LOCAL & GENERAL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2303, 21 April 1898, Page 22

LOCAL & GENERAL.

The Rev. W. Will was in a reminucent nsord on ths 12 h when he presided at a lecture given by the Rev. Dr Wabt. Ib was a long time, he said, ffiuce he first knew Dr Watt, who was an earnest, modest stripling then. There was nothing he looked back upju with greater pleasure in his more than 4?- years' connection with the Presbyterian Church of O ago than the night on which he first met Dr Watt and lisfeeued to him preach a sermon as a candidate for b-?ing sent oub to Ofc«go. " I think," M.v Will said, "I wrote to my ffk-nd. Me A. B. Todd, lha'j ' Michael Watt m : gbt rot prove an archangel but he will prava a very worthy colonial minister,' " and ha claimed thit he had done a great service when his appointed Dr Watt, nervous and hesitating though the latter was, as a minister for the Ctiurch ot Otago. Dr W&tt subsequently remarked that if anyone present bad heard the ciiiseouree lo which Mr Will had referred he would have thought very little of it indeed — he himself thought very licfcle of it.

An Auckland telegram says :—": — " The Samoa Herald of April 2 reports : — ' The rebels are hoisting or have hoisted another flig in defiance of Malietoi'a Government. Things have now been brought to sucn*a fctats that even war would be welcome.' Apother rerscrfc says that the Tumua party hoisted their flag at Leulumoga lately. They are iv a vtrj- disorganised state, and do doubt the leaders are compelled to adopt strong measures io keep theca together. A native war is quite on the cards."

Mr G;orge Cook, whose dca'h was chronicled in last week's issue, was a na'jve or' Ipswich and ftduoitted to tha bar in Etij,-)and in 184-8 and practised for some je'.rs as & solicitor in London. Coming to Dtinedin in the early sixties, he was admitted to Ihe colonial bar on the 10th January, 1861, and ev.er ribcs that date ha.d practistd in Dunedin. His business was chiefly a conveyancing one, and he did not care particalarly for court work, hut still for many years he frequently appeared as «, pleader and he was engaged in some of the mist important commercial cases that hava been tried here. The last important ca>se in which ho appeared was that o£ Isaac v. Mills, recently decided in the Privy Council, and it is understood that it was on his advice thai; tbe successful appeal to the supreme tribunal was prosecuted.

Hnviog failed to obtain the Legi«lativa Council Caamber for their annual cession, the Women's National Council have fallen bfeck upon Bellimj's. The council is to meet on the 20th inst., and the session will last till the 28$b. The papers to be read are as follow :—: — "Parental Responsibility," Mra Siev aright; "Education," Miss Sherriff Bain ; "Marriage, Divorce, and Economic lodspeudcnee of Woroen," Mrs DaUJy ; "Some Unequal -Laws R-liting lo - Women and Children," Miss Benjimin, "Treatment of Criminals," Mrs Evans, M.A. ; "Local Government Reform," Miss S. Henderson. Io is stated that 18 societies are now affiliated to the council.

A notice was posted at (he university on the 12>h to the effect ihat J. H. Barr had passed th 9 preliminary medical examination, and that A. Kinder is to be recommended to the University Coutcil as the holder; of th& Richardson scholarship, Jesse Reid of the Walter Scotfc scholarship, and Eva M. Randle of the' Women's scholarship.

The Minister for Lands (the Hon. J. M'Kei zie) and the Minister for Railways (the Hon. A J. Cadmau) were both in town on ths 13tb, the fcrmer having arrived from the south by the express rrain-'on Tuesday afternoon and ths la'-ler having arrived from Clinton by the forenoon train on Wednesday. Both Ministers received a number of deputations dunng tho day, but these were of a private nature with the exception of one upon tha Miuister-*for Lands from the City Council, to which, however, ths press were not admitted. An appointment was made with Mr Cadman, for the evening for a deputation upon the subject of the mi aing regulations, bub the deputation did not pub in an appearance, and the Minister's time was oecupied'iustead with the transaction of departmental business.

