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Otago Witness, Issue 2672, 31 May 1905, Page 34

The Otago Coal-miners' Industrial Union of Workers has given notice of withdrawal in respect to disputes referred to the Arbitration Court between the union and the Allandale Coal Company, ano che union and the Green Island collieries. The application to enforce the Jillandale coal-miners' agreement has also been -withdrawn, the action of the union being no doubt due to the recent decision of Mr Justice Chapman at Auckland in respect to preliminary procedure.

Messrs J? H. Hancock and W. WaTdrop, two justices of the peace, who reoently presided in a ease where a man named Baird was acquitted on a charge of assaulting an acting-stationniaster at Peliehet Bay, have been called upon by the Crown Prosecutor to state a case for appeal. The decision given in the case gave rise to some comment, at the time, and the object of the proceedings now being taken is to test whether the decision given was in accord with the evidence before the bench.

The following is a list of the deceased persons' estates of £1000 and over that have been finally oertified during the past month : Wellington — Joseph Paul £53,459, Catherine Milligan £1469, Mary Blackett £2620, Nicholas Hearn £7444, John Gregory £3904, Louis Isaac Levy £1154, William Heighten £2311, Nathaniel Y. A. Wales £1560, Mary M'Kenzic £1267, Potahi Erneti £1383. Auckland— Jane Smith £2457, Edward Jonathan £1155, Francis Tliomas Bayntun ■61087, William M - Manus £1303, James Harker £1625, Martha M'Kinney £1871. Canterbury — John Murchison £33,787, Samuel Thomas £3840. Mathew S. Brown £1506, James Smith £1623, William M. If. W-atkins £2314, Jesss Haacox £1070. James Brown J812.189, Sarah Cook £1403, William Colville £1073. Ofcago — William James Mudie Lamaeh £4732, William M'MiUan £1150, Robert Ferguson £HIV Isabella A. M'Adie- £3637, Robert Rutherford £1595. Southland— Mary Gerrard £2392, Alexander Peter £2340, Mathew Newton £1216. Gisborne—Waller Day £5095. Westland— John Dick -£6185. Mr Grace, secretary cf the Shipwreck Relief Society. gratefully acknowledges receipt of the sum of £7, an amount subscribed by the Union Steam Ship Company's employees at Port Chalmers workshops to the funds of the society. j A chess match by telegraph will be commenced next Saturday evening between teams of 10 a-side representing the Ofcago and Oamaru Chess Clubs. The players for Dunedin will be selected from the follow- i I ing: — The Rev. A. T. Chodowski, Messrs I F. J. Mouat, J. H. F. Hamel, J. Crow, G. I D. Wright, S. S. Myers, J. Stone, J. C. Ponsonby, G. Rankin, A. King. J. Hall, and Dr Church. The contest is to start at 7 o'clock sharp. It has been arranged that Mr James Alien, M.H.R.. will deliver a political address in Dunedin — probably in the Princess Theatre, on Thursday night next — in reply to the speech made by the Premier in this city last week. j The Drainage Board reports that the only rain recorded last week occurred between the 20th and the 21&t, when .015 in fell. This brings the rainfall for the year to date to 11.793 in. The Premier, speaking at Ophir on Saturday night, laid some interesting -figures before the meeting relative to the population of the colony. The estimated European population on Septebmer 30. 1904, was 847,824. and if Mao-ris and re-idetits of the Cook and other islands were included the total population of the colony would be 903,259 persons, i