TELEGRAPHIC.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VII, Issue 2005, 2 June 1885, Page 2

TELEGRAPHIC.

(raiTjjD press assooiation,; Wellington, this day. The Minister of Public Works has ap« pointed a Railway Appeal Board for Otago, and the following are members : MrOarew, R.M., Mr W. IL Pearson (late Commissioner of Crown Lands for Otago), and Mr James Robin, The question of railway rates for the carriage of Native brown coal is under consideration, and the result will bei gazetted shortly. A reduction in the! rate is to be made, so as to allow it to: compete with the imported article. ; Auckland, this day. ; Owen and Graham's wholesale warehouse in Queen-st was discovered to he on fire at a quarter to eight yesterday morning. The fire originated in the

basement storey, used as the packing department. The flames went up the loft to the fourth storey, containing silks, fancy goods, etc, and this was completely gutted. The Brigade got the fire under in half an hour, but not before the whole building was completely drenched with water. The insurance on the stock and building i 5£49,000, and the loss is roughly estimated at £14,000. Mr Kelly, the defeated candidate for Tauranga, intends testing the legality of the election.

_ Shortly after midnight a fire broke out in a two-storey wooden shop in Victoriastreet, occupied by G. Dare, draper, and extended eastward along a two-storey block occupied by J. Brown (fishmonger), Mettams (plumber), Mrs Crawley (grocer), and Can- (bootmaker). ' The Brigade got tho fire under in twenty minutes, the total destruction being confined to Dare's premises. Broom's, on the west, was gutted, and those of Slaney and Somers' partially damaged throughthe fire running along the roof. The estimated damage is £4OOO.

Wellington, this day. The customs revenue collected in the colony for the last month was L 107.834, as against L 107.356 for tho corresponding month last year. The amounts collected at the principal ports last month were, Auckland, L 24.282; Wellington, L 20.474; LytteltonandChristchurch, L 13.609, and Dunedin, L 29.730. The beer duty last month for the colony was L 4.185, and for the corresponding month last year it was L 4.219.