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Thames Advertiser, Volume VIII, Issue 2039, 8 May 1875, Page 2

There is likely, we understand, to boa .considerable amount of litigation with respect 1 to the ground of'the Tairua Gold Mining .Company, generally cilled the prospectors' chiin: Yesterday, no fewer than three • plaints were laid —one of them claiming ten men's ground from the thirty acres pegged in by Neeves and party; the second claiming six men's ground j while the third p'aint "goes, the whole animal," and claims every inch of the.ihirty acres. These plaints promise a good deal .of tough litigation. The first plaint is laid by Bergin and pirty, who claim to be the owners of the Independent claim of ten men's ground, and that Neeves and party have' trespassed ou the ground pegged out by them. They assert a rightto thegroundon the score of prior pegging, and this, we believe, will raise the question, as to the publication of the Gazette, which wo Lave already said was likely to icid to difficulties. There is no reason why we should refrain from stating what we have heard about the matter, as the whole circumstances are certain to be/' broughtout; in; the forthcoming litigation. ' Messrs • Pre?ce and Graham, as acting for the prospector?, had made arraugemenjs with Mr M.ickay to give them tbe first informrition as to the publication of-, the Gazette in Wellington; so that they, might peg out thirty acres on the' line of reef. It would appear, however, that Mr Mackay was not properly informed from Wellington, .and was under the impression that the proclamation was issued ou the 9th, wlieio s when tho Gazette came up here, it was found that it had been published on the Bth. The persons peg*; gfiipr for the prospector*; acting on the information' th»y had received, pegged on the morning of the 10th, and immediately thercafter>'gk\, tered their claim, stating iii the '.registration paper that tliey had pegged on the lOtb. This, of course, fixes them to that clay. . liergin and, parly, ic seems, had found out thai the ground was to be pegged ofTj and not knowing exactly, what might turn up, they pegged every day for fome dny?,'and finally pegged on. the Stli .■ or 9th, we do not know which. However, th'ey rely upon a' pegging-'oi; oue oj these days,; as against Neeves'aiid party's pegging on the 10th;, Ihe next plaint is l>y ;Co..tcs and; [.avly, wh 0 .

claim to hold the North Star claim, of six men's ground, in a precisely similar way. The third plaint, is laid by Mr. J. A. Miller, solicitor, acting, we presume, for a client, and, lie claims to be put in possession of_ the 'whole urea claimed by the Tairua Gold Mining Com■pany, on the ground that they did cot mark out as required by law, by causing posts of three inches square, or three inches diameter, to be put in at each corner,

Our Auckland telegrams inform us that it has just been discovered that the payments due onthe sum to bo paid to the Pumping Association have been paid to the provincial account, ,i«id cannot be paid without a special Appropriation Act by the Council, We had no doubt from the first that this was the action which'Dr Pollen would take, He has declared that the • general Government do not know the Pumping Association in the matter; that the £50,000 advance to the province, and that the Ince mutt take all the responsibility. Of course Dr Pollen's object is to smother t-e. provjnoe in debt, but surely "ihat end would be achieved without on this unexpected addition. ; It was quite understood in the Assembly when the money was voted that it was an advance from the General Government to 'the Pumping Association, and Vr Vogel was twitted with having made the promise. , Dr Pollen also explained exactly . what the money was for, and did iiot say, " We lend the money to the province, and we hold the province responsible, and have nothing to do it is to be'applied .to." We must say that there appears to have been a want of straightforward dealing on the part of Dr Pollen in this matter, which has certainly the appearance of being a Lit of splenetic feeling towards Sir George Grey. We think, however, that such conduct is bud policy on pr Pollen's pirt, • and is> only ca'culated to arouse sympathy for the Superintendent.

. Another very serious fire has occurred in Auckland, with the invariable accompaniments of tires in that city—no water to be had, and a report that the fire had been earned by incendiarism.

