NEWS OF THE DAY.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2497, 22 March 1881, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The usual monthly meeting of the members of the Orange order was held last evening in the Sophia street hall. The W.M. presided, and there was a goodly number of members in attendance. Communications were laid, before the lodge from the Imperial Grand Lodge of Ireland, and- received clue consideration. , The report of Messrs Poole and Goddard Jackson was received' and adopted, and the hearty thanks of the lodge tendered. It was intimated that the District Grand Lodge would be held on Easter Monday, and that it was also probable that a Convocation of the A.P. Chapter would be summoned for that occasion.

A volume and not an uninteresting one either, might bo compiled about the behaviour of witnesses and others when in Court. The too eager witness and the too reserved witness are both bores in their way, but not so exasperating perhaps as the defendant who conducts his own case and has not the remotest idea of how to marshall his facts or cross-examine his witnesses. An instance of this kind occurred yesterday, and indeed the same sort of thing is occurring every day. “ Have you any questions you wish to ask the witness?” the Bench will enquire of the defendant, laying significant emphasis on the word “questions.” “Yes, your Worship.” “ Very well then, ask them.” “I am perfectly innocent, your Worship.’’ “Do not,” says the Bench in a weary manner, “ make a statement now, that will come presently. Just confine yourself to putting questions for the present.” The witness stares, but evidently fails to grasp the magisterial meaning. “ Come,” says the Bench, “ the witness says you were there on Monday—were you? ask him.” Defendant, to witness'—“ Was I there on Monday?” “Yes.” “Your Worship (turning excitedly to the Bench), I was never near the house, I was ” Here the Bench, now thoroughly exasperated, remarks, “ Why will you make a statement now?” And so it goes on. The defendant has only one thing in view, which is to convince the Bench of his innocence if he can, and he generally goes the wrong way to work. He never attempts to shake the evidence of the witness, his one idea is denial. The Oamaru “ Times” states that on Saturday a rumor reached the police that the Boundary Creek Hotel had been hurried down. Sergeant-Major Thompson proceeded to the spot, and found that the rumor had gained currency from the fact that on Friday a man had called at the hotel, and asking for a shake-down had been refused by Mrs Schluter. He did not at once leave the hotel, and in a short time after, told Mrs Schluter that he smelt fire. Mr Schluter who went to the back of the house, found the window curtains in an upper room on fire, and immediately extinguished the flames. Mr Schluter does not know how the fire originated. A boarder had been in the room with a lighted candle some short time previously, and the curtains may have accidently caught fire. The man however, who gave the' information had disappeared. A few mornings ago a messenger sent to the Melbourne Exhibition to tell a man employed in the buildings that his daughter was dead could not obtain leave to enter the gates because he arrived before 10 a.m. The gatekeeper (Evans) would neither send word in nor let the messenger pass until the clock struck 10, The urgency of the message did not in his opinion, warrant a disregard of the rules. On Tuesday Evan’s conduct was reported to the executive, who ordered that he should be dismissed.