CANTERBURY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2674, 14 June 1905, Page 54

CANTERBURY.

It is intended to endeavour to complete the Midland railway in 18 months to a , point beyond Broken River, and in conse- ! quence the number of men employed on the construction worke will shortly be increased to about 300. At present there are 250 . men employed, and 50 ai'ei to be put on soon. These latr,er will consist chiefly of men capable of doing tunnel work and firstclass navvies. A station is to be erected beyond Broken River, and when the line reaches this point it is anticipated l that the journey between this city and the West Coast will be accomplished in one day. The I connecting coach road between the Case ' and the Broken River Railway Stations is being put in hand. j Jn a divorce case beard at Timaru on the 6th, in which the husband (petitioner) lives in Christohurch and the respondent in. '■ Auckland, a decree was granted on the ground of desertion. The- evidence showed that the wife left the husband within a month of the marriage, and refused to have ' anything more to do with him. J The Board of Governors of Lincoln Agri- - cultural College aver that it has lo6t J £700 of revenue durin>? the past few years owing to the Lands Department procrastinating with regard to the board's pro- j posal to either sell its Hakatairamea rune ■ to the department or buy adjoining Crown I land from the department. It was stated , at a meeting of the board to-day that the . college had been unable to lease its Haka- , taramea runs owing to the impossibility of \ erecting a dividing fence between the board's run« and the adjoining Crown land. The matter will be brought before the Government and Parliament by the chairman of the board at the first opportunity. Father Hays concluded hia temperance crusade in th& South Island on the 7th when he gave a lecture on Father Mathew. There was a large and appreciative audience, over which Bishop Julius presided. Father Hays stated that his mission in the South Island had exceeded hie expectations. He had addressed 25,000 persons, and between 9000 and 10,000 had taken his pledge. He was accorded a hearty vote of thanks for hie visit and lecture. Delegates from local bodies interested in a new bridge over the Heathcote on Thursday approved of the- plans for a bridge 185ift long, with a lift portion in the middle to be operated by electrical power. The estimated cost of' the bridge is £2700. Local j bodies were recommended to adopt the ■ plan?. | The report submitted to the annual meeting in connection with Nurse Maude's Men'e Camp for Consumptives showed that private subscriptions amounted to £722 19s 2d during; the year, while £323 7s 7d was received from collections made by unions, bands, concerts, etc. The camp had accommodation for 20 patients. Since its formation in July. 1904-, t)3 patient were admitted, of whom 25 were discharged cured. Therei was a credit balance c-f £131 Is 4d in hand. Dr Gri2eu\YOod referred _to Jhj| £ejcentafi§

of cures r btainerl as the highest in the world. Rumours of a disquieting nature regarding a similar ca?e to that given prominence to by Mr Taylor at the conference on social questions recently have been in circulation her© for the past day or two. In the procent case, to "which Mr Sedclon is supposed to have alluded in replying to a deputation on Friday, the person implicated hold a respectable positon, and is alleged to have left the colony. Allegations are made that he tarnperei with a girl whose age is stated to be under 15 and who wae in service in his house. Medical men have seen the girl, but, in accordance with the etiquette of the prcfessicn, decline to give any information. It )s understood, however that they have carefully considered whether or not the girl is the victim of hysteria. Friends of the person implicated state that he has acted injudiciously in leaving the city, but consider that his action is clue to his highly sensitive nature. The police authorities are inquiring into allegations that a per?on in this city has tampered with a girl under 15 years of age. It is stated by those authorities that whilst the - person implicated may have been indiscreet, the result of the medical examination does not indicate that the girl has been wronged.