Householders' Meeting at Okaramio.

Pelorus Guardian and Miners' Advocate., Volume 3, Issue 12, 12 February 1892, Page 2

Householders' Meeting at Okaramio.

For some time there has been a difference between the Okaramio schpol-niaster, Mr Berry, and the Se|solt Comtnittee, and the former,, to Have the matter cleared up; convened a meeting of householders to take into consideration certain charges which had Seen made against him. The meeting was held at the schoolhouse on Tuesday night, and between twenty and thirty householders were present. At the request of the meeting Mr i J. H. Reynolds was voted to the chair. He said that he would rather they had appointed some one in the district, but as it was their wish that he should preside he would endeavour to conduct the proceedings with impartiality. He hoped that the language used on either side would not be offensive, and to facilitate the business he would suggest that the Chairman of the School Committee should state the case of the Committee, and then Mr Berry could explain his side of the matter, when a resolution might be proposed and anyone present could speak to it. Mr Thompson thought that as Mr Berry had called the meeting he should state his case first, as he (Mr Thompson) would like to know what the charges were that they were asked to consider.

Mr E. Hart, Chairman of the School Committee, said that the whole matter was simply that the Committee were dissatisfied with the Inspector's report on the school, and they had asked Mr Berry to resign. He understood that Mr Berry had been told that if the report on the school was unfavourable he would be asked to resign his position. He then handed in the summary of the results of the school examination as supplied by the Inspector* Mr Berry then made»a statement of his side of the question, stating that he had placed those children who he thought would pass instead of keeping them in one standard for the two years, as had been done in Borne other schools, ana those whe.ha,d succeeded had pulled up a year.; His children had only been in the standard eight months, and, therefore, he thought that they had done very well. If the matter was looked at in this light it would be conceded that : the report was not so bad after all. The whole affair might have been settled in an amicable spirit had not a few people in the district wanted to get rid of him. Mr Hart said he would not have anything to do with shifting the master until after the last examination. Mr Berry had been told he would have to stand on his merits, and the report showed that the results were not satisfactory. He then read the results of the class subjects. Mr Berry—Those are not pass subjects but class subjects, and it would make no difference if they had not got any marks. Another matter was that there had been a great difficulty in getting book?, especially drawing books, and the children had not been able to do so well in consequence. Mr Hart said it was quite true that for the first three months they had no books, but latterly it was Mr Berry's fault if they had not been procured.

Mr Kerry said he had made out orders but they had not been fully executed.

Mr Cameron thought they had not treated the teacher fairly over tlie matter.

Mr Thompson again said that he would like to hear the charges which were to be considered.

Mr Berry saidlhat one charge was that as soon as it was found out he went to Blenheim to give evidence in favour of Mr Cameron on the late Will case every effort was made on the part of a few to get him out of the place, and all sorts of trifling matters were brought up to further chat end. They had spied on him and done everything that it was possible to do to annoy him.

Mr Hart said he did not think there was anyone on the Committee who had any ill-will towards Mr Cameron. Here the Chairman suggested that the matter" seemed to resolve itself into the question whether Mr Berry had the confidence of the householdersor not, and tho matter might be settled at once by a resolution being proposed to that effect. Mr Thompson said the meeting was not called for the purpose of deciding whether Mr Berry had the confidence of the householders. He would like to see it advertised that that was the decision to be arrived at, as there were many householders who were not present wouldjattend if that was the question to be decided. Mr Nichols proposed, and Mr Jacques seconded, "That Mr Berry had the confidence of the householders present." Mr Thompson proposed as an amendment, •« That the meeting be adjourned for a fortnight to allow of all householders being present." After some further discussion the amendment was put, and on a show of hands was declared lost by 6 to 8. A ballot was then taken on the question, «> That Mr had the confidence of the householders present," and resulted in 15 for and 9 against, and was declared carried. A vote of thanks to the Chairman concluded one of the most orderly and business-like meetings we have attended for eo-me. time,

HORRIBLE MURDER. A Religious Maniac Kills His Wife and Children Auckland, February 9.

News has reached here that Mr Duncan Monro, of Tauranga, in a fit of insanity, attacked his wife and four children with a flat-iron. Several of the children are dying, but there are no particulars.

