OMNIUM GATHERUM.

Otago Witness, Issue 2211, 16 July 1896, Page 31

OMNIUM GATHERUM.

The loases of stack by bhe reornt floods about the Makarewa district are heavy.

The floods of last week exposed a good seam of lignite on Mr Carsou's laud at Mimihau.

Mr Lesle Jobn Park, who has been secretary to the Colonial Mutual Life Assurance Society for the last eight years, has been appointed acting general manager to the society, consequent on the death of Mr T. Jaques Martin, lata general manager. Thomas Oliver, convicted of stealing gas from the corporation, and who unsuccessfully appealed to the Supreme Court, surrendered at the gaol on Monday, the 6ob, to serve the sentence of two mouths' imprisonment which was passed by the S.M.

The proceedings of the conference of Australasian fruitgrowers, held at Wellington in the early part of May, havo now been issued from the Government Printing Offioe. There are doubtless many to whom a full report will be of interest, as it contains the text of the papers read at the conferei c?, as well as full details of the discussions. We presume the •'proceedings" can be obtained from the local agents for Government publications. In reference to the accident to the pilot boat on Sunday, we may mentipn that the rescuers of the boat's crew were Donald M'Donald, Robert Sutherland, John Noble, two of the prisoners, and one of the artillerymen. The boat and gear were afterwards picked up, when it was discovered that nothing was missing except the name "Seddon" from the boat's quarter. A deputation of the Wellington Anti-Chinese League waited on the Minister for Lands on Saturday with a request that the Government should give the league a grant of land near the oity, to enable them ijo compete with the Chinese in market gardening. Mr Collins, & member of the deputation, remarked that the Government could manage the garden itself on co-operative lines, with a view of relieving the unemployed difficulty, bat M.W Tasker, another of the deputation! differed 'from this, ana

thought the league ihould obtain the land at ia nominal rental and Garry out operations. Mr M'Kenzio said that he was opposed to a garden .being uuder Government control, but be was in favour of the league obtaining land. He would lay the latttr proposal before his colleagues and urge its favourable consideration.

At Itmrcargill oa Monday Mary Carr, a boarding house kaepsr in the old North Star Hotel, was fined £25 and costs for sly grogteUing. The police suspecting illicit sales, conttibles were told oft', aud the woman, knowing them, invited them to the house to have dtinks. They declined, being in the daytime, but, with the knowledge of their superior officer, weut t > the house at night and were served with liquor, afterwards shouting twice and paying for the liquor. Accused did not deny giving drink, but she and other witqesees asserted that no money was taken ; that the constables offered it, and, being refused, threw the money on the table and lef b the house. Mr Poyuton, S.M., said he might leb the woman off lightly but for the f*cb of the hard swearing on her aide. The alternative was 14 days' 'imprisonment.- A charge cf having spirituous liquors in her possession was withdrawn. At a sitting of the Supreme Court in .Chambers on .Tuesday moning, Mr Justice Williams made an order for the winding up of the J. G. Ward Farmers' Association, and fixed Tuesday, August 4, as the day for the appointment of an official liquidator. A civil case of considerable importance to ' the commercial community was subsequently tried before his "HoQor. Tug Dunedin Finance, Loan, and .Agenoy Company (Limited) sued the Standard Fire and Marine Insurance Company for £500, under a policy guaranteeing the fidelity of . Frederick Thomai Home, who acted for a few years as manager of the former company bub is now undergoing a sentence of imprisonment on accouat of his defalcations. Iv fche course, of the case, in which Home was himself a witness, .the prisoner having been brought down from the Lyfctelton Gaol by order of the court that his evidence might hi obtained, it transpired that the ascertained defalcations ware between -£4600 and £5000, or about one-fourth of the paid-up cipifcil of the company. The case lasted all day, and his Honor gave judgment for the defendant company, on the ground that the claim under the policy was . not made within the time prescribed in the conditions under which the p-lioy was issued.

Mr Jabez Burton- reports : — " The Ettrick dredge washed up for the week 30ozgold. The Roxburgh dredge did not complete alteraMmis last week as anticipated, but will resumo dredging on Wednesday morning, next when good results ara expected. This dr. dge' will nnv havo the longest ladder on the river, being 68ft long and will dredge to a depth of 45ft."