AUSTRALIAN NOTES.

Evening Star, Issue 3469, 6 April 1874, Page 3

AUSTRALIAN NOTES.

Under the old heading, “ What may happen to a man in Victoria,” the ‘ Ovens Spectator ’ says—“ According to the late revelations, a man may be imprisoned for life in Victoria for a crime of which he is not guilty. The deiectives of Victoria persist in sayincr to this day that the man who was hanged for the Dalesford murder was innocent: a lord was discovered in the Colonies driving a team of bullocks, while he was blessing in colonial language one of his team ; the great claimant for an estate of L 30,000 a year spent some of his career in this district; one of our most respected townsmen had a claim upon the French funds during the FrancoGerman war, which has since been duly acknowledged; and as a fresh instance of what may happen to a man in Victoria, we may state that Mr Arrowsmith, the mining surveyor of Chiitern, has just come in for a handsome fortune of something like LIO,OOO. As a good deal of property has to be realised! and as Mr Arrowsmith has made up his mind to return to Victoria, he purposes going Home on leave.” 6

•An upright judge, a learned judge”— what a solace to criminals in the darkness of their dungeons must it he to reflect that their cases have been submitted to such a judge and we trust the unfortunate bigamist Houghton, whose case was tried before his Honor the Acting-Chief Justice, and by him sentenced to two years’ imprisonment, is in a proper, thankful, and contrite state of mind. Without wishing to appear as apologists for transgressors against the laws, we may venture to suggest that this offender has been rather overpunished for his crime. ~~ e facts connected with Houghton’s offence are somewhat singular. It appears that he was first married in 1840 at iSt Leonard’s, Shoreditch, and came to this Colony in 1852, and a year after was marned to Ann Howes, at St. Peter’s Church, Melbourne, describing himself as a bachelor. In 1872 twenty years after the commission of the offence—Frederick Houghton, a son of the prisoner by his first wife—arrived in this Colony, and discovered his father, who not unmindful of his paternal instincts, allowed his son to live with him. This he continued to do for some time, when a quarrel took place between them, and the son left, and was ultimately the means of proceedings being instituted against bis father for the offence of which be has just been convicted. The prisoner Houghton appears to have conducted himself in a reputable manner since his arrival in the oolony j at least so said a large number of credible witnesses whom he called to character at his trial. He had also become the father of two children by his second wife, whom he brought up reputably. . dad the prisoner been content to live in open adultery with the woman whom he married in this Colony, as unfortunately many do, he would have received no punishment at the hands of man j but iu that case his children would have been proclaimed bastards to the world, and his wife a harlot, as are other people’s wives and other people’s children and no judge would have been called upon to express his horror of the crime.—‘Telegraph.’

febareholding does not appear to be a very rosy game on the other side of the water. It the last published list of Victorian bankrupts we see that two of the fraternity have sought the shelter of the Insolvency Court. One of them stated his liabilities at L 3.665 and his assets at—one pound sterling 1 A, nice estate for the assignee ! The other owes Li, 193 16s Bd, and has exactly L4O to pay his creditors. The list affords another curiosity—that of a lady bankrupt. Her debts are over L3OO, her assets L 25, and she attributes her pecuniary misfortunes to havFiji j 6ntere( * ° n a baling speculation in

.Referring to the first voyage in which, unfortunately, the Macgregor met with a mishap, the ‘Sydney Morning Herald* writes;—“ The Macgregor, s.s., left San trancisco on the morning of the 3rd March, and arrived at Kandavau after a passage of twenty-one days twelve hours, including twenty hours’ stoppage at Honolulu. She sailed again for Sydney on the 22ad day, and had she accomplished the same rate of speed that she averaged up to the time of arrival Kandavau, she would have reached Sydney on the twenty-ninth day, one day before time. The Atlantic steamer was two days late, owing to an unusually lengthy voyage. Had it not been for this delay and the accident to the Macgregor, the English mails would have been landed in Sydney on the forty-seventh day.” Another absconder was on his way from Victoria to New Zealand by the s.s. Otago, on her late voyage down, but was found on •board off Queenscliff, where the steamer was detained for a short time to permit of a search being made. The absconder on this occasion was not a swindler, but an honest publican, of Williamstown, who had only recently, but

