PER ANGLO-AUSTRALIAN PRESS TELEGRAPH AGENCY.

Thames Star, Volume IIII, Issue 1744, 5 August 1874, Page 2

PER ANGLO-AUSTRALIAN PRESS TELEGRAPH AGENCY.

Wellihgton, This day.

■ Macffarlane, of Auckland, is in,town to dispute the election of Von der Heyde, who, it appears, was naturalised only in South Australia. ! ; I Forests Bill. Mr. Eeid opposed the Bill. He admitted that the measure had a good object in view, and was much required: the Premier deserved the thanks of the country for opening the subject; but he thought that, the machinery haying been laid, it should be left to the pro-., vinces to carry out the work. The Premier, in reply/ made a forcible speech im defence of th£ Bill. He was particularly severe upon Messrs. Fitzherbert and Bunny, who practised the " ways that are dark, and tricks that are vain," Fitzherbert being like that ravenous and ferocious tree, the blue-gum, which would not allow any other tree or shrub to live alongside of it. He was the blue gum of New Zealand.. He pointed out that the colony in the last few years had spent three and a half millions of colonial money, in the North Island, while the money raised by the provinces in that Island only amounted, in the same time, to less than half, a scullion; and in consequence of that were obliged to lend hundreds of thousands to the Middle Island on works which should be defrayed out of .provincial funds. The only remedy for this was to sweep the North Island Provinces away altogether.; He agreed to take out clauses regarding forest lands and insert one inviting provinces to voluntarily hand over to the colony portions of land for forest reserves. Read a second time and committed for Friday. Naval Training Schools Bill read a second time.

Napieb, Tuesday. A smarksliock of earthquake occurred at four o'clock yesterday morning.

New Plymouth, Tuesday. About noon yesterday the wind shifted to the south, which prevented the tide from coming so high as on the night previous. .-There was a strong southerly gale blowing all last night, but abated considerably this morning. At Waitara a heavy fresh cam* down the river together with a north-easterly gale on Sunday, and has parted the steamer Paterson in two, her a complete wreck. All hopes of saving the vessel have now been abandoned.