English News.

Clutha Leader, Volume II, Issue 81, 27 January 1876, Page 7

English News.

An earthquake was felt in Worcestershire on the 30 th October. All accounts show the Oarlisbs are -losing' ground in Madrid. The Bristol Working man's Conservative Association, one of the first established in the kingdom, has determined upon dissolving, and have given up its offices. The Czar of Russia has presented the Admiralty with an air bag or ponton, which it is thought may prove of service in any attempt to raise the Vanguard. A telegram from Gibraltar states that the French steamer Meuse, from Mazagan, had arrived there with ßßs Moorish, pilgrims for Alexandria. A son of Mr Joseph Arch was sentenced by the Kirkdale magistrates to -siz months imprisonment for stealing ten gold watches from the London and North- Western Railway Company. The parish church of Churchani, near Gloucester, has been destroyed by fire, nothing being left but the walls, the front, and a portion of the chancel. The fire is supposed to have arisen from a spark dropped by the ringers while practising. • Great consternation was caused at the New Street Station Birmingham, by a sudden and determined suicide on the platform. A timber merchant named Rowe was walking with his brother, when the latter drew a revolver and shot himself through the heart, "killing himself instantly. Benjamin Ziluisky, a barber, was fined at the Hammersmith Police Court ior selling beer to his customers on Sunday mornings without a licence. His defence was that he gave away the beer as an inducement to his clients to prefer his shaving shop to that ot his rivals in the neighbourhood. The - Central News ' is informed that Messers Krupp have proposed to the War office a trial of one of their guns ag-ainst one of the Woolwich ipattern of similar calibre. This proposal will enable the War Office to ascertain the relative merits of their ordnance as compared with that of Prussia, which -they have for some time been unable to do, owing to Messrs Krupp declining to let them have a gun to experiment upon. - A French expedition is being fitted out to make a " Tour dv Monde " in 10 months. The excursionists are to vis-it India, Japan, the interior sea of Japan, Chinese ports, Australia. <fee. A special library, with insrruments, will be placed on board. The members of this expedition will be exclusively of the male sex. The fare is to be £800, everything included. The Geographical Society will superintend the management of the enT tsrprise, although it will be supported by private funds, and is altogether a private speculation. The Prince of Wales continues to have a splendid reception in India. He has visited Ceylon, and at Kandy the street? were festooned and decorated with banners. He received the Ivandayan { Chiefs, who were dressed magnificently. He visited the sacred temples and inspected all the treasures. The priests presented him with a finelybound copy of their sacred books. Returning from elephant-shooting the trap npset, while Lord Charles Beresford was driving. The Prince was underneath, but fortunately -"scaped unhurt. The Prince afterwards visited Baroda and Madras, where he met with a similar roundof festivities. A proceo-ion of painted elephants, gorgeously caparisoned and gaily decorated, paraded the streets. The dinners and illuminations everywhere have been splended. j and some of the scenes are described as •very picturesqe. I There was great rejoicing at Hawarden on the occasion of the home-coming <-of Mr W. H. Gladstone, M. P. and his bride. The Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone in acknowledging the cheers giveu for himself and his wife, said that they played a secondary part in that day's proceedings. He then referred to a period, 36 years ago, when they played a more important part in somewhat simi- j lar proceedings, and said :— A long j period has elapsed, and I am afraid that, at least so far as I am concerned, years- have left iheir mark in some Tespects upon me but I rejoice to see that the hearts of the people of Hawarden have undergone no change in the whole of that time. I venture to assure you that our hearts and feelings have undergone no change either. Mr Gladstone added that if they were satisfied with the choice his son had made his parents were, and he closed by speaking of the festivites of next week, when he hoped they would be favoured with more auspicious weather. The village was illuminated at night. The Government of Tndia has now published the Census of the entire Empire taken in 1871-72. This Census was taken with extreme care, the officials being* aided heartily by the enumerators, and it shows that the entire population of British Tndia is 190,563,048, living on an area of 904,019 square miles; while the population of India, including Native States, is 238,830,098, and the area 1,450,744. That is, India has nearly seven times her area, which in Europe is 204,000 square miles. In British India there are 140| millions of Hindoos, 4of millions of Mohammedans, and 9-jk millions of others, mostly Buddhists and Jains, the number of Briti-sh-Dorn inhabitants exclusive of the Army heing throughout the entire Empire only 59,000, less than the population <jf a single large town.

