LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2170, 26 September 1895, Page 3

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Me H. S. Fish intenda to coutesfc the mayoralty of tho city for the third successive term. Some months ago (says the Christchurch Press) a cable message to the Press Association stated that the Canadian Parliament had adopted prohibition, the decisioa being subject to the opinion of the Privy Couucil as to its legality. The facts of the case, as stated by Mr Mackenzie, solicitor, of Toronto, and brother-in-Jaw cf Mr JSteele, of Curiateburcb, are as follow :— Some time ago tho O.itario Provincial Legislature passed a Prohibitory Acfc, but tha question arose whether the power to prohibit wis vested in tho Provincial or Dominion Parliament. This is the question tliat has been submitted to the Privy Council. If the Privy Council decide in favour of the province — which does not appear to be likely from the reports jusS received from London, where this case is now being argued— there will be prohibition in that province only. If the decision bs in favour of the Dominion, there will be no prohibition in Canada, as the Freuch Canadians in the province of Quebao I are strongly opposed to it;. If euch a law were passed it could not be enforced. A warrant his been issued for the arrest of John Pflilip Piercy, the late licensee of tho Graud Hotel, who has been missing from Dunodin for tho past few dajs. The charge is the alleged obtaining of £15 by false representation. A mooting of the committee of tho Technical Classes AisoeiatioD, held on the 17th insb., was attended by Messrs A. Burb (in tho chair), D. M'Nicoll, J. Robin, G. Simpson, G. M. Thonisjn, N. Y. A. Wales, and D. White. It was resolved to briog the present session to a close by an exhibition and presentation of diplomas and certificate? about tbo third wtek of October. Past and present students of the aisociation'a classes who desire to sit for the examinations of the South Kenpinglou Science and Art Department and the City mid Guilds of London Institute will now bo able to do so, as the association intend to send in Hats of candidates next December in the following subjeot3 : — Science and Art Department examinations in science : Mathematics ; applied mechanics ; elementary physics ; souud, light, aud heat ; magnetism and electricity ; inorganic chemistry— theoretical and practical; bot&By ; steam. City and Guilds' Institute teobnological examinations : Carpentry and joinery ; mechanic il engineering; plumbem' work. If required, special classes for apprentices will be opened in these subjects. Accounts for £140 were passed for payment. A four-roomed wooden house, occupied by Mr Fountain, was with its contents totally destroyed by flre at Clyde on tha cveuiug of the 17th inst. It is not koowu whether there was any insurance effected. A representative meeting of the creditors of the late Walter Gash, one of the fishermen recently lost off the heads was held at Port Chalmers on the 17th Much sympathy was expressed with the widow and orphans of the deceased, aud it was unanimously resolved that the creditors forego their respective claims against the eetato. The liabilities proved amount to £193, and the assets available are valued at, approximately, £50. It was mentioned that Mim Gash desired that no public appeal fhould be made on her behalf. The tariff proposals with reference to medicinal tinctures does not meet with the approval of chemists. A chemist informs us that nob only will the proposals presß heavily on chemists who have yearly contracts with lodges for the supply of medicines, but will also affect friendly societies' difpen&arie3, hospitals, benevolent institutions, &c, tinctures being perhaps the most lvquirtd of all drugs used in institutions. It is alleged that it is doubtful if it will pay friendly societies to do their own di«pei sing owing to the tincture proposals and the advance to 20 per cent, on dmg« and druggists' sundries. Chemists on the whole look with favour on the increased duty on patent and proprietary medicines. In connection with the duty on wax vestas and the promi6e alleged to have been made by the Colonial Treasurer to Mr Bell, of Messrs R. Bell and Co., London, the matter wan flret brought up by Sir R. Stout, who read the following extract fiom the evidence given by Mr Bell before the Tariff Commission as printed in the report :— " When I first came here I had an inttrview with the Hon. Mr Ward relative to the establishment of a roatchfactory, and I asked what inducements tho Government would give me to establish a busiceis here. Ho received me cordially, and exprfFsed himself favourable to the establishment of a mitcb or any other factory, and said they would give me all tho help they could. 