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Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2128, 29 October 1875, Page 2

The crew got up by Mr Brassey to row against the Bank of New Zealand crew, is not a crew of the Naval Brigade, but merely a scratch crew composed of gentlemen living with Mr Brassey.

We are requested to correct a statement which appeared in this morning's paper to the effect that the Cricketers' Amateur Dramatic Club «ere rehearsing the *' Heir-at-Law" for the benefit of the Cricket Club. The " Heir-at-Law "is in rehearsal, but is to be played in fulfilment of a long-standing promise, in aid of the Mechanics' Institute, that Society having waived their right to the last performance of the same Club in favour of the Ladies' Benevolent Society, who were in urgent need of funds.

If the weather be fine to-morrow the match Shortland v. Grahamstown will be played at Parawai. The following are the selected sides, all of whom are requested to be ready to commenco at i p.m. sharp. The Elevens seem very even on paper, and a very close match should be the result. Sides Shortland : Messrs Brassey. Bull, Crawford, Crump, Hulme, Lodge, Pulleine, Ruddock, Schofield, G. Spencer, Wardell and Whitford. Grahamstown : Messrs Colson, Copk, Frater, Heron, Hewitf, Lawless, R Paul, H. Paul, Robinson, Steedmanj and Watkins. Cricketers in Melbourne have set the ball rolling already in. good earnest with the match M.C.C. v.>ouih Melbourne. The latter have made a very successful.beginning, scoring 112 for two wickets; Mr B. B. Cooper of English Gentlemen r. Players fame, being not out with 54 runs to his name.

The following balance sheet shows the result of the concert given on Monday evening last in aid of the Tliames Hospital funds :—To cash taken at the doors, £26 10s ; to tickets sold, £12 15s—total receipts, £39 os. By printing, advertising, bill posting, and bell ringing,. &1 Is; rent of hall and gas, £3 5» ; refreshments, 8s 6d ; W. H. Keed, £2 23 ; Mrs Harding, £1 rs~balance to Hospital, £27 7s 6d,—-total, £39 ss.

Me Fox writes a long and interesting letter to the Temperance Advocate descriptive of his tour through America en route to England. Among other wonders, he mentions: the great trees of Calavera, of which he gives the following graphic sketch.—•' Till you have seen them you can have no idea ho^p much they excel other trees. Measure 300 feet on the ground : fancy that stuck up on end perpendicular to the sky: measure 25 to 30 feet for the diameter of the trunk; recollect the bark is 12 to 18 inches thick, and that the rings represent from 2000 to 3000 years' growth : that when you stand below and throw back your head as far as you can you can still only see the lower branches; that a good shot gun* would not throw its chaive more than a third of the way to the top, and you may form some idea of what these giants of the forest are. They were probably trees when Solomon sat on the throne of Jerusalem in all his glory. Solomon has been gone some 2500 years and more, and here, in all their glory, they are standing still. Till quite recently it was believed that the three groves mentioned {within 50 and 60 miles of"each other) contained all the big sequoias in existence—some three hundred trees in all. Jlecent explorers, however, assert that there are whole forests of them among the mountains of California. These groves have been tabooed by the United States Government, and are now under the protection of the State of* Gali« forma."

Thebe was no criminal business in the Resident Magistrate's Court this morming, and the usual fortnightly civil list, which contained sQme dozen ca-es, was reduced to throe by confessipngoramicable adjustment outside the Court. There was a solitary Maori us spectator, to whom the proceedings must have been highly entertaining. A tetjEgbam to the. New Zealand .Herald from its Coroinandel correspondent says:—A local man, very popular in Cdroniandel, will stand his candidature for the Thames district in the General I Assembly. He is likely to be well supported by t^p Thames constituency; He is a gentleman largely interested in the mines of this district.

The following is an advertisement from the Nelson Mail:—" Notice. Owing to t\\6 raon getting drunk at the gasworks last night, and letting out the fires, there will bo no gas tonight.—Joseph H. Levien, Mayor."

The following gentlemen-were on Wednesday declared to have passed their examination as barristers and solicitors of the Supreme < ourt of New Zealand :— Mr U. Browning, (prt-pared by Mr McCormick); Mr J. Hosking, (prepared by Messrs Jackson and .Russell); and Mr C. S. 8. George, (prepared by Mr J. 13. Buss 11). These gentlemen were declared to have passed witli great credit. They will be duly admitted at an early date.

The Auckland correspondent of the Bay of Plenty Times says :—I have come to the conclusion it must be a very nice thing to be a director of about a dozen companies, like Captain Daldy and Mr S W. C. Wilson, for instance. Directly the concerns begin to pay, a shareholder, probably under an obligation to the directors, gets up and proposes remuneration to " the. gentlemen who have so ably superintended the company's transactions." The motion is carried, and £3 or £4 a week is voted into the pockets of the disinterested gentlemen. Erom a moderate computation the two potentates I have mentioned get from £15 to £20 per week each from this source, and I say again its a very nice thing, and mean to take the very first opportunity of having myself nominated to fill the next vacancies.

The Wakatip Mail, reviewing Hansard, says:—The great feature in Hansard is the manly, ■ outspoken speeches of Sir George Grey. Whether one agrees or not with the political principles of the man, his daring ; his truthful frankness; his scorn and contempt for any attempts at double dealing ; his scathing exposure of abuses, nevertheless command tfie reader's attention and elicit sympathy. No 16 contains some fine examples of this style of speaking. The Opposition would literally, have been "no where" without him, and this Sir George himself frankly states to the House.

There is & talk of a new evening paper being started in Dunedin. The correspondent of the Bruce Herald says.:— 11 Four or tire gentlemen at most provide the requisite capital, and there is every probability of this new journalistic enterprise being carried through. A most efficient editor and sub-editor (the two duties, combined): has been Jengfigedj and the" rgentlenian who has been offered the managership of the practical department is a man than whom no better could be found in the Colony."

An amusing incident took place (says the Guardian) la.st night in the City Council. Chambers, when the Synod was in session discussing the question of ministers' salaries. An adjourned meeting of the Fire. Brigade was being held in the Mayor's room. One of its members, however, appeared to be uuder the impression that tho meeting was to be held in the Council Chamber; So he walked in quite leisurely, and surveying the Synodsmen, and casting a dubious gl ince towards the Mayoral chair (which at that time was occupied by the Bishop), he asked our reporter "if that was a meeting of the Fire Brigade?" He was politely informed that his discrimination was at fault, and he accordingly immediately retired.

The writer of.London Town Talkin the Melbourne Argus says :—• With respect, by-the-by, to the Prince's visit-to India, I forgot whether I told you^in my last that a notification had beep sent from Marlborough House to allt'-the penny dailies that his Royal Highness wished to dispense with " special correspondents." and hoped that the services of Dr W. Russell of the Times might be accepted by the whole press inrlieu of each paper having its own man. The dailies are very indignant, and one of them at least has sent to say that though Dr Russell has its highest confidence and admiration, it ventures to think that that gentleman has written himself out, and is no longer of much good^f It also adds that as to the "facilities" spoken of in the communication from the Prince, it can afford to dispense with them, having, sufficient means at its own command to procure such. Finally, it has already fixed upon its special correspondent.