WARDEN'S COURT.

Thames Star, Volume XII, Issue 3944, 19 August 1881, Page 2

WARDEN'S COURT.

THIS DAY. (Before H. Kenrick, Esq., Warden.) HAECOUET V. CALDEE.

This was an applicatiou for the forfeiture of the Gladiator claim, Waitekauri. The Mining Inspector had also put in a claim for the forfeiture of this piece of ground. His Worship said it was evident the plaint laid by the Mining Inspector took the precedence, it having beeu laid some hours before plaintiffs, and his application would therefore be taken first. The case of MINING IKSPECTOE V. CALDEB was then called. Defendant deposed that he pegged out the Gladiator claim in 1876 He had worked it, but not regularly, for over a year, but during the last 18 months he bad not done any work on it. F. J Burgess produced the notice of the pegging out of the claim. His Worship said- he would reserve judgment until the 25th, to see if the ground had subsequently been applied for. MINING INBPECTOB V. CALDEE. This was a similar claim for the forfeiture of the JNugget claim at Waitekauri. The evidence given in this case was exactly similar to that given in the last, and the case was dealt with in the same manner. Another application by the Mining Inspector for the forfeiture of the Coarse Bock claim, at Waitekauri, was similarly dealth with. HABCOUET V. CALDEB. Mr Harcourt had made applications similar to those made by the Mining Inspector, for the forfeiture of the three pieces of ground, but withdrew them when he found that the Mining Inspector's would be taken first HEAEN AND OTHEES V. GREENVILLE. This was an application for damage caused by defendant not having kept to the terms of an agreement. Mr Miller for plaintiff, and Mr Brassey for defendaut.—All witnesses were ordered out of Court. The agreement was put into Court. William H«arn, sworn, deposed—The plaintiffs wore the tributers uuder the agreement before the Court. They had, to the best of his belief, carried out all the terms of the agreement. The flood on the 16th July covered their principal workings with water. Tha only damage to the winding engine, &c, was the carrying away of a portion of the flume which supplies the boiler with water. Two days would have been ample to repair the damage, but defendant did not start to repair it until the 20th, aud had not finished until the 26th. Defendant did not start pumping till the b'th August, and when he did he only pumped from nine till five o'clock on each day, from the 6th to the 11th. While working the engine was kept at full speed, but there were unnecessary stoppages. If defendaut had baled twelve hours per day the water would have been down iv a week, but it would take a week from now to get their workings clear. Defendant had told witness he would not bale for him. Tney had been working with six men the whole time, though at a loss, to keep their tribute uuder the agreement. They had spent about £'400 on dead work, and were now on payable quartz, which gave them a net profit of about £300 for the month previous to the flood. They had lost fi»e weeks by the defendant not baling. That return (produced) is one for the gold taken from the mine for the week previous to the 14th of July. (Two other returns wore also put into Court of gold from quartz taken from the mine up to and ou the 16th, but not subsequent.) Defendant could have started baling on the 18th if he had liked. Tttey would probably have got quite as much gold during the past month as previously. By Mr Brassey—He had received a notice of re entry from the defendant. He had asked the Warden for protection, but had been told that he would have to get it from defendant. He had never asked adtice of the Warden. Defendant had complained to him of their stopping work too soon on Saturday nights. They had; been working on payable* quartz during the last week, but had not been able to get into the principal workings. Win. Deeble, one of the tributera, gave corroborative evidence re the yield of gold from the mine, and the damage done by the flood. The engine when baling went very slowly. They had been getting payable crushing dirt since April, from which they'had paid a dividend of £§, and had a balance of £100 in the Bank. (The witness was cross-examined by Mr Brassey, but the facts elicited were only corroborative.) To the Court—He could not swear that they would bare got payable quarts if

they had been working daring the past month, but gold was snowing in the face of the drive when they stopped working, and ever since the reef was-cut good payable quartz had been got from it. The Court was then adjourned to 2.30.

On resuming at 2.30 the case for the prosecution was proceeded with. James Wilson, another tributer, gave corroborative evidence. It was his opinion that it would take a month to get the mine clear of water as baling was going on now.

Charles Morton, sworn, deposed—He knew the Hape Creek mine windingengine, and had worked at it himself. Last week the engine was only going day shift, and was worked by a boy. It was worked so slowly that a man could have done in thre- hours all the work done by the boy in a day. He had once emptied the same mine or' water with the same appliances in three days, and was of opinion the mine could have been emptied in a week. It was quite possible to have fed the boiler temporarily by means of buckets until the flume was mended.

This was the case for the prosecution. Mr Brassey contended that no case had been proved, and asked V\e Court's ruling on section 6 of the agreement.

His Worship held that clause 6, and aho clause 8, obliged the defendant to keep the mine drained, such being the construction put upon the clause by the defendant himself.

[As we went to press the defendant*tsj&s~, being examined for the defence.] \

[Left Sitting.]