LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1716, 18 January 1905, Page 46

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS

Mr John. Rose, who has been appointed to manage the Government Poultry Station at Burnham, has left for the South, to take up his new duties.

The death is announced from Whangarei of M_r John Munro, of Marsden Point, aged seventy-six years. The deceased was the first Customhouse officer at Whangarei Heads. He leaves a widow and two children.

A London cablegram states that Earl Cairns died suddenly at Cannes, of heart disease. Deceased, who was born in 1863, was a partner in the Elswick Ordnance Company. His father was twice Lord Chancellor of Great Britain.

The barquentine Addenda, which nas been ashore at Palliser Bay for three months past, was lifted a considerable distance higher up on the spit during the recent storm. Another similar movement would put the vessel into the lagoon. The purchaser still entertains some hope of floating the vessel. The Secretary for Agriculture (Mr J. D. Ritchie), who has just returned from a visit to the South Island, says some of the crops are very good, especially in the Oamaru district. Harvesting has begun about Christchurch, and with fine weather it should be on in the Oamaru district in another three weeks. Further south the crops are lighter, and a continuance of good weather will be required to bring them on. Mr C. R. Parata, -who has for many years been an interpreter to the Native Land Court, has severed his connection with the department to go into business with Mr William Moffatt, of Palmerston North, as land and estate agents, native interpreters, and agents. The firm will have its head office in Wellington, where Mr Parata will be the manager, and a branch office at Palmerston North, under Mr Moffatt, who is also a licensed interpreter. According to the “Eketahuna Express,” Captain Bolton, acting-com-mander of the Wellington No. 2 Battalion of mounted rifles, declared in Eketahuna on Thursday evening that the Defence Department was being repeatedly robbed o'f capitation by faked tallies jOif class-firing sent in by officers commahding. When placed in charge of the battalion, he said he would take care that all orderly-room shooting was stamped out. A Wairarapa resident who was at Palliser Bay on Sunday states that a body was found on the beach on Saturday halfway between Wharepapa and Orongorongo. It was almost completely buried in the sand, only portion of an arm protruding. The only information the police have is that a Maori reported having seen a human leg on the beach at Palliser Bay, near the Lake Ferry. He ran away on seeing the object, and did not clearly indicate its position. Constable Shear y, of Mart inborough, has gone down to investigate. The death is announced by cablegram from Berlin of Prince Karl Alexander, the reigning prince of Lippe-Detmold. Deceased was seventy-four years of age, having been born in January, 1831. He was a son of Prince Leopold and Empress Emile of Sehw ar zb u r g-Senders-hausen. He succeeded to the Throne on the death of his brother, Prince Woldemar, in 1895. It may be remembered that on the death of Prince Karl’s eldest son, Prince Earnest, a few months ago, a difference of opinion arose as to the succession, and the matter is now before the Federal Court for legal settlement.

The death is announced by cable from London of Louise Michel, in her seventy-fifth year. The deceased (avEo Avas born at Vronooiurt) took an active part with the Fx-enoh revolutionary Commune in 1870. She was made prisoner, and, despite an eloquent defence, the Judges sentenced her to transportation for life. O'n the amnesty to political prisoners in 1880 she i*etu'med to Paris; and, continuing to take part in Communist assemblies, she Avas reamprisoned in 1883, and again in 1886. She afterwards went to live in London, and, as an Anarchist, frequently addressed meetings in Hyde Park. She first distinguished herself by hex* poetical and musical talents, Avhich gained recognition and encouragement from. Victor Hugo.

An early settler of Wellington, Mr G. Leslie, tells of the early days of the Porirua Trust land. In the year 1852 he was on Mr C. R. Bkhvill’s station in the Wairarapa, and one day Bishop Sehvyn came riding to his hut on horseback, and accompanied by four Maoris. Mr Leslie gave them a meal of cold meat and damper, and boiled a billy of tea for them. The Bishop rested in the hut for a while, and A\diile smoking a pipe said that he had got a grant of GOO or 700 acres of land from tho natives of Porirua Bay on which to build a Maori College. Mr Leslie says that a few veans later, in 1856, there Avere thousands of feet of timber lying on the beach, and ho was told that it AA’as intended to use it for the erection of the college. He never discovered what ultimately became of that timber.

Dr R. 0. Baade is gazetted port health officer of Wanganui, vice Dr Hatherley, who recently resigned. Mr William Nicholas Tregonning has been appointed a xegistrar of births, deaths, and marriages at Eketahuna. Mr R. E. N. Twopeny, chief proprietor of the “Pastoralists’ Review,” of Melbourne and Sydney, is at present on a visit to Wellington. He is making a tour of New Zealand, with the view of inquiring into the pastoral and agricultural developments of the colony. Mr Twopeny is staying at the Royal Oak Hotel. The marriage of Mr George Arthur Broad, fifth son of the late DistrictJudge Broad, of Nelson, and Miss Annie Madeline Hindmarsh, eldest daughter of Mr J. Hindmarsh, of Napier, took place at Napier Cathedral on Wednesday last. The Very Rev Dean Hovell performed the wedding ceremony.

