NEWS BY THE MAIL.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 921, 7 June 1877, Page 3

NEWS BY THE MAIL.

[PROM THE LONDON CORRESPONDENT OF THI PRESS.] London, April 13.

The hopes of a peaceful solution of the Eastern Question seems to be dying out of even the mast sanguine breasts. War between Eussia and Turkey is looked upon as imminent, and even while I write this the word "Forward" may have been issued to that mighty host which Eussia for the last few months has been concentrating on the Turkish frontier. What will England do if these two powers come to blows ? Make lint for the wounded of both sides, I think. That seems to be now her humane but somewhat inglorious share in Continental struggles. I do not believe, in fact I am sure, we could not put 20,000 men, fully equipped for a campaign, into the field within the next three weeks; and what a mere handful this force would |be compared to the corps d ann'ee of Eussia. Give us a couple of months and possibly we could throw three times that number into the scale, but war is not the long protracted game it used to be, and the results of campaigns are now decided in a few weeks. There is one thing, however, which the British lion will not stand, and that is the Eussians in Constantinople. If the fortune of war goes against the Turk to the extent of his capital being in danger of falling into the enemy's hands, our active intervention may be looked upon as pretty certain. To save Constantinople from the Eussian will be the stitch in time which will save us nine hereafter, and to this task we are quite equal. We have had for some time able engineer officers engaged in studying the defensive capabilities of the Turkish capital, and I believe our plans for aiding in its defence are all cut and dried. I need hardly add that here, as in all European capitals, the Eastern crisis is the absorbing topic. It is reported that the Emperor Alexander has written a letter with his own hand to the Queen, saying that anxious as he himself is for peace, lie can no longer resist the pressure of his people. I am no alarmist —and even now I still think there's a chance of peace being preserved—but it behoves us and our colonies to be prepared for any contingency that may arise. I should think the harbors of New Zealand are well adapted for torpedo defence, and of all methods modern science has devised for marine defensive purposes, torpedoes are the most efficacious. It is quite on the cards that Eussia, hard pressed for money to carry on the war, might make a dash at some of your wealthy Australasian cities, levy a ruinous contribution, and be off before our ships could come to the rescue. A well laid system of torpedoes would avert this danger. Last evening the Chancellor of the Exchequer made his financial statement for the year. The budget estimate of last year was £78,412,000, whilst the actual revenuo had been £78,565,000, being an increase of £153,000. On the other hand, the expenditure which was estimated in the budget at £78,043,000, had turned out actually to be £78,125,000. being an excess of £81,380. The result was that the surplus was £443,000. With this small surplus in hand the Chancellor stated that there would be no remission of taxation and no necessity for increasing it. A motion for the abolition of flogging in the navy has been rejected. Since the infliction of the lash in the army was totally abolished some years ago, the discipline of our land forces has in no way deteriorated, and I cannot see why, while the soldier enjoys a complete immunity from the degradation, the sailor should be liable to it. Doctor Kcnealy lias been at it. again. The lion has been shaking another dew drop from his mane (your readers will no doubt remember the irrepressible doctor's own parallel), and the dew drop on this occasion has not been of the most crystal-like purity. To descend from metaphor to matter-of-fact, the doctor has been calling a brother member of Parliament a liar in the lobby of the House. The gentleman thus honored was Mr Sullivan, member for Louth. Mr Sullivan at once laid the matter before the House, wliich immediately passed a resolution ordering Dr Kenealy to withdraw the offensive expression, and to apologise to the House for having used it. The order was at once complied with. 1 am no admirer of Dr Kenealy, but in common fairness I must add that he lost his temper under great provocation. Mr Sullivan in a speech just previously delivered to the : House attacked him with a vituperation far beyond the bounds to which freedom of par- ! Jiajqentary speech extends, and Dr Kenealy's

coarse remark to Mr Sullivan, "Sir, you're a liar," was in reality little worse than what Mr Sullivan had said five minutes before of Dr Kenealy to the whole House. The bitter warfare which these two gentlemen wage upon each other may be traced in a measure to the fact that they are rival editors of newspapers, and the abuse they pelt each other with reminds lis of Mr Potts of the Eatanswille Gazette and hi* hated rival.

The great walking match between Weston, the American champion,who up to last week hsd been carrying all before him in this country with ridiculous case, and O'Leary, an Irish pedestrian, resulted on Saturday last, after a most game struggle, in the victory of the Irishman. The conditions of the match were that they were to walk against each other for six consecutive days for £IOOO. The astounding distances of 520 and 51.0 miles were accomplished in this time by O'Leary and Weston respectively. So great was the interest in the event that on the last day there were 30,000 at the Agricultural Hall, Islington, where the match took place. As out of this number 20,000 paid Is for entrance, and 10,000 3s 6d, and as the attendance on each of the other five days was also very large, the total amount of gate money must have been enormous. As an instance of endurance, the exploit of each of these two men is, I should imagine, unparalleled. Not even Captain Webb's feat of swimming the channel was as arduous. Out of 144 hours both men were walking on the track for 124. Though Weston is a Yankee, and O'Leary an Irishman, the event was invested with no international character, the American having found his warmest backer in an English baronet, Sir John Astley, and the Irishman his staunchest supporter in an American friend. At the conclusion O'Leary was much more distressed than his vanquished opponent. The victor will not be allowed to rest on his laurels. Crossland, who is supposed to be the best English pedestrian of the day, has challenged him to walk a six days' match for £IOOO aside, and the challenge will probably be accepted. Weston has also challenged O'Leary for a return match, and if this comes off the result of the last match will very likely be reversed.