We are informed that Mr'and Mrs George Case (Miss Grace Egerton)] who are at present playing in Auckland with remarkable success, piirfbje visiting the Thames next week, for the purpose of giving a se'ics of entertainments, prior to their departure from the colonies. A greater compliment could not be paid to the worth and accomplishments cf any actress than that which was conferred tn Mrs Datrell last,night by th'e Thames public, when, notwithstanding the prevalence of a storm of wind and rain, a cron ded house, full in every 1 part, assembled in the-Theatre Royal, because tlie occasion was her benefit. It was a convincing proof of the estimation in which the lady is held here, and we may also add that it isricbly merited. The programme announced the drama of the '' Woman in Bed," and it was played on the -occasion. The piece has been Once before performed at the Thames, but it is . a considerable time since. The drama ia highly Bensalional, and depends for its success entirely 01. the ability of the artistes, and on its striking 6 tbleanx and situations. The plot is extremely dimple, Miriam, a Jewess, leaves her infant daughter in.charge of Marguerite D'Arbel The Countess Donati, while deranged, loses her daughter, aid in order to prevent the total Joss of her reason, her friends • determine to find another chi'd and pass It as her own. The job of stealing a child Is entrusted to a worthless .scoundrel named Hubert Mallisett, a brigand and thief, who was husband b Madame D'irbel, and whom she supposed to .be dead. He was assisted in his ccheino by a vagabond showman, Victor San- ■ Bon, who while Mallisett was terrifying the Dorse, runs off with tlie child, Just then Miriam returns, and in the most pathetic manner pleads with - Marguerite to tell her where the child is. She is about to comply, when.Mallisett shoot 3 her dead from a window where he has besn ■ watcliing r and listening. Miriam then devoted her life to the recovery of the lo:t child, and after a lapse of 16 years is introduced in the second act as the Woman in Bed, a sorceress or fortune-teller. She recognised her daughter in Francesca Donati, and tubsfcjuently recovers her, but the troubles cf (he unhappy mother did not then terminate, for '* the heart of Her daughter Vas with the Coun- • tess, whom she bad so long recognised as her Bother. Tha two mothers are brought totether," and general happiness prevails. As Miriam and Kudiija, the Woman in Bed, Mrs Darrell played magnificently. On her the whole interest of the drama centred, and her exposition of the part was throughout a splendid r impersonation/ for which. sHe was repeatedly and enthusiastically.applauded and called before the curtain. Mr Darnell played Victor San-. son, the adventure'. It is essentially a comedy fart, and as such it was rendered by Mr Darrein Miss Stephenson, as the Countess, was extremely happy in" her rendition of the character, ■ and Mr Aveling, as Count Claudio, lover of Franceses, was natural and effective. There are two capital low comedy parts in the drama, that of Mattie Twitte (Mr Sam Poole), and Ninon (Miss Patty Holt). These were sustained with great spirit, and elicited roars of laughter. ', To-night the dramas of "Lucretia Borgia" and Black-eyed Snsan" will comprise the programme. .. ''The Mowing are the passengers'by the: 1 Ladybird,'whichleft Wellington ,on Thuradiy,:vFive boys for the Naval Training Pchool, Messrs Bannerman, .McConachie, Miakie, Dean, Snelton, Lord, Godwin,. Perkinfeld, Steel,;Selanders, Banken, Marks, Sharpe, Hall, . Jones',- Strong,, Starrington, Dillon, Beere, McorhonEe,. Mr and Mrs Salmon, Mrs Millar aß_d three Children, Captain Petherbridge. Recently the Otago Government have undersyßtem of subsidies in conjunction with aid from local authorities and public subscriptions for the , purpose of exploring portions of ' the Province where rich quartz reefs are pre- ' sumed to exist, but it has not yet transpired' if any. advantage has been taken of the terms offered. Westland lately, sent out an expedition to the South, which proved abortive, Und- during the. last session the Provincial Council revised and adopted, the old plan: of for ihe discovery of new gold-fields, ' it is doubtful if these will lead to that "sysiematic search which is to be desired. The General -Assembly, last session, voted a large gam of money to the Province of fuckland tor works on the Thames Goldfield, including the sinking of deep shafts in the search for deeep leads, but we'don't know,if anything of that' kind has been done up to the present time. As' a n<le paid prospecting parties as they are ordinarily understood by that title are very expensive atd most frequently unsuccessful— for reasons that it if) not worth while to discuss just now, and as we have said, the offers of rewards have been barren of results; but there is a system of prospecting which seems to ■ offer .the lest chances, if not of actual success, at any rSfe of ascertaining how far 'the nurifd'oiis deposits extend, We refer to boring in places favouring the assumption that deep leads rxifet. That they do exist is known, . but the areas over which they extend remain yet to be ascertained. - The results so far attained by the Orwell Creek Company, re exceedingly encouraging, and should induce a systematic examination of similar locallilies in other parts of the coast. The Victorian Government hare decideded to apply the suni of £10,000, voted by Parliament las' session, not to the fitting-out ordinary prospecting parties, but to the exploring hitherto untried country by boring to considerable depths,—Qwj liivcr Argus,

