NEW ZEALAND NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 763, 11 March 1910, Page 5

NEW ZEALAND NEWS.

IBjr TeleEraph.-PrMi Aisoclatlon.l ■ • « . OPIUM CASE. Dunedin, March. 10. A half-caste Chinaman was fined £2& for having in.his possession opium suitable for smoking. WANGANUI FIRE. Wanganui, March 10. A fourteen-roomed house was-destroyed by fire at .Wavcrley early this morning. • It was owned by Mr. J; Hughes, and -occupied by.— Reid, who had baYely time to; escape. The building was insured for - sm.. LICENSING C.OMMITTEE. '"-"■'. Woodville, March 10/ ' At the quarterly.meeting of the'Pahifr '" tua Licensing Committee to-day, •ah a> phoahon from Mr. o"Dowd for'the tran* ler of the Kumeroa Hotel license to Mm was^withjirawn., The police report on the' Herbertnlle Hotel was' held''oyer tai the annual meeting. This -hotel wa« lately burned down, and an. application tor a temporary license was granted un- ■ aer stringent conditions as to providine'■' accommodation for travellers 'withinlen ; uavs, and also as to prompt step's bains taken to rebuild the hotel. :. /T* STRANGE'EVENT.' ' ' ; 'Dunedin, March 10. Lake Wakatipu rose "ten inches since yesterday evening. ■ ■- : •; ; SHIPPING; POTATOES. .: ■ .'.< Oamaru, March: 10. '.-:■'-, Oamaru-merchants, withthe objects placing the'shipping of potatoes on a firm basis, ngfeed. that all quotations; bo-for good tablo'potatoes, all" quotations f.O;b.'■ Oamaru;■ and that all .shipments be examined and passed prior -to shipment cm the buyer s behalf, but at the seller's expense unless tho v buyer accepts without ex-, amihation. '■;■.•...'.■• .....', ;:.';". CHURCH ROBBERIES.;'.':'.'.'." Christchurch, March 10. ' Two church ; robberies -on similar lines to-those reported some time ago occurred in- this city within-tho past , fortnight. The collection boxes, in . St.'Michael's Church .again suffered, and' the .Church of Christ was also entered and the collection boxes open.. In neither case did the thiel securo any substantial return... • '■■-..-

'■■'-, ' LAND SETTLEMENT. : . .' Christchurch, .March 10. ; The Land .Board examined applicant* for sections ,in the.Tripp. Settlement today. ... It was notable that- a great 'majority- were young men, many of whom W spent years in following agricultural and pastoral pursuits: -There were a few independent young women whose ambition « AS-toJie in occupation of a few acres, bouth Canterbury applicants will be 'ex-: amined-at. Temuka to-morrow. ■ . , ~..-: . .': : . ''. t : :;': : '" ; " : ""'-; v . ■':.• ■ .Auckland, March, 18.V A house of.six rooms in Marine Pa*, ade, Ponsonby, owned by Mr. A. Coleman, and, occupied by Mr. : A. E. Hobday, was almost completely destroyed - by-fire'to-' "ay. - together with its .contents. Mrs. Hobday is away from. Auckland, and Mr. ilobday was on his v.-ny. to town whent.be outbreak occurred. Ho cannot'accbhnt'for' the origin. of„fjhe ■•'fire N beyond .a surmise that it may have been caused bv rats, for u'a-nparantly started in the roof. -The' furniture was insured -in the Yorkshire office for Midi). The insurance .'on thV house was in the South "British. - FOUNDATION STONE LAID. ; Christchurch, March 10. ! : . The foundation,stone of the-'Childienfa' and -Women's , SurgicgV Ward at th». Christchurch Hospital-was laid to-daf-by Mr: R. Heaton Enodes," M.P., in''the al* ! sence of Mrs. EhodeV through-indisposii tion. -, ■ ■■■' ' ' *•■■■ > .SHARK AND, BATHER.. ... ■:!■'■: ■ .. Gisborrie! March's.'! ;H.' M'Gregor,' engineer at the freezing, works,awhile bathing, at Waikanao beach' was chased by a shark,: the teeth.of which grazed his. loot-as'he. was struggling to reach the shore, badly lacerating th» limb. - . ■■. . -. ■ !.'. : I ECCENTRIC. . Christchurch, March 9. . John Whelan, a middle-aged man,'who was grass-seeding on the Peninsula, -disappeared in January, and has not sines boon seen. Lately a coat and a-waist- ?? a ' belonging to."him' were found on the banks of a crook in Okain's- Bav-. Ihe, police -investigations have ■ revealed the fact that Whelan/s behaviour was so peculiar..that ho had to:be restrained. He left one camp saying he intended'to' go to Lytteltoh, but later the same day' he turned up at.another camp, apparently in a state:of extreme-exhaustion. When last seen he'-was staggering along the. top of high cliffs above the sea, and the belief is entertained that -Whelan fell into the •>; a -.'. He is said- to, have - relatives -ia iasmania. . . ■ ...'-'-.

j HIS VANITY;; ; : ,-'■.' ; . , Dunedin,March .9... r Frederick Armitage has been sentenced . to ■ six months' .imprisonment. for- stealing r a gold watch-and guard, and three old 1 medals. He borrowed the jewellery to "act . the toff" at a musical evening,- and sub- . sequently pawned.the articles. ■'•'■■' \ . - SCHOOL GRANTS, / ; ':■ Dunedin,. March 9. : • 'The Dunedin School .Committees' A'sstv ; .ciatiori interviewed the Hon. G. : Fowlda 1 asking if'hewould'do; his'best to- re- | instate the ninopcuce capitation granted [ by the late- Mr. Soddon. 'Committees - were finding it impossible to carry on 1 without this' grant. The Minister, in the ■ course of a lengthy reply, said Uein--1 statement was impossible. this year, bat .next year he would consider the-whole ; question, and; probably. suggest, a ■ new : basis of' payments to committees. He suggested that as in many cases boards ■had reduced payments to committees each time a special grant was, made by the Government, the funds of those boards were swelled by so much that they could, now well afford to make'up : the'present .loss sustained by committees. ':'• ■'.'■'■ '. ; WHEELMEN'S Ohristchurch, March 9. There is said to be a prospect of a big team of European riders visiting Australasia this year to compete in road races, provided- the dates will enable- them .to . take part in the Timaru-Christchurch, Goulburn-Sydney, and Warrnanibool-Mel- ; .bourne events. The League, of. Wheelmen. is endeavouring to arrange that the dates of the three events will enable the cyclistt to compete in oil. . ;. THE LOTTER CASE. [_ '.'.'." Taihapo, March & Leonard Lotter, late manager of M- C Lnwson's Store here, and who was-ar-rested at Wellington , last. week, was brought up to-day on a charge of forging and .uttering a cheque for .£5, pleaded guilty, and was remanded to'the Supreme; Court for sentence. 'He was also re» nianded to Pnlmorston North on'a charaf' of false pretences.