I suppose we shall soon be welcoming ouv cricketers home from the antipodes. I don't hear much about triumphal parches in preparation, and I do not think there is any occasion for receiving them with the inspiriting strains of " See the conquering heroes come." I think it is the general wish in sporting circles here that the success of the Australian and New Zealand cricketers may induce them to pay a visit to the old country. I need hardly add that the heartiest of welcomes awaits them. The cricketing season here promises to be a good one. One of the most noteworthy features of it is the projected retirement, at its close, of Mr W. G. Grace, without doubt the greatest all-round cricketer who ever lived. The "Leviathan" is a doctor by profession, and intends to devote himself to the healing art. A testimonial to him is being got up by his numerous admirers. A yachting trip round the world is being organised. The Sumatra, a fine steamship of 2400 tons, is being fitted up for the purpose. She is to start on the 15th of August next, and the voyage is estimated to occupy nine to ten months. The fare for this pleasure excursion will be £SOO, including everything except wines and spirits. There is to be a first rate cuisine, pianos, harmoniums, and a band on board. The following are some of the principal seaports to be visited: —Bordeaux, Corunna, Lisbon, Cadiz, Gibraltar, Valencia, Barcelona, Marseilles, Genoa, Naples, Syracuse, Malta, Piraeus, Constantinople, Smyrna, Cyprus, [Joppa, Alexandria, Aden, Bombay, Colombo, Point de Galle, Trincomalee, Madras, Calcutta, Rangoon, Penang, Singapore, Manilla, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Nagasaki, Yokohama, Sandwich Islands, San Francisco, Mazatlan, Panama, Guayaquil, Callao, Valparaiso, through the Straits of Magellan to the Falkland Islands, Monte Video, Rio Janeiro, Bahia, Trinidad, Havannah, New York, Azores, Southampton. It being purely a voyage of pleasure, the unanimous wisli of the passengers will be acceded to as to extra posts of call, or any variation in the proposed programme. It is an opportunity of seeing a great deal of the world in a very comfortable manner, which 1 daresay many will avail themselves of. The Amorican meat continues to be imported in large quantities. In fact, the import is rapidly increasing, and there is no doubt that the trade is now regularly and permanently established. This is especially opportune, as the cattle plague has broken out i n several districts with a virulence necessitating the • most stringent measures. Numerous animals are being slaughtered and buried, the transit of cattle stopped, and all cattle fairs and markets in the infected districts forbidden. Unfortunately the rinderpest is a disease hard to stamp out, and this break out may be only the commencement of a visitation such as wc underwent some years ago. Under these circumstances it is somewhat re-assuring to regard the establishment of this new trade which has so providentially sprung up. I have tasted the American meat, and can testify to its capital quality and condition. The Princess of Wales lias left England for a few weeks stay in Athens with her brother King George of Greece. The Prince of Wales was prevented from accompanying her by indisposition. He has been suffering from an abscess, and other minor ailments. There is no doubt of if, lie has not been the same man since his return [from India. An improvement in his condition admitted of his crossing over tothe continent the day before yesterday, and he is at present in Paris. He intends proceeding to Villa Franca, where he is to bo joined by the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh. The Prince's journey from London to Paris is the fastest on record. It occupied only seven hours, including stoppages at Folkestone and Amiens, but exclusive of a rest of an hour and a half at Boulogne. The Easter Monday volunteer review was held at Dunstable in Cambridgeshire this year. Many of the metropolitan corps marched down, and I have no doubt the outing was a very pleasant relaxation to many. As a lesson in military tactics I hear the affair was not successful, though in candour I must add that this appears to have been more the fault of the military authorities than of the volunteers themselves. The force is more efficient now than it lias ever been, and it will he a pity if this efficiency is nipped in the bud by the coldness of the War Office and Horse Guards.

Mr Broomhall has recently returned from ISFew Zealand, where as you doubtless know, he has satisfactorily concluded thp purchase of 50,000 acres of land for a temperance settlement. The promoters of the scheme have, I am told, every reason to be satisfied with the arrangements made, and the under-

taking promises well. Mr Broomhall is about to deliver a series of lectures descriptive of the country, and his experiences in it, which I have no doubt will be largely attended, and be peculiarly interesting to those intending to emigrate. The Bishop of Lichfield, who, as the first Bishop of New Zealand, must be well known to you, is also delivering a series of lectures in which he touches on his well known missionary efforts in New Zealand. Sir Julius Vogel has been suffering for some time from an acute attack of rheumatic gout. Though confined to his room for the past month and in great pain, he has been able to transact a certain amount of business. By the latest accounts he is progressing rapidly towards recovery.