The Wat Const Times says:—" >"otwithBtandingthe dulness of the town, it is satisfactory to notice some pew buildings being constructed, and',additions made to others. In the suburb?, several new cottages are being erected, while a considerable addition is being made-to the Union Park, a new and neat building haa been erected as tbe Hokitika Savings Bank, on the opposite side cf the street from the Jiumble building formerly used, and eren the Bank of New South Wales is at last to be renovated, if the presence .of fresh piles and timber are to be taken as' signs of that tesulf. The old Post office is also in course of demolition, ,in view of the erection of a new dwp-Btcry building, intchded to accommodate both.tie poital and telegraph department?."

It will be seen that Dr Haast has resigned his position as President of the Philosophical Institute of Christchurch, and has written a rather indignant letter in explanation. The doctor's chagrin, arises "from the fact that he had employed a man to make some explorations in a cave where there were fossil remains, and this man, who was intelligent and observant, read a paper at the institute describing what he had seen. Dr Haast, who is rather peppery in temper; took umbrage at this being permitted.

The Herald, in noticing tho accession of Mr Reader Wood to the Provincial Executive, says: —" We are pleased to learn that Header Gilson Wood, Esq., has accepted the .office of Provincial Treasurer, vacated by the resignation of B. Tonks, Esq., whose private business has made it necessary for him to visit England. This appointment cannot fail to give general ratisfaclion, Mr Wood notonly possesses great abi» lity, is one of our best and most fluent speakers, but in a thorough man of business. If Provincial Governments are doomed to speedy dissolution, this proyince, at least, means to expire respectably; we have now an ex-Governor as Superintendent, and an ex-Minister and Colonial Treasurer in our Executive."

An extreme ritualist, the Kev Alfred Newdegate, vicar of Kirk Hallam, Derbyshire, England, has joined the Church of Rome. Mr Newdcgate was secretary for tho diocese of Lichfield of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, also of the Church Extension Society.

: The Otago daily Times has a notice of the " Official Handbook of New Zealand," in which it says:—"To compile a handbook requires a peculiar genius, which was not likely to be found in all of twenty-two contributors, and which has not been evolved in the case of any of them. Of the work as a whole, we notice tint it is badly printed, very badly bound, and illustrated by the most inconceivably wretched pictures it has ever been our lot to see As regards the printing, it is so arranged that the eye tires after a very few moments, and fails entirely to catch the leading sentences in the mazes upon mazes of so-called useful or statistical information. The binding Is such that the pages drop out six or seven at a time after the book has been half ah hour in the hand. We predict that, a very few years hence, perfect copies will be rare, and that consummation, we do not bed I ate to say, is one derrutly to be w : sbed for, The illustrations are such as were familiar to eur infant years, and requires explanatory i footnotes intimating that this Is a city and that a township, a tender care which is duly granted. We should certainly never recognise Diiuedin but fcr its name being given. The photograph seems to have been taken b the year 1866, from half-way between the Southern Cemetery snd the "centre of Walkerstreet, and give? one the idea of a town about the present size of Queenstown. The view of Port Chalmers is even more remarkable. We have had the curiosity to number the houses shown—exactly sixty. One small steamer, three lighters, and seven little rowing boats represent the'shipping.' The old pier represents the accommodation offered to vessels' of all kinds, the Railway Pier teing conspicuous by its absence. In the foreground, however, are two interesting females, a good deal taller than the highest bu'lding or tallest mast, but fortunately shown in a recumbent posture—should th&y everstand up they will blot out everything We hope that some time they will stand up."

