Australasian Sketcher with Pen and Pencil (Melbourne, Vic. : 1873 - 1889), Wednesday 9 April 1884, page 58


FACTS V SCRAPS

Mr Oliver Wakefield, the Under-Secretary of Mines for New Zealand, has been fatally injured by a tramway accident at Dunedin. A well-defined copper lode has been discovered at Mount Euroa, New South Wales. Splendid ore is being got. The Rev. Wm. Slayter one of the oldest Congregational minis-ters in New South Wales, died on the 29th February, aged 75. THE export of frozen meat from New Zealand is going on with

undiminished vigour. The second section of the Eastern railway, extending to Ched-low's Springs, West Australia, is to be opened on the 11th April. Hurricanes on the east of Roebuck Bay, West Australia, have caused considerable damage among the pearling fleet. The Commissioner of Public Works has called for competitive designs and tenders for lighting Parliament-houses by electricity. The results of the matriculation examination at the Sydney University have been issued. The number of successful candi-dates is 95, showing a considerable increase on previous years. The pastoral tie between the Rev. Dr. Gilchrist and the Union Memorial Church, Hotham, was dissolved at a meeting of the Melbourne Presbytery on March 18. Sir William and Lady Des Vœux and suite left Melbourne by the overland express train on March 20 for Sydney, en route for Fiji. James Boscawen Duff, late deputy registrar-general of New South Wales, has been sentenced to four years', imprisonment, tor embezzling £1,107. The barque Oleander, 342 tons, from Shark's Bay to Fre-mantle, foundered about 80 miles from the latter port ine captain and crew reached land in safety. The will of the late Mr. Thomas Bolam was proved in the Supreme Court on March 13. The amount of the property was stated to be £1,600. King Tawhaio has held his last meeting at Whatiwhatihoe, prior to going to England. An address to the Queen and the English Parliament was signed by those present, asking that their territory may remain only under Tawhaio's administration. Dr. Charles Badham, professor of classics in the Sydney Uni-versity, died on the 27th February, in his 71st year. His death is generally deplored. He was universally considered one 0f the greatest scholars of the present day. The Court of Appeal in New Zealand has dismissed both the application for a new trial in the case of Hunt v. Sir Arthur Gordon, and also the appeal against the original verdict for £100 damages to Hunt. Mr. John- Hayes, the oldest resident in Tasmania, died on the 6th March. He was born in 1805 at Riadon on the site of the first settlement. Only one person is now left of those who came out in the first expedition. Bishop Kennion, of Adelaide, has received a letter from Sir James Fergusson, the Governor of Bombay, stating that two lion whelps of a rare kind will be sent on by the next mail steamer. He also offers to send some Indian deer for the Zoological-gardens. The barqne Remijio, 411 tons, said to be the oldest vessel in the world, and in which Tasman sailed to discover Tasmania in 1642, has been at Newcastle, New South Wales, attracting a good deal of attention. At the Sydney Criminal Court the other day a man named John Berry was sentenced to seven years' hard labour on the roads for setting fire to a house at Marrickville, in order to defraud the insurance company.

