LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2394, 18 January 1900, Page 50

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The tender of Mr A. Shaw, of Dunedin, has been accepted for the erection of the new Dunedin Law Courts. The estimate for the work is understood to have been £20,000, and Mr Shaw's price is slightly under that figure, being about £19,300. A Christchurch contractor was the next lowest tenderer. During the. past week there have been 30 admissions to the hospital and 21 discharges. Three deaths occurred, the deceased persons being Jung Hung, Sarah Alexander, and Mary James. The total number of patients remaining at the end of the previous week was 99, and this week it is 105. The young man Peter Robert Dewar, charged at Clinton on Friday with the theft of jewellery valued £12 and with maliciously setting fire to the registrar's office at Clinton, was remanded for eight clays. He was brought to Dunedin in charge of Constable Hickey on Saturday morning. Adjutant Tyler held a series of farewell meetings at the Salvation Army Barracks on Sunday. The adjutant came to Dunedin about 13 months ago from Melbourne, and his work here has been attended with gratifying success. An evidence of the popularity and e3teem in which he is held and of the appreciation with which his work here is regarded by the members of the Salvation Army' was afforded by the crow.ded and enthusiastic nature of the farewell meetings. Three were held on Sunday, and the attendances were only limited by the holding capacity of the barracks. They partook of the character of the ordinary Army meetings, with the exception that those present manifested even more fervour than usual. The adjutant himself presided in each instance. On Tuesday night a farewell tea meeting will be held. Mr Peter Barr has been appointed secretary to the xecently-formed Industrial Association of Otago. According to the Timaru -Herald complaints are being made by many of the passengers who travel by the express trains of the danger attaching to the portable guard rail, which connects the carriages with the dining ears. This rail is a fixture at one end, but the other is a loose hook which drops over the rail of the carz-iage. This hook being loose is where the danger comes in, for a passenger putting his weight on it sideways finds it running away, and it takes him all his time to save himself from falling between the carriages. • Already there have been several narrow escapes from serious accidents, and the department should at once see that the loose end is made fast in some way or other. An- j other complaint is that 'the connecting platform is far too narrow, and this defect also should be seen to at once. j It may amuse some of your readers (writes I a correspondent of the London Spectator) to see how the amateur military critic flourished 2000 years ago. Aemilius Paullus, ! being about to take up the supreme command ' in Macedonia, addressed the Roman people to this effect: — "In every club, good heavens! I may say at every dinner table, j there are gentlemen -\vho lead armies into ' Macedonia, who know where o\ir camps ! ought to be pitched, what posts to be garri- : soned, at what time -and by what pass the enemy's country ought to be entered, where our depots ought to be put, by what routes, be it by sea or land, 'supplies ought to be conveyed, when we ought to fight and when stand on the defensive. Not only do they lay down the law as to what should be clone, but if anything is 1 done different -from what they prescribe, they arraign the general as if he were on his trial.— (Livy xliv, 22.) A lad about 12 years of age was accidentally killed on the railway wharf at Wellington, being crushed under the wheels of a coal-laden waggon. It is unknown how the accident happened. The lad's screams were the first intimation of something wrong. The body was removed to the morgue. A very pitiful accident occurred at Pahia, on the evening of the 10th to the eldest son of Mr and Mrs Whipp, of Pahia, a lad 12 years of age. Full particulars are not to hand yet, but it seems he was drawing water from a well, and by some means fell in, and before being discovered he was, drowned. Another accident happened at Watson Bros.' sawmill, also at Pahia, by which Mr Robert Harrington broke his leg.— Western Star. With reference to our leading article on Mr Reeves's possible candidature for a seat in the House of Commons, we are reminded that he is in all probability within -"the rule

