SERPENTINE.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 156, 1 March 1872, Page 5

SERPENTINE.

Warden's Court. — Feb v 27. (Before H. W. Kobinson, Esq:, Warden.)

■"Rolf M osan and another v. Ah Jak and others.—The complaint in this casfc defendants had encroached upon an extended claim uf four acres appl ed for by complainants, and had interfered with a tail race applied for by them, by working for gold within the claim and upon the Hue of the tail race as marked out Mr. Ross ap peared for the defendants, and requested the Warden to view the ground. On the gruund the attention of the Court was drawn to the marks erected at the corners of the claim. Of thee only one was in aceordanc e with Sec. 1 Keg. 2 —the other three . being partly sod and partly stone, instead of stone as required by the Kegulations, and two of them of less than two feet in r.eight. As regards the tail race, -it^, -appeared that the upper, notice was "n*ot placed so far up the gully, as the point at which the defendants had been working. The defendants admitted the fact of the working after having been warned that the ground was claimed by complainants. Mr.. .Ross, on behalf of defendants. '• argued that, asithe ground had never been properly, marked out, there was "in reality no claim whatever, and consequently there could be no encroachment. The "Warden took the same view of the case, and said he should dismiss the complaint, but, at the request of complainants, consented to reserve a point, and state a special case for the opinion of the District Court—the point reserved being in effect whether the Warden was rig'»t in ruling whether an imperfect !y marked claim was no claim, and t T e*eforenot to be regarded as a subject of encroachment under 108 of the Gold fields Act 1866.. The Warden stated, for the information of the parties, that, in the event of the opiuion of the District Court being adverse to his ruling he

should impose a penalty of £5 upon the defendants.

The following applications were granted : —Mosan .-a.ud another, dam and tail race ; Long and an3ther, extended claim; Congreve and another, dam and tail pace; A. Horsley, two tail races.