It may be interesting at the present time to show the fate of certain adulterators of milk, who were lately prosecuted in Dublin. The Irish Times reports:—"Several dealers in milk were brought before the magistrates yesterday, charged with adulteration. One escaped for a lime upon a technical point, and four were convicted. One of the latter was fined £10, and ordered to pay £2 costs. The 'milk' which this worthy sold to the public was diluted to the extent of 80 per cent with water. The most important prosecution was one directed by the Secretary of State for War. An outbreak of typhoid fever having occurred at the Military Prison, Arbour-hill, Dr Tufnell directed that the quality .of the milk and of the water supplied to the prisoners should be carefully observed; It turned out that the analysis of the milk was in fact an analysis of water. Mr Charles Byrne, of Island-bridge, was accordingly charged on the ground that he had, in violation of his contract, supplied milk adulterated to the extent of 100 per cent, with water. This was really a very serious :matter. Some months BinCe an outbreak of fever in the most fashionable and (Wealthy quarters of London was distinctly traced to the water with which the milk had been adulterated. Some valuable lives were sacrificed, and numerous families were afflicted ■ with distress and anxiety of mind, It is not because a soldier is a-prisoner that he is deprived of the nourishment allowed him, and balf-psisoned besides. The magistrate marked his sense of the proceeding by fining Mr Byrne £15, with £5 costs—the highest penalty the law at present allows. Stronger measures still are necessary, in the opinion of the Irish Times, to put a stop to the adulteration of milk. 'Fines,'it observes, 'no matter how heavy they are, are always paid, whether by the culprit or others we cannot say; and it is quite clear thit adulteration cannot be effectually checked until the magistrate is empowered to punish the adulterator by imprisonment with hard labour, without the option of a ■fine.''

The London Examiner give 3 utterance to tlie following disloyal sentiment:-"The monarchy survived the profligacy of George the IV., but it would not survive the statesman' ship of ai able King. Providence has generously guarded us from such a danger by giving to the Prince of Wales an absorbing capacity and taste for shooting poultry."

A witer in a southern contemporary urges the necessity for life rafts for sailing chips. He says: — "They may be used singly or collectively. They ate each pontoon rafts, of great buoyancy always kept with mast, sail, provisions {linsited cf course), yet sufficient to preserve life a length of time; -water, medicine, fish hooks, line?, gun, ammunition, harpoon, blankets, and disbrrss signals, including rockets. These they would each carry, with people according to their capacity. They would not all be the satne size. They can.be e'evated and laurelled with ease, by an ordinary watch of skilled seamen. In smooth water four men would suffice to place the largest afloat. The very fact of such means of safety being at hand, would go far to allay the terrible consternation that ensues when these unexpected disasters happen, I will now endeavour to explain the manner in which the raft or rafts are worked, and as an illustration, take the ship 'North, fleet,' which was run down off Dungeness, This was in smooth water, but it will serve to convey the idea. Presuming the crew to be pi'evieusly instructed, and the certainty of the vessel's dissolution established, the captain would order the boats to be secured, and the rafts to fe launched. Two seamen wou'.d suffice to lift the first pontoon into position, and two more would launch and secure her. This raft may then be loaded and cast adrift; or if the danger is imminent, they may be put over with rapidity, one after the other. One quarter boat in the meantime, might be lowered with officers and men, to save any who might unluckily fall: overboard. The passengers on the rafts—which they cannot capsize or swamp-fre comparatively safe, until the captain, with his officers and crew, can join them in the boats in good order. He can then connect the pontoons if lie choose, take any proper quartily of people into his different boats, and so organise the flotilla as'' he may deem most conductive to their safety, The best boat would always be in reservo to go in search of assistance, white the others are in attendance upon the pontoons. Should heavy weather coine 011 while in this unfortunate condition, one of the pontoons, after drafting her passengers and outfit, may be submerged, under tho lea of which much protection would be found ■ thus the' boats and pontoons would mutually assist each other. Passengers at the earliest opportunity, after getting to sea, particularly heads of families and others who may be relied upon, should be instructed'as to their position and duties in case of emergency."

The Jiinperor of China died of small-pox. On the same doy a grand festival was to to held in honour of tho goddess of stnoll-prx,