The members of the Land Board in calling upen five of their tenants on the 13th to show cause why their leases should not be forfeited for non-compliaDce with the conditions upon which their land was held perpetrated what they themselves must have ragarded as farcical. Mr Ciark, in fact, declared that the whole thing was a farce. The lessees were a family party of five, who nad taken up land near the Moa Flat station in what had been set aside as a village settlement. The land was at one tims a reserve for a bullock camp for ths Teviot, and it wag described at the meeting of the Land Board as sour, swampy land which was not fit to live on. The five lessees themselves evideatly held the opinion that the land was not fit to live on, for it was reported to the board that they had carefully abstained from fulfilling the condition of residence which the leases contained. The Chief Commissioner questioned whether, if the land was not fit to live on, the board ought to make the lessees live on it. The ranger suggested that the sections should be groused and allowed to so as one farms to

which the objection was pointed out by one shrewd member of the board that the .land would then produce less revenue than under present circumstances. Eventually it was agreed to require the ie.'saes to show cause why their leases should not be forfeited.

The Railway department had made a start to lift the rails laid on the completed portion of the Riversdale-Waikaia railway when Mr W. Fraser, M.H.R., interviewed the Hon. Mr Cadman. It was explained to Mr Cadrnun that Mr Hall was prep*red to lea3o the completed section to be uaed by himself and other settlers, and on this assurance the Minister agreed to stoo the demolition of the liae.

Mere candid than poiioic may perhaps be said of the small grazing runholder who in a letter read at the meeting of the Land Bjard on the 13th informed tbis body that its decision not to accept a surrender of his lease was " most absurd." His rent, the writer said, was about 65 per cent, too high and he had simply been holding on in Lbe expectation t,bat a Fair Rent Biil or Havajuation Bill would be placed on the Btttute,Book, and fee submitted that the fact that ths run had been offered several time?, without inducing a bid from anyone but a member of his family, was, in view of the hnnger for land ia Central Otago, a proof th*t the rent was too high. In this assertion the writer received support from mtmbers of the board Unfit', for, when ie had been elicited that the rental of the ran was 6\i per sere, Ml- Kirkpatrick said it was not worth 2dj There is apparently also a worse case in the same district — between Ida Valley and Blacks — for one of the rangers present at tae meeting stated that the holder of another small grazing rua w«s also paying 6i per sera and had not auch a good run. The board, nevertheless, decided to refer its cotrsplaiuing tenaut to a forme* letter in which he was recommended to apply in October or November nexs for leave to surrender the run. -Mr C. Napier Bill, consulting engineer to the Otago Harbour Biard, is at present on & visit to Danedio, and oa the 13th made an inspection of the lower harbour.

Lord Hopetouu'ii siafce-rd, Lidy Stella and Lady Dorothea Hope (say a the Argus London correspondent), have taken a farm near Edenbridge, in K°.ut, and have started tie business of breeding Shetland ponies for show purposes. According to Lady Dorothea, they have been very successful, and take the greatest possible pleasure in the pursuit. They iiava also bjen succejsful with a small herd of Jsrsay cows. They attempted to breed fox terriera, but found that ths fashion in th?je fL>gs changed too rapidly to make it a proficaWe business.

It is to be hoped that the consignment referred to by the Melbourne Argus in tha following paragraph will not ba " placed " in New Zealand: — "The 950 c*ses of tinned s»imou condemned as vi fij for hiuraa food by the Bsard of Public Health are to la*ve Victoria, I though what their destination i<s hw not been allowed to to&aspire. The money — soirn £50 — bid for it at the customs sale has been pad to the auctioneer, the purchaser expressing his intention of 'placing ic' elsewhere, where, it may be assumsd, people are no!; worried by the exactions of a biard of health. Tne original, jVaiue of ihe co;i«ignment may bs estimated from the facb thai; the duby required by the Customs dtrparun-nt, if it. had bsen sold for consumption here, was £330, beiug at the rite ol 21 a Ib."

A Crejwick telegram in the Melbourne Argui says : — "An old uuat-r, who has just returned from that much-lauded country Kloniyka, gives ar. unfavourable account of the fiold. He states that he went through fcfce whole of one aumoier tbexe, and as*«its that it is orercafed, overadvertued, and in n-» way comparable with the Victorian gold-producing centres, which he regrets having left for distant field*, which appeared greener. He :urth3r advises miners to remain at home, and alao warm capitalists to put their money in Victorian Venturis, which are vi quesfcion&blv as rich in gold as aisy hitherto discovered in Klondyke."

