Manawatu Herald. SATURDAY, MAY 16, 1896. The Appointment of Justices.

Manawatu Herald, 16 May 1896, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. SATURDAY, MAY 16, 1896. The Appointment of Justices.

The history of the inquiry which has lately concluded in Melbourne into the conduct of certain . Justices of the Peace is one which the Ministry of this country would do well to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest. The evils whioh culminated in the inquiry arose from the improper selection of persons to fill such an honorable offioe, and the troubles that have arisen io Victoria

are 'Italy in course of t?me to arisi [ in New Zealand and therefore thi advice tendered by the Board to thi Victorian Government is advici worth considering by the Colonia Government. The Board found tha * Justice of the Peace named Rapi port had been guilty of corruption ii his capacity of Justice in that hi received bribes, gifts, and privilegei > from persons who either were oi I'kely to-be litigants in cases whicl wvre or w r?- /kely to b.. .Hec* b~f'):'< h :, n. VU-,, f~.,.\,l ihnt, tYtp pj,V bribes, giffs, &c, Were given to hm for the purpose, as he well knew, o influ ncing his judgment as a Justice )f the Peace in favour of the saic oersons. The Board found another Justice, named Baxter, guilty of r similar offence, and another Justice named Bird guilty of hearing case* in which he bad a strong personal interest in the litigating party oc whose behalf he sat and adjudicated, The inquiry was known as the Lormer Beard inquiry from the name of the Justice who made the complaint against those charged, and the case was most thoroughly gone into and very fully reported in the Argus. Tbe Board sat for a month and reported their finding on all the charge*, winding up with what they consider a remedy for tho evil. In referring to " bench-packing " or oi , Justices of the Peace migrating to courts in which they were not accustomed to sit, the Board reports it is an undoubted fact that whenever it is believed that the bench is going to be packed in the interest of one litigant or of one olass steps are immediately taken for the purpose of meeting packing by counter-packing. Strange as it may appear, the report continues, the Justice? who have acted in the way we have described have almost without exception been unconscious that thay were doing anything that was improper or wrong. This absolute unconsciousness of the nature of their duties, rights, and disabilities as Justices of the Peace engaged in the administration of justice is not only a singular but a lamentable fact. . One suggestion of the Board is to do away with the honorary justices in the large towns of Victoria, but a>? this would not meet the country districts the Board «• think that, for the future at any rate, honorary magistrates should be selected and appointed by some absolutely independent board, and that both their selection and appointment should be altogether removed out of the sphere of political influence and political patronage." The following extracts from the leader in the Argus on this case will also be read with interest : — " The system is the main object of attack — the system under which such men are appointed. One of these gentlemen, at any rate— and apparently the most of them— was nominated on the recommendation of the members for the district. This is the ordinary praotice. The man makes himself useful to the politician in canvassing, and his reward is some position in which he oan benefit himself. This is Tarn* many pure and simple, and now that the exposure has come, all reputable citizens will, we feel sure, join in in setting it aside. The findings of the board about the " bench-packing charges " is proof that we have altogether outgrown the honorary system. Now and then men are led by their sympathies to sit and try oases in courts which they do not ordinarily attend, and that is a wrong act fatal to a belief in justice ; and now and then, as in the notorious Oollingwood-Trades hall case, the spectacle is witnessed of a descent of class magistrates avowedly to act in class interests. Unhappily much of our present legislation does attack private interests and does provoke class feeling, and hence jealousy of the magistrates and suspicion of their motives is aroused on the one hand, and on the other there is a temptation to partisan magistrates to officiate in the interests of a party or a cause Factories acts, licensing acts, shops acts, all create special or artificial offences, and render it all the more necessary that the benches should be at once independent and efficient." ___—____—_—■—————■——■-

The Standard says that there are £4000 owing for rates in Palraereton ' It exouses the peculiar finanoe of the Councillors on the plea that the Burgesses have failed in making their payments. This might be a good excuse for the first default but not for the regularly recurring ones. The Board of Education sitting at Timaru, passed a resolution disapproving of excessive home lessons, and reoommending teaohers to give as little home work as possible, arithmetic being specially disapproved. Sir George Grey is not likely to return to the colony. Mr Costall, Government Printer, has re. signed from Monday next. No reason is assigned. There is a very good portrait of Miss Nunneley, the lady tennis champion, in this week's Press. It is said that " Bolf Boldrewood," the author of "Robbery Under Arms," will write a book on the colony. Messrs Laery & Co. sold the fruit exhibited at the reoent Fruit Conference. Excellent prices were obtained. The Post and Telegraph Department has subscribed £854 to the Brunner fund. A Maori named Nuta, 120 years old, is : missing in the Coromandel ranges. Bishop Wallis, who is staying at the i rectory at Wanganui with the Bev. T. B. . Maclean, inoumbent of Christ Church, has i ' for some days been erioasly indisposed. ' There was a hard white frost early this morsing. ' i

