EIGHTY-FIVE YEARS AGO

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26635, 4 December 1947, Page 4

EIGHTY-FIVE YEARS AGO

FROM THE FILES OF THE ©tago ©ail? ILtmes DUNEDIN, DECEMBER 4, 1862. “ The sale by auction of the s.s. Victory as she lies at Wickliffe. Bay, took place yesterday at the rooms of Messrs F. J. Moss and Co. There was a fair attendance of bidders, but all evinced at first considerable timidity, and the first bid was only £5 . . . and the vessel, with 1 all,, property on board belonging to her, was at length knocked dow y n at £200.”

“The provincial balance sheet for the half-year ended September 30 has just been published in the Gazette,” states the Daily Times. “ The liabilities of the province are stated as amounting to £46,024 6s 3d, and the assets £80,696 7s 7d. The total revenue for

the half-year is put down as having

been £176,431 2s 7d, of which £58.078 was the balance at March 31. The total expenditure for the half-year is stated to be £160,214.”

George de Silva, charged with deserting from the ship Eli Whitney, was sent to gaol for two months by Mr A. C. Strode, S.M.

The Daily Times reports at some length an action in the Magistrate’s Court in which Edwin Hooper, of the West Taieri ferry, sued a man named Reid for 5s due for ferryage of the defendant’s dray and loading and two horses. The defendant had, instead of using the ferry, forded the river about half a mile below the ferry. Mr Haggitt appeared for the plaintiff and Mr Cook for the defendant. After long legal argument, the magistrate, Mr John Gillies, said that he had no doubt whatever that the Act applied both to persons crossing and also to persons causing cattle to cross, and gave judgment for the plaintiff for 4s and costs. The defendant remarked that he had merely -wished to settle the question of liability.

The New Zealand Advertiser, Wellington; says: ‘‘The value of me cattle, butter and timber exported from Wellington since the discovery of gold in Otago has not been less, at the lowest estimate, than £IOO,OOO. The quantity of sawn timber exported since April 12 last amounted to 1,063,777 feet.”

At a largely attended meeting of the Fire Brigade, Mr Robertson was appointed collector at a salary of £3 a week, one of his duties being to keep watch on Bell Hill until midnight.