A contemporary raises the import ust question whether, in viaw of the msntal strain put on present day schooi chiidivn, is would not b? wise tosbandou thsSA'urday hal'-hjliday ,iv favour of Wednesday. Tbis quory is suggested by the work of a Berlin headmaster who hat been contributing to a tr-rtnan medical weekly some interesting results of hia experimental studies on the question of the over-presnure of school children. The best working days, he fi ids, are Mondays and Tuesdays, and the ficsfe two days af.cr the holiday. Tbe insertion of a holiday in the middle of the w&ek would, ifc is thought, tend to a revival of mental fra-haess which only lasts, as things are, till Tuesday afiernoon. Tha best working hoar.* arf% nimilarly, the first two in the morning, and should accordingly be respeved for the severer tasks ; this three hours' afternoon teaching in the higher school 1 } is specially fatiguing, and there should always bs an interval in the middle.

The ioterprovincUl tennis taunisraent between Canterbury and Otago was concluded at the Liowoad coucts on Monday. O-mt-n'bury ultimately won by 4-03 girnes t;s 237. Tho wta'her was perfect and the attendance was large. In the F»sb Ladies' Singes Mias S rapsou (Christ ihu-cb) took theplaci of Miss Lean, who was unable to play, and defeated her opponent, Miss Campbell, lady chvnpion of Otago, after an exciliug struggle, the scores being 6—3, 6—5,6 — 5, 3—6. (Jox, who pUyed excellently thrcugLout the t mrna merit, won his single with Bctross (CLago) simewbafc easily.

Piior to the Preiniot's departure from Auckland be was weliimed by a representafciva meeting of Masons. Responding to the toast of his health, tha lion Mr Ssddon eta'ei that he was an old member of the craft, in which he had always taken an interest. He referted to the action he hsd taken during his visit in England in meeting the Grand Lodge of England with a view to inducing them to recognise the New Zealand Grand Lodge. He said that this having now taken place he could not refuse the wish of the New Zealand Mason 3to assume the position of their Grand Master, as he hoped in that position he micjhfc bs able to promote the union of the different constitutions. It would be his utmost endeavour to bring this to pass, He trusted that by mutual forbearance and practising the teaching of Masonry the friction of the past few years would soon cease.

The monthly meeting of the Chatnb9r of Commerce Committee, held on Thursday, was attended by Messrs G. L. Denniston (president), A. C. Bagg, D. B. Theomin, and T. R Fisher. A letter was read from the Postmaster-general, in reply to the com mitten's communications, stating that the Government is strongly in favour of (he establish ment of a Pacific cable and is keeping the subject steadily in view, and expressing the hope that concerted action would shortly be taken by those Australasian colonies favourable to the scheme, while much depends upon the action of Great Britain and Canada. Letters were read from the Canterbury Chamber with referenca to communications from the Frozen Meat Trade Association, London, reporting th.9 result of a meeting in Ohristchui-cb

at which it was decided to form a New Zealand association, stating the objacts, giving a list of the members in Canterbury, and urging that similar action bs taken here. It was revived that the secretary convene a meeting of those interested in the export of frczen meat, with the object of forming an as3ocia.nsn in Djinedin. The matter of the possibility of getting the cargo steamers brought up to Dunedin again was discussed, and it was mentioned that the lowest depth in the channel- ia now 15£ ft, equal to 21£ffc at high water. It was decided, however, to postpone taking any action for a short time longer, in view of still further improve* meat.

A beautiful display of Aurora Australis was witnessed in the vicinity of Naseby on Tuesday evening, 12-sb: About 9.15 long shafts of light shot up in tha south to a height of about 15deg. above the horizon, the sky from south to southwest being occupied by them for 15 or 20 minutes. A recurrence at 10 15 was 'even more beautiful, the shafts being longertand tinted a very pale green. The moon having by this time risen somewhat marred the display, which was larger and of longer duration than the first.

