THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR P.M. Resurrexi. FRIDAY, MAY 1, 1885.

Thames Star, Volume XVI, Issue 5082, 1 May 1885, Page 2

THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR P.M. Resurrexi. FRIDAY, MAY 1, 1885.

Thai the oonßtaiit dropping of water wears aWay stone :i«; a trite maxim which can be used in copnection with the degree of apathy displayed by the people of the district in' attenlding to their own welfare, and so stolid has that apathy apparently become that we fear the dropping must be heavy and unremitting to ppduce;any effect in their case; Hence; we again attack the subject of the depression at present existent here, and attempt ?io put^ some life^ into; those whorcaD, and should attempt to, alleviate its conse* quences if they cannot altogether remove it; In iddreising his > cpnstituenta at Dnnedin last evening, the Minister 'ofiline» stated thai he would do all in his power to develop the mineral resources of the colony; "Such an avowal is of ooursß * natural onevfrom such a source, yet its etprfessiou 1 should lie taken adTftutage of, and the hopowibleV Mioiite^ fhould/

have it shown to himhow he! can advabce the mining industry here, and every opportanity given to -him :to show, that his ' words jare^f;of meaning. ■ Government encouragement to Thames mining has Been in; the past very sparse, and now thVt-so excellent an opportunity, ipreients; itself,;it should not be loafc. Thi^ltaraka ; Tararutunnel;'the Wire Tramway scheniei, and the High Level Water Race all have their supporters, but where are they, and j where the exertions that should be,neverr | ending' until some satisfactory.result is j obtained. ■ The' expenditure on each of ! these three projects varies considerably, and the most practicable one causing the least expenditure at the outset should be easily determined- While the expression of the Minister is fresh,not only in our own minds, but in^-that of himself, let som# steps be taken to show that we are and have been a long neglected community ; have been helping ourselves for years while: other mining districts have been in receipt of Government aid ; have reached a copdition which demands the assistance of the State; and that any outlay made upon our field will not be fruitless. These things can without much difficulty be shown, and no time should be lost in placing them very plainly before the Minister. Our member could—we feel convinced—if his hands were strengthened sufficiently' by the people, do much good in the direction we; point out, and it therefore remains with-the people, who are all interested, to throw ofi the mantle of slumber which appears to have fallen upon them. We have said previously that the district has apparently .made up its mind to live alone on its gold returns '-'no idea of the introduction of manufactures or,other industries is likely to be attempted. Well, if such be unfortunately the case, let that one idea—the gold—be consistently and conscientiously carried out. :. '.'■'•'..■■'-'■" ■■■" ■•■.■■■,'.•

Mb I/ABNACH addressed his constituents at South Dunedin lest night. He stated he would da all in hiis power to develops the mineral resources of the colony, and would favour the giving of subsidies tola'ssist in pro. Tiding a water snpply. He received a vote of confidence. ,

In accordance with instructions from the directors, the 1 manager of the Cambria GKM. Co. shipped per s.s. Enterprise last even: ing, for transhipment to Sydney about If tons of quartz of various grades, and about half a ton of tailings, which are to be treated by a Sydney firm according to, a process patented by Hudson Bros. \ .-•• / 3 -

Messes Stone Beos. have now on their stocks, at Shortland, a schooner, to be called the Taufa, to the order of Messrs MaeAithur & Co., of Auckland, which is rapidly approaching completion, and will probably be ready for launching in a month's time. She will be of about 20 tons register, and is intended for the Island trade.

Wb, learn that Miss Hamilton, lately a teacher in the Waiotahi echool, who sustained an injury tp her spine through jumping from a peaoh tree about five months ago, and pro* ceeded to Auckland and Te Aroha, staying three weeks at the latter place, has returned to Thames very much improved in health by her sojourn there. The young lady had to be carried, from her hpme in the Waiotahi when going away, but we are informed that on returning she was able to walk up the hill to' her residence. .

Mb Keneick, R.M., presided in the 8..M. Court this morning, and disposed, of the only two cases for hearing on tlie list. They were two judgment Bumcnonaes against a native woman named Hikori. The first was on a claim by J. B. West for thosum of £812s 6dIn this Mr Miller appeared, for the plaintiff, and after hearing evidence that defendant had money since the judgment was giren, an order was made for the payment of the sum and Co3ts, in all £7 Ob 6d, in two monthly instalments, the first on June Ist and the second on July Ist. The other case was J. Eorgie against the same defendant, for £3 3s"7d, and this was adjourned for four weeks, to enable plaintiff to\ascertain if defendant had means of paying the money. Hikori confessed to "having interests in -various blocks of land at Parawai and elsewhere. (

A pootbaili match will he played on the Waio-Karaka flat to-morrow afternoon between the following, picked from the various Clubs, and all-comers :—Allen, Mangan, McGregor, Buchan, Sullivan, Inglis, A. McNeil, Murray, Watene. Aperahatna, Roto, Brownlee, Allom, Dare, and Erwin; emergencies—Douglas, Hands, Preece, Anderson, Waka, and Gordon. Play will commence at 3 sharp.

