PER PRESS AGENCY.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 1959, 15 April 1875, Page 2

PER PRESS AGENCY.

Wellington, This day> : Soveral instances hating come to the knowledge of {the Commissioner of Customs of the receipt in this Colony of two invoices for the same goods, one being of smaller value than the other, apparently with a view to defraud the Customs in ad valorem duty, strict orders have been given to officers of Customs to have all the packages shipped by the firms known to have acted as above opened and thoroughly examined on arriral in the Colony. At a meeting of the Chamber of Commerce, a scale of mercantile charges, subject to following alterations, was adopted : —Collecting and remitting rents, five per cent, to tv.n.per cent.; collecting and remitting interests, five per cent, to ten per cent.; on procuring inonejs on mortgage, one per cent, to 2\ per cent.;; and on English and foreign bills, 10 per cent.

Chbistchubch, Wednesday. In the Provincial Council this evening, Mr Montgomery stated that the members of the Executive had seiit in their resignation to the Superintendent in consequence of the rejection of the Municipal Corporation Revenue Bill. Sir Cracroft Wilson then said that the Superintendent had sent for him after two other gentlemen had refused to undertake the responsibility to form a government, and had asked him if he would endeavour to form one, to which he had promised to reply before noon on Thursday. Mr Wynn Williams and Mr Wm. Maskell then said they bad been successively sent for, but had declined to undertake to form a Government, because, although willing to take office with a new Government, they did not think they enjoyed the confidence of the House to a sufficient extent to justify them in attempting to form a Government. The House then adjourned till 5 o'clock on Thursday. Dunedin, Thursday*

John Fulham, while engaged in piledriving, received some nasty injuries by the monkey jamming hia head against the piles. He had his jaw smashed and' his head bruised, and lies in a very precarious state.

Mr Bathgate,R.M., has been subpoenaed as a witness in the case Police v. Dodson, the Derby sweep, he having been secretary to a land lottery which took place in 1868. Messrs Kirkpatrick and Glendining were charged at the Police Court by one of their machinists with an infringment of the Employment of Females Act. The Bench'dismissed the case, and expressed an opinion that there had been false swearing on each side. ■•■ In a case heard this morning, the Inspector under the Adulteration of "Food Acs v. Oliver, the Magistrate decided, by the last provision in uection four,? that sellers of adulterated food or dr.ink are not liable to a penalty i;F such article has not been previously notified in the Gazette of the Province in which such seller shall reside, to be an adulteration or impure. The two " nots " in the proviso neutralise each other. The Benclti stated that the Inspector\coujd never obtain a conviction until the Act is altered.