WARDEN'S COURT.

Thames Star, Volume XII, Issue 3945, 20 August 1881, Page 2

WARDEN'S COURT.

YESTERDAY. (Before H. Kenrick, Esq., Warden.) KEARN AND OTHERS V,. W. S. GEEENVJLLE. [After we went to press last evening, the following evidence was adduced : —] W. S. Greenville, the defendant, deposed—That Hearn had told him that the Warden had advised him to proceed to work after being told that he (Greenville) had re-entered, which statement was also confirmed by the previous witness Wilson. [Mr lvenrick here assured Mr Greenville that such was not the case.] He had given instructions that the baling was to be done properly. He had given the tributers notice of reentry, and considered he was justified in so doing, they having broken clause 4 of the agreement by stopping work two hou|B,: earlier than the stipulated time -on SatuM day nights. He was a loser by this of the percentage which would be obtained by two hours' work per man. He had complained to the tributers that they were not timbering the mine properly, and had called the Mining Inspector's attention to this fact. He had not written to the tributers about the timbering, but had told WilwofA and Hearn. The tributers had also prevented him from erecting a ladder way in the whim shaft, and had done so themselves, though not to his satisfaction. The defective limbering had not been repaired up to a week of the notice of re-entry.

Wm. Rowo, who had been appointed by Mr Greenville to superintend the underground working of the mine, said he had been through the mine twice about eight o'clock on Saturday nights, aud found thf Ujbutora iidd left work. He

could not say what were the usual working hours on the field at the present, hie had told the tributers that the timbering in the whim shaft was insecure, and it was not repaired when he was last in the nine.

Wm. Towers deposed that he was working in the Hape Creek mine, and did not knock off till 10 o'clock on Saturday nights. He made this arrangement with defendant, when he first went to work there. He had heard defendant complain of the tributers stopping work too early. When working in the Alburnia he knocked off at 7 p.m. on Saturday, and at 10 when he was in the Sons of Freedom mine «

E. M. Lowe deposed that the men in the Sons of Freedom and Dixon's claims did not stop work until 10 and 11 p.m. respectively on Saturday. He did not know what was the general rule now.

Mr Miller then applied for and received permission to call rebutting evidence. The first witness—

T. B. Hicks, manager of the Caledonian deposed that all the men working through that shaft knocked off at 7 p.m. on Saturday, and the tributers stopped when they liked.

Mr N. Taylor, of the Moanatairi, gave similar testimony.

Wm. Hearn said he received the first complaint on the 11th of July. lie promised t,o repair it, and was doing so when lie was stopped by the flood. The best of timber was used in the workings. The ladder put in thu whim shaft by him had been approved of by the Mining Inspector. While working as a partner of Mr Greenville's the men had always knocked off between 7 and 8 on Saturday nights. He had paid per ceutago on gold won from the mine after the notice of re-entry had been served. He had put the permanent ladder-way in the shaft before the notice of re-entry was served.

The Court was then adjourned to Mou day morning.