LATEST TELEGRAMS

Patea Mail, Volume III, Issue 231, 27 June 1877, Page 2

LATEST TELEGRAMS

[per press agency.] —— WELLINGTON. June 26. It is proposed to relievo' Mr Passmore flora his duties as Superintending Engineer of Constructed Railways in the North Island, Mr Higginson combining tins with the appointment now held by Mr Knorp, who takes Mr Higginson’s present duties in the North Island. Mr Conyers retains his appointment, but his head quarters will be at Christchurch until, probably, the railway is completed to Dunedin. The Government steamer Stella returned to-day from the Chatham Islands, having left on Sunday, at 4 p.m. She brings the Resident Magistrate (Mr Deighton) and others as witnesses in the case of perjury against the mates and apprentice of the Ocean Mail. The Stella did not visit the scene of the wreck. There was no chance of saving any more of the cargo, and the wreck has almost disappeared. About £6OO worth of tallow, dry wool, and sails had been recovered.

The schooner Island Lily, with a cargo of tallow, wool, and sails for Lyttelton, has been out about a week. The schooner Cleopatra took timber to the Chathams for sheds for drying and storing the wool on the beach, out for some unknown reason she left for Lyttelton without discharging the timber. Mr Edwards, of the Kaiwara Hotel, and two others, whose licenses were refused on the regular Licensing day, had their licenses granted in each case to-day. CHRISTCHURCH. June 2G. At the Supreme Court to-day the appeal case Regina v. Barrett, came on tor hearing. Barrett is a publican at Christchurch, and was fined some time ago for not paying the fee for what the magistrate termed an extra bar. The so-called bar was a sort of half-door in a tap room, and the defendant’s counsel being of opinion that only those bars opening direct on to the street came within the definition of the word bar, as used in the Licensing Act, appealed against the decision of the magistrate. After a long argument to-day, the matter was referred back to the Magistrate’s Court for a restatement of the case, hut Judge Johnston expressed himself to the effect, that, a bar must open direct on to the street before a license fee under the Act can be demanded for it.