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New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4156, 16 July 1874, Page 2

H.M.S. Blanche, which has been expected for some days from Auckland, was signalled yesterday from Mount Victoria, and steamed to the anchorage off Government House, where she arrived about half-past three o’clock. The Blanche is expected to remain in Port Nicholson during the sittings of the Parliament. The Claud Hamilton, from Melbourne, was still unreported from the West Coast when the telegraph office closed last night. Probably the interruption of communication on some of the Middle Island wires may have prevented her being announced from Hokitika or Greymouth. It will be seen from the report published yesterday of the proceedings of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, that the debate on the second reading of the State Forests Bill was postponed, on the motion of Mr. Sheehan, till Friday. The English and Oriental mails for New Zealand, via Torres Strait, have arrived at Auckland, having been brought down from Sydney by the barque Novelty. The intelligence telegraphed is extremely meagre. We are officially informed that the ship Herefordshire, which' arrived yesterday at Lyttelton, from London, with immigrants on board, brought 471, and not seventy-one, as telegraphed. The Inspection of Machinery Bill mil be discussed in. committee in the Legislative Council this afternoon. Leave was given yesterday, on the motion of Mr. O’Rorke, that committees of the House of Representatives might sit on days when the House itself did not meet. On the motion of the Hon. Mr. Katene, the House of Representatives last night appointed a committee of fourteen members, including the four Maori members, to whom “ all petitions, reports, returns, and other documents relating to affairs specially affecting the Native race, that may from time to time be brought before the House,” shall be submitted. Pedestrianism, which has been very little indulged in of late in this vicinity, has the probability of a slight revival in the form of a challenge, which appears in the advertising columns, from Harris, formerly of Australian celebrity from his excellent performances in Melbourne, and his series of matches with the English champion, Hewitt. Harris offers to run Murphy, of Blenheim, conceding 3 yards in 100, 5 in 150, and 7 in. 200. It is to be hoped, for the sake of sport, that the challenge ■will be accepted and the races run in Wellington. If Harris maintains anything like his old form, he will be a good man who defeats him even with the starts. The Kennedy Family commence their farewell appearances in Wellington in the Odd Fellows’ Hall this evening. They perform again on Friday, and for the last time on Monday, the 20th instant. The programme -will be different each evening. This evening, after Mr. Kennedy’s address, with its illustrations, the “young people” will give a selection of Scotch and English songs, and Mr. Kennedy will then recite “The, Cottar’s Saturday Night.” A quartette, a Highland song, and “ Auld Lang Syne" will follow. The following tenders were received at the Public Works Office, Wellington, for the Wanganui wharf contract: Accepted : Caiman and Richardson, Wanganui, £I7BB. Declined : Chas. Simmons, Wanganui, £2IOO ; R. S. Low, Wanganui, £2436. For the supply of 22,000 sleepers Accepted :W. H. Brightwell, Palmerston, 5000 at 45.; Richter and Nannestad, Palmerston, 7000 at 3s. lid. Declined : James Bull, Foxton, 10,000 at 4s. 7Jd.; W. F. Oakes, Wanganui, 22,000 at 4s. 6d. The s.s. Phcebe not having arrived from the North, via Nelson and Picton, yesterday, as expected, the Smith Combination Troupe were able to give a last entertainment at the Theatre Royal last night. Although the notice given of the entertainment was imperfect, and the weather was again wet and unfavorable, there was a very fair attendance. The performances passed off, as they have always done, most successfully. Mr. MoGillivray is, undoubtedly, a Scotsman. He had a notice of motion on the Order Paper of the House of Representatives, yesterday, for a return of the quantity of Colonially-distilled spirits on which duty had been paid up to the end of March last. He propounded the reasons which prompted him to put the question on the paper -with due solemnity; and then gave the firstly, secondly, and thirdly of the views' which the subject of his text presented : firstly,’ the loss to the country from the lesser duties collected from Colonial than from imported spirits ; secondly, the gain to the country from the same cause ; and thirdly, the effect of the differential duty on the agricultural interests of the Colony, And having thus expounded categorically the heads under which he would have discoursed on the text, he informed the House that the information for which he had intended to ask was already on the table, and he would, therefore, “by your leave,” forego his intention of proposing a motion to ask for it. A-meeting of the Education Board was held yesterday, Messrs. Waterhouse, Andrew, Toomath, Hutchison, and C. J. Pharazyn being present ; the latter as member for Wanganui and Waitotara. It was stated that a great many applications had. been received by the Board for alterations,- repairs, improvements, or additions to schools or teachers’ residences. Failing, however, the promised grant from the Provincial Government,' the Board was not in a position to .give, any assistance. As the Board ’ was almost entirely without funds, it was resolved to make a special call for Monday next, to consider the financial position, with the view of representing to the Government that, unless some assistance were afforded, the Board would bo compelled to suspend operations. The Inspector’s report was read and adopted.