The other day there was a paragraph ia the Auckland Herald relating to the anniversary cf the sie.<e of Orakau, in which it was stated that the famous challenge- to the troops was not übtered by Rewi, but by Haurakl Tonganui, chief of a sub-tribe of Ngatuwhareboa, living on the western shore of the Taupo Lake near Hewkia. Captain Gilbert -Mair s&js; "I do not thiuk this speech 'Ka wbawhai tonu ki akea, ake, , ake, ake ! ' was erer attributed to Rewi till he visited Auckland in 1878, when, probably to give his visit greater significance, it was sated that it was he who uttersd fcho defiant cry, and like a certain Eagli«h monarch who had persuaded himself that he led the British army to victory at Waterloo, old Rewi was too polite or too astute to spoil a fiction which was obviously so much to his own advant age. Borne time after the fight I visited the survivorj at their settle* m?nts on the western shores of Taupo, and there lcaraed tho true particulars, which at that time wtjrc well known to hundreds of person?. Anyone doubling the truth of these ro-r-mu'ks as to Hauraki Tonganui's identity cau apply to a well-known chief of W&o'u, Batons Hamairangi, JTit it was he. who stood by fiewi through the fight, and saved his life during the retreat."

Arrangements are now being completed for the supply of c&lc'um of carbide for acetylene gas by the New Zsaland Acetylene Gas Company. The latter have chosea the West Coast as the place for their carbide factory, *s there all the reqai-ite natural advantages of coal, lime, and water-power ara to be found id abundance. A'ready many town?, institutions, and private establ sb.ment3 iv the north have beea jllumia^ed with acjtylenej and the company will shortly start to manufacture their patent perfection generators in Dunedin. Arrangements are being made Lo give an exhibition of the illuminating powers of the gas by lighting Messrs Wise and Co.'s shop in Princes street. In Parley's Hall on Thursday evenirg a large audience lisfcaned with deep interest to a missioQ« »ry address delivered by Mr William Hacdonaltf, wbo h^s for more than 30 years been labouring in the Sbraids Settlements. The speaker gave a aruphic aci-.ount of the religion and of the rarea — Malays, Chine.ie, aud Euglish-gpeaking Eurasians—inhabiting them, and told how weary, gropiug s -uU have had brought to them by tue Gospel, teufc, li^ht, aud power.

W« uaders'and thit rbere vas a somewh&b Hr.-ly mee'ing of the Jubilee Sports and Pn>cessioa Comm'tfcee on Friday night, but as in> notice waa given to us cf the meeting unfor* tunately no reprasentative of the press tva» present. So far as can ba gathered, the accounts of the Git'zens' Ball Sub-committes were ths bsns of contention. The receipts of this sab-eoinnilt?B fell considerably short of the expenditure, and stroug objection wa» taken Co devoting ths surplus arising from tba sports to tha payment of the ball deficiency. In fact-, a resolution was proposed tnd carried, so wo are informed, strongly objecting to any moneys result-ing, from the sports bsing applied towards the payment of the expenses of any other comraittse. A rough balance sheet was submitted, aod ifc was resolved to appoint Messrs B. '.relay, BfunddH, Black, Morgan, Kirkcaldy, and William Reid as an Audi!-, Committee, to gj through and p.vss all account* in order and report t> a future meeting, this committee to meet the Executive Committee on Thursday n c xb. The Hon. W. M. Bolt submitted the baianci sheet; of tbe Miners' Com» mittee. The r<-c-ip's from subscriptions amounted to' £29 14-« 63. Tha expenditura amount d to *£28 8s 6d, leaving a balance in hand ot £L 6>. The items ou tha expenditure side were : —Cleaning r jom, 10s ; c*retaker, £1 KH ; printing and stationery, £2 Is 6d ; advertising, £3 9-i ; gold escort, £10 ; banner, £10 10i ; stamps and pet'y txpenses, 8».

The R-v Mr Wiii reqieits us to state that the parigra;>h i-i unr late issue fe'o the effect that the University of Eiioburgh loitnded to confer ou him tho degree of D D. was altogether unwarranted, and that he has obfeaiacd reliable information that the University of Edinburgh has had no such inteitiou.

Mr Leslie H. Reynolds, C.E, has been appointed by the Hawera B jrough Council to prepare a water supply and sewerage schema for their town.

