Untitled

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 16, Issue 892, 14 December 1870, Page 2

Cnpt. J. K. Weston, whose body, after being missing for three years, was recently found in the ranges at Waitakerei (Auckland), was correspondent to the London Tiaies during the Waikato war. Considerable alterations are proposed in the new Licensing Act for Auckland. A permissive clause is to be introduced. A colonial-born boy has met his fate among the band of brave men who found a grave in the " loue, lone sea," between the walls of the Captain. Leonard George Eardley Guilders was a midshipman in the Royal Navy, and was lost in the foundering of her Majesty's ship Captain, off Cape Fiaisterre. He was the second son of the Right Hon. Hugh C. E. Cb.ilders, M.P., the first Lord of the Admiralty, A Hobart Town telegram, Nov. 25, BaYS: —Forty sovereigns were unearthed in a garden by a pig rooting about, supposed to be a plant of some robbery, The sovereigns are of the Sydney Mine of 1868. The Western Australian papers ar« full of indignation at the conduct of the Chief Justice of that colony in committing to prison the three editors of the papers for contempt in severally commenting on an. important decision of the Court,

Resident Magistrate's Court.— Yesterday several civil cases came before the Resident Magistrate. Curtis v. Mitchell—A claim of ,£l6 ss, balance of wages. Mr Lee appeared for the plain tiff; Mr Stedman for defend ant. The plaintiff stilted that he had been engaged as laborer by the defendant, who is a fellmonger, on the 27th May, 1869, at the rate of Ml per week and rations. He had since then drawn money as lie required it, and had altogether received £59 7s 6d. On the Bth October last a settlement was proposed, when defendant refused *to allow him more than 15s per week. None of the men on the establishment received less than ,£1 per week, and that sum was distinctly agreed upon at the time he entered defendant's service.—Defendant deposed that at the time he engaged the plaiutilf no agreement as to wages was made. Plaintiff complained that the wool-washing was too hard work for him, and he was accordingly employed as cook, and his wages were fixed at 15s per week. He was glad lo get work at that rate. The previous cook got <£l, but he also assisted at wool-washing. After plaintiff was engaged as cook he used sometimes to assist in the wool-sorting. He used to get drunk, and was not worth so much at 15s per week as the other men were at £l.— The case was postponed till the afternoon. Mitchell v. Curtis. Plaintiff applied that defendant might be bound over to keep the peace, he baring threatened to burn his establishment down. —Defendant pleaded guilty; he did not know that he had ever used such a threat —if he had he was drunk, and did not mean anything.—His Worship asked Mr Mitchell if he really had any fear that defendant would carry his threat into execution—he was an old man, and one who did not seem to be capable of such an act —Complainant did not know; he had been much deceived in the defendant • he would not have thought him capable of sum moning him to Court on that claim which had just been heard.—Mr Lee, who appeared for defendant, said that the action was a vexatious one, and would never have been brought but in retaliation tor complainant's being summoned to Court for wages. —The magistrate said it was necessary that complainant should be sworn.—Mr Mitchell was accordingly sworn, and deposed that in consequence of defendant's threats, he feared he would do him some injury.— The Magistrate said the defendant must find some security that he would keep the peace towards com-plaint.-Defendant replied that he did not believe he could do so ; he had been eighteen months in the Province, but had all the time been working for Mr Mitchell, and very few people here knew him. His Worship postponed this case also. Woodv, Pritchard. —A claim of j£2o damages, defendant's son, who vvas bound apprentice to plaintiff, a bootmaker, having absconded. Mr Lee appeared for the plaintiff; Mr Stedman for defendant. Mr Stedman argued that the plaintiff having become bankrupt two years s ; nce, the apprentice was released from his engagement. — His Worship said he considered that in the case of a master becoming bank rupt, it was necessary, for him to retain an apprentice, that a new deed of apprenticeship should be drawn out.—Mr Lee argued that this provision was for the benefit of apprentices, and that defendant, by allowing his son to work as an apprentice two years after the bankruptcy, had waived any privilege he might have possessed. The defendant had in fact merely made a convenience of plaintiff—His Worship could see that this bad been done, but legally the lad was no longer an apprentice.— Judgment for the defendant. S. Webber v. F. M. Chapman-- A claim of £\s, damage sustained through defendant neglecting to properly filfil an order. Mr Lee appeared for defendant. —Simon Webber, a cooper, deposed that last August he sent defendant a written order for 1,000 white pine staves, to be 3 ft. >7in. in length, 5 in. and 6in. in width, and a foil inch in thickness, the price to be 14s per hundred. The defendant first sent him 247 staves, which were very unsatisfactory He wrote to him saying that they were not according to order; that fifty of them were quite useless, and that if the remainder were no better

than the first instalment he would not take them. He was obliged to use some of these, as he had orders to fulfil, and no other staves. Defendant next sent 650, worse than the first, deficient both in width and thickness. He refused to receive theai, but the carrier discharged them on some open ground beside his cooperage. [A sample of the slaves was here produced. They were all either narrower or thinner than the dimensions specified, and some were quite shapeless.] He also wrote to dedefendant about these telling him he would not take them. The remaining hundred were " next sent, but a* these were just as bad, he sent them back. Mr Chapman afterwaids called with a bill, £6 15s for the 900 staves, which he refused to pay. Mr Chapman then sent him a note threatening him with legal proceedings. His claim against Mr Chapman was for ,£ls, for five weeks he had been idle for want of staves, at £3 per week. [The court here adjourned to 2 p.m.] On the Court resuming, judgment was given in the ca*e of Webber v. Chapman for £7 8s without costs. This morning, in the case of Curtis v. Mitchell,, judgment was given for defendant, and in the case of Mitchell v. Curtis, defendant was given until 4 p.m. to find sureties that Jie would keep the peace towards plaintiff. Upon this he used rather violent language against Mitchell, and said he had better be louked up at once, as he would not attempt to find a surety Neagle v. Roper. —A claim of i-27 6s 9d. Judgment confessed for amount and 25s costs. Plain tiff* applied for immediate execution, which was refused. His Worship asked Roper in what time he thought he would be able to pay the debt, to which he replied that he had no properly except hi-* household furniture, and that he would prefer that plaintiff's application for immediate execution should be granted. --His Worship said that this was an unusual request for a debtor to make. He had never before granted immediate execution, and would not do so now. The Clerk, before granting execution, should satisfy himself that the parties were not acting in concert to the prejudice of other creditors.