' which disqualifies any person who holds "art office of profit under the Crown." The House is the sole judge as to the meaning of these words, and does not put a restricted construction on them. When the late Mr Colmair O'Loghlen died, his son, Sir Bryan, was | elected by his Irish constituency, the County jof Clare. Shortly after his election Sir I Bryan became Attorney-general of Victoria, ' and was still living in Victoria. It was held, nevertheless, by the House of Commons that as he was liable to dismissal by the Queen or her Ministers he was ineligible, and he wag accordingly unseated. The only difference between his case and that of the Hon. W. P< Reeves appears to us to be rather against the latter's candidature as he performs his services in England. We do not think, however, that there is any real distinction. — Daily Times. Prank Wilson, aged eight, went eel-fisli-ing at Otaki, and was not seen again till his 'body was found in Lake Takapau. The Conciliation Board sat in the Supreme Court on Monday to hear an industrial dispute between the Otago 'Coal Miners' Union and the various Green Island collieries. On a number of the main points the reference filed is similar to that which formed the Katangatadispute — the demand for preference to unionj ists, for weighing of coal, the reinstatement j of dismissed workmen, and that shift wages I be fixed at 10s per day. It was contended by Mr Smith, the union's representative, j that the demands made meant about 6d per : ton all round above what the miners were al- ; ready getting. The employers, while ready • to concede a number of points, are opposing | chiefly those mentioned, although in some in- ■ stances a willingness has been expressed to pay 10s per day shift wages as desired by the j union. Evidence was being taken when the | board adjourned at 5 o'clock in the evening. I Mrs Case, who is at present in Dunedin with , her husband, Dr Case, a missionary formerly labouring in China, addressed a meeting of ladies in the new Gospel Hall, Moray place, ' yesterday afternoon. Mrs Case referred specially to her work among the Chinese women, which was attended with gratifying success,, and the account of tho methods employed proved of great interest to her hearers. A case was heard at Oamaru on Monday > under " The Corrupt Practices Prevention i Act, 1881," when George Robinson was charged with having, on December 6, unlawfully and wilfully applied for a voting paper in his own name, he having already voted once at the same election. Accused, who reserved his defence, was committed for trial at the Supreme Court, Dunedin. Bail was allowed. It was stated in the Compensation Court,' at Wellington (according to the Post), that the amount paid by Messrs Stewart Dawson and Co. _for the section at the corner, of Willis street and Lambton Quay was at the rate of about £200 per foot. The fact was | also mentioned that a large section in Cour- \ tenay, place, which had been purchased for ( £2300, was sold a fortnight after for £3000. j Steps are already being taken (says thej New Zealand Times) to fill the See of Bal- , larat, vacated by Bishop Thornton. The Dean intends shortly to convene a meeting of the Board of Electors. ' The overwhelming desire locally is to select a bishop from amongst the Australasian priesthood, or those I already at the head of sees, in preference to sending to England. It is stated that if Bishop Julius, of Christchurch, or Bishop Stretch, of Brisbane, would accept the see, either would receive an overwhelming welcome. "The Apostle Paul's Objects and Ambitions, and are they Ours?" was the subject of an address given in the new Gospel Hall, ! Moray place, by Dr -Case, from China, on Monday evening. Dr case referred to ambition as met with in the Gospel, and pointed out that , the highest aim, the highest ambition, was Ito please the Saviour. Speaking generally ! of -missionary work, he mentioned that nearly j two-thirds of the people of the world were \ Still in darkness, and invited those present to ( picture to themselves what a different place j the world would be if even one out of every" ' thousand were to go out and make known the Word of God. The preacher spoke for nearly an hour, to a rather limited audience, i in a most impressive manner, and was listened '. to with close attention throughout.

The Wellington civic authorities are trying the experiment of coating the roads with tar. i Word has been received of the death at Leichhardt, Sydney, last month, of the Rev. Andrew Maclcay, first pastor of Gore Presbyterian Church. Miss White, late second female assistant at , the Balclutha District High School, has been 1 appointed to the charge of the Arthurton School, vice Mr G. W. Carrington. From Greymouth last week the Blackball' Coal Company exported 1986 tons 15cwt coal, and the Brunner Company 1802 tons lewfc coal, 13 tons 3cwt coke, and 5 tons 13cwt bricks. The doctors, after amputating James Hendron's leg at the Wairarapa Hospital, dissected it, and found that there -were 18 complete breaks. The nerves and the arteries, however, were intact. Hendron is progressing favourably. An information charging a well-known local I resident with double voting at the recent election will be heard at the Resident Magistrate's Court on Monday (says the Oamaru Mail). The offence is an indictable one, and in the event of a prima facie ease being established will be sent to the Supreme Court.