SHEFFIELD.

Globe, Volume XXII, Issue 2119, 8 December 1880, Page 3

SHEFFIELD.

Our Sheffield correspondent writes : The weather since last harvest, np to date has been without exception the finest ever known in this district. The crops are looking splendid, and feed is plentiful everywhere. The single men and carters on the Waimakiriri Gorge Works were dismissed on Saturday last, and it is rumored that the married men are to follow in a fortnight’s time. Cricketing matters are looking np in this district. A new club, called the Waddington Club, was inaugurated this season, and has for a commencement twenty-seven members. Mr Bull, butcher, of Waddington, has generously promised to lay down five acres in lawn grass, so that they may have no excuse for not practising. This club played its maiden match with Greendale on Thursday last, and scored a win, with 31 runs to spare. The Sheffield and View Hill Cricket Club played their return match on the ground of the former on Saturday, and the home team lost the match by an innings and 23 runs, the scores being, Sheffield, 39 and 42. and View Hill, 114. The principal scorers for the winners were— H. Feary, 31; Kenning, 18; K. Peary, 15 ; and for the home team — Austin, 14, and Rutherford, 22. J. Turner, for the View Hill team, took no less than thirteen wiokots, whilst the bowling of the Sheffield team did not come off at all. An entertainment was held in the schoolroom, Waddington, on Friday, in aid of the Sheffield and Waddington sports. The entertainment committee introduced an innovation in the shape of step-dancing, which was well received, the two torpsichoreans keeping excellent time. Although there was not a very large audience, the expenses were not very great, and a fair balance will bo transferred to the sports fund. Miss Bowler, from. Christchurch, who has quite endeared herself to Sheffield and Waddington audiences, gave her services gratis as accompanyist on the piano. Two accidents occurred on Saturday, one in which a young man fell off the train between Racecourse Hill and Sheffield, and in addition to a severe shaking, he broke his nose. It is supposed that he fell asleep whilst sitting on the platform of the carriage. Mr Leonard one of the View Hill cricketers, whilst riding down the first cutting towards the Waimakariri bridge in some unacoonntable manner managed to break his horse’s leg. The horse, which was a valuable one, was immediately ■hot.

NEWS BY THE SUEZ MAIL.

The Suez mail arrived in town last evening. The following items of news are taken from the 11 Argus ” correspondence: GREEK PREPARATIONS.

Tho Greek question remains in abeyance. The dominant tone of feeling, as far as it finds utterance in tho press, is that Greece will be wise to wait. The King and Queen have been welcomed home to Athens with a groat loyal and patriotic demonstration. The war feeling grows stronger. Volunteers continue to arrive; this week 1500 are reported from Koumania. The Government has effected a loan of 62,000,000 f. with the National Bank of Athens, The Greek Chamber was yesterday opened by the King in person. His Majesty, in his speech from the throne, expressed “ his to the countries ho had visited, and said their arbitrament had given Greece a new frontier, strengthening and extending her boundary. The execution of the decision of tho powers imposed upon Greece the necessity of action. Extensive naval and military preparations had already been mado by the Government, and loans had been contracted which the Chamber would be asked to ratify. The nation had undertaken heavy obligations, for the army would not be disbanded until the new order of things in tho territory awarded to Greece had been established. His Majesty, in conclusion, said he was firmly resolved to effect as speedily as possible the object for which he had prepared, and relied upon tho co-operation of the Parliament.

THE KURDISH INSURRECTION. From Teheran we have some of tho Kurdish movement. It began by an insurrection of several powerful tribes of Persian Kurds. “ After these had taken tho field, some of the Turkish Kurds crossed the frontier, and joined them. The most influential of the Turkish Kurdish chiefs, Abdullah, who is regarded as a sort of national saint, did not himself cross the border, hut his two sons are with the rebels. The number of the Kurds who took part in the insurrection is variously estimated at ten and fifteen thousand. They are all armed with rifles obtained during the Turoo-Bussian war. The majority are cavalry, admirably 'mounted. During their raid they pillaged and destroyed over 100 villages, killing most of the inhabitants, The town of Miyandoab, containing 10,000 inhabitants, made a stout defence, the militia fighting bravely until their ammunition was exhausted. After the town was taken, the insurgents committed frightful atrocities there as elsewhere. They have now retired from Mikandoab to Sandibutak, where at present they remain gathered. The rebels belong to the Sunni sect, while their victims, who are said to number 5000, are either Shiahs or Armenians.”

