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Lyttelton Times, Volume III, Issue 137, 20 August 1853, Page 7

A trial of the Boomerang Propeller was made by a steam-ship in the Mersey in April, when, notwithstanding many adverse circuinstinces, the average speed obtained in a slack water was from 9 to 9* knots, under a pressure of steam of from 6 lbs. to 9 lbs., a speed which several scientific gentlemen on board asserted was one knot faster than could have been made by the common screw under the same pressure of steam. Messrs. M'Kean and M'Klarty are having one of their Mediterranean steam-ships prepared for the trial of the new propeller, in " all its integrity."

The estimates for Civil Service for the year 1853 have been printed. They show an intention on the part of Government to ask Parliament for a much larger sum for purposes of education and art than has yet been granted. The proposed vote for public education in Great Britain is £260,000, being an increase of no less than £100,000 over the grant of last year. For public education in Ireland, the proposed grant is £182,000. A number of smaller votes swell the total demand for educational purposes to the very handsome sum of £598,423. An unimportant defeat had been sustained by Ministers on a motion by Mr. Milner Gibson to repeal the advertisement duty. It was stated in the newspapers that in one day, upwards of 1000 letters from Australia were delivered in Birmingham alone. The Queen of Maori-lake. —There is a locality on the Kocks, Sydney, called Maorilane, chiefly inhabited by New Zealanders. One of these islanders has married a female of Irish extraction, who can trace her descent fiom King Brian Boru. She has set up claims to the sovereignty of Maori-lane, but some of the New Zealanders are Radicals and dispute her authority. A jet-black islander, named John Barbox, was taken to task by Mary Debosin (the Queen's name) for passing her by in a disrespectful manner. She culled him " wooden-head," " ugly-mug," " bkick man," " cannibal," Sec, whicii tended to provoke to a breach of the peace. He accordingly summoned her before the bench, and she was fined S\ and 4s. 6d. costs. — Empire. The Mjsi and this Supply of Cois.— Great inconvenience has of Lite been experienced from the want of a sufficient supply ot coinage, and particularly of silver and copper. The demand for gold coin, notwithsiarulhig t'!ie enormous amount coined last year (£3,749,000) continues as great as ever, and the v,'l"»ie strength of the Mint requires to be devoted to it. Till a comparatively recent time the largest amount of gold coin which it was considered could be turned out by the Mint was .£.250,000 a week; at the present moment the qua'.uiiy coined has risen to ahout £520,000 a wes!: ; and yet such is the demand that even time quantity appears to be insufficient to supply it. In the month of January, during a short cessation of the pressure for gold coinage, a quantity of silver equal to £92,000 was coined, beingequal to one-half"of the entire silver coinage of • 1852, and being more than the entire silver . coinage of 1851, which was £87,868.