Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 1871

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 18, Issue 1115, 8 September 1871, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 1871

The Rev. Mr Shepherd wili(D.V) hold divine service at the Port Church pn next Sabbath evening at half past seven. By an act of mistaken economy, the Government of this Colony some years .since discontinued the piactie of advertising the lists of unclaimed and detained letters, by which many must have been annually saved from the JDead Letter Office. The present system is to draw up a monthly list, and post it in the place in which of all pthers, it is of least use—the outside of the Chief Post Office. In the case of Retained letters, the hardship lo country settlers especially is very great, as they may be anxiously looking for answers to letters, which through some mistake fn the amount of postage, have never left the Province. ' This is particularly the case with letters addressed to foreign pountries ? the rates of postage to which are constantly changing For the information of pur readers we give a list pf the letters at present detained in the Napier office, with the amount ot postage deficient. Letters detained during the month of August :—Mrs Win. Perry, Bayswater, England, 4d; Miss T. Wooii, OkUown street, Plymouth, 4d ; j. li. N. Norton, Esq , Monmouth, England, 2d'; Mr It. Stevens, M.azagon, Bombay, 6d; Mr Qhas. Sharland, Melbourne, 6d; Mrs Chas. Koope, Dartmouth, Devon, 6d. Letters posted pieviously to Angust, and detained : Mr Bobert McOaughane, Grahamstown, 2d; C. F. A. Sangster, Esq., Pongkong, 6d; Mrs C. E. A. Sangster, jlpngkong, Qd ; Don Juan Dods, Peru, js • Mrs Jordan Sell, Ware, Hert«, |d; Mrs Elizabeth Tory, Lodge road, Biirningham, 4d \ C. Platz & Son, Erfurt, Prussia, 3d; Mrs Spradbrow, Point ? Port Natal, South Africa, 5d ; .AfrW. Tyrree,"Punedii:, 2d; Mr W. S. Brown, Buenos Ayres, 6d; Herbert K. Peyland, Jfente' Yideo. Pvftjii, 6d. Carelessness

in addressing letters is perhaps the chief ca«<se of miscarriage. We have seen one " unclaimed," the onlj address of which (omitting the name) was " Sea View, New Zealand." This letter appeared to have passed through every chief office in the Colony, and was covered with postmarks and suggestions as to its probable destination. M'Meckan, Blackwood & Co.'s s.s. Tararua, from Melbourne, arrived at the Bluff ab 7 o'clock this morning, jbiiuging the English Mail via Suez. The s.s. Star of the South may now be hourly expected to arrive here from, Auckland. In the Re-ddent Magistrate's Court this morning, a drunkard was fined 20s, and committed in default. Cornelius Dempsey was charged by G. Peacock, Inspector of Slaughter Houses, with a breach of the Slaughter House Act, in having slaughtered a certain bullock without a licence away from the slaughter house. The defendant admitted the fact, but pleaded extenuating circumstances. Evidence was biought which proved that the animal wa-i being driven to the slaughter-house, when be became so wild as to be quite unmanageable. After some hours trouble with the bullock, he was shot, as the safety of passers by was in danger.— His Worship said that where a breach of the Act was proved, there was no alter native but to inflict a tine of £lO. In this case, however, he thought the prosecutor would scarcely pro's the charge. Mr Peacock said that, being a subordi iate officer, he could see no alternative but to press it; he was simply dischaiging his duty. If the defendant had informed him of the circumstances, he would have given him a permit to kill the animal ; he had given such permits on previous occasions.—His Worship said that a licence of this kind would cost £lo.—Mr Peacock said that he had not given a license of that kind, but merely a permit.—His Worship asked under what clause of the Act the Inspector was authorised to grant these permit-.—Mr Peacock said he did not know of any clause specially giving him this authority; b'it according to his in terpretation of the Act he had such power.—His Worship said that, taking into consideration the special circumstances of this case, and the fact that the Inspector had omitted to show that the animal was slaughtered for sale, he would dismiss the information. It is suggested to form a company for the production of lime, in Canterbury, The Evening Post says :—The ease with which persons in Wellington obtain licenses for public houses is becoming a matter worth enquiring into. A little time ago a man applied for a transfer of a license, which \yas opposed by the police on the ground that at a lecent fire he was drunk, and obstructing the firemen in the execution of their duty, and only escaped being locked up because the police were-too busy just then to take him off to the station house. They also opposed it because a case of violation of the licensing ordinance, in which he was a witness, broke down, in the face of direct proof that a breach had been committed, owing to his shuffling evidence. And yet the licensing J.P.'s, who seem to follow no rule or principle, granted him a license to-day for a house next door to an old established house, and within a stone's throw of three others. There was not the excuse evpn that the house was required, and there was much evi deuce that the man was not the most desirable 10 place in it under any circumstances. The experience of the past few months should teach the necessity for greater caution in the issue of licenses. Two publicans aie now in gaol, one awaiting his trial for murder and the other undergoing his sentence for indecent assault. This kind of thing can only be checked by a more rigid examination into the character of applicants for licenses. The Wanganui Chronicle, 26th ult., save:—We l]ave been deluged with rain, but in the Taieri, Otago, the sole topic of conversation is the dryness of the season. A winter like the present has not been experienced for many years, and a good ctay'tf rain, says a cor respondent, would be a welcome sight to the farmers generally.