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Thames Star, Volume VIII, Issue 1884, 16 January 1875, Page 2

There was a clean sheet at tie Resident Magistrate's Court this ihoruing.

A.X excursion took place to Ohinemuri yesterday. A number of ihe Good T rnplars accompanied the Hon. S. D. Htarings in order to show him the Upper Country. A picnic was extemporised and a formal leave taking was pone through. To fi«*y Mr Hastings was to leave Ohinemtiii for Tau r»ng» s whither he is accompanied by Mr A. Porter.

It will bs spen from our telegrams that "Dr. " Brown has lounri his way to Taurantra and got into trouble. Vagrancy and obtain ing clothing by false repre?entatioas are the charges preferred against Mr Brown. An asylum for inebtittes would be the best place to send this unfortunate mm to: he appear* to be past redemption by an/ means save forcible restraint.

A nfmbeb of gentlemen started in the •team launch Buona Ventura this morning for the purpose of navigating the Thames River as fur as Aroha. The party numbers about a dozen, well found in kaikai and other necessaries for keeping up their strength. Some more. contributions to the light literaure of the day may bo expected when the exploring party returns.

A meeting of the Egmont (Taranaki) Rifle Volunteers was recently held, when resolutions were passed for dissolving the force. There being funds in hand the members took into consideration the beat means of disposing of them, when it was decided that £5 should be given to the Town Band and £50 to the Acclimatisatirn Society. This i« one of the most liberal donations wo (Taranafci Herald) have heard of for some time, and the thanks of the comn,unity are due to the volunteers for their generous gift.

One of the .latest wonder* of journalism was the transmission to the Times office from Belfaet of a word-for-word report of Professor Tyndall'a very l«ng opening speech at th • British Association, occupying no leei than eight columns of most valuable space.

" Can it be done ? " asks the Philadelphia Ledger— that is, can measures bo devised to enable steamships at sea to keep up tele* graphic communication with the shore ? The rest of the civilised and commercial world is within easy telegraphic communication of each port, but the large community which lives on our passenger steamships is totally cut off from thereat of ihe world the moment land disappears; and the question is, '•Can anything be done for them?" Two plans are suggested— one to paj out a small und comparatively inexpensive cable by the departing steamer, thus keeping up communication with the sailing port; but this plain meets will so many obj o.iots, in the shape of expenses, the loas of a cable on eaci trip, and the uncer;a nty of keeping up such communication that another is sugge-te), havinp more of system and business principal on its basis— namely, the establishment of cable stations on the high seas, built, upon buoys, at which a st amer my *top a> d communicate if in di<iress, g ye hertirn**,and enable her passengers >o eommuiii'-ate with their friends on either shore. Ihe object woul t without qu«-tio>i be extremely desirable, while the plan, t»Mty the least, appears no mora impracticable ih <n di i the laying of tlie cable between the Uniied States and Europe before the hitherto incredible task had been accomplished.

A wjbitee in the Otago Witness states that some dozen young afchlutes, who had just recovered from the measlei*, Wi-nt lately to hear Mr Short's (Life Assurance Lecturer) lecture on "Happy Homes." They wco very anxiou* to know ■fr(»m a duly *-qualified nv-dical prac'itionpr whether they wore fi; to go imo training for the forthcoming Calerioi.itm sports To gel; the deeired authentic information woul-i have cost a guinea e*ch, but Mr Short's addrrss put. qii te a new i-Ua into their hen s They Mcd in the proposal forms eagerly, and n**xt morning presented themselves in due course before the doctor, who nas all smiles at the thought of drawing twelve guineas from the Inearanco Company as. Tecs. The young men were carefully examined and pronounced as sound as bells, and fit for anything. They were rery thankful to Mi* Short for his lccui c,arid they have been in active training ever since, but. not one of them has paid, or ever intends to pay a premium on life assurance.

The Dunedin Guardian publiah.es a letter from Mr John L Gillies, M.X.X., M.P.C , to tha Tokoinairiro Grammar School Comuii tee, in which he intimates that he has placed the £8") recently presented to him by his Tokoroairiro friends, in the Bank, together with £20 added by himself to found a scholarship m the Grammar School, the interest of tho cum to be devoted to asiustirg the education of those boys or girls who may choose the profe?son of a teacher.

The imposition of ad valorem duties seems to have given satisfaction in one portion of New Zealand a* least. From fib annual report of the Dunedin Ch&mb3r of Commerce we extract the following passuge :— Your committee are of opinion that the wisdom of the change from tha oli system to that of ad vnloiem duties has been thoroughly established by the experience of the paßt year, and would earnestly deprecate any further meddling with the tariff.