9 o'clock" till sunset. If you are fond of litigation, the best thing 3 f ou could have done, would have been to pay the fare and summon the driver here. In justice and on the evidence, lam bound to conclude that he is entitled to 6d. after sunset. I must, threfore, give judgment of 3d. against you. I think it desirable that in justice, the lessee should stick uf) a placard stating that the fare is 6d after sunset. Defendant : Have Ito pay the cost ? Clerk of the Court : Yes, 1 5s. 3d. Defendant : How can that be ? Clerk of Court : You have to pay cost of Court, 75. ; attendance of one witness, Bs.; judgment, 3d. The money was paid, the defendant intimating that he was not very fairly dealt with. Telegraphic communication is resumed with Wellington, Blenheim, aud Pieton ouly. A daring attempt was made on the 10th instant, to escape from Dunedin gaol. A man named Fratson who had been convicted of murder at Clutha, and who was serving a life sentence, got through the skylight in the prisoner's mess room, and thence into the street. He was, however, immediately captured by the gaoler. The water cart is a great institution at Wellington just at present. A local paper suggests tbat the carriers should not water the streets with salt water, as we have heard that after it dries the salt left ©n the road will have a most injurious effect on people's eyes, if it is blown about by the wind. We trust that fresh water will be procured for the purpose, for if not, we are assured, the remedy will be worse than the disease. At a recent meeting of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce it was announced, says the Independent, that the Collector of Customs had expressed his acquiesence in the desire to have spirits re-guaged immediately previous to their being cleared. Ifc has long been a sore point with purchasers of spirits in bond in Canterbury that they were compelled to pay the duty according to the gauging made on them at the time of their being placed in bond, and not according to the actual amount iu the casks when removed out of bond, though a considerable difference might be kuown to exist in the two amounts, and iu many instances duty was paid on such a much larger amount than the casks contained at the time of their removal as to very materially increase the actual gross cost of the spirit. The Otago members were anything but well received ou their return to their Lares and Penates, as will be seen from the following condensed story of their entry into Dunedin: — When the steamer was signalled, a crowd collected on the jetty with a band, -aud everyone appeared anxious to greet the representatives of the province. The first to land were the Hon. Major Richardson and Mr. Cargill, and their reception was not a pleasant oue. It was forgotten that Major Richardson now has a seat in the Assembly as one of the representatives of Taranaki, and there was a terrible diu of groaning and hissing, the band striking up the 'Rogue's March.' Messrs. Paterson, Haughton, and Burns, in spite of making a flank movement to escape the demonstration, were surrounded and most heartily hooted aud groaned at, as they passed through the city, but Mr. Julius Vogel, more fortunate by far, met quite a different reception. His was a conqueror's ovation, and he was followed into the Times office, by an admiring throng, who compelled him to appear at one of the windows and speak, which he did amidst loud and repeated cheering. With this solitary exception, Otago's members have no cause to look back with feelings of pleasure to the beginning of the recess. We observe by the English papers that Lieutenant-General Sir Duncan Cameron has not yet been offered a division, but private letters received by the mail announce, as a

club rumour, that the general is to be appointed private secretary to his Royal Highness the Field Marshal Commanding-in-Chief.— Evening Post, Sept. 27.

The Taranaki Herald says: A curious definition of the obedience due from a subordinate in the army to his commanding officer, was recently given in the Resident Magistrate's Court. Captain Mace, while giving evidence in the case of Eruwini v. D. Bayly, said he had received verbal instructions from Geueral Chute to loot all he could, both in going and returning from Wauganui. The Resident Magistrate thereupon remarked that the value of those instructions would entirely depend upon the interpretation witness put upon them; and afterwards observed that the witness was not bound by an illegal order, whether given by the Governor or the General. We always uuderstood that a military officer was bound to obey the orders, legal or illegal, in a civil poiut of view, of the officer commandiug, who would himself have to answer for any illegal or improper act committed by his direction.

We (Otago News Letter) have beeu shown by Mr. J. G. Mackay, of the Cragieburn Hotel, a handsome ring which lately eame into his possession, and which is certainly an interesting relic of the gallant Nelson. Besides Nelson's crest and the initials N.B. and the word Trafalgar, there are inscribed inside the rim the words "Lost to his couutry 21st October, 1805, aged 47," and outside the Latin motfco, "Palmam qui meruit ferat."

The Evening Star sarcastically remarks — If the legislation for the colony were to be conducted iu Melbourne we are of opinion that we should be made aware of the details and scope of every proposed measure before it became law. As it is, we hear of Acts proposed and passed in Wellington before one tithe of the population whom they affect can become acquainted with their contents.

The Bruce Herald is responsible for the following: — Two hon. members of Assembly were lately engaged in the Empire City (Wellington) searching for lodgings, a rather difficult matter, when some hundred members, many of them accompanied with their families, have been added to the population of this thriving city. At last a house is reached, au inspection of the accommodation takes place, and a bargain is nearly concluded when the landlady says, "but, gentlemen, you must be home every night by 12 o'clock, as I never sit up after that hour." The gentlemen in question demurred to this proposition, saying "it was simply impossible, as it was not an unusual occurrence for the House not to break up uutil long past that hour." A suggestion was thrown out that a latch key might be entrusted to them, or could not the door be left unfastened. "Latch key," gentlemen, exclaimed the indignant landlady, "leave my door unfastened after 12 o'clock at night; gentlemen, I cannot do it, my house would- not be safe, I could not become responsible for your property in my house since the addition to our population of so many blackguards from Otago ! ! ! "

. The Wanganui Chronicle says that the lambing season in the Wanganui and Rangitikei districts has proved favorable, aud the clips of wool promise to be very good.

A society of the ancient and honorable order of Foresters, is being formed in Wangauui.

A fine addition to the blood stock of the colony of Victoria has just been brought out in the ship Suffolk, from London. Stockowner, the name of this valuable importation is by Stockwell, out of Ennui, Saunterer's dam.

At a public meeting held at Port Chalmers on the 30th ult., to. take into consideration the inequitable policy adopted by the General Government towards the Province of Otago, the following resolution was carried: — That this meeting is of opinion that consequent upon the course taken by the Stafford Ministry in making Otago indebted to the General Government in the sum of £61,000, the only course left is to use every endeavour to obtain separation for the Middle Island, so that we may spend our own revenues, and no longer be a burden to the North Island.