NEWS IN BRIEF.

Otago Witness, Issue 3314, 19 September 1917, Page 37

NEWS IN BRIEF.

A scow master, Victor Oliver, was to-day fined the minimum of £2O at Auckland for employing an unenrolled reservist. A heavy slip on the Midland railway line near Staircase Gully delayed the train from the West Coast on the 11th inst. 10 hours. Mr M'Combs, having stated that kerosene was being sold in Wanganui at 24s per case, the Prime Minister undertook to refer the matter to the -Board of Trade for consideration and report. n Robert Semple was released from Lyttelton Gaol on the 14th. He was met by a small party of Labour sympathisers. A large crowd of watersiders waited at the railway gate, but there was no demonstration. John Cross, a farmer, was awarded £IOOO damages in the Supreme Court at Masterton in a case brought against Alex. Colquhoun, farmer, for the seduction of plaintiff's daughter. A nonsuit point was reserved. The Prime Minister (Mr Massoy) and the Finance Minister (Sir J. G. Ward), with five other members' representing the commercial, industrial, and primary industries of the Dominion, will constitute the reorganised National Efficiency Board. In the course of an interview Ml* Joliffe, the censor of moving- pictures, said that during the year 1952 pictures were examined, containing 4,433,660 feet. Of these 26 were absolutely turned down, and cuts ranging from 750 ft to 15ft made in 227. At the Christchurch Cotu-t Archibald Cameron was fined £SO for that, being a bookmaker, he betted in the United Service Hotel. William Pollock, of Dunedin, was similarly charged on two informations. He was fined £SO on the first and £IOO on the second.

In the Supreme Court at Hokitika. before Mr Justice Sim, there, were no criminal cases. In a claim for damages amounting to £250 for tho sechiction of his daughter, brought by R. King against T. Kennedy, the jury found for the plaintiff for £25. Costs were allowed on the usual scale. At Christchurch on 12th Frank Hyman, manager of the Lyttelton Times Company, was fined £5 for publishing in the Star an advertisement by the Socialist Party announcing a meeting, the advertisement being held to be seditious and tending (o discourage recruiting and the prosecution of the war. Two Dalmatians —Felix Polirica and Joseph Botica —pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to defeat the course of justice by inducing a girl witness to give false evidence in the. Supreme Court case in which Paul Boticz was charged with unlawful carnal knowledge. Both were committed for trial. The hearing of the charges against Fitzgerald and APWilliams. of attempting to cl.ifra-'vd Henry Martindalc and others of £&** •'vd conspii^PE, - to defraud, was continued at on the 14th. resulting in both accused beinr committed for trial. B*il in the sum of £IOO and two sureties of £-i0 each was allowed in each case. At a meeting of the National Welfare Asflodintion Inst week a resolution was passed congratulating Mr Eornsby, M.P.,

on the attitude tie had adopted as a protest against the inactivity of the National Government regarding the welfare of the people of the Dominion, and calling upon members for the district to follow his exanijjle. E. W. Warren, of Auckland, defeated H. Scidebcrg, of Dunedin, for the New Zealand Amateur Billiard Championship by 666 to Seidebcrg's 613, after an interesting game. Warren made breaks of 69, 66, and 62, while his opponent's best breaks were 53, 51 and 49. The final was played on the 14th, when E. W. Warren defeated W. E. Hackett by 2000 to 933. Warren's best break was 209. The Dunedin Presbytery passed a resolution last week expressing general approval of the regulations for amalgamating tho Sustentation Fund of the south and the augmentation of the Stipend Fund of the north; but, in order that the position of ministers in Otago and Southland might be better safeguarded, it was of opinion that, until the northern section of the Church could reach the standard of emolument prevailing in Otago and Southland, the distribution of the southern fund should remain under the control of a committee appointed by the Synod of Otago and Southland. To this end certain amendments were made in the regulations. The dispute between the owners of small coastal steamers trading out of Wellington and the crews is still unsettled, and at the end of last week 18 small steamers were held up. Tiro owners of the Baden Powell agreed that there should be two men to a watch, and the steamer resumed her usual trade. The strike has spread to Napier, and three small steamers have had to be laid up there. A conference between the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and representatives of the parties to the dispute was held; but no agreement was arrived at. It was proposer! to refer tho matter to arbitration. The ship-owners wantedonc of the Supreme Court judges to deal with tho dispute; but the representatives of tho crews wished to have one of the Conciliation Commissioners to adjudicate.