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Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2147, 20 November 1875, Page 2

;. i; .-TffE; W^^LlKis^l^3ng.CNKoJ lih>;it3th inst. states; •♦ The Opposition, as we ha^e already had occasion to say, hare no programme, or rather they have two progmtnmesVfor the future.. \ Sometimes it is two provinces, and again with stout application it stretches-into four, while.-the Lytteltoji; Times asserts th|fcit ismbt the business of an Opposition 5 to have any programme at all, or to know their own mind in such'a matter. They have only got to oppose whatever the existing. Go,vyetri|nenVmay propose, vlf their followers are satisfied with this state of things, it is not for others to complain, but is quite allowable to contrast it with the defined .policy which ,one may readilyascribe to those' who; r ,have.. thQ .guidance of public affairs. :We have then-at least^-lst. A United Colony. . 2ad. Local ; Self-Govern-ment..; 3rd;' ; Efiicienit Administration. 4th:.'' Ecoiipmical.Expenditure, with if possible (but it is needless to attempt too much all. at pnqe) sth. Primary Education."' And 6thv Eeform of the Legislative Pouncil." - .-..

IP -Thekb was a short time ago something faid about building public baths near the Karaka Bridge, but the idea seems to have been abandoned. The only place in or near the town ,f hero the luxury of a plunge and a swim can bo enjoyed is Curtis' Wharf baths, which have recently been put in order and are now open for the season. The charges are moderate, and the baths are easy of access, besides being available at nearly all states of 'the tide. • -v - s Ma W. C. Wright, mining engineer and surveyor, of the Thames, has, says the Herald, just returned from the Waikato> where he has been^ engaged in layipg down a plan of working a'coal mine which is to : be,opened at Kahuipukekq, upon Mr Ralph's" land, on the eastern side of the .riverr..The mine-is the propertyof Mr Scherff, Mr Boberton, and other Auck-land-gentlemen;: ; A contract to get out coal has been let for three years to Mr Balph. A considerable quantity of coal is: shown -pn'tlje.'surface v >P-nd the Bed, w.hieh^i? fironxl 8 sto/22;: feet thick, seems to lie with tKe formation of the. country. It is a black coal, the same as thatat Messrs WEitakev and, Russell's mine, which is . about ..a mile distant. As soon, as the .Vailwajr is oppneljUp the length of Eahui"pukekoj a very large quantity of coal can be produced from tliis.nii^e, and supplied? in Aiickltfn'cl "at a,'cheap rate. ' f;j

The result of the examination held by. the Board of Theological Studies is now ovei*, and we are glad to hear that the first place in Grade I. has been awarded to Miss. Annette Lush, who has beaten all competitors by a large majority. The total number of marks obtainable was 3000 of which Miss A. Lush has obtained ,2023, or more than two-thirds of the maximum ; the next in order getting 1741; and the third 1657. The Board whose first Grade Miss A. Lush has thus so successfully passed was established by the. General ; Synod of the Church of England in New Zealand for the purpose of promoting the study of Theology. The* Bishop of Christchurch is the President, and the. Board consists of. the Bishops of New Zealand, three Clergymen, and three Laymen, chosen by the General Synod at its triennial meetings.

It is now definitely announced that Sir Juliu? Vogel will leave . Sanj; Francisco on Bth December, by tlje first new boat 6f the Pacific Company's .fleet, arriving here about the 2nd of January. The steamer will call at Honolulu, and thence will sail direct for Auckland. Our late Governor, Sir George Bowen, will be one; of the passengers en route for Mdßourne.; Sir George is now in America, where his Excellency will have had the opportunity of spending upwards of a month of travel through the States. It is possible that his Excellency the Marquess of Normanby may make:arrangements to be in Auckland at the time of Sir George Bowen's arrival here> in which case there would be the unwonted spectacle—at one time hoped for, prior to Sir James Fergusson's departure— of the reigning Governor and two ex-Governors of New "Zealand being present together at once ; in this city.—Cross. "'■"■> ■'-"

Messhs Eeaseb and Tinne are constructing a wire tramway for Tairua, for the conveyance of quartz. It is half-a--mile in length, and falls in the distance over 200 feet. Owing to this fall it is self-acting, as the full buckets bring back the empty ones. It is calculated to convey five tons of; quartzan hour, at a cost of Is per ton. One of the features of this tramway is the use of a new patent, clip, which will hold the buckets stiffly to the rope on a gradient of one inch in two, and yet disengages itself when required, automatically. These wire tramways are: coming largely into use in England; yehere they,-have beeri!lbuilt four miles in length^H^rald. I-;: ;^ • •■

The Bruce Herald has the following:—' "A ;w.ell-:knoyn" and highlj;-respected gentleman, who holds the appointment of Resident Magistrate in one of thp most important centres of population^ received a severe shock the other day. He was travelling from Dunedin tp; Balclutha, when an old woman with an unsteady step and glassy eye, entered the carriage, and depositing a small demijohn of whiskey on the floor carefully placed one of her feet on each side. The old dame did not like the look of the magistrate, for she held the whiskey tight. 'My good woman,' mildly remarked the dispenser of justice, ' I'm afraid you have been drinking too much to-day.' ' Never you mind,' -responded the old )&&y; ' this whiskey .will be paid'-for: 1 by.; a better-: looking man. "than ybti.' For the next mile or two of the journey silence reigned supreme." •