1 spoke to him about the tariff, and asked if there was likely to be any altaration in it, and he"*©ld me I could rest quite assured, not only verbally, but lie also wrote me that there would be do altera'im iv the tariff during the tine the pivaent Govtiumeiit las'ed." Mr Bell was questioned both by the chairman and Mr Tanuer, but ho remained fi<m in his statement that there was to ba no alteration during the term of office of the present Government, even if it extended over a period of 50 years. In the Homo yesterday Captain RusecU referred again to tho matter. The regu'ar werkly m o' ing of the B?tcvolent Tru't^e*, hold on the 18'h, wsis attended by Messrs Chixholni (chairman), Ilayue^ Allan, Solomon, Brown, Gourley, and Bridfem<u. The accounts parsed for payment amounted to £537 10s lOd, including £375 3s 4d for the rel'ef works. Mr Solomon asked the chairman if he thought these works were getting to tho end of their tether, to which Mr Chisholm replied they were very near it ; another week would see them out. The cp3t of maintenance at the ins'itution for July was £326 8s 4d, tbe number of inmateß 277, and the average cost per head psr week 5s 3£rt. Relief cases to the number of about 50 were taken into consideration and dealt with. Mr Alexander Browu-Durie was on the 18th admitted by his Houor Mr Justice Williams as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of New Zealand. A shocking tragedy, involving a murder and a suicide, was committed at We6t Melbourne ou the morning of the 9th iosb. The author of the crime was John Walsh, aged 48, an exrailway employee. He had been out of regular work for the past 2£ years. During this period his wife had acted as breadwinner, having a w&3« of £1 per week as charwoman »t the Commercial Bank. Two years ago Mrs Walflh had her husband bound aver to keep the peace. Latterly he treated her badly, in consequence of which she instituted lfgal proceed* ings against him for assault. It is believed that this fact was the principal motive for the crime Mra Walsh rose about 6 o'clock, and was preparing herself a husty breakfast, when her husband came out of his bedroom with a revolver in his hand, and fired at her. Mrs Walsh thr.w up her hands, aud the bullet passed through the wrist of her left arm. The

commotion aroused her son, Harriett Walsh, aged 14, and he did his best to shield his mo-Mier, trying to hurry her out of tho hoiiße. Thpy were moving towards the back door, when Walsh fired a second shot, which ju3t missed his son's head. Tha third shot grazed Mrs Walsh'* head, and the fourth shot entered her body, causing her death. Tho murderer then returned to his bedroom and put a bullet iuto his own brain. We understand that, owing to the mediation of Sir Robert Stout, who was engaged as counsel for the plaintiff iv tho libal action, Kuox v. Fi»h, a settlement of a friendly nature has been arrived nt between tho parties, iv consequence of which tl'c case will eoS now come ou for hearing. The defendant has stated that in writing the letter complained o" ho did not intend to suggest that Mr Knox was not a competent ironmonger or well qualified to carry out the duties appertaining t) bis position. The defendant indited the letter in a spirit of irritation at what he regarded as nn unnecessary delay in the set-Jeaaeut of a sanll account. Tho Education Board have decided to grant 10 senior and 10 junior scholarships to be competed for in December next. John M'Davitfe, solicitor, of Stratford, who was arrested in Wellington charged with the fabrication of evidence at Haweza, has been committed to the lunatic asylum.' The Auckland Harbour Board has deride-] to call for tenders locally for a loan of £10,000 at 4 per cent. After a three months' trial, the Kildonan goldfields, Scotland, aro now, by order of the Duke of Sutherland, shut against all-comers. Tho, experiment can hardly, in any sen*e, be termed a success. One miner, as tho result of his three months' labour, cleared up from £18 to £20 worth of gold. Others managed to pay their way at most, but one ot two did practically nothing. The more fortunate diggers are being offered moro than market prices for their gold as a curiosity. 16 is not improbable that the duke may renew the experiment on more fnvourable conditions, the miners having frequently protested against the restrictions, which, they contended, were too prohibitive to give them fa : r play. The Law Times is watching New Zealand legislation, and apparently docs not hold it in very high respect. It nonces the bill to forbid judges commenting on evidence, aud remarks tbat " New Zealand delights in legislative experiments. What its Legislature passes today it sometimes repeals to-morrow. Out of SCOO statutes, the aggregate fruit of its lawmaking, it has up to the present date repealed 4500, so that 90 per cent, are but a printed mouumunt of misapplied energy, or free trade in legislative fads." Mr W. Caldwell, one of tho survivors of the Wairarapa disaster, passed away at Auckland on the 13th mat. after a lingering illness. The deceased was one of the stewards of the illfated vessel, and has suffered from general decline since the event. His f&tho-, recently deceased, was a well-known Mason of Dunedin, where he was an officer of H.M. Customs. The