LAST NIGHT'S NEW ZEALAND NEWS.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 10571, 24 January 1906, Page 1

LAST NIGHT'S NEW ZEALAND NEWS.

♦ (Per Press Association.) AUCKLAND, last night. A lliunderntonn, with vivid lightning, occurred to-night. The lightning struck a shad at Arch Hill, ran along a clothes line to a shop, and tore off the spouting, when it passed across the road, entered the front door and went out tho back door (both being open) of a house, and struck a gum tree iv the yard, scorchimj the bark. _ man named Thomtif* Coates, bookkeeper at the Wnitemata hotel, who had been suffering from a, weak heart, fainted m front of the hotel this evening. He was carried iv mid died a moment' later. He leaves a wife and three children. HAWERA, last night. On account of tropical rains the first test avus postponed _itil to-morrow night. G trombone : A. Handley (Taranaki Garrison) 93, G. Boyd (Wauganui Garrison) 89. In the BB flat bans (he play off for second place resulted : W. Pitti— 1 (Pahnerston North) 92 points, 11. ■ Wilson (Canterbury Engineers) 90. This pair previously tied. BB flat bass :W. Fenton (Woolston) 92, R. Wilson (Canterbury Engineeim 91, W. Pittam (Palmerston North) 91, H. . Cudby (Hawera Borough) 88, L. McNatty (South Canterbury Battalion) 86. Flugol horn:. P. Cole (South Canterbury Battalion) 94, E. Gould (Wauganui) 92, W. Stokes (Woolston) 92. CHRISTCHURCH, last night. At a meeting of tlie Cricket Council tonight the committee appointed to inquire ii^o the alleged watering of the wicket during the Gtago-C;mtcrb_y match reported that after hearing the evidence they had unanimously come to the conclusion that tho wicket had hot been watered or tampered with m any way whatever. The umpires for the unit;.', slate they arc completely salislied that the rolling of the wicket- after- the i-« : r. which fell during tho morning avus quite sufficient to uccuunb for tho damp appearance th_oof. The report was adopted. DUNEDIN, last night. The scamen'i? dispute has now been before tho Arbitration Court for four days, two of which were occupied by Mr W Belcher iv opening the case for the Union. Mr C. Holdsworth, general manager of tho Union Company, was culi«" to-day by Mr Belcher and exaiiiiin/1 He produced the Company's balancesheets ior the past livo years, as well as a report showing tho number of passengers and the amount of cargo carried by tho Company's steamers during the same period. These documents were handed to tho Court for its inspection, and were not made public. Tne hearing »f the evidence will bo resumed to-mor-row. INVERCARGILL, last night. At the inquiry into tlio lnvercargill local ..opt ion poll, to-day's >?it':i-jg was occupied almost entirely 'with tho opening address of Mr Hoskmg, loading counsel for petitioners against the validity of the poll. The principal point raised* by him •was that certain votes allowed m tho recount were iuformal as far as they related to any particular proporml, but that being legally votes recorded by voters tliov should be counted into the total number of votes recorded. Ho also raised the point that absent voters except- seamen wore not entitled to record their votes on tho licensing issue. Counsel relied mainly on the decision of Dr MeArlhur, S.M., m tho Newtown case. Sonic evidence was taken. A scrutineer stated that a deputy returning officer refused him voting papers. Some peculiar manipulation of papers waa disclosed. One voter had turned tho papei over, and marked his erasures over tl.o liners on the oilier side, and another wrote "for tlie colony" m addition to the erasure. One very deaf man wis refused voting papers though on the roll and able to lead written questions if pu" to him. The inquiry is likely to last three or four days.