Advices received at Sydney from Fiji last week notify the death of Lady St. Julian, which occurred at the residence of her daughter (Mrs Sepie Storck) at Suva on December 18th. The deceased lady, who was verging on seventy years of age, arrived in Levuka some thirtytwo years ago to join her husband, the late Sir Charles St. Julian, the first Chief Justice of Fiji, who died on Annexation Day, 1875. She leaves a grown-up family—viz., Mrs F. Swann, Levuka: Mr H. P. St. Julian, Suva; Sister M. Cecelia, Convent, Apia, Samoa; Mrs Sepie Storck, Suva; Mr L. St. Julian, Lautoka, and many grandchildren.

The “New Zealand Herald” states that, in view of the forthcoming general election those members of Parliament who have been more closely identified with the leasehold side of the land movement intend during the present recess to visit a number of country districts and towns which they were unable to reach last recess. It will be remembered that last recess Mr Fowlds, Mr Laurenson, and Mr Taylor, M.H.R.’s, addressed meetings in different parts of the country, and this year these, gentlemen will be reinforced by a number of other members, among whom are Messrs Bedford, Ell, and Hogg. Replying to inquiries by LieutenantColonel Banks, of Auckland, with reference to the King’s medal and clasps for South Africa, Lieutenant-Colonel C’haytor, A.A.G., wrote: —All members of the Sixth Contingent who served in South Africa in 1901 are entitled to the clasps, and claims on their behalf have been forwarded to the War Office. With regard to the King’s medal, no member of the Sixth Contingent, unless he had prior service, is entitled to the medal, as the Army Order governing the issue states that !■©- oipients had to be actually serving in South Africa on or after January 1, 1902, and that on that date they had completed eighteen months’ war service, or subsequently completed such service before June 1, 1902. Our London correspondent, writing on December 14th, says:—The sequel to the collision between the Tyser steamer Indralema and the Manchester Corporation, on the Mersey on November 15th, was an action in the Law Courts this week, when the owners of the latter vessel sued the owners of the Indralema to recover damages. The defendants counter-claimed for the damage they had sustained. Each party alleged that if the collision was caused by the fault of their own vessel it was caused by the of her pilot, who was in charge by compulsion of law. The case occupied three days, and judgment was then reserved. Mr Justice Gorell Barnes, in giving judgment, said that the main question in the case was as to the place of collision for, if the ii lain tiffs were correct, the defendants were to blame toy being in their wrong water and breaking article 25 of the collision regulations and article 11 of the Mersey rules, while if the defendants were right the plaintiffs were to blame for being in their wrong water and breaking the same rules. After considering the evidence with cai-©, he had come to the conclusion that the weight of it was in favour of the defendants’ story, and he had come to the conclusion that the collision had been caused by the Manchester Corporation being in her wrong water, and possibly by her attempting to get back into her right water. As to the question of whether the Indralema was to blame, it was quite obvious that she was coming down the channel very slowly, and was being navigated with caution. Those on board her had a right to expect that the Manchester Corporation would do the right things but the time came when they foxxnd they must do something, and what they did was to revei-so their engines, and ho thought that there might not have been a collision at all but for the fact that the presence of shoal water caused the Indralema to cant a little. The result was that the Manchester Corporation Avas alone to blame for the collision, but the fault on board her Avas the fault of her pilot alone, Avho was compulsorily iix charge. Tho plaintiffs’ claim Avoukl be dismissed, Avitli costs, and the counteii-claim would be dismissed, without costs.

Recent advices state that Sir. A. J. Cad man, Speaker of the Legislative Council, is in a very critical state of health.

Word was received in Australia Last week that his Holiness the Pope had received the Rev John Feehan, of Oatlands, Tasmania, and had sent special salutations and his photograph to Archbishop Murphy, of Hobart. Telegrams from Collingwood, in tho Nelson province, report that bush fires are raging in the district. The country is enveloped in smoke. A number of settlers and sawmiliers have suffered considerable loss of property.

The Wanganui Harbour Board haa interviewed the National Bank of New Zealand in reference to £30,000 required for repayment of the £60,000 loan, due on June 1 next, in terms of the resolution passed by the Board. The application of the Board had been referred to the general manager of the bank, and the chairman of the Board has stated that that officer says the money can be obtained.

A person who seems to have ideas writes to the Toui'ist Department, stating “that he hears New Zealand is governed on Socialistic lines,” and asking what special inducements the colony offers to young Socialists. The writer says that he is a “full-blooded Socialist,” a Christian, and likes the Church, and wants full information on church matters in the country. Such a letter Avill require a diplomatic answer.