Union Steam Ship Company kindly arranged for the details of the funeral. Mr Roderick Williamson, of Oreti Plains, who was for years shepherd in that locality for the Moorabool and Timboon Company, died recently (says the Southland Times), leaving a widow aud bit young children, for whom a considerable amount of sympathy is expressed. Almost the on'y thing left; for theif support waß what tho dying m\n believed to bo a life insurance policy for £200, but which, ou being put to the test, proved to be value for only £14 11«, as, under the (able in which he was insured, the greater sum was not payable unless he had lived 22 years longer. How the misconception as to the nature of the policy arose it is not easy to imagine, but it is certain that the company decline to make any further allowance than the sum stated. Under these circumstances a subscription list has been ■tarted with the view of raising * lktle assistance for this most deserving ense. A nine-roomed woodeu house, owned and occupied by Mr James Yeaman, at Mount Pleasant, Sawyer*' Bay, was totally destroyed by fire on Thursday forenoon. Some, tar had been placed iv a kerosene tin on the range, so as to be hcvtfcd for spreading on footpaths. Mr Yeaniftu was absent for a few seconds, and the ■ervant, in passing through the kitcbeo, noticed the tar boiling up. She c&lled Mrs Yeaman, who placed the door mat on top of the tiu. The tar, however, boiled over and ignited the floor, and, despite all efforts, the house was soon in flames aud burned to tbe ground. The house was insured for £500 in tho New Zoilaud i.ffice, and the furniture (including the piano) for £250 in tbe same offioa. Mr Yeaman estimates his loss over insurance at £500. Another safa robbery by moans of explo'ives is reported at Auckland, thia time ati the office* of J. H. M. Carpenter, coal merchant, Newmarket. The burglars had tri-.td the froDt door and failed, but got iv by the window. The sifo was blown to p : ecei «md the iaaide o? the buil ling wrecked. The contents of th^ safe — £12 in cash aud £200 in cheques— wert in tsvo small cask boxts, which were subsequently found on the Manukau road, in the direction of Parnell, burst open and rifled. Tne cheques wore mostly strewn about th" efTico fljor and in the yard. These the robbers were, apparently, afraid to tak-> with th'-m. The explosion appears to luve hzen beard by s-veivl residents on the opposite side of the street;. Ab_>ub the boginniug of this week, ib apprars, soma burglars' inplemeuts, together with eomc keys and an explosive compound, wrro found sreceted in the cemetery, an') a wa l ch was kept for several nights by the police ; but the burglars, who at last turned up tj tike away the pmp-jit/, ruanagf d, it h said, to escape. The report and balance fhiet of the Co'oniaj Bank of New Zealand for the half.yeir which ended on August 30 appear in another column. The directors stato that, after making certain deductions, the net profit is £12 935 11s 2d. To this has to bo added the £8700 15s 6d brought forward from last year, makiDg a total of £21,638 6s Bd. Af c«r deduoting Wnd, irjoome, and note tax there is available £19,950 2s 10J. Pending the result of the negotiations for tho purchase of the bank, tho directors do not at present intend to deal with the balance, but to adjourn the general meeting next Wednesday to a date in October, by which timo the w'iFhe3 of shareholders, as expressed at a nue'ing shortly to be called, will be asc<rfcuutd. The comtnit l ee in conwcMon with the fo:thcoming juvenile indu«t'wl exhibition are receiving every eEC3urn{,ein-itt from a large number of schools in and rsrouiid Duuedin, and country 'towns will be woll represented. We are informed that letters are being receiredafrom the country daily rcqats'ing copie.3 or the prosptctus and information. Special pittenii^n is b.ing given to the musical contests, and »h«i CDmniit.ee have, at the reqnest of iut mlirg competitors, added three instrumental items to their original list— viz., tenor horn, baritone, and B fht basi solofl. Altogether the

exhibition promises to be a successful affair. No doubb the city schoolmasters and tochers and tbe rchool committee i will give tho publio an opportunity of seeing the best results of sshool work in a concrote form. Entries can ba made at any day school or with the hen. secretaries, Charles A. Piper and Ernest Rosevear, P. 0., Box 43, Duuedia. At a largely -attended meeting of the Dunedin Operative Bootmakers' Union held in tho Trades I-IMI on the evening of tho 20th tbe following resolution was curled unanimously :— " That we strongly urge that all bo its and ehoea containing cardboard composition or paper be charged a substantiil duty per pair iv addition to the 25 per cent, ad valorem." A copy of the above was sent to tbe Colonial Treasurer aud to the city and suburban members. The transactions in Crown lands this weak were:— Saotiom 31 and 33, block 111, Awamoko, 38a 2r 39p, selected by W. H. Wig« Chester on lease in perpetuity at au annual rental