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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XV, Issue 111, 10 May 1880, Page 2

Ad Auckland telegram says : — Commodore Wilson, of H.M S Wolverine, has returned to town from Waikato. He states that he has not received any cablegram announcing the safety of the Atalanta, training ship. It appears that she was a sailing; vessel, and formerly on the Australian station, and known as the Juno, being in commission from 1853 to 1858. Mr Stratford, Besident Magistrate at Queenstown, has given a decision that will startle publicans. A local botelkeeper who had been summoned for keeping his house open after 10 p.m., proved that his bar was closed, but the restaurant portion of the house, some distance away from the bar and in the rear of it, was open to admit his boarders. Mr Stratford holds that it is not aufficieDt to lock up the bar, but all parts of the house to which the public have access ordinarily must be shut up. He imposed a nominal fine of 10a.— Pott. The Wellington Post says : — lt is not often a man has a claim against him for such a large amount as £9000 without knowing something about it. In his cross-examination at the Supreme Court to day Mr London, of Foxton, said be was not in Mr Port's debt in June last year. Mr Bell, the cross-examin-ing counsel : " What 1- don't you know that the estate has a very large claim upon you ? " Witness : " No, I don't." " Why, the claim against you is put down as £9000 " Witness: " Well, all I can say is it is the first I have heard about it." (Laughter.) As the witness subsequently admitted that if he lost the case and bad to pay £100 costs, he should not be able to do it at once, the claim would appear to be rather a valueless one, if not, as Mr Loudon himself described it, '■ a foolish one." A Hokitika telegram, dated 6th May, says: — A small party of miners writing from Big Bay, under date 20th April, rtate that they are earning about 35s per week each. They add, " as there is any quantity of fish and game, we can live for about 7s or 8s a week. It is a wonder that some of the u&imployed do not come down here in place of hanging about the town ; they might put in the winter here very comfortably." — A miner working on his own account at Okarito Forks, is reported to have exported gold to the value of £256 in 11 weeks. He sold his gold to a bank in lloss, and has returned to his work. The recent rush to the Forks is not ao well

