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Thames Star, Volume X, Issue 3156, 31 March 1879, Page 2

Wb are informed that Col. Packe will not be able to inspect our local volunteers during next week.

We have to acknowledge the receipt of Messrs Frater Bro3\ monthly Share Investor's Guide.

We wish to call attention to the farewell soiree at the Baptist Church, Willdughbyi street, this evening. It is held upon the occasion of the departure of the Eev. J. T. Hinton, the much-esteemed pastor of the Baptist congregation on the Thames^ to his new scene of labor in Wellington.

Key. Mr Nixon preached his farewell sermons at the Primitive Methodist Church yesterday. Oh Thursday next the farewell soiree will be held.

Fob the shooting season Mr J. S. Hart, of Pollen street, advertises that he has just imported a large stock of all sporting requisites. Mr Hart imports direct from the manufacturers, and can supply the best sporting powder and shot at as reasonable prices as any business man in the Colony. The support that Mr Hart has had in the past has induced him at a great expense to enlarge his premises, and his stock of guns, powder flasks, shot poHches; &c., is second to none in this province, k; : W s f i ...•' ■- "■.

We are informed that there are some very likely-looking quartz leaders in various parts of the Mission-land at Parawai. Perhaps some day we may see mullock tips on the pastoral slopes of Parawai.

The survey for the railway has been completed beyond IPuriri bjr Mr Beere and his staff. We Believe It, is the intention of the Government fo at once call for tenders for a section of the lire from Shortland wharf to Kopu, the bridge across.to;Kauaeranga being a contract by itself. "■■■•""-*'■

The Rev. Mr Palmer, of the New Hebrides: Mission, preached at the morning services in St. George's Church yesterday, and in the afternoon visited the Sunday Schopjl, t .giving -, the . scholars an account of the manner in which Georgina, the native girl supported by their contributions, was assisting in the good work of teaching Christianity to the inhabitants of the South Sea Islands. Mr Palmer gave a,yery .encouraging account of the success attending' the Melanesian Mission, and the admirable manner in which many of the native teachers were assisting in the work of translating the Bible in_to the various dialects, ana teaching in the schools.

To-mobhow—the first of April—besides being All Fool's Day, is also the day on which the duck shooting commences. Several parties are already out and good sport is expected; the birds being reported plentiful. The little steamer Piako with Mr W. Comer and a party of shootists left Grahamstown to-day, intending to proceed up the Piako and carry on war with the ducks on a large scale.

; Thßee was; a splendid muster of the Naval Brigade at Church parade yesterday. Service was attended at St. George's Church, where the Rev. Mr Palmer, a missionary, preached an instructive sermon,

The Treasurer of the Grahamstown "Volunteer JFire Brigade, Mr T. Eawdon, begs to acknowledge receipt of the following further subscriptions :—A. and G. Price, £2 2s; M. Mulligan, 10s; Geo. Downey, 10s ; John Smith, 10s 6d; W. Tweotyman, ss; McLoughlin, 2s 6d.

Not long ago a bushman, after working fifteen months without a spell, went to Auckland with a cheque for £125, and at the end of three weeks had been in gaol for drunkenness twice, and had not a shilling in his pockets. What a harvest to the publicans must these bushmen be.

*W^;have received the March number of the Illustrated New Zealand Herald. The principal picture is a New Zealand scene, " The Black Birch Forest, Otira Gorge." All the other views are Australian. The letterpress is an interesting compendium of the news of the month.

A hint to our local lapidaries:—An artistically designed and well-executed cameo brooch of greenstone is to be seen in the shop of Mr Urquhart, jeweller, Colombo street. The design is a bust of Shakespere, taken from the well known Camden^ portrait, and, apart from the fidelity of the likeness, is curious as showing what can be carved out of a iriterial of such intense hardness. Morning Herald.

"Youth is the happiest period of our Jives," was the thought that struck us the other morning as we stood on the front door step watching the innocent gambols of a small boy carrying a bundle of clothes along Albert street. Shortly after we took notice of the lad, evidently with the proud consciousness that the editorial eye was fixed on him, he suddenly turned a somersault, and stood on his head, and then commenced walking across the street on his hands. A passing cabman made a smack at him, but our boy friend defiantly kicked his heels in the air, and came striding towards us. He was so engrossed that he did not notice the drain in front of the office, and the clever youth suddenly flopped into the mud on the broad of his back, and commenced to cry. We induced him to rise with the promise of a sixpence, which he received as if it were his due. Shortly after we saw the same boy with a twopenny cigar in his mouth and two ditto in his tiny hands, looking as proud as a king. Happy childhood! What cared he about . the Eastern Question, the stoppage of the Pumps, or the Waimate Plains difficulty ! "His greatest cares were probably an occasional thrashing from his master or a blackened eye from a schoolmate. Such is life. We are aroused from our profound meditations by that dirty unemotional" P.D." roaring ou|; " copy "

A cleveh capture has been made by Detective Doolan, who is now stationed afc "Cambridge, and, as will be seen, the culprit met his deserts at the Alexandra Police Court. A native named Kopia, stole a valuable silver-mounted saddle and bridle belonging to Mr W. H. Grace, and Detective Ooolan, was telegraphed to at once, and almost immediately spotted his man, .though' hitherto unsuspected, and arrested' him just as he was leaving the Criterion Hotel. Eopia seems to have gone. the entire animal, in the way of theft, having also stolen a silver watch from a half-drunken pakeha, while the horse he was riding at : the time he was taken was a stolen one. He had also stolen another horse, and sold it to Mr Seccombe, of Alexandra. Eopia, though a wholesale thief, doeo not deipise small things, and amongst the thefts which, if necessary, could have been brought home to him by the police was, that of a double bit belonging to Government, and a blanket belonging to the half-caste Turner. Eopia is a nativ9 of Maketu, on the East Coast.