of 2s pen acre ; icction 63, block 11, Awamoko, 2a 2j 33p, selected by Elizabeth Reid on lease in perpetuity at an annual rental x>i 3i per acre ; section 12, block IV, Upper Taieri, 159 a2r 32p, selected by Maria Graham on lease in perpetuity at the capital value of 15 j 7d per acre. Mr N. Y. A. Wales has definitely decided to contest the city mayoralty. Ib is now believed the election will bo a fight between Mr Wales and ihe present Mayor (Mr H. S. Fish). Mr D. Harris Hasting? has received a telegram from Mr Millar, M.H.R , to the eff'Ch that the £270 neceisary for finishing the West Harbour road has been passed by the Cabinets. The work of metalling will be at once gone on with. This sum mikes a total of £1670 granted. The road will be in order about the begicning of November. Tho Timaru Herald reports that in a conversation among those present at tho inquest on Lapthorn, who committed suicide, it was stated that he brought £2000 to the colony, and lost it nt Ghrifttchurch iv same speculative investments. An additional causa for dospondenoy was lately given him by his receiving notice to quit the two rooms he occupied, the owner hnving sold the house,, and he could not get another place. The report of the Parliamentary Committee on Weights and Measures, advocating the adoption of the metric «ystem in Great Britain, has been reinforced by a proposal which the French delegates to the Geographical Congress wcie commissioned to place before tho Home Government. This is that if the British GovernI merit will make the metric fiystem obligatory throughout the Empire, the French Government in return will abolish the P<ui«i meridian of longitude and accept that of Greenwich. This is a large concession for to jealous a nation to offer. The French geographers prop me, il their offer is accepted — and probably if it ia not — to start the inauguration of a map of the world on a scale of one-millionth, a large and expensive undertaking, to which all n&tioutt are expected to contribute their share. South Australia was the first colony to establish a Forestry department, and according to the annual report recently published it haw been so far a financial success. £iuco 1876-7 the total expenditure has been £129,302, against which revenue has been derived to the amount of £115,879. A large part of that; ivvenue would no doubt hava been received in any case ; bub the department has a'so to its credit an asset in tho sh&pe of permanent improvements on the r s^rvrs f plantations, building, fence, stock, and implements, estimated as worth fully £108,951 at Ibo end of June l*<jt. At present the total area of forest reserves and plantations in South Australia is 215,696 acres, of which 11,881 acres have bern enclosed foi planting. Lasb season 141,444- trees were plan to 3, and the number alive is 112,974, so that the dogree of success wm 79# per cent. Tho total area planted was 416£ net as, bat in addition an area of 103 acres wad enclosed at Wirrabara, containing a fino lot of redgum saplings, the result of natural regeneration on tho old foresb land where the treci have been periodically pruned and thinned, The sugar gum and the remarkable pint are still tho favourites of the department, Another fine lot of poles was supplied to the Telegraph dtpartnaent last year, 300 trees being felled to complete an order for tint number of poles. V The?e were obtained from the oldei planta'ions at Bundaleer, planted 17 to 18 years ago, and realised £187 10s. The whole revenue of the department io 1891-5 amounted to £3709 3s 9d, of which £2197 6s 9d m represented by rents and £837 9j 4d by planeation grazing fees. The death is reported of Mr H. L. Gilbert, for tbe past 15 years missionary in charge of the Lovoll'u Flat congregation. He leaves a widow, two sous, and fivo dwiightera, all married.

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL SHOWS. APPROXIMATE DATES'. Secretaries are requested to notify any altera" tions tiut may be made. OCTOHEH. honsec. 10. 11-Hawke's Bay, SO-Marlboro«sh (BlenW. 8e.11.y, sec. henn), Douglas Dalno at Vnnotvifn l'On, SCC. SS-wSkSjlftmll. 21-Wan ? nui, Edward ton; Martin Butler, 29", 30-Timaru, GorJon 21. 22- North Otogo V Jv-ood, sec. (Oamaru), J. Church, 31— Noithein (Rangi- nw sec AQA Q n , , r .„„ ora), A. S. Clarkson, W< $t~%*F > l l^\ Q : ECC '' po'itan(TabunaPark), «ji a i.A fj nv i W^iri- JK F. Puthie. sec. 31 raptSerton,irW. 28-Ndson Richmond ■DnrfW ppp Park, John Glen, sec. Dorset, ccc. 28-Tarnnaki 'MetroNOTEMBKIC. politan (New PlyI— Ashlmrtou, William mouth), C. T. Mills, Simpson, sec. see. 1, 2-Aucklaml Provin- DECEJIRETI. cial Agncutural Absociation, Edwin Hall, 3— M ataura (W yn dsec. bam), James Allan, 7— EgmontC. A. Budge, sec. sec. 3— Tokomoiriro(Milton) 13, 14-Wellington Me- Janit-s Inglis, ace. tro pO l ita n ; Show 6— Palme^ton and WaiStnck Sale, 15Vh.— kouaiti, Thos. Muir, B Dawson, ccc. sec. 14-Courlenay(Kirwee), 10, 11— Southland MeO. T. Robeitson, sec. tropolitan, U.l«\ Cuth15—Otago Central, berison, sac. Blacks, J. L. Flint,