Correspondence.

Tuapeka Times, Volume IX, Issue 549, 22 March 1876, Page 5

Correspondence.

WAIPORI CORBESPONDENCE, (To tint Editor.)

Sir. — Passing over the fulsome, verbose sentiment and unmitigated bosh of J. Cox's letter, I beg to state— (l.) That I never implied that I was " the people " who wanted the ground. (2.) That J. O. did question my actions when he said " I can point to him something nearer home than the quarts claim wherein the Treasury suffers a loss of more than £35 per annum." (3.) That I never used your columns " to give prominence to a little speculation (I have) on hand." (4.) That I never " used my position as ' Your Own ' to deprive other men of their just rights." The original paragraph which gave rise to this discussion simply pointed to a matter that wanted rectifying, and which will soon be so, as the surveyors are now in the district for that purpose. The tall talk of Mr. Cox, throwing no light on the subject, may be put down as superfluous gas. I- assure Mr. Cox that his boring me has not been productive of so copious a supply of information as he, no doubt desired. — I am, &c, Youb Ows.

Ploughing Matohks at Home.— Ploughing matches in the old country continue to attract attention, though not so much as formerly, owing to the wide spread use of the steam cultivator. By the mail just in we have received an account of the last contest in England for the year 1875. The mateh — one of the largest in the kingdom— came off just before Christmas Day, at Cottenham, hard by the old University of Cambridge. Forty-five teams entered the field. Eighteen prizes were competed for, and of this number the champion and eleven others both for single and double furrow, were won with ploughs made by the old and renowned firm of Howard, Bedford ; a 'first, second, and fourth prize with Hornshy's: a second with Fison'B and Page's ; and a third with Ransome's. It appears that the Howards have for several years pas.t discontinued competing at these matches with their own men and teams, believing it to be a fairer criterion of the merits of ploughs to leave them entirely in the hands of local ploughmen, as at the Cottenham contest.

Difference of time betweek London and New Zealand. — An Auckland paper has the following : — As we are now in almost daily receipt of telegrams from Europe, it may not be uninteresting to show the apparent effect which the difference of the mean time observed at London and Auckland have upon the transmission of telegraphic messages by cable. Auckland is situated 174 deg. odd east of London, and our noon is 11 hours 39 minutes in advance of Greenwich time, but the mean time observed throughout New Zealand is exactly 11 hours 30 minutes in advance of Greenwich time. The apparent effect is readily seen, and its cause understood. If a message were sent from London at noon, and its transmission to Auckland were instantaneous, we should receive it at 11.30 p.m., or near midnight of the same day, so that nearly twelve hours would have appeared to have been occupied in" its journey. When messages are spoken of as being two days old, they are really 4 day and a-half, or 35 hours 30 minutes old. On the other hand messages from New Zealand to London, by direct communication, would be sent in considerably less than our time. , A telegram from Auckland, if not delayed in the transmitting stations, would appear to reach London 11^ hour* before it was actually written. This seem* very much like nnnibilating time a« well as spape^