apparently not happily married. Some days previously to the sailing of the Otago things came to a climax, when the boniface was taxed by his better half with being a mere spiritless loafer. The taunt deeply, and he resolved to disprove the imputation, of his independence and man,hpod. Accordingly, with the full'knowledge of his wife, he packed up. his traps and took a passage by the Otago. The repentant woman grieved in secret fever over her lord’s projected departure, bub pride kept her from admitting so much, and he started. And then her resolution failed her. Only one course was open, namely, to arrest him at Queenscliff. She went to the police office, laid her information, which was telegraphed to Queenscliff and accordingly, when the Otago was near the Heads, the police boat awaited her with a warrant for the fugitive husband, on a charge of deserting his wife. &

A book-maker in Sydney has|discpvered a new way of “ posting ” those who do not settle with him a race. He fastens a printed notice on thq railings giving the defaulter’s name, occupation, place of abode, &<x, and requesting to go to him at once aud pay their debts of honor. As the notice is posted in a place which "many thousands of people pass daily, it is very conspicuous, and it is said that this bookmaker has fewer outstanding debtors than any other in the city.

Libel cases against newspapers in Victoria are unusually numerous at the present time. The ‘ Licensed Victuallers’ Gazette,’ which lately figured in the libel action of Ireland v. King is again in trouble. This time the Crown prosecutes, for alleged wilful malicious charges contained in an article which appeared in the ‘ Gazette ’ of 21st February, under the heading of “Bar Talk,” and signed by a writer using the nom de plume of “Cli(piot.” The article makes charges against one F , a tanner at Richmond. Mr O’Loghleu called a number of witnesses to prove that the article eould not possibly apply to any other person than Mr James Farrel, the proprietor of a tannery at Richmond, thpre having b'eeh ho other' person whose name began with F-—in that Upe of business in the 1 locality 'for the la,st twentysix years. Defendant, wa# committed for trial 'at the Supreme and was adpainted. tp bail in tw® enretiea of HOO each,

The second case is of perhaps greater importance. _ It was that of Walker v. George, the plaintiff being a racing man, and the defendant the registered publisher of the ‘-Australasian.’ Damages were laid at LI, GOO. The alleged libel was contained in an article and a letter respecting the late Bendigo Jockey Club meeting, in which it was asserted that the plaintiff’s horse, the Marquis of Lome, had been “ pulled,” and thus prevented from winning the race. As to some extent corroborating the opinion expressed in the repot, the stewarts of the club had disqualified the plaintiff and his horse from running, on the course for the future. However, the jury did not consider that the plea of justification had been borne out by the evidence, inasmuch as it had not been shown that Walker had any interest in

losing the race, and they therefore gave a verdict against the defendant, damages L3OO. There is another butcher claimant in the field. Mr William Williams, who appeared m the Insolvency Court a few days ago, claims property in Wales and Ireland, known as the Glenravon estate, which, he states, was (vorth L 21.000 a-year some time ago, but is now worth more. The claimant is a butcher, and is now insolvent. He confidently asserts, in a very unsophisticated manner, that the only difficulty in the way of establishing his claim is the proof of pedigree. Mr Williams regards this as a very simple matter indeed.

The sales of goods seized for unpaid railway rates at Launceston still continue. It is necessary to have armed police with fixed bayonets in attendance, Most of the goods have to be passed in. It is asserted that arsenic was placed in several sacks of flour which were left to be seized—a diabolical action. Judgments have already been given against 1,(j93 persons for L 2.885 for nonpayment of railway rate. Numbers are being summoned daily, but no attempt has yet been made to levy in the Deloraiue and Westhury districts, where the opposition to the rate is almost universal.