April 9, 1884 An extraordinary suicide has occurred at Bowring, near Yass New South Wales. A man, whose name is unknown, went to the edge of the Murray, near the railway station, put a rope round his neck, tied it to a sapling, and then placed a revolver to his head and shot himself. An order was made on March 17 by the chief clerk of the Insolvent Court 'for the sequestration of the estate of Emelie Melville Derby, of Melbourne; operatic artiste. The liabilities are approximately stated to be £3,000, and the assets which consist wholly of personal property, are under £100. Mr. Richard Pitt, of Clifton-vale, Tasmania, who died on March 2, was the last survivor of the expedition of Governor Collins to Port Phillip in 1803. Pitt who was at that time six years old, was the son of one of the free immigrants who accom-panied the party. ALDERMAN HARDIE the; mayor of Sydney, gave a picnic at Clontarf on March 18, which was attended by about 500 visitors including the Premier, several members of the Ministry and the Legislative Assembly, and other prominent citizens. Hanlan was also present by invitation. The town clerk of Collingwood, Mr. Alexander M'Nauchton; who occupied that position for the last 13 years, died suddenly, while bathing in Kenney's- baths, St. Kilda, on March 8, in company with his two sons. A post-mortem examination showed that death resulted from sanguineous apoplexy. The tender of Mr. Lewis Samuel, at £135,078, has been accepted for the construction of the new graving dock at. Biloela, Sydney. The work is to be completed in three years. The dock, when finished, will be capable of accommodating any vessel in the British navy. Mrs. Lewis Lewis, aged 88 years, the wife of Mr. L. Lewis, 101 years of age, of Sandhurst whose golden wedding some months since was mentioned in The Argus,- and formed a subject; for illustration in The Sketcher, died at her residence on March 13, after a comparatively brief illness. A shocking accident occurred near Bingera, New South Wales; on March 12. As Surveyor Russell and party were driving between the Myall Creek station anil Bingera a tree which had been left burning fell across the back part of the buggy, killing one man on the spot and seriously injuring another. A man named John Gillies, who was lost in the bush at Sutton Forest, New South Wales, for nearly 20 days, has found his way back to the railway line at Bundanoon, in a very exhausted condition. He had lived in a cave for several days, his only food being a large lizard, which he killed in the cave and ate raw. The Rev. Dean Mahoney performed on March 16 the ceremony of unveiling and blessing a statue of St. Patrick in St. Mary's Cathedral, Sydney. The statue which is a most artistic piece of work, is the gift of the St. Patrick's Branch of the Hibernian Australasian Catholic Benefit Society. On March 22 the officers of the Harbour Trust presented Mr. R. Ford, commissioner of railways, with a testimonial, in commemoration of his retirement from the position of secretary of the the trust. Mr. Mouritz, the secretary, in a few well-chosen words, placed the testimonial in Mr. Ford's hands. Mr. Ford responded.

Another handsome donation to Trinity College is announced. A member of the Church of England, who desires that his name should not. be made public, has communicated to Sir George Verdon, the honorary treasurer of the college, his intention of Bhortly contributing to the college funds the sum of £1,000, to be expended as the governing body may think fit. The Melbourne Harbour Trust Commissioners have resolved to dredge the Yarra to a depth of 20ft. from the Falls-bridge to Snottis wood's Point, and a new cutting will be made, 200ft. in width and of sufficient depth, from the steam ferry to a point opposite the railway pier at Williamstown, for the accommodation of the P. and O. and Orient steamers. A meeting of the committee appointed to consider the seduc- tion question met at Ballarat, and resolved, on the motion of the bishop of the diocese, that a petition be presented to Parliament praying the Legislature to devise measures for the abatement of seduction, and suggesting that it be made a criminal offence when the victim is under 18 years of age. The New Zealand Government have resolved to abolish the Colonial Architect's department, and the Public Works and Engineer's department in the Middle Island, and also to raise the railway goods tariff, so as to make the railways pay 3 per cent, on their cost. A large number of officials have received notice of dismissal. The newly-formed Odontological Society of Melbourne has held its first annual meeting, and elected the following officers for the ensuing year : — President, Mr. James Cumming ; vicepresident, Mr. A. M. Townsend ; hon, treasurer, Mr. J, Iliffe ; hon. secretary, Mr. G. Thomson ; committee. Messrs. Carter, Kernot, and Stabback. The case of Mary Ann Silk, sentenced to death at the last Geelong Assizes for the murder of her husband, Jacob Silk, at Gordon, on the 25th September, 1883, was considered at the meeting of the Executive Council on March 19. His Honour the Chief Justice, before whom she was tried, afforded such information of the case as was desired, and it was decided to commute the sentence to 20 years' imprisonment. An action for slander and libel was brought before the Benalla County Court by Thomas Jones, railway station-master, Badda-ginnie, who sought to recover £250 damages from the Rev. James Richards, for accusing him of habitual drunkenness in a letter to the Minister of Railways. The jury found that the statements of the defendant were untrue, but that they were made in good faith, and the judge entered a verdict for the defendant. The Grafton police discovered an illicit still in the neighbour-hood of Iluka, on the Clarence River, New South Wales, and arrested two men named Gallagher and Fahey, who were found on the premises. They seized a complete apparatus for distilling on a large scale, and also 600 gallons of wort in a state of fermen-tation ready for the still. The men were brought before the Grafton Bench, and fined £100 each. The Committee of Management of the Melbourne Benevolent Asylum resolved at a recent meeting, by six votes to four, to relax the bye-laws of the institution so far as to permit cardplaying in the asylum. Mr. Hingston supported his proposal with a memorial signed by 114 inmates, and favourable letters from the Roman Catholic archbishop and the Anglican bishop of Melbourne. A serious fire broke out in Brisbane on March 16, on the cor-poration wharves leased to Messrs. W. Howard Smith and Co. A large store adjoining the gasworks and a portion of the wharf were destroyed. A large quantity of goods was in the store, belonging principally to Messrs. Webster and Co. und Quinlan, Gray, and Co. The total loss is estimated at between £20,000 and £30,000. The annual picnic given by the proprietors of The Argus, The Australasian, and The Sketcher to their employe's and their families, took place on Saturday, March 22, on the Caulfield racecourse. Two special trains left the Prince's-bridge plattorm about 11 o'clock, carrying some 800 passengers to the place of meeting. Amusements to suit every taste had been provided, and a most enjoyable afternoon was spent. The catering was in the hands of Mr. Clements, who erected for the first time his new marquee, one of the most spacious of canvas dining halls. The Customs officers seized some 30 cases purporting to contain Chinese oil on March 12, as they were being landed from the ship Euxine at the Sandridge railway pier, and discovered that no less than 60 out of the 120 tins in the cases contained Chinese spirit. The discovery was made by one of the railway officials engaged on the pier, and on the lids being removed, two out of the four tins in each case were found to contain spirits dutiable at 10s. per gallon.

The coxswain of the schooner Christine was killed by the natives during a labour cruise in the South Sea Islands. The magisterial inquiry into the murder of Michael Murphy, who was found shot dead in a hut at Pierrepoint on February 13, was concluded on March 14 at Hamilton. The jury returned a verdict that the deceased came by his death from a gun or pistol wound, inflicted by some person or persons on the night in question, and that John M'Sweeney, who slept in the hut that night, was implicated in the murder. M'Sweeney was accord-ingly committed for trial. Mr. T. N. Fitzgerald was entertained at a complimentary dinner, on March 20, at the Athenæum Club, on the occasion of his approaching departure from the colony on a visit to Europe. There were about 120 guests present, including His Excellency the Marquis of Normanby. Dr. Brownless occupied the chair. Lord Normanby made a few valedictory remarks in responding to the toast of his health. In proposing the health of Mr. Fitz gerald, His Excellency referred in flattering language to the position which that gentleman occupied in the medical profession in Victoria. Mr. Fitzgerald suitably responded. The Blue Ribbon missionaries, Messrs Booth and Glover, have been holding some very successtul meetings at the Exhi-hition-building, their addresses having been listened to by thousands, and their blue ribbons having been accepted in great numbers. The last meeting at the Exhibition-building was held on March 10, and was crowded. It was announced that the expenses of the mission amounted to £1,000, and