reported of, the ground being very patchy, and only one or two claims as yet payable. The A/ Z. Times of Thursday says :— Matters meteorological yesterday were what those who dislike the Empire City delight in calling Wellington weather. A very heavy southerly gale, occasionally accompanied by a cold aud soaking rain, started during the early hours of the morning, and continued without the slightest abatement till sunset, when the sky cleared and the wind moderated to a stiff breeze, which was occasionally broken by puffs strong enough to extinguish street lamps. None of the vessels in port, except the Union Company's steamer Hawea, ventured out during daylight. While the* gale was at its height it played sad havoc with loose fences in exposed places, and we have heard of two chimneys having been blown over. Near the junction of Manners and Cuba-streets, where some of the debris resulting from the late life iB still lying about, sheets of corrugated iron were occasionally to he seen skimming along the ground just high enough to catch the ankles of anyore who might have been In the way, and several persons who were in the line of one of them only escaped from being hurt through displaying an amount of agility which appeared to be «[uite foreign to their nature. The breastwork of the last reclamation was an exceedingly unpleasant place on account of the sheets of water which were occasionally carried over. The tide being an unusually high one the waves swept right over the top of the woodwork. No damage was done beyond what we have mentioned above. It was feared by some that railway traffic might again be interrupted by slips, "but although the gale must have been severe enough to loosen a number of the trees on the Rimutaka, the usual cause of slips, no damage has resulted. During the height of the gale the barometer stood at 29 44, but it rose gradually during the day, until at 6 p.m. it had reached 29.78. We take the following from the Post : — An official return has been published of the number of telegrams forwarded by the New Zealand Telegraph Department during the quarter ended 31st March, 1880, of the revenue received, and the value of Government telegrams transmitted during the same period, as compared with the corresponding quarter of 1879. It is rather remarkable that very nearly fifry thousand fewer telegrams were despatched in the March quarter of 1880 than in the first three months of 1879. The exact decrease in number was 4", 985, and in revenue £3693 3s lid, the respective returns being — 1880, 342,862 telegrams, £18,300 29 7d receipts ; 1879, 392,847 telegrams, £21,993 6s 6d receipts. The value of the Government telegrams despatched was £6,168 17s 9d in the March quarter of 1880, aa compared with £7,195 14s 7d for the same period of 1879, the decrease being therefore £1026 16s lOd. Evidently more departmental economy is now being practised in this respect. We clip the following from the N.Z. Times of Thursday last :— The assault caseMurphy v. Murphy— which was investigated yesterday, revealed some extraordinary features. According to the wife's story, she was forced to marry her husband six and a-half years ago, but she never lived with him ; while the husband declares that they lived together at least a month before sbe left him. The man appears to be very excitable about his wife, and upon it appearing to him some three years ago that her relations with another man were not exaetlv those that should exist between a married woman and a friend of the opposite sex, he sought her out and violently assaulted her. The same feeling of jea'ousy prompted the committal of the present offence, the defendant having a decided objection to the woman living, as he states, with a man named Carroll, whose own wife has lately been sent to the Lunatic Asylum. In detailing the latter circumstance to the Bench yesterday the defendant waxed very wroth, and exclaimed that it was "lawful ths carryings on of New Zealand." He handed up to the Bench a newspaper containing a report of a case in which his wife and a man named Leonard were concerned, but this the Bench, very properly, did not take any notice of. The decision was that, whatever his wife's character, defendant had no right to take the law into his own hands, and a fine of 40s and costs was inflicted. The Thames Advertises has the following: —There is still a chance for some of our recent aspirants for Legislative honours, inasmuch as we have learnt from a reliable source that immediately the Parliament assemble it is the intention of the senior member for this district to move, in his place in the House, that the name of Edward Richardson be ex punged from the records of the. House of Representatives as one of the members for Chrislchurch City, and that the name of Sir George Grey, X.C.8., be inserted in lieu thereof. The New Zealand Parliament, in all matters of precedence and Parliamentary practice, has invariably followed the custom of the English House of Commons, and the fact of Right Hon Mr Gladstone having been elected for Leeds, and subsequently for Midlothian and having declined the former and elected to sit for the latter, forms an excellent predecenfe on the matter. It is therefore almost certain the House will accept the example adduced as a precedent, and carry into effect the terms of the resolution before mentioned, which will sever the existing tie between Sir George and the Thames electors. We would therefore advise intending candidates to be early in the field. A New Plymouth telegram, dated 6th May, says : — The Supreme Court was opened this morning by Judge Richmond. The Grand Jury returned no bill against Douglas, for attempted suicide at Hawera, and true bills against John Dale, for indecent assault on his own child, aged 12 years, and William Cole, for larceny. John Dale was then arraigned on the charge, and his child, who had given conclusive evidence against her father in the Police Court and District Court, when the case fell through owing to the indictment not being signed by the Crown Prosecutor, now denied that the cvi dence she had given was true. Judge Richmond asked the child if she meant that what she said on those occasions was not true, and she replied, " None of it waa true." After hearing one or two witnesses, the Judge directed the jury to return a verdict of not guilty. The N Z Times says:— lf the business of the Resident Magistrate's Court is not conducted during Mr Mansford's absence with the same order and despatch that characterises the rule of the Resident Magistrate, at least more fun is evolved out of the proceedings. The presiding justice the other day the Hon C. J. Pharazyn, struck a new line, by closely questioning the defendants brought before him as to their earnings, &c. Two men quietly enough replied to his queries that they were laborers, and earned so much per week, but when asked how much they spent in drink, they preserved a discreet silence The third man to be cross-questioned was a native of the Emerald Isle, yclept Micky Ryan, aud when he stepped inio the box to anwer sto a charge of drunkenness, some amnsement was expected. " What are you?" said the presiding Solon. " What am I?" re-echoed Mike. " Yes, what are you ?" " Shure, I'm a laborer." " And what do you earn a week?" " What do I earn a week, is it? sometimes more than I do at others." <% But what do you average ?" " What do I average ? sure I can't tell. How long do you want me to average my earnings ?" " Oh, say for a year." " Well, sometimes I earn tucker, and Bometimes I don't; but I have to get it anyhow." This reply so overcame Bench, that the question, " What do

you spend a week in drink?" was not asked, snd we must fain manage to exist a while longer withoutjobtaining the desired information upon this momentous subject. The following notice of Miss Leaf's first appearance in Melbourne, iv the part of Josephine, is from the Melbourne Age: — " To the performance of H.M.S. Pinafore at the Theatre Royal, on Saturday night, there was a little more than ordinary interest attached, inasmuch as the part of Josephiue, which had since the first night of the present production of the operetta been sustained by Miss Maggie Moore, had, owing to that lady's departure for Adelaide, to be undertaken by Miss Annie Leaf. Hitherto Miss Leaf has only appeared as Buttercup, a part which did not at all suit her, and consequence her performance in that character has only been fairly successful. Her singing on Saturday night showed that her voice was more fitted to the music of Josephine's part, and she must be congratulated on having acquitted herself with more than ordinary success. This lady has an excellent soprano voice, and without drawing comparisons it may; be said that the part of Josephine was never better sung in Melbourne than ifc was on the occasion under notice. Added to her vocal gifts Miss Leaf has the advantage of a graceful figure. In the song, " Sorry her Lot," she made an excellent impression, which was strengthened by her finished rendition of the music in the duel; with Ralph, " Refrain Audacious Tar." There are 800 insolvencies in New South Wales last year. T,here have beei 102 since January 1, 1880. " Shall I hereafter darn your stockings ? " is said to be tbe fashionable i language for a young laiy to use when making a leap-year proposal. — Philadelphia Chronicle.