AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8476, 2 July 1907, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

NEW SOUTH WALES SESSION

Received July 1, 8.34 a.m. SYDNEY, July 1. Parliament will be opened to-mor-row.

(The session is a final one before the general election, and is not expected to last longer than a month.)

VITAL STATISTICS.

Received July 1, 8.34 a.m. SYDNEY. July 1

Marriages in New South Wales last year totalled 11,551, the highest number for twenty years, except in 1901. The deaths last year were 14,975, being 12 per cent, below the mean rate for the last ten years, and the lowest on record.

KAURI TIMBER COMPANY.

Received July 1, 8.34 a.m.] MELBOURNE, July 1. At the half-yearly meeting: of the Kauri Timber Company, the Chairman stated that business is active, and the prospects are good. The company's liabilities have noto been reduced to £76,000. |f business went on as it was doing, they would have a clean balance-sheet in about two years.

SENSATIONAL OCCURRENCE. AN AFGHAN GOES MAD. FATALLY SHOOTS A MAN. Received Juiy 1, 10.30 a.m. BRISBANE, July 1. A sensational occurrence is reported from Richmond, a pastoral township on the Flinders River. An Afghan named Chumpter went mad, and from his caravan shot at everybody in sight. He fatally wounded a man named McMillan, and seriously wounded a woman named McMahon. He also wounded a police sereeant and five civilians.

Volleys poured into the caravan disabled the Afghan, who was *irr^sted. REVENUE RETURNS. Received July 1, 9.22 a.m. . ADELAIDE, July 1. The year's revemi" is £2.l%.oft<\ an increase of £398,000 on that of the preceding year. It exceeds the Treasurer's estimate by £336,000, and gives a surplus of £300,000.

SYDNEY COAL LUMPERS,

Received July 1, 9.22 a.m. SYDNEY, July 1

A conference will be held, to-day, between the steam colliery owners, the Coal Stevedores' Association, and the Coal Lumpers' Union, to discuss the strike.

Speaking at a mass meeting of lumpers, the President of the Coal Lumpers' Union declared that a sixpenny telegram from the lumpers' executive would now be sufficient to paralyse all Australian trade.

SYDNEY SHEEP SALES.

Received July 1, 11.40 p.m. SYDNEY, July 1

At the sheep sales 66 Leicester -rams, belonging to Benson, of Dun'edin, were sold at prices ranging from £3 13s 6d to £3 18s 9d.