j ":." • It is estimated that the United States Government lose a million dollars a-" year by the fraudulent use of old postage stamps. Preliminary soundings for the Channel tunnel are being satisfactorily carried on. The engineers are satisfied with the results of their trials. Mrs Umfreville,wife of a Kent Magistrate, has died at Greenhithe from the efiects of being struck by a stone thrown from a catapult by a boy, who is in custody. The - Central News ' is informed that the Lord Chamberlain has refused to sanction the letting of the Princess Theatre to the Sunday League. Herr Ramseyer, the Bale missionary, who with his wife, after four years' captivity among the Ashantees, was rescued by the English expedition, and has since resided in Switzerland, is about to return to Africa. It appears from the report of the Commissioners of Woods and Forests just issued that in the year ended 31st Mai-eh last, the total receipts from Windsor Park and Woods amounted to 1i654:5 3s lid, while the expenditure in the same period was L 20,000 4s 8d The Eastern question claims attraction, and is cause of disquietude. It is known that Russia and Austria have large forces ready to march across the Turkish frontiers at a few hours' notice, and the Press urge the Government to some decided policy in regard to Eastern affairs, but the probablities are in favour of peace, so far as the great Powers are concerned. The Prince of Wales was at Athens on his way to India. He gave a grand banquet to the King and Queen on Wednesday ; and the Serapis, which does not steam well, broke her cables in the Piraeus, and seemed inclined to run down the King's yacht, proved admirable as a banqueting-hall. As that is, next to carrying the Prince, her intended function, the Admiralty may receive two -fifths of a congratulation on their choice. The Polar Expedition Commission convened by the German Government propose the establishment of permanent scientific stations on the eastern coast of Greenland, the western coast of Spitzbergen, and on the island of Jan Alayen. They likewise recommend that other Governments should be invited to form similar stations further east and west, so that the furthest accessible region round the Pole may be systematically explored and studied. A French agricultural newspaper furnishes somewhat interesting- statistics in connection with the number of wolves in France. It. seems that there are about 2000 able-bodied animals of that species, which destroy to the amount of about lOOOf. a-year each. But this 2,000,000 f. in. no way represents the loss occasioned by their presence ; these 2000 wolves, who only devour some 30,000 sheep a-year. oblige the farmers to keep 20,000,000 sheep in folds, and render it impossible for them to feed in the fields as in England. The London School of Medicine for Womftn has now entered on its second year of existence. During its first year it, admitted twenty-three students, and five new ones joined it at the beginning of the present session. The courses of lectures given last year comprised Anatomy, Physiology, Chemistry, Materia Aledica, Botany, Zoology, and Mental Pathology. Those now in course of delivery are on Anatomy, Physiology, Surgery, and Practice of Medicine, each of these subjects being' undertaken by a gentleman already teaching at one of the other metropolitan schools. The Latest Mormon Idea. — A singular event in the history of colonisation is likely to happen before long. The Mormons of Urah are contemplating emigration to the Valley of the Jordan in Palestine. Two years ago they sent four of their elders to spy out the land, and to ascertain whether the Turkish Government would offer any opposition to the movement. How far they succeeded has not been made known, but the idea of a Mormon settlement was spoken of with favor in the official journal of the pashalic of Syria. That the s. '-heme is' likely to be acted upon has been vouched for by the Key Dr Manning, the general editor of the publications of the Religions Tract Society, who has recently returned from a visit to Salt Lake City, where he had an interview with the chief saints. • A German statistician has been at the trouble to calculate the salaries of the different monarchs of Europe. Among the best paid potentates in tbe European division of the globe the Czar, Alexander 11, takes first place. His salary is £1,825-000 a year, or £5000 per diem. This daily pay is very nearly equal to the yearly income of the Irish Lord Chief Justice of the Queen's Bench. Tho Sultan comes next, with £1,800,000 per annum. Francis Joseph stands third on this splendid roll, with an income of £800,000 a year, or something over £-2000 a day. Frederick William of Germany is obliged to content himself with ,£OOO,OOO per annum, or £1640 a day. Victor Emmanuel supports the kingly dignity on something short of £500,000 per annum, or £1368 per diem. Queen Victoria's yearly earnings as a Royal personage are:£44oo a year, or £1.254 a day.' 'King Leopold draws in wages an annual; sum of £120,000, or something like £330 per day. In addition to these salaries each of the Royal individuals named has lodging free and other perquisites