We have received the Governmer j Gazette of date March 20th. It contains a proclamation declaring certain lands in Auckland open for free selection at an upset price of not less than £1 per ncre; regulations for management of penny savings banks for use of children in public schottls ; copies of correspondence between Prince of Wales and Sir Michael HicksBeach re Paris Exhibition and the representation of the Colonies ; twentytwo new Justices of the Peace are appointed, amongst them being " Lemuel John Bagnall, Esq., Turua." Henry Jackson, Esq., Chief Surveyor of Wellington District, is dismissed from service of the Colony.

The Naval Brigade fired in two sets on Saturday for pictures presented to the company some time back for competition. For the picture, to be won by Ist class for best aggregate of three shootings, P.O. Thomas stands first with 90, Seaman Johns second with 85, and Seaman Hill third with 84. For the other picture to be shot for by the second class, Lo be won three times in succession or at intervals, P.O. Harris ranks first with scores of 45 and 56, and Seaman Lukie second with two 37's. We are- informed that prize firing with the big guns takes place on Saturday, when it is expected that three if not four guns' crews will compete.

Some days ago our telegrams from Wellington notified the fact that C. T. Benzoni, Esq., Chief Clerk in the Public Works Department, had been been appointed Assistant Undersecretary. All who know Mr Benzoni willibe pleased to hear of his promotion, for it is well deserved. As Chief Clerk Mr Benzoni proved the possession of superior abilities, and gave the greatest satisfaction to his chiefs-in; the discharge of his 1 very important and onerous duties. A better selection, we imagine, could not be made by the Government j! for ifrom his intimate knowledge of the, work of the department he will prove a most valuable Assistant Under Secretary. :

Mb Fox, while delivering his address on the Temperance question in Milton observed that anyone might join the New Zealand Temperance Alliance by paying a subscription .of ss. A. publican from the body of the hall interrupted. the lecturer to ask whether they would be willing to receive subscriptions from hotelkeepers. Mv Fox replied: "Yes, we would be quite willing ; although," he added, " it would come from a dirty source."

The American papers state that a series of, commercial swindle's have been unearthed at Boston, Massachusetts. There are several gangs of bogus commission merchants doing business under an organised leader, who supplies all capital required. The method is *to obtain consignments of all kinds of produce on credit by means of -fictitious circulars quoting high pricei, and disposing of the same in New York at low rates. More than I,ooo^ooo dollar* have been realised already, and as the law does not reach the, swindlers, the business is still thriving. Exporters in the colonies should keep a sharp look out.

A Wellington telegram says:—A sensation was caused by posters placarded over the town tq- s day inviting; the ; people by the example of the Glasgow Bank to demand gold from Banks. It is believed to be in revenge for Bank pressure.

It is stated in an English paper that Charles Bannerman, the Australian bat, may, perhaps, return to England as a professional player, in which case he will play for his county, Kent. This will make the hop country, already st.-ong, as formidable as any in England, as there can be no doubt whatever from his performances in-*the late matches at Home,- that the crack Australian player, with practice against good English bowling, weuJd become cne of the best bats in England.

One of the saddest and most painfully interesting applications for admission to the Victorian Asylum for the Blind ever made was entertained at a late meeting of the committee. It was by the New Zealand Government, on behalf a little fellow now in one of the charitable institutions of that colony. The father of this boy, being deserted by the mother, chained and shut up the child when about five years old in a room into which the only light that penetrated was through a gimlet hole. At this the poor little waif stood wistfußy peering through at the sunshine which never otherwise reach:! him. Cold and inflammation in the eyes caused thereby resulted in almost total loss of vision. What blessings, it may be asked, descended on that loving father P That I cannot tell. But the descent of a special nine-tailed Providence upon his b»re back would seem appropriate.— iEgles. ■

As a specimen of the language used by gentlemen in the Parliament of New South Wales we cull the following from the Sydney Morning Herald's report of the Parliamentary proceedings in that dKony on a recent date :—" Mr Hoskins : Haw, haw! Mr M'Elhone: I'll make you ' haw haw' the other side of your mouth before I have done with you. Mr Hoskins: Is that right Mr Speaker ? The Speaker (in a sickly voice): I really think the hon. member is out of order. Mr M'Elhone: I'll not submit to the jackass laugh of the hon. member. The Speaker:. The hon. gentleman is not in order in alluding to any hon. member as a jackass—[Mr M'Elhone: I said a Jackass laugh.]—or in saying any hon. gentleman is laughing like a jackass. The hon. gentleman should apologise to the House and withdraw the expression."

Sincere Prayer.—-A fond lover lately wrote to the lady he adored. His letter concluded with " May heaven cherish and keep you from yours truly, John Smith."