AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Hokitika Guardian, 25 March 1924, Page 3

AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

BY TELEGRAPII —PRESS ASSN'., COPYRIGHT. STATION TRAGEDY PARTICULARS SYDNEY, Alarcli 24. Doris Brown's condition is serious. Apparently she placed her arms about her head when Sheen pointed the revolver. A bullet passed through one hand into her head. Sheen had been drinking heavily. It is stated that he left a letter, declaring that he was madly in love with Miss Brown, who would have nothing to do with him. He also left a will, and a life insurance in her lavour. Before shooting himself, Sheen threatened to shoot a young lady visitor to the station. He fired two shots through her bedroom door. MURDER TRIAL. SYDNEY, March 2-1. Al the trial of Robert Cameron, on a charge of murdering Ernest Dunham on December filth, the Crown ease was that a woman, Puckeridge, uarrellod with Cameron, with whom she had been living, and she went to live with Dunham. The shooting was the result of Cameron trying to get the woman Puckeridge to return to him. Cameron in a statement from the dock, .said that lie was unaware that the revolver was loaded. He had no feeling against Dunham, his obpjeet being to protect him from Puckeridge. He wanted to get her out of the way, as he considered her a public nuisance. The jury found Cameron guilty of the manslaughter of Dunham. The Judge commented that the jury had taken a very merciful view of the ease. The offence was very close to murder. He sentenced Cameron to seven year* penal servitude.

HEAVY RAINS. ■SY’DNEY', March 24 There is a continued delay on the overland lines owing to the heavy rain which still continues. The inter-Stato and cable news is much behind. There was a threatened water shortage in Sydney but it lias been relieved by the continued heavy rain. PLOTTERS ON TRIAL. MELBOURNE, March 24. The trial has commenced of five men. Arms, Costello, Toolan. Leslie Taylor and Thomas Taylor, on a charge of conspiring to assist Angus Murray (sentenced to death Tor Berriman’s murder) to escape from Melbourne Gaol (as cabled oil ISlh January). The witness, YY'arder Gleeson, an employee at the gaol, gave evidence as to Costello, who was a fellow warder, offering him money if lie would go oil' sick to enable the plot to be carried out. Toolan had also made him the offer of another job, and a cut out of £250 when the job was finished. The plans for effecting the escape were shown to him. ITALIAN DIVORCE CASE. SYDNEY, March 24 After rebut ting evidence had been tendered on the claim for £2OOO bv Mrs Y'itnli, the jury found in favour of the defendant, Lubrano. FOUR MILLION CONTRACT. SYDNEY. March 24. The Minister of YY'orks to-day performed an historic act by signing a contract whereunder Dorman, Long and Company are to construct the North Shore Bridge at a cost of £4,281,900. SYDNEY' LICENSES REDUCTIONS. SYDNEY, March 24. The Licensing Reduction Board dclicensed forty city and suburban v ine shops. AUSTRALIAN STRIKE NEWS. (Received this day at 10.25 a.m.) SYDNEY. March 25. A fudthcr conference of the parties in the coke strike proved abortive. There are three fresh disputes in the northern colliorie-. making a total ol nine pits idle. A.ENTRIES. SY DNEY . March 25. General entries for the Jockey Clnh’s autumn meeting number lhOo as compared with 112, lor the previous yea i. FOUR SHOPS DEST ROYED. BRISBANE. March 25. A lire destroyed four simps at Richmond. The damage is estimated at thirteen thousand. THE CONVERSION LOAN CLOSED. MELBOURNE, March 25. The Commonwealth Conversion Loan lias closed. Subscriptions to dale amount to C 10.309,009.

ferry hits wall of steel. MELBOURNE. March 25. The ferry steamer Rositv came oil badly in an attempt to lam the iortymic thousand ton. battle cruiser Hood. The Rosny’s how and steering gear wore badly smashed. A smudge of paint on the starboard quarter is the only indication that the Hood had been engaged. | WF.STIi AI,I AN ELECTION.

jtESCLT STILT. IN DOUBT. BERTH, March 2d. •|’he latest returns leave the result ol the elections still in doubt, lo date, Labour lias a strength of twenty-tinec in a house of fifty. INTERESTING SHIPIMNO CASE. (Received this day at 10.10 a.m.) SYDNEY. March 2d. The High Court of Australia lias commenced the hearing of a claim by the Union Steamship Coy. of New Zealand against the Commonwealth Government for “2d 10- and £2(l 12s. this being fees paid to the Government under protest. The action arose out of the discharge and the engagement of a number of seamen for the steamer Niagara in 1922, when the vessel arrived ct Sydney. The engagement, of certain seamen aboard had terminated, and the master of the Niagara, for the purpose of affecting the discharges according to the law. attended before the Port Superintendent, and having complied with all the requirements ot the .Merchant Shipping Act. he reques ei the Superintendent to allow the discharges to 1)0 effected in Ins presence. This he refused to do until the fees required by the. Navigation Act. amounting to two shillings for each discharge, were paid. The master .of ihc Niagara i,.iul those under protest, and the dis- , ted The Port Sueharges woie eltutiu. in perintemlent then refused to allow the seamen to he engaged until a turthei fee of two shillings each was paid, and the master paid them, also under protest The questions now submitted to Court are whether in the c.reurnstauees. the provisions of the Nat lotion Act governed discharges, am whether the Act governed 'engagements. -