WELLINGTON.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 834, 14 July 1879, Page 2

WELLINGTON.

■;■ ■■■"■: This Day, James Mackay goes to the West Coast early this week. The Maori prisoners have all been thoroughly tubbed and clothed m corduroys and blue Bhirts, and look more respectable than they ever did m their lives before. The twenty -nine mutineers are calming down. Every precaution is being taken to prevent the escape of native prisoners, as there are now altogether as many prisoners as constabulary to guard them. • v.. .' The Supreme Court was occupied all Friday with the trial ; of Mrs. Phillips, on a charge of setting. fire to her house at Kaiwarra. At ten o'clock on Saturday morning the jury brought m a verdict of "Not Guilty." The Chief Justice, m charging the jury, condemned the practice of having standing rewards by Insurance Companies and the Government for the discovery of incendiaries, though it might be expedient occasionally when a fire had really occurred. In consequence of the acquittal of Mrs. Phillips, the Crown Prosecutor entered a nolle proseque m the case of Alphonso Rush, her brother, charged with perjury m the evidence he gave m the Police Court to clear his sister by proving an abili. A Nolle proseque has been entered m the case of Mr. Snelson, Mayor of Palmerston North, who was committed for trial for a breach of the Arms Act m selling a gun at auction to a person who had not procured a license. The new Fairlie engines were tried on the Hutt line on Friday, and successfully underwent the severests tests. At one o'clock on Saturday morning, the schooner Day Dawn, which was loading ballast at Warden's Island at the entrance of Wellington Harbor got on the rocks m a gale and went down. The crew got away m a dingy. 2 p.m. The trial of Cooper and Brodie is fixed for Wednesday week, when it will come before a special jury.