THE IRISH LAND AGITATION.

A land meeting, attended by large numbers from the country round, including many women and girls wearing green sashes, was held at Longford on Sunday, when Mr Parnell gave his usual weekly address. Alluding to the rumour of impending prosecutions, he said the Government might imprison a few hundred individuals, but it was impossible for them to imprison the Irish nation. “ The way to show the Government the hopelessness of such prosecutions was to show them an organised and a united Ireland. If the people took his advice and organised themselves, they' would see that that was the best way to secure both their own safety and the safety ot their leaders.” Mr Justin M'Oarthy, whose wider sympathies and known moderation ensure his words attention beyond his audience, supported a resolution which affirmed “ that we accept no settlement of the land question as final which does not enable the occupying tenant to become the owner of his holding.” He said that every word of the resolution would have been accepted by John Stuart Mill as the sound teaching of political economy. “ Their case was so good that it required no action of violence, and even needed no elaborateness of argument—it iroved itself by the condition of things, i Irish landlords, as a rule, had not done their duty. They wanted no coercion in Ireland, nor any coercive acts ; they would keep order for themselves.

The Land League has for the first time i broken ground in Ulster. A meeting of about 5000 people was held near Oarndonagh, in the County Donegal. Mr Dillon, M.P., gave some cases to illustrate the alleged oppres- . sion of landlords. “ The first case was that of a farmer in the county of Tipperary, who , held a farm for which he paid between £2OO and £3OO a year of rent. It was the rule on the estate that no farmer was allowed to keep a goat. Well, this farmer had a child who was sick, and the doctor ordered as a remedy goat’s milk. The farmer bought a goat, and brought it home, but when ho wrote to the agent of the landlord and stated the circumstances under which the goat was purchased, and expressed a hope that the rule would be relaxed in this particular case, what was the consequence ? The agent name down and shot the goat in the farmer’s own yard. Another case was that of a poor family who , had consumed all their winter fuel. They had not as muoh left as would boil a kettleful of water, and they out a few branches off two old ashtrees near to their little dwelling. What was done then by the landlord for this not ? £1 a year was added to their rent. THE OZAB’S MABBIAGE. A correspondent of the “ Standard ” writes :—“ At the present time the newlymarried couple are in Livadia along with their family, which even at present is a numerous one, the eldest sons being already youths in their teens. The Princess, it is whispered—though the assertion is denied in many quarters—is not the first of her family who has stood on terms of special intimacy with the Imperial House, and more particularly with the Czar Alexander. Her elder sister, now the wife of General Albedinski, the Governor-General of Warsaw, many years ago, it is said, stood in the same relation to the present Czar as she subsequently occupied herself. With the younger sister it is probable that the Imperial connexion would have been as transient ae the Czar’s numerous earlier intimacies of a similar character, except for the fact that the ocquaintanoa commenced at a period _ when the monarch had already passed the prime of life, while on the Princess’s side it was supported by rare mental gifts and graces of disposition and character which, not to speak of stature, figure, and other attractive personal qualities, existed in a remakablo degree in the younger Princess Dolgorouki. At length the latter occupied a splendid suite of apartments in the Winter Palace at St. Petersburg, above the rooms occupied by the Czar himself. The new family relations into which the Sovereign thus openly entered could hardly fail to exercise some influence on public life. Before long the Princess was induced, by solicitations from dignitaries of the State, and by petitions from less influential persons, to use her influence with the Czar in matters of public concern. The Ozar himself, indeed, requested of the courtiers that they should wait on the Princess and show their respect and devotion to her ; and such a wish was of course not neglected. The asthma bv which the Czar has for some years been afflicted is growing worse, and his general condition of body is constantly becoming weaker. For his new consort the Emperor has made provision in various ways. Among other things, he has bought for her the Palace of the Grand Duchess Catharine, at a cost of two millions of roubles, and it is said that he has already given it to his consort. It is, however, in Livadia that the Ozar intends to fix his permanent residence after the promulgation ef the marriage,” COLOGNE OATHEDBAL. Germany has been occupied with the Imperial ceremonies by which the completion of Cologne Cathedral has been celebrated. The Emperor and an illustrious assemblage, including all the foremost in the land, gathered in the ancient stiucture. Prince Bismarck and the King of Bavaria were alone _ conspicuous by their absence. The archbishop being in exile, the Emperor was received by the dean and suffragan bishop, attended by six prelates. An address was presented, to which he briefly replied, recalling the part taken by his late brother King Frederick William IY., in recommencing the work so long suspended. The Te Denm was sung with all pomp. Then the Emperor and the royal guests entered a grand pavilion erected in the Dom Platz, and there signed a record which was placed in a silver tube given over to the workmen to be deposited in the . principal stone cross at the top of the oathe- ; dral, 530 ft. high. This document was signed by Frederick William and sixty-seven German • princes and notables. Afterwards the Em- , peror spoke a few fit words. There was r singing. There was muoh tumultuous enthusiasm. At evening the whole city was