In the Police. Court this morning, James Gordon was charged with neglecting to comply wi.'b an order of the Court providing that he should pay the sum of twelve shillings and sixpence per week to Jane Agnew towards the support of his illegitimate child. Gordon said he understood that the girl had agreed to free him from the payments, as she thought he had paid enough,, and she would not have proceeded had it not been for her mother. The case was adjourned till two o'clock, to enable the mother of the child to appear. ;On the Court resuming, and there being no appearance of the mother, tlie case was further adjourned till Saturday the 9th inst. ■

At tbe recenfcjawexaminfttion, the following passed «s solicitors.:-—Messrs ■ B; L. Skcen, C. Z. Clayton,, C. Nicholson, W. Kerr, F. Macraa, of Auckland; Eev. Mr, Killen, of Whangarie. ; : '

As will be seen by soverMsementin another column, the 15th of May has been oppoinficd as the day, and the: Native Commissioner's Court, the place, for receiving nominations for the vacant Tauranga seat ip the Houee of Bepresentatives ; and the poll; if recessary, wili be taken on May 22nd.

ifoxwITHSTAKDINa the heavy rainfall last night, Tery little fresh wiis caused in the Kauaeranga river, and consequently no logs have been brought down. , \

To-mobeow at twelve, o'clock an important sale by auction of jewellery will take place on the premises, next the Bank of KVw Zealand, by Mr K. E. McGregor. The list of/goods to be disposed of consists of.watches, jewellery, gold, silver, and fancy goods of several deserip* tidns. The watches-are by. well known manufacturer?, and the, jewellery is of chaste and tasteful designs. Doubtless a large attend-: anca will be put in to secure come. dl the, bargains attached to suph a sale, \ ; "

Th* water in the; QiieWof Beauty Bhaft ( continues to rise/ and , on measuring up this morning, ',{■ Mr Badford> found that the water had risen 15f(;. during the last 24 hours, tad it abw22ft; below ■ ]$<>. 9 level. , • ;

• The annual .meeting of the,, Auckland Tobacco Company, which should have been hold yesterday, lapsed for want of a quorumThe report states that; the profitß on Bales; though considerable, had been more than eaten vp 1 by salaries, wages, and comraissions; retrenchment in wages, ifc v wtas hoped, , would reduce the debit balance in future;; , .'

.Many people suppose;(says -the' Bombay Gazette) that Sarakhe is officially accepted as the' spot whiqh jnarks the nortfi-western boundary corner of Afghauiatan. This is not the^ eaße. Indian official publications accepted the 'etone bridge over the Tejend or Hari Rud, known as Piil i-Khatun, as the northwestern corner mark of Afghan territory } so the Indian officials, or military men, will show no surprise if the announcement. 13 made that the future. AfghanrAßian frontier .line is to terminate at Pul-i«Khatun, 24 mileb south of Sarakhs. The fact that Pul-i-Khatun ia already recognised as a point up to which Russia may unmolestedly advance is a reason for the report that England is negotiating with^ Russia on the Pul-i-Khatun basis; on the othor hand, it .may be a reason for the Russians claiming the ell, as they are already in possession of. the inch. :'/■:. , ."\ '

The election of Sir Jas. Prendergaßfe, 8.A., and. Charles HeDry Herbert, Cook, Esq., M.A., to be Felloes of the New Zealand University has been approved of by, His Eicellency.

A JTpmaea telegram states that Alexander Anges, a miner, of Greenstone, on Tuesday,; fell off a sideling into the backwater, and war: drowned.

Thk largeßt;.'.tally, of sheep shearing in Canterbury this year wbb done by Thomas Lester, of Kaiapoi, who got through 212 sheep in eight hours and a-half. The animals were well shorn, arid had Lester been pushed, he could have increased bis score. It is said that no other shearer was within sheep of him.

A fibe extinguishing hand grenade has just been introduced to Auckland t by Mr John .Bain, and will shortly, we believe, have a public trial. It is called the Harden Star Hand Grenade Fire Extinguisher. The extinguishing fluid is in a bottle of peculiar shape, which can be thrown a considerable distanre, and it either breakß with the fall, or with the heat, the contents extinguishing the fire all around. The utility of these fite extinguishers is Baid to have been thoroughly proved. Messrs T. and S. Morrin and 00., limited, are the agents. ;

The London Times says:—"There is no move hopeful sign for the future of (he Empire, co clearer proof of the .vigorous man« hood of the English race, than the willing offers of the .military service which, have come to us from Australia and Canada. While Germans emigrate to avoid the obligations of the conscription, Englishmen voluntarily enlisted .for colonial service only are willing to co,me forward and face hardship and danger for a cause which is distinctly Imperial. This willingness on the part of our great colonies to stand by the flag, and its practical realisation in the movement of an Australian Contingent to Suakim, will not only serve to make it clear to Europe that the,small regular army of England is after all only a portion of the military^Btrength 'at the disposal of the but it will materially add to the popularity and efficiency of, all the colonial fortes." ..■'"'•■■■,.■.

