LATEST TELEGRAMS.

Kumara Times, Issue 672, 22 November 1878, Page 2

LATEST TELEGRAMS.

[press agency.]

Christchurch, November 21

It has been resolved to construct a new bridge over the river at a probable cost of £I3OO.

Nominations for Mayor have closed, the only two candidates were the present Mayor and Councillor Icke. Charles Morgan committed suicide last evening in a shanty at the rear of Collins’s Hotel by hanging himself; great determination was shown by deceased in carrying out his object. Cause not known.

A saw mill at the Smith Town-belt, belonging to Montgomery and Co., was totally destroyed by fire this morning; it originated through a lighted shingle blowing about where shingles were being made. Insurance Standard Company, £IOOO. Dunedin, November 21.

The Albion, which left Melbourne yesterday, has been taken over by the Union Company, and the Tararua, Arawata, and the Ringarooma will be transferred as they arrive in Melbourne from their present voyages. The Claud Hamilton is not purchased, but the Union Company get the use of her until one of their new steamers arrive. These are to be named Teauau and Rotoruahauwai.

Grahamstown, November 21

The Premier.. and the Minister for Public Works have been communicated with by the local authorities, asking that Messrs Conyers and Lawson he instructed to visit the Thames to take steps to procure the survey of the Thames Valley line. The Premier says he goes to Kuwait for rest and quiet, and hopes Mr Macandrew will attend to the request.

Auckland, November 21

Conyers and Lawson to-day visited the Kaina'ra railway to decide on the proposed alternate routes. They met the Harbor Board on Monday, to confer respecting the harbor reclamation for the Queen street railway station. Quantities of inferior kerosene are being sold, and accidents are frequent. At the annual Wesleyan meeting today, additional agents were recommended for Maori districts. Timabu, November 21.

The sea is gradually scouring away the beach and the reclaimed land north of Mole. Allan and Stumbles, the contractors for the first part of the breakwater, have put a lot of hands on filling up bags with shingles and lying them along in tiers to break the force of the sea.

The fire in Geraldine bush is still burning, and is gradually approaching the township. No correct estimate of the damage can yet be made. Whitaker, Barker, Potslewaifce, M‘Eenzie, Martin, and Gibson, have suffered ; and besides the loss of the Government bush, a large quantity of stacked firewood has been consumed.

The Titnant Herald announces it will shortly reduce the price of the paper to 2d, and be enlarged. Wellington, November 21.

To-nights Gazzete declares by proclamation the following lands open for sale in Westland Mining District,: — Bloct 150 in the Tnrewhata Surrey District, containing 1500 acres, commencing opposite 24ch mile post Christchurch road, subject to necessary reserves and roads, and exclusive of gold workings. The valuation under the land rax will begin early in December, and it is understood it will be ready for enforcement in January. In the Appeal Court, the demurrer in the case of Holt and M‘Carthy was argued, Travers and Edwards appearing tor the plaintiff-*, the AttorneyGeneral and Chapman for the defendant. The defendant (the proprietor of the Poverty Bay Herald) copied Press Agency telegram') trom another paper without payment, and an-action for an injunction was commenced hy plaintiffs. Defendant demurred, on the ground that there was no common law in copy-

right, and that there was no special statute restricting the right of publication in New Zealand. Mr Tiavers contended the question of copyright did not arise, and if there -was no statute in New Zealand, the common law operated, and plaintiffs had a right of property in these telegrams, just as a merchant had a right of property in merchandise. The Court took time to consider its decision.

Mr Batkin, Secretary of the Treasury, has been appointed Assistant Comptroller and Auditor, while Mr M‘Gavin takes Mr Batkin’s place as Accountant of the Treasury. Heywood is made Accountant under the Land Tax Department, of which Sperry is Chief Commissioner. Mr M'Lean, Provincial Auditor, is to be appointed to the SuhCommissionership of Auckland. Mr Martin, Government Auctioneer, has been appointed Sub-Commissioner of Otago. Mr Mackay,. Commissioner of Native Reserves, is appointed SnbCommissioner at Nelson. The valuation under the land tax will begin early in December, and it is understood it will be ready for enforcement in January. T. W. Teschemaker, M.H.R. for Gladstone, died here to-day of typhoid fever.

THE CASE OE THE CITY OE AUCKLAND. W ELLINGTON, November 21. The Resident Magistrate, in deliver* ing judgment in the case nf the wreck of the City of Auckland, after quoting cl iuses of the Act, under which the inquiry was held, stated that as the as* sessora appointed to inquire into the case with him, were not agreed, it devolved upon him to give an independj ent judgment. Having carefully gone ] over the evidence taken, and considered ( the entries in the official and ship’s logs, I and having conferred with assessors, he | was of opinion that the loss of the City of Auckland was caused by the master having laid off the position of the ship incorrectly on the chart, suqh error having arisen through his having inadvertently pricked his distance from longitude instead of latitude, making a variance of 14 or 15 miles, and having overrun his distance, through not knowing the rate the vessel Was going, pro* hably arising from imperfect, or incor* i rect information, cn the Admiralty I chart, thereby causing him to mistake i Kapitea for Stephen’s Island, lie was 1 further of opinion that, asuming the i .master to have been where he tin night he was at the time he remarked his false • position on the chart, the courses were 1 right and the same as used by the ma- j j'/rity of masters coming through the ! straits, : He considered the master oul- 1 ) pa'de in not using a deep sea lead, | though at the same time,'from sounding I on chart the same depth would have I been found in true and false positions, i ; and the fact of sounding would not i ! have determined his actual position. | errors would be considered serious \ j in the Royal Navy, and cculd hardly j | have happened, but in the merchant' f service a practice almost amounting to ' a custom exists for masters to work out | their own observations without consul - ’ tation with officers. He considered the practice very reprehensible, but it not be fair to punish the master for doing that which is done by nearly every m aster in the service. Taking into consideration the confidence placed in him by the owners and implicit reliance by officer's, and his praiseworthy and energetic conduct in successfully landing all passengers and crew with* out loss of life, he was not prepared to j say he had acted in such a culpable manner as to justify the suspension of! his certificate. Judgment is based upon j less stringent rules, regulating the merchant service, rather than on the move severe code of Royal Navy. The decision Would be influenced by the assessors respecting the merchant service rather than by others assessed representing the Royal Navy. Nothing in the conduct of either officers of the ship requiring the slightest censure, all the certificates are returned.