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Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2570, 3 April 1877, Page 2

WjG have to apologise to our readers for the wretched printing which characterised yesterday's issue of the Star, which is only to be accounted for by the sudden change in the temperature yesterday having the effect of hardening the rollers. We do not think the same thing will occur again. '

The "own correspondent" of the Otago Guardian, writing from Christchurch on March 22nd, says : " The Eev. James Hill, formerly of Auckland, has been offered £460 a year to undertake the Presbyterian care of Ly ttelton."

: "Oysters is in." The season commenced on Sunday, April Ist, and in the windows of the local dealers may be seen some very fine looking bivalves, so that the tastes of spicureans may now be suited without infringing the law* The " close " season may be inconvenient; but probably it ia in the main a wise provision.

We have to hand from Mr J. H. Jefferson The Australasian Sketcher of March 17. The front page illustration depicts the collision of the ship Grandee with an iceberg on her voyage from New York to Melbourne. A Human Slaughter Place at Fiji; Mountain Torrent, Teremakau Valley, Canterbury ; General Post Office, Brisbane; Haunted (ah imaginary sketch); Dayiesford Hospital Pete • Bailway Accident at Epsom; and several other very fine engravings, together with an excellent digest of the month's news, form a number whiclr must be very acceptable to the subscribers to the beat illustrated paper in" the Colonies; A corbespondent of the N.Z. Herald says that a number of gold fish were recently seen iri: the Waikare Lake, near Kangiriri. -■■'■• . , > The Printers' Register says that amongst the recipients of the Companicnship of the Order of the Star of/India when the Queen's new title of Empress was proclaimed, was Mr Edwin Arnold, a writer on tae Daily, Telegraph. The same authority says a rumor is current that liordßeaconsfield will shortly mark his appreciation of the services rendered to the Government by the Telegraph by creating its chief proprietor a baronet.

A cj^AEiCTEßisTic story is tcld of old Wombwell in "The Old Shownian and the Loudon Fairs." WombwelPs Menagerie happened to be at Newcastle-on-l'yno when there was but a fortnight to Bartholomew Kair—a- festivity which he had invariably attended. His rival (Atkins), feeling sure that he could not reach London in time, advertised that his menagerie would be " the only wild beast show in the fair." Wombwell «as not to be beaten. He hastened by forced inarches to the fair, and reached it on the first morning. But his elephant died ; infected by its master's enthusiasm it had worked itself to death. Atkins immediately placarded the announcement that he bad "the only living elephant in the fair;" but Wombwell checkmated him with the auswer tbat he had " the only dead elephant in the fair." A dead elephant no one had ever seen, and his slsow was crowded. .. .

In pome of the up-country districts physicians are few and Jar between, like the truditional friendly call from an angel. In one of the' small mining camps far away in the Black Hills there lay a big Cornishman stricken with fever. His wife, being unskilled in remedies for the ailment, hunted high andlow for a doctor, failing, however, after a long and patient

search, to discover anything better than a veterinary surgeon. •' What would you do, doctor,'"' sho cried, "if your brother was delirious with fever P " " Madam," replied he, " I know no more than you. I can only cure horses and other animals." " Well, doctor," sho said, "my husband's as strong as a horse. What would you do for a horse ? And for heaven's sake be quick in telling me ! " "Madam," replied the vet., •' I should open his mouth, pull his tongue out on one side to prevent his biting me, and give him this fever powder, paper, string, and all." Blinded with tears of gratitude, the poor woman "paid for the fever powder, and hurriedly departed, History says that the man got well, but he has a hole in his tongue, and his poor wife goes around with ouly three fingers on one hand.

Notwithstanding that yesterday was a public holiday the brokers kept open, and in the morning a fair business was done. In the evening again many people congregated at the Corner nnd it was easily to be seen that the interest in Moanatairis had not decreased much. Shares appear to maintain an even price, neither going up nor down very much. It is' not intended to break down more specimen' stone until to-morrow, some necessary timbering being done in the meantime.

The Augusta Chronicle retails the following incident, showing the effects of tobacco upon a rat:—" Yesterday one of the young ladies in a family living on Greene street noticed a large rat eating a couple of cigar stumps, which had been thrown into a spittoon in the ball of her house. She was afraid to disturb him, and let him eat until he had finished them. Shortly afterward she mentioned the circumstance to her younger brother, and he went to the spittoon, and finding the rat inside shook him out. The animal attempted to run, but was so drunk from the tobacco that he couldn't navigate. He would stagger a few steps and then fall down. In his drunken condition there was no difficulty in putting an end to him."