■ Lake Wakatipu has long bren famed for its enormous eels ; and it now bids fair to carry off the palm as the home of the biggest trout in the Colony, one weighing 211bs, caught in the waters of the Lake, having been exhibited in Invercargill recently. This should make the fingers of the local anglers,tingle.

The Now; Zealand Tablet, referring to Eussian cruelties in Poland, says:—The country, then, that shall conquer Russia will have it in her power to perform, this great act of justice and mercy—-to fres this country, whose wrongs cry to Heaven for vengeance, from the bands of her infamous oppressor—or, even if she fails to undertake this noble action she may still co weaken the power of Kussia as to make it possible for the Poles* themselves to work out their freedom, os their efforts already show us what they are capable of doing under circumstances' in any. degree favorable to them. Should a war with Russia, therefore, occur, we shall.watch it with great interest, .discerning in each reverse the chastisement due to the past; as well as hope for Poland's future. It may even foil to the lot of these Coloniea, by thwarting Russian designs in some respect or other, to have a part in so great and good a'work. „

The following ds extracted from a letter received by a r sidenfc of Wanganui from a friend in Sydneys—-HThere ia one noticeable feature in, the Soudan business that has not crept into the j^pers, and that is the bid foi* cheap patriotism made by a lot of those who 6^nt in their names in the first instance, bat who, when the offer was accepted, took a back eeat, and were heard of no more! Never dreaming that the offer of a New South Wales contingent would be accepted by the British Government, these spurious heroes were red hot to go right away to the Soudan, but the acceptance of the offer made a sudden (no pun intended) change in their feelings, and they became affected with a disease Dr O'Rafferty declared to be a kind of a 'stay at home wid us' (steatomatous ?/affection! Of those who volunteered in .the first instance, only a very email percentage turned up when called upon; but their places were ,soon filled by new men, who meant business and said nothing. One fellqw in our shop waß one of the first to come forward and have his name figuring in the list of heroes published in the papers, but ho evidently likes Sydney too well, as he ia 1 here still. But hot as the Soudan ie, we are making Sydney: hotter for this sham soldier, who wishes he hadn't made auoh a conspicuous aBS of himself."': . ;

The Eobs Advocate, which is a journal that often causes an explosion of merximent not contemplated by the genius who does its thunder, hss a decidedly rough paragraph in reference to the Reinenyi Company, but all the poison is reserved for the manager, Mr Frank Weston, who is termed a \" business humbug," and referred to in other equally uncomplimentary, phrases. The Ross Mercury—the opposition paper, it may be explained—gives iho following version of the affair:—" An amusing scene occurred afc the Totara Hall on Thursday evening last. The Eemenyi concert whs just over, and the business manager promptly. paying all accounts due by the company. Mr Potrie prenentod an account for £3 isa for advertising the notice of the concert; in his paper. Of course the agent was'startled by such a modest demand, especially Bsthe charge by respectable papers on the Coast' for the same advertisement was only £l ss. A friend of Petrie's having been Bent with the bill, could not explain what the charge of £3 15s meant, whereupon the manager!re-, turned the account, sarcastically remarking that ho supposed Mr Petrie wanted him to buy the paper. It was decidedly rough on Petrie to estimate the entire worih of his valuable journal at £3 15s. Petrie appeared shortly after wards in a great state of excite-, ment, and threatened to have the manager and his company handed over to the police. One of the police constables \r as consulted on the matter^ but be.■"declined" to run either MRemonyi or any of-his opmpany into the lockup- Petrie could get no satisfaction, and Ji&3 had the disappointment of peeing the company go away without paying his_modeat little bill. "W& must not omit to mention that the company offered to pay Petrie the usual charges, which he declined.; Petrie evidently intended to reap a harvest but of Remenyi'tf vasit, but the manager was not to be had.".

Fob selling flounders less than nine inches in length two fishermen in Ohmtohuroh were yesterday fined £1 oacli. The cboo ; was tbe ' -first brought under the new regulations pub-, lißhed in tbe Gazette of April 2nd; ;;M '■?.

At a nteeting held at Merivalo, a'fluburb of Ohristohurch last night,'it Was decided to form abranchtbf the St., Johns' Ambulance Aeaociationi' The meeting was; ebnvened by: the Rev. ,T '. i ; JTlavell, incumbent;^.ofi' Mer;?ale. Several medical men were. preß.eut, and over 60 persons . subscribed as members of 'the, branch. The object of the Association is to render assistance to sufferers from accident or, wounds in tiaio.of pence or .war.,, ; ..:,/,,,,, A COBBESPONDENT from a place called' Loburn recently , wrote to the Christchurch Press that during a recent frosty night " thousands of sparrows wer<j killed 'arid lay dead under the trees in the morning. It was a work of some hotirs to rake up the dead birds to. prevent a nuisance." Either; that correspondent's'veracity is not quite unimpeachable or the New Zealand'sparrow must be a,different kind of n bird from his British namesake, which thrives and flourishes under circumstances of frost arid" Bnow which are quite unknown here. :, / ■ /0