■ The ■■ Otag'b' ''Guaridian vsays •— Mr Sheehan, M.H.E., was determined that the Otago people shall be well informed as to his nationality. During his stay in that Province he delivered three speeches, and on each occasion he informed his auditors that he was a New Zealander by birth. : At; the banquet-.at Balclutha, however,'.'the English Tauguage, it appears,; was not rich enough for him to give proper expression to the fact above referred to, so he grew quite classical, and imparted to the Cluthaites the interesting fact that he was Norus Zealandus: civis sum. He also expressed his belief that nine-tenths of the New' Zealand born population were in favour of Provincialism.

; We are in receipt of New Zealand Gazettes Nos 63 and 64, and a number of Acts of the Assembly passed during last session.

The Bank of New Zealand shipped for London by the Flechero, which sailed on Thursday, 4 boxes gold containing 4909 ozs. 8 dwts., and valued a$ £20,36418s ; and 11,152 ozs. 9 dwjsHsilver, of the value of £2929 4s 9d; the whole of the above being the produce of the Thames Goldfields. ":

Besides the money- paid. to the lucky drawers of the first three horses placed in the Melbourne Cup, those who, in Mr Abbot's sweep, drew a horse at all had to receive £6 Is l|d for drawing a starter, and £1 12s 6|d for drawing a non-starter, minus five.per cent for expenses.

It is happily a long time since there was a fire in GrahamstowD, but there was a narrow escape yesterday, just enough to create a scare. In the back yard of Mr McCaul's works is a furnace and trough for tarring iron pipes. While this was left for. a short time the pot boiled ov.er, and there was a blaze. Fortunately it was observed, and the blaze was soon got under. If it had been unnoticed for a little longer the consequences would probably have been serious.

We hear Messrs R. and A. Smith, the contractors for No. 2 section of the water race, are determined to prosecute any owner of cattle in the Kauaerauga Valley whose animals are found in, on, or across the line of th#water race. The Messrs Smith have been driven to adopt this course of action owing to the damage they have received from cattle not properly looked after.

Last night's Auckland Star says:-r A gushing notice of the efforts of the Thames police in connection with the Tokatea amalgam robbery appears in the Thames Advertiser, concluding with some reflections on the Tokatea directors for their part in the matter. Now, the fact is, that the ■police utterly failed in their attempts to discover the perpetrators, and every step described by the Advertiser \jras taken in pursuance of a plan matured by the directors and carried out with the co-operation of Sub-Inspector JBullen. X-et credit be given where it is due..

Some writer in the Thames AdvertiseM has just made a discovery which he i# anxious to make known. He is evidently one who has had a long and intimate acquaintanpe^jri^i'jbttrnalism. This quid nww^says .--7-* it is now* within the power of BB£ newspaper in the colony to possess •'Ji \£ special' Paris -^correspondent. An /association has been formed in Paris* jstyl'e'ct tho -*' Correspondence Club," ..fyhichj undertakes- to .furnish to all jjpubscrjlring- journals^ throughout the '■■ woritl, monthly -letters in all or any of the following classes :-^Political, Scientific or Social." This ia about as good news as that" Queen Anne is dead,' and " the tution referred to is generally known as the "Paris Correspondence CgQ^any;" not "Club," and it has been established has the advantage of the Advertiser.,) for whereas the former can with truth say—•' j " Not to know me argues yourself unknown,"

The^Advertise!* .cannot say the stime of the| company, Jjwhic^ probably" 'shg* ney;|r even heard of its existence.

A lady named Mrs Scott Siddons liatfH distinguished herself as a volunteer rifle- ] ■Woman in England. The BHefor&jjfand' tTorrington Eifle Corps ha^e just obtained*! a new lojag range,, which has been formally -OTeDfca^byiiMrsi Sco'tfc ■Siddonsiti Inlihe. presence of Siy l£dwßTcl^Qreciij-U«^<>cal-gentr^aiidliheV^olfl^ers 'and! men" bfithes respective corps, Mrs SiddoDS took a , Martini-Henry rifle, and fired at the target-, making a bull's-eye the first time and a centre with her ; spcokd; 'iSKei.Wasj loudly cheered, and the Devon Volunteers boast.that they haye, now in their county the best xaarksman and : 4 the; best marks,* J woman in England.

A good story is told ofi'the lladies in the Melbourne Metropolitan telegraphic department. Eecently. a document was sent'-ta'ih'e- 1-office by the fJeputy P6st-' master-General which required tho ages of all the operators to be returned. Tlie men put their signatures to it straight off", but when it was sent to the ladies']branch it was coolly ignored, and when .reminded of its existence with a request for it to be filled up, the fair electriciajus returned it with a firm but respectful refusal,'to Tgiver the information asked for. The Deputy Postmaster was for the moment staggered, but like a gallant officer accepted his defeat gracefully, and allowed the kdies to score their Victory ove£ departmental: routine without another word.