e Mr Blake, the custodian of tbe I^^J e ask.? us to mention that some one >^^H e habit of annexing the ChristohuroL^^H from the reading-room. Steps ar^^H e taken to deprive whoever it is of hi&^^J ■l paper. >t A new morning paper is to be in Wellington, Bays the People, by a Q din syndicate, and arrangements ar^H to be in a forward state. The pre^H e now occupied by the Evening fW^H s probably be secured, and negotiations H| r been entered into for the purchase of ml [j Post'9 machinery. It is reported, how ever, that Messrs Blnndell would only pari !: wiih tho machines on the Bii^u'.-tion thai '] fi-ipy rh^viV] n? 1 b<> imd in Wel'ing'on fo' a j a period of twelve month*. f We bpg to acknowledge the receipt from p I the Government Printer the Index to Han--3 sard, with thanks. A private cable message received in Dunedin reports the election of Messre 1 Meek and Short to the Australian Mutual 8 Provident Society directorate. Both are j opposed to the extension of the Society's i business to Great Britain. ] The Victorian Government has ordered sufficient cordite to make 50,000 Maxim ' gun cartridges. 3 Chrysanthemums can be propagated by 3 cuttings as well as by seed and division of ■ roots. Cuttings must not be made before i September. ) Some of the choicest dessert apples inch as Adams' Pear main realised at Laery & ' Co.'s sale from 8s to 9s 3d a case. Ameri- ' can Horn fetched 8a ld a case. ' Experiments recently made by Mr Car- ' son at Eew, will, perhaps, lead to a new l departure in the method of packing the f enormous quantities of oranges which are imported into England. Mr Carson buried 1 a large quantity of oranges under three or - four inches of dried earth, and after an I interval of more than six months the fruit ; was turned out sound, and perfrctly ripe. Under the present system a well -ripened 1 orange is a luxury. 1 At Wanganui two young girls have been 1 committed for trial, one for having stolen ' numerous articles of clothing and one tenpound note, all of the value of £53 odd, , and tbe other girl for rcoeiving property ' knowing it was stolen. The first girl was in service with a draper, and is accused of he ping herself to. clothes from the stock in the shop, some of which she sent to her sister also in service over the river. On Sunday the Rev. G. Aitkens will D.V. hold service in the morning at Foxton, and in the evening at Shannon. The Town Clerk informs ns that he has received a further sum of one pound for the Brunner fund from Mr R. Gardner, i this makes his list up to £5 15s 6d. It has been mentioned in Wellington that Mr George Fisher hae been offered aud has accepted the po3t of Government Printer. Mrs C Wilson applied to the Palmerston Charitable Aid Board for assistance. She said nor income was £1C per year from property at Foxton and two shillings a week allowed her by her brother. The Board decided to interview her brother in reference to her support. The Town Clerk notifies that it is the intention of the Borough Council to strike a general and library rate at its next meeting. The river has been vory high, but Mr Keith, the driver of the Shannon ooaoh, informs us it was falling at the time he , crossed the ferry. Certainly the most effective medioine in the world is Sanders and Son's Eucalypti Extraot. Test its eminently powerful effect in Coughs, Colds, Influenza ; the relief instantaneous. In serious cases and accidents of all kinds, be they wounds, burns, scalding?, bruises, sprains, it is the safest remedy — no swellings— no inflammation. Like surprising effects produced in Croup, Diphtheria, Bronohitis, Inflammation of the Lungs, Swellings, Ac, Diarrhoea, Dysentery, Disease of the Kidneys and Urinary Organs. In use at all hospitals and medical olinics ; patronised by His Majesty the King of Italy ; orowned with medal and diploma at International Exhibition, Amsterdam. Trust in this approved article and eject all others. — [advt.] One of the drawbacks of country life, at , least to the small settler, is undoubtedly the increased price he has to pay for any articles of clothing or general drapery, by reason of the extra charges for freight or carriage. This drawback need exist no longer, for extra charges are done away with under the new parcel system whioh has been inaugurated at Te Aro House, Wellington. The comprehensive catalogae and fashion book issued by the D.1.C., Wellington, conveys some idea of the resources of the popular establishment, and renders that task of ordering by post, a pleasant one. Samples of the company's new dress materials, <&c, will be forwarded with oata* logue, post free, to any address. Under this system any of the parcels advertised will be a >nt to any address in. New Zealand, post free, the prices charged being exactly the same as ihose at which the goods are sold over the counter in Wellington. As may be imagiued, however, this liberal offer is only extended to cash customers, and all orders for advertised parcels must be accompanied by cash for the amount, before the order can be executed at Te Aro House, Wellington. In illustration of the system we will give an example. Take for instance No. 7 parcel, which contains 7 yards of double width stylish fancy check tweed ; 2 dozen buttons and silk and twist to match ; 2 yards of body lining and 4 yards of skirt lining. This complete parcel will be sent, post free, to any address on receipt of 15s 9d, from Te Aro House, Wellington.