Responsibilities of Public Bodies.

Manawatu Herald, 6 March 1894, Page 2

Responsibilities of Public Bodies.

Mr District Judoe Kettle in delivering judgement in the case of S. M. Baker v. the Manawatu and West Coast Agricultural and Pastoral Association dwelt very fully upon the rights and duties of Associations and of those dealing with them, which appears advisable for members of similar associations to keep in mind. In commenting upon the plaintiff's right to recover damages, it depended upon whether there was a contract between the Association and the plaintiff, and if there was a binding contract and the Association committed a breach thereof, the plaintiff was entitled to judgment. The learned Judge quoted Williams v. Carwardine (4 B and Ad 621) and the recent case of Carliie v. Carbolic Smoke Ball Company in support of his decision and said " Let me apply the law as- laid down in these decisions to the present case. The defendant Association by its broadsheet made an offer or promise to breeders of horses, cattle, sheep, &c, to exhibit or allow them to exhibit their stock, &c, at the Show to be held in November, 18&8, upon the terms and conditions stated in the broadsheet. A special offer was made to the plaintiff by the Association addressing and sending to him, as before mentioned, one of the printed broadsheets. The plaintiff accepted the offer of the Association by sending in entries on the printed forms proscribed by the rules on the broadsheet, and he otherwise duly complied with the conditions stated in the broadsheet, and thereupon the contract between the parties became binding. I am, therefore, of the opinion that the plaintiff is entitled to succeed on the second branch of his case." In reviewing the resolution dis-q-.\Mfying the plaintiff Jndg* K-ttle said " I need only say that in my opiuion the committee were not justi* fiedin passing such a resolution upon the grounds stated. . . . The penalty for notreturning. an exhibit was a forfeiture of the deposit. Besides, the plaintiff was condemned unheard, and, was not afforded an opportunity to explain and justify his- conduct. The effect of the resolution, if it were valid, would be to deprive the plaintiff, who it must be remembered, is and was at the time of the passing of the resolution a member.pf the Association -(and as such had 'lights and privileges which a non-member did not perhaps possess) of benefits and advantages which- he had a right to enjoy. I have looked carefully through the Act and rules and I fail to find that any power to pass such a resolution is expressly, gjyen to or possessed by the Association. Rule 7of Section 12 of the Act gives the society power to expel any of its. members under certain circumstances and in the manner therein described ; -but it is not pretended, and indeed it could not be, that the resolution disqualifying the plaintiff was passed under that rule. The conclusion I have come to on a general view of tho whole of the facts and circumstances of ...the case is that, although the plaintiff may perhaps have been guilty of insubordinate conduct towards the members of the committee his temper was somewhat irritated and inflamed by the unfair treatment which he considered he was receiving at their hands. He was undoubtedly laboring under a real sense of wrong. U "is a' pity that' law had to be resorted to. The judgment asserts that illjudged haste was shown by the officials of the Association. The warning may be useful by letting officials qf similar, bodies understand that theiractionsin all cases must be guided'by a calm and a judicial consideration. We hope that the plaintiff having successfully asserted his rights will now join with the memberaof the defendant Association in making its shows an even greater success in the future to what they have been in the past. There will be no Mass at Pt. Mary'a Church, Foxton, oa Sunday next. Tenders olose to-morrow for clearing land near the racecourse for the Messrs Robinson. To-night the Blind Minstrel Students give an 'entertainment &t the Hail. Ad« •toiiot U by film Miii

