AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Hastings Standard, Issue 413, 31 August 1897, Page 3

AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

+ i Per Press Association. —C<>pyr>;/Itt. J Sydney, Tuesday. A train collided with a cow at Katoomba, and thirteen trucks loaded with merchandise toppled over an embankment 50 feet deep. The damage to the goods and rolling stock was very extensive. The Moana, which left to-day takes 575,000 sovereigns shipped by the Australasia, London, Australia, Union, and English and Scottish banks and 100,000 by a French bank. Melbourne, This day. The Customs, in addition to confescating the goods, fined the captain of the ship Phos £3OO. When the Convention meets Sir George Turner intends to propose that two committees be appointed, one to deal with finances and the other to classify the various amendments made by local legislatures. If this is done he thinks there will be no necessity for the convention to last more than a few days, then adjourn to February or March to enablejhe committees to report. The recent conference of Railway Commissioners on the uniformity of gnage shows that the adoption of the Victorian guage (sft Sin) would cost four and a-quarter millions while the adoption of the New South Wales guage (4ft 8-iin) will cost £'2,3G0,000. The conference is therefore of opinion that the New South Wales guage should be adopted. Having regard to the national aspect of the question funds should be provided from a loan raised under federal control, so that no portion of the cost of the unification of the guage should be added to the railway capital.