OMNIUM GATHERUM

Otago Witness, Issue 2086, 15 February 1894, Page 21

OMNIUM GATHERUM

NEWB. GOSSIP, AND ADS.

The complete schedule of T. B. Muntz, civil engineer, Melbourne, shows that the liabilities amount to £39,311, assets £30,329— deficiency, £8982. A Napier publican has been fined £1 and coats for accepting a watch and chain, being other than current coin of the realm, in payment for drinks. Father Carolan, who has been one of the masters of St. Patrick's College, Wellington, since it opened in 1885, died on Friday morning from consumption. The steamer sold by Mr M Kegg for Clatha river traffic waa the Lily, otherwise known as the Dot. The Waimea still continues in the Taieri Mouth traffic. It is said that there is enough stone at tho Totara Company's quarry, near Oamaru, to rebuild the whole of the buildings in New Zealand without perceptible reduction of the quantity. The hospital returns for the past week are :—: — Remaining from the previous week, 91 ; admitted during tho week, 16 ; discharged, 10 ; deaths, nil ; total remaining in the institution, 97. A youDg man named George King was sentenced to six months' hard labour at Wellington on Thursday for a vicious assault on his mother. The assault arose out of a slight difference between tbe pair. Mr Robert Jlackaj , of Auckland, well known in the bookselling trade, died at Auckland last week at the age of 84 years. He established the publishing house now being carried on by M. L. Hutchinson, Melbourne. According to information received in New South Wales, the Right Rev. J. B. Pearson, D D-, formerly Bishop of Newcastle, New South Wales, has completely recovered his health He has been appointed to the vicarage of Leek, iv Staffordshire. About 1 a.m. on Sunday an attempt was made at Auckland by two men to stick up Mr J. W. Knight, fruiterer, in Waterloo quadrant. A man snatched at a handbag containing money and jewellery, deeds, bank books, and the handle of the bag was broken, but Mr Knight still held on, and his wife's screams ultimately caused the men to run away. A sitting of the judges of the Election Court (Sir James Prendergast and Mr Justice Conolly ) was held in Chambers on Monday, when a certificate under section 21 of " The Electoral

Act 1892 " was granted to Mr Jackson Palmer in order that he might be allowed the coats paid by him to witnesses. It is roughly estimated the costs in the case will be something like £500.

A travelling medicine man named Gunn, calling himself " The Good Samaritan," was fined £25 (and costs) for distributing gifts by lottery. He refused to pay, and was given the alternative of threo months' hard labour. The defendant said he had been allowed to give away presents for 13 months without interference, and the resident magistrate told him that but for that he would bo fined £100.

The Wairarapa Observer reports the death of one of the survivors of the Wairau massacre. James Davie came to the colony in a whaler early in the fifties. His occupation was that of a cook, and he was engaged in that capacity for the party who were massacred at Wairau. He also served through the Maori wars and had many honourable scars. He was 94- years of age at the time of his death. At 89 years of age he was on the tramp with his swag.

The poundkeeper at Oamaru, in a letter to the Borough Council telling of his difficulties in keeping the streets clear of stray cattle, gives an instance to dhow that owners of cattle watch him, and not their cattle. He says he ventured to warn a woman in severe tones that she Would require to look better after her cow, otherwise she would get into trouble. Her retort was : " You ould divil ! what more careful would you have me to be ? Ido be watching you up and down the slreet all day long "

Tobias Tobias, a bookmaker and tobacconist, Was charged rtt Auckland on Tuasday with leaving hi-i wife with out adequate means of support. De r endant said since he had arrived from Melbourne he had not averaged more than £2 10s a week. He had paid his wife £2 a month when he was able, and he now offered to pay 78 Gi a week. He and his brother had made £100 out of the three big meetings, but there were no more important meetings for several weeks afterwards. Tha totalisator killed his business. The Bench made an order for 10j a week.

William Stewart, second engineer of thesteamer Waikato, has been committed to gaol at Wellington for a month with hard labour for disobeying the orders of Mr Foster, chief engineer, who deposed that on Tuesday, on returning to the ship, ho found defendant drunk in his berth. The refrigerating engines were going glow, and temperature in the meat chambers was raised five degrees. Mr Foster stated that there were no firemen iv tbe stokehole, and the fires were dying away, and if another hour of this coudition of affairs had lasted there would have been a probability of 2200 tons of meat cargo on board being seriously deteriorated, if not utterly ruined. His Worship informed accused it was lucky for him a more serious charge had nob been preferred by the master of Mm ship, as iv I bat case, if a conviction had followed, not only imprisonment would have been indicted, but the certificate) of accused would have been forfeited.