A movement is on foot to raise funds to purchase a set of tune-playing bells for St. Paul's Cathedral. Seventeen men were tried by the Bolton Magistrates for betting in the : Angel Hotel in the town. Robert Blake was 'fined £100, and the other defendants were acquitted. A memorial is proposed to the late Mr Gibbon Wakefield. A marble bust is to be erected in the vestibule of the new Colonial office. It is suggested that copies should be placed in the public halls of New Zealand and South Australia, Owing to the defects which have have exhibited themselves, it is stated that the Henry-Martini rifle will not be issued to the auxiliary forces, as those best qualified to judge state that the arm is quite unfitted for the militia and volunteers. — ' Central News.' When the Iron Duke met with her accident, and was nearly sinking, there was no powder aboard to make a signal, aud it was fifteen minutes before her extreme danger was seen from the flagship. A. collier named Goodwin was murdered by a companion named Hancock at Brownedge, near Burslem. The two men had quarrelled and fought in the road after drinking together. Hancock went into his house and returned with a gun and shot Goodwin dead in the road. Amongst those present at the Balaklava banquet at the Alexandra Palace was Mr W. S. J, Fulton, late of the Bth Hussars, and who is a claimant to the earldom and estates of Eglintoa. Air < Fulton, we are informed, holds three medals — one for distinguished conduct at Balaklava, the Crimean medal with three clasps, and the Turkish medal. The John Pascal, a quite new ship of 1470 tons, while on her voyage from Calcutta to New York, has been burned at sea. Eight of the crew have been examined by the authorities at Madeira as to the circumstances connected with the loss of the vessel, but their account is not considered satisfactory. They have been meanwhile shipped to Southampton, and a searching examination is expected to take place The value of the vessel is about £20,000 ; that of the cargo is not yet ascertained. Speaking at a missionary meeting* at Gainsborough, the Bishop of Lincoln stated that he had the best authority for saying that the object of the Prince of Wales' visit to India was to further the cause of Christian missions in that country, whioh object was to be accomplished, however, with due regard to political considerations A despatch from Port Austin to the Michigan 'Free Press' says that, on the. 18th ult., John Noonan, a well-to-do farmer of heariy 60 years, in Verona township, in a quarrel with a son of 25, I living at home, furiously stabbed him in. the neck and upon the left side j eight times. Two daughters, aged 15 and 18. were also stabbed while trying to keep the father from killing tbe son f»nd mother. Noonan than seized a pound package of Paris green and tried to eat it by the handful. He died from the effects of the poison, and the son is not esoected to live. The daughters are not dangerously injured. In a book just published in Paris on the Commune of 1871, the Abbe Riche relates the manner in which the Cathedral of Notre Dame was saved from destruction. On May 25th he had been charged by the court martial with the painful task of preparing for death the insurgents ordered to be shot. Among them was a young workman, wh--, on learning tlie fatal news, was so overcome that he fell to the ground. He then struck his head with his hand,' and exclaimed, "Ah, I knew that it would-bring me ill-lnok !" Surprised at that remark, made with aik air of poignant sincerity, the Abbe begged him to relieve his mind by stating what, he knew. The man hesitated a few minutes, and then said, " I will confess all to you, but make haste, in an hour it will be too late. Yesterday evening I myself carried to Notre Dame two barrels of gunpowder and two carboys of petrol urn I placed the powder in the pipes of the warming apparatus, one above and the other below ; the petroleum I put, one jar in the large -pulpit, not where they preach, but near where. they f-it, (meaning the archiepiscopal throne,) and the other in the loft under the organ. But lose no time." he added, "in hastening to Notre Dame to have them removed ! What hour is it ?" he. asked. " Halfpast nine," replied the abbe, looking at his watch. "It was between 9 and 10 that the place was to be s?et on fire" Not a moment was to be lost. The almoner at once informed the provostmarshal of the revelation so made. A body of sergens de ville left immediately for the cathedral, taking with them the condemned man. as. a guide. ' What he said proved exretly true, and some of the chairs and carved woodwork were already burning ; but the danger was averted. Tho abbe had then a really Christian inspiration. Taking aside the provost, he said, '- You cannot now shoot a man to whose disclosures we owe the preservation of Notre Dame. Think that only a few paces off. is the Hotel Dieu, filled with patients. If the Church had . been blown up, what a terrible catastrophe might have occurred ! You must spare this man." A council was held, and ] the abbe gained his point. The man was not executed, i