AUSTRALIAN.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1264, 21 May 1896, Page 36

AUSTRALIAN.

Melbourne, May 13. George Chaffey has filed liis schedule. Ilis liabilities are estimated at £102,000, and bis assets at £SBOO. Melbourne, sray 11. Tho Government has ordered sufficient cordito to make 50,000 Maxim gnu cartridges. Melbourne, May 16. An unpleasant sensation has been Caused at Dimboola, 250 miles north-west from Melbourne, by the vagaries of a locomotivo on tho overland line from Adelaide. This particular engine startod of its own accord, ran out of tho shod on to the main line, and made for Melbourne at a speed of lifteen miles an hour. 'The lino was cleared )»y telegraph, and an engine which started in pursuit found the wanderer live miles away, and brought it to a standstill on a still grade and with waning steam power. Two extensive robberies came to light during the week. Jn one caso a railway hooking clerk is alleged to have ingeniously manipulated the tickets issued to overland travellers to Sydney in such a way as to put fifty per cent, of tho proceeds in liis own pocket. Some time ago a bundle of Mel-bourue-Sydney tickets went missing, and was never discovered. It was with tlieso tickets presumably that the clerk worked tho oracle, and in order that the method may be understood it must be explained that tho practice in issuing a child’s ticket is to cat off the lower portion of the ticket, which is to enable a tally of the money and tickets. Tho clerk is alleged to have issued a full ticket, pocketed half tho amount, and then cut off tho bottom part, one of tho missing tickets boing handed in with the cash. How long tho process would have gouo on it is hard to say, but for tho authorities being struck with tho abnormal number of children travelling Sydnoywards, and comparing notes with the Sydney authorities, by which means the fraud was discovered. So far as is known £3OO are missing.

The second case is more of the sneak thief order. An American named McKay, posing as a journalist, has been in the habit for the past two and a half years of calling at offices on some trivial pretext, and, it is alleged, contriving to annex unconsidered trifles. 'The nppropt iatiun of a gold chain led to liis arrest. Tie man had a room in town, and a search leveuh.G a perfect curiosity simp piled with goods valued at £ 150.

Melbourne, May IS

An attempt was made to wreck tho night mail train to Sydney, near Broad meadows, 12 miles north of Melbourne. Several heavy pieces of tituber were placed in tho vicinity of the points, with tho intention of throwing the engine off, but it miraculously managed to keep on the right track. The passengers, of whom there were 300 on hoard, experienced a severe jolting. The Agricultural Department lias decided to adopt the New Zealand system of grading butler, and has asked the New Zealand Government to select an expert grader. The Metropolitan Board of Works will shortly float locally a £561), 000 loan at ID. per cent. Tho report of (ho National Mutual Life Assurance Association shows a surplus

over the net liabilities of £169,694. Of this amount £35,000 has already been set aside as an investment fluctuation fund, and a further sum of £35,000 is now added; £85,000 is allotted for bonuses, and £14,000 carried forward. In most cases the amount of the individual bonus will bo less than last investigation, but tho directors, considering the circumstances of tho last throe years, consider tho result satisfactory. Brisbane, May 13. Tho Government has offered tho Ilud-dart-Parkcr Company a subsidy of £6OOO annually for tho extension of tho Vancouver service to Brisbane. .Perth, May 13. Tho steamer Asphodel had a disastrous voyage from the Eastern colonies. She

encountered the full force of a fierce gale, during which she lost 95 bullocks, 9'N> sheep, 49 horses, and 20 pigs. The balance were landed in a pitiable condition. Sydney, May 13. Tho weather is bitterly cold in tho country districts, and heavy snow is falling on the high lands. Sydney, May 14. The Bank of Now South Wales has re- ! coived an announcement of tho death of I Mr Donald Larnach, the London chairman of directors. I Tho warships Orlando, Ringarooma, j Wallaroo and Katoomba have sailed for Auckland. i Sydney, May 15. The Full Court has quashed tho conviction of Dean and Meagher for conspiracy. This, however, does not affect Dean’s sentence for perjury. Sydney, May 16. Onco again the Dean case has formed the subject of discussion. Tho latest development gave the newsboys a chance to earn “an honest brown,” and the old familiar cry re-echoed from end to end of tho city. The decision of tho Full Court was not altogether unexpected from tho trend of tho argument —iu fact, tho admission of tho speeches made in the House as evidence was looked upon here as a palpably weak point. Meagher received an ovation outside the Court from his friends.

A point of strong interest in tho caso was tho opportunity afforded for a ruling outlie question of privilege in connection with tho speeches of legislators. However, although the question was discussed, tho Court held that there was no necessity to go into the point in tho present caso, tho contention of the inadmissibility of tho speeches being sufficiently good to quash the conviction.

The question of reaching the Cattcrthun with the apparatus imported for the purpose has been solved. Tho diver has discovered the tank containing tho treasure, and only awaits favourable weather to make tho effort to raise it to tho surface. The vessel lies in about 26 fathoms. A caso parallel to that of tho Catterthun is found in the recovery of £90,000 worth of specie from the steamer Alphonso wrecked at tho Grand Canary in 1885. This vessel was 26.1 fathoms from tho surface.

Tho first wedding celebrated at tho Anglican Church at Heathcote had for the bridegroom one who experienced great difficulty in tho matter of religious belief. When asked of what belief he was, ho replied “ None,” and stated that he had lived amongst good Christians, good Mohammedans, Buddists and pagans, and spoke eight languages, but bad not yet fixed on any particular belief. He was not troubled with further questions.

An important proposal for tho disseminating of knowledge amongst country folkthrough the agency of the public schools has been submitted to the Government. The proposal is for the establishment of libraries at each school, to ho supplied with books and pamphlets published by tho Government on forestry, mining, agriculture and other cognate subjects, those works to bo given out to the children for their parents’ use. The Government favour the scheme. Sydney, May 18. Tho Minister of Agriculture intends to make a thorough test at Hawkesbury Agricultural College of tho value of pasteurising milk. Last year Denmark exported 130,900,000 pounds of pasteurised butter, which realised an average, of 80s per toil more than the Australian article. JIMS. Dart, which has just, returned fmm a smveying cruise oil the Ta-unanian coast, has found a shoal hearing 8t

miles south by five east from Cape Raoul, a hank of sand and coral about two cables long, with 13 fathoms over it The interesting feature is the fact of the coral being discovered so far south. Beet sugar growing promises to prove a success if the test experiments can be carried out in general use. A parcel of roots grown at Teuterlield, although not quite matured, contained 17 per cent, of sugar. This at present rates would return the grower 18s per ton of roots, or 12 guineas per acre.

Ac the half-yearly meeting of shareholders of the Bank of New South Wales, the report and balance-sheet, which were adopted, showed a net profit of £86,400, which, with the amount not divided last half-year, leaves £108,509 available for distribution.

A dividend at the rate of 9 per cent, per annum was declared, and the sum of £22,129 was carried forward.

Tho paid-up capital is increased by £31,000, and the Reserve Fund increased by £11,279. Tho increase in the value of deposits is £1,271,000, and the coin and bullion has increased by £1,371,000. Launceston, May 1(5.

Mr Whitelaw, secretary of the Miners’ Association, lias had a thrilling experience at Zceban.

He was carrying two boxes of dynamite on horseback, and in crossing a bridge his horse stumbled, and lie was thrown over the bridge, falling a distance of ten feet.

One of the boxes was smashed to pieces, and Whitelaw was terribly bmised by the other striking him.

Fortunately the dynamite did not explode.