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Evening Star, Issue 3098, 23 January 1873, Page 2

Messrs Peebles and Dunn, the American Spiritualists, are passengers by the Albion for Dunedin.

By proclamation in the Xew Zealand Gazette of the Kith, the Governor dissolved the Pro inoial Council of Wellington on the 15th of this month.

Mr George Levon Asher, of Port Chalmers, has been appointed by His Excellency to be lerk of the Resident Magistrate’s Court at Port Chalmers, in the room of Mr D, Rolfe, resigned. Mr Luckie, M,H. R., is succeeded in the editorship of the Nelson L’qlwkJ by Mr Alexander R id, long connected vvitli tjie Press in Dunedin, and favorably known as an experienced member of it ill this Colony, and also in the old country. Weundcrstand thatwarrants were received yesterday from His Excellency the Governor bv Mr i aid well, the governor of the Gaol, f.ir the liberation of the live Maori political prisoner.-*, convicted of high treason in the North Island, who have bgon confined in Dunedin Gaol since August, 187 i, The knowledge betrayed by the leading English journals of New Zealand topography, is at least instructive. The A him of the World of October 27, 1872, contains the following splendid and sensational telegram “ i iota in Now Zealand. Melbourne, Thursday. Disturbances have occurred in the Chatham Islands.” ApntJjer instance occurs in Bell's Life where, in a jfe.gent issue, a notice to correspondents appears to the effect that the fastest time on record for a halfmile race was made by Harris in 2 min. 53 secs., on the Riccarton road, Australia | Sittings of the District Court of the Otago Goldfields are appointed to be held at the Resident Magistrate’s Court, Nasehy, on the second Wednesday in March ; in the Resident Magistrate’s Court, Clyde, on the Monday following the second Wednesday in March '; in the Resident Magistrate’s Court, Queenstown. on the second Monday after the second Wednesday in March ; and in the Resident Magistrate’s Court, Lawrence, on the second Tuesday ip April, Should any of those days be a ho.iday, the sitting j.u to be held on the first day afterwards that is not a holiday. Postal changes are proverbially prolific of mistakes. The introduction of the halfpenny stamp for the postage of newspapers vdthin tbo Colony furnishes an instance, and the,officers of the post office have already begun to feel the annoyance resulting from ignorance of the rule regarding these stamps. It is desired, for statistical reasons, that the half-penny stamp should be used exclusively for newspapers not sent out of the Colony, and consequently should not bo put upon letters of any das?, or papers posted to places out of tho Colony. The distinction made by the department in this matter will prove somewhat irksome at times, but no doubt there is sufficient reason for doing so, and people will probably spare themselves considerable irritation by confining the use of the new half-penny stamp to papers addressed within the Colony. An incident worth recording, respecting the Natives and Mr M‘Lean’s influence with them, reaches us from Taranaki, A number of Natives lately rushed the premises of a storekeeper residing about two miles north of Opunake, and helped themselves to anything they could lay hands on. The'storekeeper appealed to the chief William King, to whose tribe the Maoris belonged, and besought bifu.not to allow them to'take his goods away without payment. Wi Kingi replied that it was no business of his, he could not prevent them. Mr Parris, the Native Comnfissioner of the district, soon appeared upon the scene, and, after enquiry, he quietly told Wi Kingi that he must telegraph for Mr M‘l ean to come down and get the matter *ettlpd by some means. Upon this, Wi JGngi had a ponaultatiou with Honi, an influential Opunake chief, and the result was that Wi Kingi agreed to pay LltyO jor # th© good?, wbjgfe Jje did, and the matter

was settled to the satisfaction of all parties. And, doubtless, if the chiefs find that such monetary results follow unwarranted seizure or other men’s goods, they will effectually restrain their tribes from repeating such costly experiments. The following extract has a slight reference to our Melbourne telegram giving the amount of dividends paid by the Sandhurst mines during 1872. On the 21st ultimo some of the largest cakes of gold ever seen in the bank windows of Quartzopolis were exhibited. 'The aggregate amount was about IO.UOOoz, besides about 6,0000z, the crushing of one line, which was not included in this total. 'The dividends amounted to

nearly 150,0!)0. The Great Extended Hustlers made a large addition to the total yield of the mine to date. This company has, in the 25 fortnights of 1872, sent to the bank 27,4620z, and declared in dividends L.57,500. Even this largo amount is surpassed by the yield of No. 1 Tribute, which has paid L 153 300, of which L 125,700 was in the first half the year, and L 27,000 in the second. The Colonist protests strongly against a practice that is being encoura:e l by some papers, of news-puffs of theatrical or other performing companies, being sent to newspapers. It does not see the force of paying more charges an 1 agency for the purpose of advertising a puff preliminary of Madame Sqmillini’s splendid ‘’basso-soprano,” or of Mr Buskin’s glorious acting, when, as Hamlet, he smothers Desdemona, and the excellent houses such performers have drawn at Coromandel or Ohinemmi. We acree with the Colonist, that respectable exhibitors, if they wish to be advertised in respectable papers must pay for it; and they oiudit io be careful that they do not rouse t ie whole Press by surreptitiously ta'ung advantage of a telegraph agent’s pliancy, and obtaining newspaper goods and money under false pretences. Telegraphing is already a sufficiently heavy item to most newspapers, without such nefarious practices being tolerated.

We have been requested to draw attention to the alteration of the hour of the departure of the p.s. Samson for Camara, from 6.30 a.m. tilt 9 am.

A match has been arranged for Saturday afternoon next, between the following eleven and eighteen of the Citizens’ Club Alien, Andrew, Glen, Hellioar, Hendley, Johnston, Macfarlan, Barry, Park, Sutcliffe, and Tait,

We thank the Government Printer for a copy of the railway contracts between the Government and Messrs Brogden for the lines from Auckland to Mercer, from v apier to Paid Paki, from Wellington to the Mutt, from Pictou to Blenheim, from Dunedin to Clutha. and from Invercargill to Mataura.

■ pcopipapying these were also other official papers.

Amongst the passengers by the Albion is Madame Cora, whose name has alre idy become familiar to us th'ough the announcement that she will appear at the Masonic Hall, on Saturday, as the female magician, We.leajrn that a number of handsome articles, to be distributed, have arrived, and some of tbeoi are now op view at Messrs Dunning Brothers,

In tVie I*;/ifeUoit 'J'l i.ick* I'Qporfc of tllG Christchurch Exhib turn, we noticed reference was made to two pianos, sent by Air Lewis Solomon, of this city, and since then we have seen a letter, signed by Mr Alberto Zalman, conductor of the Opera Company, of which the following is a copy:—“Mr Lewis Solomon. —Dear Sir—Having been requested, while at Christchurch, to examine the two pianos sent by you to the Exhibition, one by S. and P. hrard, and the other by John Brinsrnead and Sons, I have much pleasure in stating, after having thoroughly tested both, that 1 pan with confidence say they are the best upright pianofor ps I have seen in New Zealand, and must congratulate yon on the introduction of so brilliant a class of instruments into this Colony.”