illuminated. The next day there was a grand trades’ procession in antique style. So with fitting ceremonial, in which the whole empire took part, Germany celebrated the completion of the grand structure commenced 600 years ago.

EXTRAORDINARY RAILWAY AOOI DENT.

On Saturday evening, October 9th, an accident happened to a Midland Scotch express, from a still more extraordinary act of culpable recklessness. Two express trains leave St. Fancras every evening one at half-past eight, the other at a quarter-past nine. The latter is the Scotch express, and passes the former at Leicester. On Saturday night it ran through Gunley at the usual speed; but certain noises caused by the connectingrod of the engine induced the driver to stop to examine the front, which had become hot. Before getting down he turned the reversing screw of his engine, which, it appears, differed from the screw of the engines he had been accustomed to drive. In the hurry of starting again on his journey he forgot that he had left his machinery reversed. Accordingly, instead of going forward, the train ran backward, and, incredible as it may seem, neither he nor the stoker perceived that they were going wrong until they ran into a mineral train on its way to Leicester. The carriages near the rear brake-van were telescoped, the ironwork being twisted like tin, while the two Pullman oars were much damaged. Happily no one was killed on the spot, but five passengers were seriously injured, and one is in a dangerous condition, lying in the Leicester Infirmary. The latter unfoitnnate gentleman is a commercial traveller, of London, who was so wedged in among the wreckage that an hour elapsed before he could be extricated. THE DOMESTIC ELECTRIC LAMP. Mr Edison has (says the “Home News ”) at last perfected an electric light lamp for household use. He has been long experimentalising, and ho has only just succeeded in devising something to meet all ordinary requirements. He does not claim for the new electric lamp that it shall give much more light than an ordinary gas ja . But it will be vastly superior on other accounts. It will be very much cheaper, much safer, it will give out a fifteenth less heat, and will be altogether free from those deleterious gases which are evolved by the combustion of coal gas. The scientific principle upon which this last sample of the lamp is constructed is the same as the first, and depends upon the evolution of the electric light in a vacuum. But instead of platinum wire a loop of carbon is to serve as the resisting medium, which is made incandescent, and this carbon is now composed of a thread of the fibre of Japanese cultivated bamboo. Mr Edison, as we know, had long been trying various substances from which to obtain this carbon, and he bag at length decided upon the bamboo. In appearance the lamp is an oval bulb of glass about Sin in height. It will cost about a couple of shillings, and with its carbon loop will last about six months, giving light at a rate of five hours daily. No shade is required, as the light is not stronger than a gas jet. It will be necessary, however, to have the electric current “on tap,” and this is to be effected by the establishment of a number of central stations where the electricity will be generated by another new and simplified process, and distributed by wires to the dwelling-houses which use the lamps. The whole system is in the hands of an enterprising company, and will very shortly be in full working order in New York.