The Lyttelton Times reports that at the Arbitration Court an engineer, who was called as a witness, gave evideuce that he had received 10s a day in Melbourne, and on his return to Chri3tchurch cou'd oaly eirn 9«. His Honor Mr Justice Edwards poiuted out thafe the conditions probably varied. In Australia a judge r< aivei £3500 a year, and in New Zealaud £1500. Did the witness consider that the New Zsaland judges should apply for the same salary as theit Australian brethren received ? Ihe witness thought they should. ,

A breach of promise cane was heard before Mr Justice Simpson, the Ciicuit Court, Wagga, on April 1, when Mary M 'Leila n, a domestic servant, employed at a hotel, sued J. Rudd for £1000 damages. Defendant paid £L 0 into court. The statement of the girl wa» that she met the defendant at the hotel, where he proposed to her, and she accepted him, and he told her to go to a store in town and get things for* her marriage, and opened an account there for her for £50. He wa» a Roman Catholic, and she a Presbyterian, and she agreed to be baptised •in the Rsman Catholic Church. He promised to settle £1000 on her before they were married, and told her he was worth £30,000. Defendant was about 70 years of age. She denied thafe she had ever said that it would suit her if Billy

•* OTAGO DAILY TIMES AND WITNESS Chronological Record and Supplementary Jubilee Record now on sale. Contains flashlight views of Exhibition meetings, views of the Procession, pictures of Duneditfbf to-day. 150 additional portraits of Old Settlers, and many other pictures. Price, Is,

Rudd only lasted «ix months^ She believed

Rudd's family opposed the marriage, and the fact that she had become a Roman Catholic at

Rudd's instigation had caused a disagreement between herself and her family. A witness named Leahy deposed that he pointed out to Rudd that 27, and 70, would not blend, and the marriage was not iikely to b,e & happy one. The jury returned a verdict for plaintiff for £750;

The Art Gallery trustees recently found that some miscreant had cut words of an obscene chars cter into the frame of one of the picture*, and this is not the first time that a disgraceful act of the kind has been committed. The funds at the disposal of the trustees do not admit of a doorkeeper or guardian being kept at the gallery, and it is difficult to know

what means can be takea to prevent the pictures being tampered wi'h. The public are interested in seeing that the pictures are not damaged or interfered with, and it is to be hoped that a sharp lookout will be kept, so that the trustees may not have to cloee the gallery except at certain specified , hours or allow admission by ticket only. At the meeting of the Jubilee Processional and Sports Committee, which was held on Friday night last, a vote of thanks was, on the motion of the Hon, D. Pinkerton, accorded to Hr'D. Duncan and Mr R. N. Adams for services rendered in connection with the old ' identities ,in the procession. It was' also resolved — " That as a much larger number of old identities were present than the committee were led to expect wou'd- be, this committee regret that the carriage accommodation was insufficient in so far that it was impossible to obtaiu more drags, although every effort was aaade to obtain them." Upon the motion of Mr Barclay, seconded by Mr Black, it was resolved, after some discussion — " That tbis committee object to. moneys received from the exertions of the Processional Committee being applied for the payment of any expenses incurred by any other committee." Advices have just reached Duuediu through Messrs Ross ana Gleudining's London branch that the casting of the Dr Sfcnart statue is now completed, and only waits inspection and approval before shipment. The Executive Committee have contracted with Messrs Muoro and Sons for the pedestal, which is now in course ef construction. ,The lecturer of the Victorian Alliance, Me J. Vale, commenced his beries of temperance lectures in the ' Garrison Hall on Sunday evening. Mr Vale delivered two addresses', the first being injnemory oi: the late Miss Frances Willard, the preaidsrit of the World* Women's Christian Temperance Union, and the second a discourse upon the subject, " The Christian Church and the Drink Evil." The memorial service was very largely attended, the Garrison Hall being crowded to excess, but at the subsequent address, which was commenced at B.lb

p.m.. not more than 400 people were .present.

The Rev. W Ready presided on both occasions, "and at the second' meeting delivered a strong temperance speech, advocating unceasing hostility to the liquor traffic. Mr Vale, who is a powerful public speaker, delivered an oration •upon ; the character and life-work of Miss Willard, and an argumentative and forcible address on the Christian church aud the drink evil, dealing with it troin the standpoint of the duty of the unit of the church, the individual

Christian. The lecturer will occupy the platform of the Ciiy Hall during tha present week, and this evening the subject will be ''• Toilers and Spoilers ; or, Labour v. the Driuk Trsfßc."

