THE Thames Advertiser. TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 1875.

Thames Advertiser, Volume VIII, Issue 2129, 24 August 1875, Page 2

THE Thames Advertiser. TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 1875.

In the House of Representatives the other day, Mr Buckland drew tlio atteution- of the Government to the necessity of" extending the telegraph lino from Hikutaia to Mackaytown, and the result was that Mr Sheath, tho Inspector of lines for the North Island, was instructed to visit tho district, for tho purpose of reporting upon' tho desirability of carrying out the work at once. We can see by this action that a word in the right quarter, by the proper person, is ■ often sufficient to obltfin all that wo desire. Where our own representative was on that occasion, and why ho did not take up this matter, instead of allowing it to fall into the hends of a stranger, we cannot say. It may be that tho number of very important petitions from the Thames. which Mr O'Neill was entrusted with, together with'his anxiety for the welfare of . the peoplo of the colony, which was forcibly illustrated by his efforts to reduce the duty on Australian wines to tho modest sum of one shilling per gallon, wero together sufficient to exhaust his energy, aud cau3e him to forget that there are other matters of somewhat more local importance to his constituents "thau the prico of colonial winos.

Now that telegraphic communication is likely to be extended iu the Thames Valley, wo hopo that it will not be confiued to Mackaytown. There is.no rcasuu whatever why offices should not be opened at Paeroa, and Tairua, and and we believe that in both cases they would be found to repay all expenditure in a few months. Were the telegraph lines of this district in the hands of a private individual, and were the business of the department conducted on true business principles, an offic§ ? . would long ere this have been opened at Puriri, where a small office, a little wire, un instrument, and a few posts, would have been all tho- expenditure necessary to obtain a very largo business, until the line could be extended to tho Tairua ranges. But the Government move very slowly, and they have only yet gone tho length of " reporting" upon the extension from Hikutaia to Mackaytown. "We hope that some- member of the Assembly will at once draw attention to tho necessity of extending tho line to Tairua, and opening an office also at Paerot, which is at present a larger centre thairMackaytown, The Govern raent, through- a little importunity, opened an office on the Tckatea range, and they could scarcely refuse to do tho Barne at Tairua, were the matter fairly placed before them in the' Assembly. There could be no possible room for doubt regarding the thoroughly reproductive character of the extension in the direction advocated, and wo hopo that it will bo immediately undertaken.