WELLINGTON NOTES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 9007, 14 August 1907, Page 1

WELLINGTON NOTES.

[From Ottr Cot.responi>ext.] WELLINGTON, August 13. No rock oysters have been on sale in I Wellington for the past month, and none are likely to reach the market before the season closes at the end of October. Owing to the wholesale depletion of the beds last year, tho Government declared a close season this j-ear over almost the whole of tho Auckland district. The exceptions were the beds on Rangitoto Island, and in the vicinity, and those on Ponui Island. Within three weeks after the present season opened all the oysters were stripped from the Ponui beds. Those in the Rangitoto area have hardly been touched, as the quality is said I to be inferior this year. What oysters are fit to be picked find a ready sale in Anckland at good prices. It is understood, says the " Post," that during the present session the Minister of Marine will introduce a Bill to enable the Government to handle the entire output of rock oysters, and thus prevent the wholesale depletion which lias gone on in past years. A pronouncement on the game of "two-up 1 " was made by Mr Justice Cooper this morning in addressing the jury empanelled to try a man named Macnamara on a charge of having kept a common gaming-house. He said that " two-up ". wais purely a game of chance, and it was only "pitch and toss " under 'another name, with the addition of what was called a " kip " to facilitate tossing. Notwithstanding that the Statutes had not defined "two-up" as an unlawful game, his Honor said he would direct the jury that "two-up" was an unlawful game. The reason was this: that a game of chance that was not unlawful by statute became unlawful if it wa6 played in a common gaming house.