that the committee would have a balance at their disposal. The total number of blue ribbons taken amounted to 26,773, and 13,444 persons signed the pledge. A Disastrous fire broke out on March 3 in Cowell Brothers, timber-yard, Norwood, near Adelaide. An immense quantity of timber, a store, and six cottages were destroyed. The stock and machinery were valued at £20,000, and were insured for £13,000. When the fire was first discovered it was burning in four places Simultaneously, and is therefore attributed to the act of an incen-diary. Four incendiary fires occurred at Norwood during the week ended March 5, the aggregate loss being £28,000. The Government has offered a reward of £200 for the conviction of the offenders. offenders. The transcontinental telegraph was recently interrupted for some days. The line-repairing narty found that the wire had been broken by a man named Millard, whose body was found lying under the wire. He passed Dalhousie Springs about the 1st March, with two horses, which were both found dead near his body. He was travelling south, and being unacquainted with the country, it is supposed that he had taken the telegraph line for a short cut, and not finding water, perished. The Macumba cattle station was 16 or 17 miles east from the spot. Millard burnt the pole down to enable him to reach the wire, which he then broke. The new council-chamber in the Trades-hall was formally opened on March 6 in the presence of a number of influential guests, including Mr. Justice Higinbotham and Mr. Graham Berry, Chief Secretary. There were about 100 members present, and Mr. Benjamin Douglass, president of the Trades-hall Council, occupied the chair. After an opening address from the chairman, speeches were delivered by Mr. Justice Higinbotham and Mr. Graham Berry, both of whom paid a very flattering tribute to the memory of the late Mr. Wilson Gray. Mr. Justice Higinbotham also referred to Sir Charles Darling, whose portrait was amongst those painted on the walls of the chamber.

The illumination on Albert-park Lake on the evening of March 13 was a remarkable success. The park was visited by a considerable number of people from all quarters, and the display, which was arranged by a joint committee of the two yacht clubs and the rowing club, was regarded with great satisfaction. Mr. Service, Mr. Tucker, and Mr. Levien, and a number of other gentlemen were taken for a sail on the lake, and afterwards were entertained by the committee. Mr. Service stated that the Government would be very glad, when an application was made to them, to supplement the efforts of the committee for the purpose of effecting improvements in the park and lake. The late Right Rev. Monsignor Lynch, R.C. Dean of Camp-belltown, New South Wales, has made provision for the following bequests in his will : — St. Mary's Cathedral Building Fund, £1,000 ; St. Vincent Hospital, £1,000 ; Diocese of Maitland, £1,000 ; Diocese of Armidale, £1,000 ; Home for Sick Priests, £1,000 ; Campbelltown Church, £1,000 ; St. Ignatius Jesuit College, £1,000 ; St. John's College, £1,000 ; Sisters of the Good Samaritan, £1,000 ; Marist Fathers, £500 ; Sisters of Mercy, £500 ; Sisters of St. Joseph, £500 ; Campbelltown Schools, £500 ; and requiem masses,' £500. His library of 1,620 volumes Monsignor Lynch bequeathed to St. John's College, in connexion with the Univer-sity of Sydney. Professor Sample gave his farewell lesson in horse manage-ment to his Melbourne class on March 13, when the large tent at the corner of Nicholson and Gertrude streets was crowded. After the lessons in equine dentition had been given, Professor Sample gave a short address to the pupils on various matters connected with the system of horse management, concluding with this admirable advice: — 'Above all, keep your temper, and when things do not go as you wish, do not get mad and ill-use your horse.' Though not afraid to use the whip when it is required, and always recommending his pupils to show firmness, Professor Sample's system is thoroughly humane, and it is this feature in his teaching that has recommended it to such a large class in Melbourne. An extraordinary robbery was committed at the Horsham branch of the London Chartered Bank of Australia some time between closing time on Saturday, the 1st March, and Monday morning. It is reported that on the officials going to the bank on the morning of the 3rd the keyhole of the safe was found choked up with the broken ends of penholder handles. On their being removed the door was- unlocked in the usual way, and it was then discovered that notes and gold to the amount of nearly £6,000 had been stolen. A remarkable feature in the case is that the bank safe was found still locked, while