Tim year, the Christian Commonwealth reminds us, will be marked by an extraordinary number of centenary anniversaries. Tho year '98 has century after century been marked by great iccidents. Comt=> was born at Montpellier on January 19, 1798. It was ou April 15 that the Huguenots received their freedom from Henry IV by tho Edict of Nantes. In May occur three important centenaries. The Irish rebellion happened in May, 1798. On May 20 the chiefs cities ot Portugal will be effete in honour of the discovery by Vasco da Garni of the Cape route to India. The martyrdom of Savonarola will be commemorated at Florence on May 23. The centenary date of the birth of Michelet, the greatest of French historians, occurs in August. This year is alao the hundreth since the battle of the Nile. The directors of the Uni «• Sfceam Ship Cotnnany have appointed Mr U. Holdswortb, who hss for six or seven years held the position of chief manager in Tasmania, to succeed the late

Mr B. P. Honghton as inspector and chief

manager. Mr W. H. Blacklock, at present -general traffic manager at head office, succeeds Mr Holdswotth ss chief manager in Tasmania. The position of general traffic manager at head officp, vacant through Mr Bi&cklock's promotion, will ba taken by Mr S. K. Sleigb, chief assistant in the correspondence department. Mr Holdsworth, who is at present in Dunedin, proceeds to Tasmania per Waikare to-day, and will return here in about a month. Mr Blacklock leaves for Tasmania in a few days to take np his new duties. The following are -the hospital returns for

last week : — Remaining in the institution from

the previous week,.loo ; number of admissions, 1 16; number, of patients discharged, 15; deaths (Sarah Ann Moffatt, Christopher Mackay, James Weir), 3 ; number remaining in the institution at the close of the week, 98. The Bishop of Manchester made au announcement the other day (says the Westminster Gazette) of supreme importance. He has during the past year nob only visited every parish ia the archdeaconry of Manchester, containing 1,932,3*2 people— more than the population of any diocese except London, — but he has preached in several Nonconformist chapels.

How such a circumstance went unrecorded at

the time is very difficult to understand. His Lor^pfeip said in his cathedral that during his visitation he had, by the kindness of his Nonconformist brethren, stood in many of their pulpits, and had longed for the time to come when they might not only love each other, but • also mutually help each other in preaching the Gospel.

It is stated (says the Press) that a prisoner who died in the Lyttelton Gaol at the age of abDut 50 years had at one time been in very good circumstances, having inherited iomefchiDg like £17,000, all of which he had made away with.

The Dunedin Jewish" congregation hßve decided to give a year's engagement to the Rev. A. Chodowski, of Brisbane. Messrs B. Hallenstein and Cohen have been appointed members of the Committee of Management.

The communications showered upon Otago respecting buried treasure, or as it is generally known, '• the Spanish swindle," would appear to indicate that the promoters are becoming desperate. We gave the particulars of the scheme, from a letter received by a resident in Dipton, Southland, on the 19 oh ult. We have since learnt of several other letters being received, and the latest is addressed to Mr W. J. Water*, Port Chalmers. The handwriting and thje'matter are in each case identical, the letter in each~ instance' stating tfaaj fch? Vfiitw b§d

concealed in an iron box "in the neighbourhood of your place " 650,000 francs in French bank notes. It ia scarcely probable that the gentleman, who writes from Barcelona, will find any victims in New Zealand.

The 48 hour*' crop garnered by the local police authorities and presented for treatment on Monday morning consisted of hix offenders, five of whom were charged with drunkenness and the sixth with obstructing the constables who were arresting one of the iaebriates. The act of obstruction might have produced a ve#y serious result. A man named Thomas Palmer was behaving in a disorderly manner on the railway station shortly before midnight on Saturday and Constables Surgenor and Storey took him into custody. Palmer's mate, a man named Thomas Geddes, interfered and tried to get the arrested man away, and a sciiffls ensued in which the four men fell off the platform between the carriages of a train. Had the train been in motion the chances are that all of, them would hare been severely injured, if not killed. None of the offeuders had previously been before the court, and Messrs J. W. Brindley and J. Angus, J.P.s, who occupied the bench, made no distinctions between them but discharged tho lot, three of whom were ' sailors. Mr Brindley remarked that there seemed to have been a lot of men ••on fche "spree" on Saturday nighfc, and he thought they ought to be grafceful to the police for taking care of them. He advi3ed them, if they wanted a spree ' in the future, to have a quiet one. Actiog on this advice, five of the offenders — the 6ixtfa, being a foreigner, was neglected — on the invitation of one of their number who. when arrested, had over £3 in his possession, adjourned fco the nearest hotel to cement tha acquaintance whioh they h&d formed while in the hands of the law.