Tauranga, February 9

The. town. .was. thrown into great excitement when it was learnt that a murderous attack had been made on his wife and family by a man named Duncan Munro, The children are aged respectively nine months, three, five, and six years, the youngest being a girl and the others boys. Munro, who was formerly an inmate of the Whau Asylum, and has certainly not been accountable for his actions, has been suffering from religious mania, and his relatives have kept an eye on him. Last night his brother left-him, the wife being in the front part of the house and Munro in the kitchen. This morning the milk-girl, being unable to make anyone hear, called her father, who, opened the door and discovered Mrs Munro and the eldest boy on the floor in a pool of blood, and their heads frightfully knocked about. The doctors summoned found that these two = still breathed, and underneath the bodies were found a flat-iron and a rolling-pin covered with blood. These wera apparently the weapons used. Going to the iront of the house they found the two litle boys in a double bed with their skulls smashed in, and in a cot was the little girl with her brains spattered over the bed-clothes. When the doctors first arrived all the bodies breathed, but from the first no hopes were held out. Since then the youngest and the two eldest boys, George and Johnny, have died. There are great signs of a desperate struggle, for articles of furniture and ornaments are smashed and broken. It is presumed that the affair took place about 3 a.m. Munro was promptly arrested in town in his nightshirt, which is covered with spots of blood. Dr Buller thinks it probable that a knife was used on Mrs Munro, but no such weapon can be found. All the skulls are battered on the left s:d).

Auckland, Febauary 9

The man Duncan Munro, the author of the tragedy at Tauranga, committed the dreadful deed while suffering from religious mania. The first discovery of the tragedy was made by the milkman on going round with milk about six in the morning. The family lived in a small four-roomed cottage at the back of the Presbyterian Church, and close to the Waikureau beach. Just before reaching the house the milkman saw Munro on the beach in his night-shirt. Finding no one answered his knock, and seeing the front door open, the milkman began to suspect something was wrong. On entering the door he saw the eldest boy: lying on the floor, just at the entrance to the kitchen, in a pool of blood, and apparently dead. On going into the kitchen he saw Mrs Munro'lying;on' the floor, apparently dead, and battered about the head almost beyond recognition. Further examination showed that the other three children had also .been, attacked, and. a woeful, sight presented itself in the-bedroom., The second boy lay, apparently slaughtered ,in,:a cot, and the third boy, and the jbab'y were lying battered in bed, baviiag evidently been sleeping with, their mother. They all appeared to have been attacked in bed, and in the same way. The father appears to have got up towards daylight and seized a flatiron^and-, jobbed^t iritolhe heads of 'hjsHmforlniriate 'victhnsr ;They' were; .all struck about,the. head in. the, same r way,-thepdimVof the iron having been driven into tljejr over and over again. There* marks on the. bodies at all, but the heads were all' = badly knocked Utou't. The baby had evidently been struck unconscious ■on^-^'^hM'fiWiaw'fwtlylngquitef 5 peacefully: wi'thkittriiead on its right hand, as if str«ek down there and* then Munro*' would appear to-have got out of bed, asshehadljeK, ; p'etl«eoa r t on, and had evidently rushed-out of the room either to;escape, the manias wfilsettotprotect one of her infante. - She was seriously mutilated, almost the whole of the back of the head being jobbed in, the brain protruding;"and pieces of the | fckull being picked up on the kitchen floor. The victims are Grace Emma Munro, the wife, aged 30 years; George, six years;- : John Hugh, five years.; Alexander^three years; and Lilian, nine mouths. The father's age is 33; hewas born in Victoria, but has been a resident of Tauranga since .1864, Eldest boys lingered till about eie'ven p'c.lpck,. when they both died nWty aV'the same time. The baby lived till, past one o'clock, and. then expired. None of them Tegained copiousness. Mrs Munro lies in an unconscious state, breathing heavily, but no hopes whatever are held out of her recovery, and it seems to be only a inatfcer of how long she and the other child can live. After committing the dreadful deed the father wandered down about the beach round to the sulphur works, and along to the strand, where he wa? 'arrested. On being spoken t 6 he 'admitted he had killed, them all, and said. " Glory Hallelujah," and when asked how he did it, said, «With a flat-iron, and that God had told him to do it,"

Heayy Floods. '■: \ -Punedin, February 8. The damage by floods in the Taieri is very great, and two lives were lost, Walter Swanson a groom at Outram, and a man known as " Old Harry," a servant at Kirkland. > Sheaves are floating about in all directions, a quantity being swept to sea. At Shands two hundred sheep were drowned, ynd numbers? Q£t#hj9ep and cattle elsewhere. The 'train ■. from wa3 stuck at Milton, Lady Jersey being' on board. '" """"' '' -'■^-^^B^'