NEW ZEALAND TELEGRAMS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 319, 18 January 1908, Page 2

NEW ZEALAND TELEGRAMS

Per Press Association. j SHEARERS' DISPUTE. Palmerston North, Night. Hie Conciliation Board sat here 10day to consider the shearers' dispute, but adjourned till a conference should take place between the parties to the dispute, ill'. P. •!. O'liogan, the chain man, said he had met many llock* owners who were anxious to meet the men, and lie thought there would be ro difficulty in arriving at an amicable settlement. Captain Hewitt, 011 belialt of the ilockowners, informed the Board that they would render any assistance possible, and do all in their power to make the conference a success.

CAMPAIGN AGAINST RATS. Auckland, Last >»ight. The desirability of instituting a definite campaign against the rats \vlnei infest the neighborhood of Queen-street and the wharves was referred to last evening in a letter to the City Council bv Dr. I'urdy, District Health Oliicer, who drew attention to the. movement initiated in London for the extermination of rate, and suggested that propel tjowners in the vicinity of the wharves be approached with the idea of baying their premises made rat-proot, and that as far as possible this policy be carrel out in Queen-street, together with the rcular inspection of cellars in Lower Queen-street every three months, and the laying down of a rat-cxtcnni»ator. The matter was referred to the Streets Committee.

libel, case. Westport, Jjiisfc Night. In a libel action heard yesterday and to-day in the District Court, before Judge Haselden and a jury of foui, m which J. M. Sunley, fruiterer claimed of Walter Atfein, proprietor of the w estport News, £49!) damages for alleged libel in a letter in which complaint w ' l ' made of the state ot plaintiffs back yard, judgment was given for defendant, with costs £37 7s. A peculiar feature of the case was that the water of the letter had this morning disclosed ln= name to plaintiff and was called as a witness on his behalf.

CULTIVATION' OF PASPAT,UM. Auckland, Last Night. Dnrinw the week representatives of the Auckland A. and P. Association visited the Rev. George Wilks farm at LTamiki to ascertain what liad bee achieved in the cultivation of paspalmn on the clayey lands of that neighborhood. Over thirty varieties have been experimented with, and remarkable suecess has attended the planting of laspalum dilitatnm, the visitors bringing tack samples taken off swampy ground, fully six feet in length, the committ e will report the result of their "ivestiI gation to the next meeting ot the A. and I p. Association.

THE PREMIER. Wellington, Last Night. Interviewed by a Dunedin ktar reprc tentative, Sir Joseph Ward saul he had to be in Wellington on the 28th inst. to meet the Hon. Mr. Hall-Jones, who, he was advised, was sufficiently recovered to ..liable him to lake up work straight Regulations were now being framed with a view to the admission of Australian grapes of all kinds under the altered tariff of Id per lb imposed fast session. The Premier was unable to snv whether the regulations would i>e altered in time to permit the lmporttij tion of grapes this season, which is now fairlv under way.

AN EXTRAORDINARY SITUATION

Valmerston North, Last Night. An extraordinary situation has ocurroil in the Pnlmerston Borough Counil, owing to the Mayor (Councillor B. Ossex) refusing to accept a resolution wonoscd'hv Councillor Haydon, on the >1 ound that it reflected on the Mayoi. The meeting held last Tuesday closed with affairs at a deadlock, and to-day the Finance Committee refused to sit, and no moncv was passed for payment, with the result that all the borough employees have received no wages, lhe Mavor addressed the employees, expkinin"' the situation, and it is hoped th.it affairs will right themselves at a special meeting called for Tuesday.

TRADES AND LABOR RESOLUTIONS. Duuedin, Last Night.

At a meeting ot the Otago Trades and Labor Council the following resolution wad passed: —"That this Council place upon record tlieir regret that his Worship the Mayor declined to extend to Mr. Keir Hardie, M.P., an official welcome on the occasion of his visit to Dunedin." It was decided to forward a travelling rug to Mrs. Keir Hardie as a memento of Mr. Hardie's visit. Among other resolutions passed was one in the following terms: —"That the executive of the Trades and Labor Councils Conference be requested to draw up a model Arbitration Act Amendment Bill to take the place of the Bill brought before the House by the Hon. J. A. Millar last session, and that a copy of such Bill be forwarded to every Trades Council in the Dominion for consideration, in order to allow of its being presented to the Minister of Labor in time for next session of Parliament." WANGANUI HALF-HOLIDAY. Wanganui, Last Night. At a representative meeting of shopkeepers held to-night it was resolved to ask the Borough Council to appoint Saturday as the day upon which the weekly half-holiday shall be observed.

CHAMPIONSHIP ATHLETIC MEETING. Duncdin, Last Night. Otago iri unlikely to be represented at the New Zealand championship meeting to be held in Wellington on Ist February. Hector Burk was selected to represent the province, but he declines to make thc trip, on the plea that ho is not in form.

WARSHIP'S SMART RUN. Wellington, List Night. lI.'M.S. Challenger arrived at 8.30 tonight, after n smart run of 33y 2 hours, from Auckland, averaging 21.10 knots. BUSH FIRES. Dannevirke, Friday. • Thc loss occasioned by the destruction of Gaman's mill must be dose on £4OOO. Some £2OOO worth of timber was destroyed. A slight shower fell last night, lmt not enough to stay the fires. There is a prospect of more rain.

TRADK Christeliureh, Friday. A local tailor, summoned for falsely professing to carry on his business under special appointment to the Governor, was convicted and discharged. Tift practice was made an offence by the 1 . Trade Misrepresentations Act of last) session. t

SLY-GROG SELLING. IJunedin, Friday. ' Elizabeth Conolly was fined £2s'fort sly-grog selling. Defendant alleged thati the bottle of beer obtained from her by the police was ft gift.

COMMITTED FOR TRIAL. Whangarei, Friday. Madden was committed for trial on. lie charges of arson anfl thoft.