there were no signs that the place had been forcibly entered, the bars of the doors and windows not having been displaced in any way. No definite information has yet been obtained as to the perpetrators of the robbery. A cowardly and atrocious crime was committed at South Brighton about 1 o'clock on the morning of March 22. William Hawthorne, a contractor living on Bluff-road, was shot through the right shoulder. The gun of the assassin was thrust close to him through a window underneath which he slept. The unfor-tunate man bled copiously, and the limb is so badly shattered that it may have to be amputated, although Dr. O'Hara has hopes of saving it. The black trackers Moses and Jack, who were at the Russell-street barracks, were quickly summoned, and they found tracks leading to the house of William Hawthorne's brother, with whom he has not been on good terms for some time past. The brother was arrested, and his boots were found to correspond with the imprints found by the trackers. Prisoner, who made no statement, was remanded to the Melbourne gaol. The action of Lonie v. Excell, for breach of promise, was heard in the Supreme Court before Mr. Justice Holroyd. The plaintiff is a girl about 18 years of age, the daughter of a farmer at Kewell, in the Wimmera district. The defendant is a young man about 25 years of age, who had owned a selection in the same district, a few miles from the plaintiff's residence. The plaintiff sued the defendant for breach of promise to marry her. The promise was said to have been given it, the latter part of 1882, and some time afterwards the defendant had intimate relations with the plaintiff. The last time on which the plaintiff had any relationship with the defendant was said to be on the 4th March, 1883. On the 5th December of the same year the plaintiff gave birth to a child, of which she said that the defendant was the father. The defence was that there had been no promise of marriage ; that

Excell was not the father of the child, and had not had anything to do with the plaintiff. The jury gave a verdict for the plaintiff, damages £350. An examination was held in the Insolvent Court, Melburne, on March 11, in the estate of Francis H. Stubley. The insolvent had been a squatter in Queensland, and an investor in mines in the different Australian colonies. At one time he was an M.L.A. for Queensland . It appeared from the evidence that he gave that he had cleared £200,000 by mining transactions, and that he had lost nearly the whole of that amount in buying and selling stations and shipping wool and wheat to England. He also stated that he had purchased hundreds, or perhaps thousands, of pounds worth of jewellery for his wife, but he did not know what had become of it or whether she had it now or not. Judge Noel considered that the insolvent had wilfully refused to an swer a question as to his estate, and he committed the insolvent to gaol till he answered the question . The insolvent's schedule was filed in the Insolvent Court on March 22. The sequestration was a compulsory one. From the schedule it appeared that the debts were £51,260 7s. 4d., and the assets £33,877103., leaving a deficiency of £17,382 17s. 4d. The examination has since been continued, and further adjourned. The Harbour Trust's steam hopper barge Fawkner made her trial trip in the bay on March 22, and acquitted herself to the satisfaction of the authorities in every respect, steaming well, steering admirably and accomplishing her work in connexion with the dredges without a single hitch. She has been strengthened, at the suggestion of Colonel Sargood, so as to carry a 6in. breech-loading gun of the most approved construction, to be used, if neceasary, in the defence of the harbour. The Fawkner was run on a spurt at the rate of 10 knots an hour, her ordinary speed being -between eight and nine. She was eased, stopped, and steaming full speed astern, in lmin. 5sec, and performed. a complete circle in 3min. 25sec, these manoeuvres being made with a view to test her capacities for defence. The vessel has cost the Harbour Trust £12,000, and the Government have expended at out £1,300 in fitting her tor use as a warship. In the course of some few months two gun and three torpedo boats are expected to arrive, and Colonel Sargood is of opinion that when these are added to the Cerberus, we shall have a fleet which may be safely looked upon as all that is required to defend the port of Melbourne against hostile attack. As soon as possible after the arrival, of these additions to the Victorian armaments, the Minister of Defence intends to arrange for a naval review on a small scale, and the two armed steam barges of the Harbour Trust will form part of the flotilla.