Daring Lieutenant-colonel Webb's absence from Duuedin Captain Morrison (of the Permanent Arbillery) will command the district, and Captain E. R. Smith will command the volunteers of the South Otago district.

An important decision was given at Wellington on Monday by Me Kenny, S.M., in tha Valuation Court, The question was whether a hotel license should he taken into account in ascertaining the capital value of a property under the Government valuation. A large number of counsel appeared to argue against it, and Mr Kenny upheld their contention, ordering the valuation to be made simply on the land and buildings, apart from the license. At Lawrence on Ftiday, before Mr Hawkirss, S.M.. Joseph Cox pleaded not guilty to a charge of illegally selling whisky on Good Friday. From the evidence, as reported iv the Tuapeka Times, ifc appears that a resident of Lawrence named Sutherland,. who was travelling with sheep, stopped his horse ia fronb of the side door of the hotel and sent a boy in to say ha wantedadrink. Mr Cox was nod inthe house, but his daughter went to the door and asked the man if he was a traveller. The evidence varied siightly sts to the reply, but Sergeant King, the prosecutor, who was standing not far away, said that Sutherland said, " It's all right ; I'm travelling." The, girl, who did not then ace the sergeant, served tha man. Mr Hanlon, who defended, contended that all reasonable precautions had been taken. The f icti pointed to the man. being a traveller, and as the girl did not know he was a raeident of Lawrence the case should be dismissed. His Worship took this view of fche case, and, at Sergeant KiDg's request, ordered a prosecution against Sutherland lor misrepresenting himself as a traveller.

A rather peculiar incident happened at the sitting of ihe Policu Commission at Timaru on Saturday afternoon. A clergyman (says the Lyfctel'on Times) had made a statement before the commission to the effect that a certain hotel in town had, contrary to the Licensing Act, a second bar opening on the street. Commissioner Tunbridge despatched a member of tho police force to ascertain •whether the statement was correct, and upon the officer's ratura with the answer, the commissioner asked the clergyman if he would be surprised to hear that the bar alluded to had been closed for fully 12 months. The rev; gentleman replied that he would be very much astonished to hear such a thing, as he knew that it was opan at the present time. Shortly after leaving the witness box the minister returned and asked to be re-sworn, as he had further evidence to give, and upon his request being complied with, he announced that he was prepared to produce evidence that the bar complained of was si ill open, and hs produced a flask of whisky which he had but a few minutes previously purchased from the attendant at that particular bar. This announcement astonished the commissioner, and other officers were immediately sent to report on the matter, the result being that an information was at once laid against the publican for a breach of the Licensing Act.

A concert was given at Shag Point on Thursday last in aid of the library fund. It was made the occas'on of a presentation from the parents of the children attending the school to Mr Randle and Miss Fleming, their teachers, as well as to Mrs Randle, in recognition of services rendered in (raining the children fora concert held in December last. Miss Fleming received a handsome handbag, Mrs Handle being the recipient of a substantial music stool, and Mr Randle was presented with a ease of silvermounted pipes. Mr Goodley occupied the chair. The concert passed off successfully, thß children's items being very favourably received.

Indignation is expressed at Lyttellon at' the action of the Defence Minister in declining free passes to the volunteers to join with those of Christchurch in a church parade. The Hon. T. Thompson informed Mr Joyce that the commander of the forces does nob approve, seeing that parade is not for drill purposes, and added • " All available fund s for pasees required for inter-corps meetings, for drill and shooting purposes. You have a good church in Lyttelton. What need to go from home P

The Cabinet has allocated the following amounts for present expenditure: — Te KuitiAwakino road, £1000 ; Midland railway, £1300 ; Paeroa-Te Aroba. road, £3000 ; Rotor ua-Galatea-Napier road, £500 ; Parliamentary Buildings, £3000 ; North Island Main Trunk railway, £3000.