AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8534, 12 September 1907, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

A DAMAGING STATEMENT. Received September 11, 10.40 a.m. HOBART, September 11. The Tasmanian Treasurer, in the House, made a damaging statement against insurance companies, alleging that amongst the vast number of eases that came under his notice he had not known of one where a company had paid the face value of a policy, but, on the contrary, had beaten the owner down. Several members combatted the statement, buc the Treasurer maintained it.

CLARA BUTT. Received September 11, 10.40 a.m. MELBOURNE, September 11. Clara Butt had a magnificent reception. There was £I,OOO in the house. (Clara Butt (Mrs Kennerley Rumford), the eminent contralto, was bcrn at Southwick, Sussex, in 1873. Her husband is a baritone vocalist.) NEW SOUTH WALES ELECTIONS. Received September 11, 10.22 a.m. SYDNEY, September 11. Mr Carruthers was returned by a majority of 3,700. Mr Wade, who is responsible for the liquor and gaming laws, had a majority of 3,300. All the members of the Government were returned by substantial majorities. The seats of two Ministers, Messrs Dick and Ashton, who retired, were won by Ministerialists. The Premier expresses himself satisfied with the result of the election. It is reckoned the Government has gained seven seats and the Labour Party has gained eight, but lost others, making the net gain for Labour three seats. The estimated stat? of parties is:— Ministerial ... ... 55 Labour 29 Independents ... ... 0 Received September 12, 12.35 a.m. SYDNEY, September 11. Three seats are still in doubt. The latest returns indicate that Ministerilists will oust Labourites at Orange and Macquarie, while the Labourite candidate will oust the Ministerialist candidate at Blayney. The local option count is progressing slowly. Of the fifteen completed electorates three voted for continuance'of licenses, and twelve for reduction. In five of these twelve the no-liccnse vote was larger than the con'.inuance and reduction votes combined, but failed to reach the three-fifths majority necessary to make no-license effective. Though it now looks as if no electorate will carry nolicense right out, the vote for reduction will prove effective, «as in many electorates the Act provides that where no-license is not carried the vote counts with that for reducticn. The no-license advocates profess to be well satisfied with the result, and consider it an excellent beginning, much better than New Zealand's first attempt. Received September 12, 1.10 a.m. SYDNEY, September 11. Allowrie, an electortate where a member was returned unopposed, took a local optioii poll, and carried nolicense, but as thirty per cent, of the electors did not vote the poll was I non-effective.