GENERAL NEWS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXI, Issue 82, 20 November 1911, Page 2

GENERAL NEWS.

Two houses on Clifton Terrace, Wellington, joined by a passage and used asTi boardinghouse, were destroyed by lire on Friday afternoon. Some j sheets that were airing by the lire in the laundry became ignited, and ihe flames spread rap'dly, fan-md as tliey were by. a high wind. The houses were completely destroyed, together with all their contents, including the effects of fifteen boarders. The buildings wore owned by Mr H. Miller, and insured for £I9OO in the I uited Office. Polkinghorne, who occupied the premises, had Ids furniture and effects insured in the United Office for £SOO. 'ilie control of the New Zealand Salvatioif Army is to be separated from Australia from January Ist next. Hitherto the Army in New Zealand inis been governed from Melbourne, but under the new arrangements the whole of the New Zealand staff and corps and social institutions will be controlled by a territorial commander. Frank Ockenden, an inmate of the Porirua Mental Hospital, committed suicide on Friday by hanging himself in the dormitory. He was admitted in January, 1902, to the Mount View Asylum, where he remained until 1910, when he was removed with other patients to Porirua. An inquest will bo held to-morrow.

Ex-Detective Lionel Benjamin, wellknown in various parts of tho Dominion, and wiio was stationed at various times at Christchurch, Wellington, Wanganui, and Napier, shot himself at his residence in Palmerston on Friday evening. He had apparently been in normal spirits, and liad been busy all day rearranging Ids house. After dinner he went to ids room and put a revolver bullet into his temple. He remained alivo at the hospital unconscious until alter 11 o’clock, when he died. So far no reason is assigned, but it is said that Benjamin, who has kept himself in fine condition by physical culture since ho left the force some live years' ago, had suffered recently from internal pains. He leaves , a widow,'two sons, and a stepdaughter. There was trouble on Friday night at an out-door political meeting addressed by Mr .). Petherick, a candidate for Christchurch North. Someone asked if the candidate had not said that the late Mr T. E. Taylor died of certain complications referred to in vulgar terms, and Mr Petherick answered in the negative, and asked who had said that he had made the statement. An elderly man said that he had, and Petherick invited him to come forward and have it out. The man approached with his hands in Ids pockets, and the candidate asked him to “come on.” The man did not take his hands out of his pockets, and the candidate is alleged to have struck him in the chest. There were immediate cries that Petherick should bo thrown into the river, but owing to the interposition of Mr McKenzie, a local supporter of No-license, the crhwd was quietened, and the trouble ended. The Timaru Waterside vVorkers’ Union invites the shipping agents to confer before the 25th instant, on the now arrangements re wages, hours, and other conditions. They ask for Is 9d and 2s Gd per hour for overtime (G p.m. to 10 p.m.) for ordinary stevedoring work, 2s and 2s for manure, cement, and coal work, and after 10 p.m. overtime at the rate of 3s Gd and Is; also that the number of gangs for different work be specified and the contents of slings, and straight-out preference on the usual conditions. Tho Presbyterian Assembly on Friday unanimously adopted a motion in condemnation of Mormouism. Mr J. W. Jack (Wellington) was appointed auditor. It was decided to iiold tho next meeting of the Assembly in Wellington on November 12th. It was decided that tho payment of expenses should not be made to any voting member who did not attend to the end of meetings unless he left by special permission of the Assembly. At a meeting of the Southland centre of the N.Z.A.A.A. it was decided to hold the New Zealand Amateur Championship meeting at Invercargill on February 21st, 1912. In chambers, before His Honor the Chief Justice (Sir Robert biout) at Wellington on Friday, an interesting compensation case, the Public Trustee v. Perano, was again brought to light. The Public Trustee,' as administrator of the estate of Peter Tiernan, late of Wellington, deceased, proceeded against Joseph Auguste Perano, of Nelson, master manner, for leave to issue a writ of sale against the s.s. Wairau, owned by Perano. The history of the case is as follows: —The late Peter Tiernan was a seaman and met his death by drowning at Havelock on December 20th, 1910, at a time when he was engaged working on the s.s. Wairau. Deceased left an illegitimate child, which child had, prior to the father’s death, been committed to an industrial school. The Public Trustee, as administrator of the estate, proceeded against Perano in tho Arbitration Court, on September loth, to recover the sum of £325, compensation under the Workers’ Compensation Act, 1908, the allegations being made that tho child in the industrial home was a total dependent of deceased. On October 2nd, 1911, the Court awarded to the Public Trustee the full amount of compensation claimed, it being held that the child was totally dependent on deceased. Perano is said to be .minsured against accidents. The Workers’ Compensation Act provides that, whore an accident happens in or about a ship, the amount of compensation is a charge thereon, and may be enforced by the Supreme Court by the sale of the’ship. As defendant in this case had not paid the compensation or offered to settle, the Put die 'trustee applied for leave to issue a writ of sale.

Mr J. W. MacDonald appeared for the Public Trustee. The learned Judge niade the order as asked, the order to lie in the Court for two days. Sunday last was the forty-third anniversary of the light at Weraroa, where the wolhknown redoubt of that '?ame was successfully defended by the “Weraroa Boys” against a determined attack by a large body of Maoris. A number of survivors determined to celebrate the occasion by a reunion at the spot where the redoubt stood. J'cn veterans started out from Wanganui on t riday morning for the scene ol the now historic engagement. There were three motor cars, and all went well till after passing Kai Iwi, when tiic leading car, which was a considerable distance ahead of the others, crashed twenty feet over the hank on die side of the road, carrying tlir> driver and three occupants to what it one moment looked like certain death. Those in the ear were .Richard Tiagey (Wellington), J. Northaver (M.artoai), and E. MeCalloch (Wanganui), and the chaffcur. Northover was thrown clear, hut the ear capsized on the others. Xorthover |- an back and gave the alarm, and when the wrecked car was lifted sufficiently the imprisoned men were released. It was found that Tin gey had a rib broken and that the other three were seriously bruised and shaken. Their escape from death is regarded as marvellous. The irony of the affair is, that the “Weraroa Bovs” to-day sustained more casual ties than they did at garrison forty-three years ago.