The Returning Officer for the Electoral District of Otaki gives no«- ' .-- can be made up to Tuesday 1 next, and the poll will be taken on the 21st ' of March. ! A boy Hinted John fioiton-, aged i 4;, shot i another boy named Allan Smith whilst , playing in Polhill Gully, Wellington. The bullet, from the pistol fired, entered Allan's left eye and the doctors aye unable yet to i say whether it is lodged in the head or gone down the throat. It is not always well to do good by •tealth. Last Thursday two young ladies, dwellers in the town, Were married, and this is so far known. What has been overlooked is that both the Miss Newth's were members of the Primitive Methodist choir and were much appreciated, and therefore on the Tuesday prior to the 1 weddings a meeting was held at the Chapel ' and two presentations made. The Rev. > Mr Grindley made the presentations, and , Mr T. Westwood also speke on behalf oi ' the congregation, and the tenor of theii ! remarks being the acknowledgment of the ! services so freely and skilfully given, by ; Miss ewth, as organist, and Miss Ocr- , trude Newth, as a singing member. The [ presents were, to Miss Newth a handsome ' inlaid wooden workbox, and to Mis ' Gertrude a china tea set of 40 pieces. The young men, who were then to be," but now are, their husbands suitably replied on the young ladie3 behalf. Mr Paul Curtis our postmaster at Foston returned laßt night front his trip .to America, fie left the latter end oi ■ December to take charge of the mails to f San Francisco, and was permitted to I remain in that city until the steamer again returned. Jv*e are pleased to see him ' looking remarkably well, and he speaks as [ having enjoyed the trip very much. We i shall, no doubt, get from time to time some of the more important inoidents of his 1 holiday, as he toured round the country. 1 Mr Levy, who has very ably filled Mi I Curtis's place leaves to-morrow morning, > In this issue Messrs Robinson Bros give , notice that having leased the Wellington ; and Manawatu railway land, known as the Sandhills, they, object to any one trespassing thereon, and will be forced tc > prosecute all who neglect this notice. On I Friday and Saturday last there was much I illegal shooting on the lakes, and steps arc being taken to identify the parties, and ' they will be made an example of, if found. 1 We would strongly recommend all young 1 " shoo lists "to take this caution and thus s save needless trouble and expense. : The acceptances, and entries for the r Maiden Flat Race for the Sandon Haol , Race Meeting close on Saturday. s What's in a name ? That's a question few can determine. " Punch," " Oockey," and " Schnapper " were three of the nick--1 named out of the quartette of troublesome boys who appeared at the Police Court , recently. 1 The Stipendary Magistrate, Mr Brabant, holds a Court on Thursdays There are , something like twenty civil cases and three criminal ones awaiting his decision. A cheerful look out for the shareholders. In the case of Gain v. Fair Play, Mr A. R. Atkinson, solicitor for Gain, said it wap : that gentleman's desire that the whale ol ? the Company should be commited for trial in the event of a prima Jade case being made out ! We, beg. to acknowledge the receipt oi ! No. 14 of tha Crown Lands Guide. The north side of Whyte's Hotel has had a new coat of paint, necessitated by the scorching of the late fire. ; The billiard table and fittings sold at auction by Mes3r3 McMillan, Rhodes & Co fell a bargain to Mr Bradcock for £40. 1 Canaries were dull both of sale and song last Saturday. In. a tale told in an exchange it is remarked '• we nuvor kno>v our iuck," and it ( is further mentioned this is true enough! . especially with racehorses. They often win when least expected, and wlipu they ! have ten pound in hand and are backed as if the race were over, they break down, or curl up, don't get off, or come too late, and their owners induced to retire into private life with increased experience, but less money. Even so, and somewhat such luck ha 3 been experienced in this district. At the beginniug of the year 1,225,471 acres of land were open for selection in the , ten land districts of the colony. In the Wellington district there were only 76,582 acreß open for selection. The imports in 1882 amounted to 1 £8,609,270 and in 1892 to £6,943,056, whereas the exports in 1882 were of the value of £6,Bsß,ooßandin 1892, £9,534,851. Our imports, notwithstanding the increase in population have fallen £1,686,214 in value showing increased manufacture in the colony since 1882, and our exports have • increased by £2,876,843, which appears very satisfactory. In March, 1893, the Government had 1888 miles of railway open for traffic, and private lines 150 miles. The number of steamers trading on the coasts of tne colony, and owned in the colong, is 179, with a registered tonaage ol 65,202 tons. From our Paris correspondent's letter it will- be noticed that the peculiar right the Deputies possess of leaving a vote with a colleague is being seriously questioned, and will probably soon be a matter of the pait. The New Zealand Times, with an enter* prise that oan only, be compared to that which prompted the company to fit up an electric motor too small for any useful purpose in its business premises, has de- ' spatohed a special reporter with the Premier on his trip through the North Island. This reporter has thought it both useful and fitting with the company he was in to take up the best part of a column in Saturday's issue of the journal he represents in detailing " good stories " (his desoription) of how sly grog sellers at Ohingaiti used to best the local revenues 1 It is very much like the Times' way oi muddling matters. The British authorities have refused to permit Austrians to enter the iSoudan to remove the Mahdi's captives. Daring ,the^ past month 44 new estates were placed in the hands of the Public Trustee for administration. , .- Under the existing law, Women cannot be appointed Justices of the Peace although they can become Justices ex ojjtcio by election as. Mayors. The orchestra at one of Patti's concerts in Montreal omitted the National Anthem at the close of the programme, whereupon the Governor General, the Earl of Aberdeen, started it himself, and waa joined bj the audience. Here are one or two synonym* descrip tion of Puderewskt culled from American ■ourcos :— •• The Peerlew Pole-slar of th« pianiatic firmament ;" " The tawny tyrant of the keyboard ; " " The champion ivory spanker ; " and " The human chrisanthamnm." No fewer than 80,000 sheep were delivered at Ngahauranga and Petone by the j Qoveroraejifrrauway ftutitorJUii daring tbi

jine veanevs advertised by Mr Satherley I \ ftt'e sold. t _ ',' The great realising sale lasting for 20 days promises to be a gigantic success* ' The whole stobk is to.be Offered at; genuine reduced prices many of the' lines will > be marked at less than English cost at Te^ • Arq House; Wellington. ' faring the Great Sa'e Ladies' aprons 1 will be sold at 4sd. 4 buttons Kid gloves ►■ all new fresh goods at 1/11 per pair. White 1 and cream laces at 9d per doz. Ladies' linen collars new shapes at 3d each. Boys ' sailor collars at 3d eaoh, sold everywhere , at 6d, at the Great Sale Te Aro House, i Wellington. j 1 It will pay oonntry customers to take a 1 run down to the Great Realising Sale they ; will save all the expenses and be money I in pocket by buying all they want while 1 i good 3 are so cheap. Orders from the [ country will be carefully selected and sent . carriage paid from the Great Realising Sale I at Te Aro House. I We are requested to direct the attention r of our readers to the fact that the Annual s Sale of Surplus and Summer Stock will r commence at The Bon Marche, Pftlmeraton . North, on Saturday, 13th January, and 1 continue for 21 days. Buyers in this 1 district will do well to pay the Bon Marco* 1 TO BE SURE THAN SORRY, r To prevent moulds, spots, &c, on your 1 butter and packages for export, paint your boxes or kegs with a solution of * Salsahne. A shilling packet makes one gallon ; odourless and harmless. Sold everywhere.