English and Foreign Items.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 16, Issue 816, 25 August 1870, Page 3

English and Foreign Items.

A letter from Lisbon in the Independance It&lienue explains the cause of .he rupture of diplomatic relations between the Portuguese Government and the Marquis Oldoini, the Italian Minister. Immediately after the late pronuncia■miento, the Marquis paid a visit to the Queen, who, it will be remembered, is a daughter of Victor Emmanuel. This visit, which it is declared was one of mere courtesy, and thoroughly justified by what had taken place, displeased Marshal Saldanha, who, moreover, accused the Italian Minister of having made certain objectionable remarks upon the events that had occurred, and refused to hold any further official intercourse with him. The Marquis has since left Lisbon.

A despatch from Eome states that in the discussion of the articles of the Infallibility schema, Mgr. Dupanloup, the Bishop of Orleans, spoke energetically, and amidst the deepest attention of the Assembly, against the tendency of a certain school to exaggerate the rights and perogatives of the Pope. It was expected that the discussion would terminate at the end of the present week without any noteworthy inci dent, although seventy-two members of the Council, including, it is said, fifteen French prelates, had put down their names to speak . against the dogma of Infallibility. Another account states it is no longer doubted that the Council will vote the dogma of the Pope's personal infallibility, with the penalty of anathema against those who refuse to accept it. The Edinburgh Courant tells a circumstantial etory about a Highland target which has just been sent ho sue from New Zealand, and which, " on unimpeachable evidence," of course, is stated to have been the buckler worn by the ill-fated Prince Charles at the battle of Culloden. The story is sufficiently romantic :—" Secretary Murray, the constant attendant of the Prince, noticing that the target had fallen into the midst of a whin thicket, marked the spot," and under cover of night returned unobserved, when he succeeded in securing the precious relic." Unfortunately for the possibility of this, Murray was ill when Culloclen was fought ,• and, while its issue was yet in doubt, ho was carried on a litter to Eoyers, in Lochness side, and afterwards removed to Glenmorriston. The defeat had been over for days, and Cumberland's butcheries were in full blast, before Murray knew that the cause was lost and that his master was a fugitive. Dr. Archibald Cameron broke the evil ti lings to him, while he was slowly recovering in Glenmorriston House. We have all this 3et down in a MS. narrative in Murray's own handwriting ; so that the pretty story about the targot is untenable. But apart from this, Murray of Broughton was too much of a coward to run the risk involved in any sucb piece of Quixotry The abject wretch who turned King's evi dence, and gave Government the information that enabled it to send Lovat to the block and others to the halter, was not likely to return among the midst of Cumberland's red-handed soldiery, on the chance of finding a discarded buckler in a whin bush. That the shield which Mr Wilson is said to have sent home from Taranaki may be a relic of Culloden, and not a souvenir of the Maoris, is probable enough ; but there is no scarcity of such relics in the north of Scotland. As soon as Mr W. Fowler rose to ask leave to introduce a Bill to repeal the Contagious Diseases Act, Mr Craufurd called attention to the presence of strangers in the galleries ; in consequence, all visitors, including the representatives of the press, were excluded from the House while the debate upon this subject was going on. The gallery remained closed for four hours, and upon the readmission of the reporters, it was stated that on the motion of Major Anson, the adjournment of the question for a month nad been carried by 229 to 88. Mr Gilpin has given notice of the following resolution : " That, in the opinion of this House, it is undesirable that it should continue in the power of any individual member to exclude the public and press from the debates in the House by observing that there are strangers present."—Before the Speaker left tho chair, in order that the House might go into Committee of Supply, Mr Henley called attention to the recent exclusion of <; strangers," including the representatives ol the press, from the House while a debate was going on, and expressed a strong opinion, as to the inexpediency of such an interference —especially at the instance of a single member—with the publicity of their proceedings. Mr Gladstone informed the House that the Government were not prepared to make any proposal upon this subject, but suggested that it might be desirable to appoint a Committee to ex amine it, as was done in 1849, when this power of exclusion was last exercised ; and Mr Craufurd explained the motives which actuated him in the adoption of the course winch he pursued the other night. A fire, which raged six hours, broke out in Falmouth, on J une 5, destroying business premises, stock, and furniture, of the value of thirty thousand pounds. Twelve of the best houses in Market Street were burnt down, besides lofts, cellars, and small tenements. The loss is, to some exI tent, covered by insurances.

A large fire occurred on tile siding of the Great Western Railway Station at Bristol 011 June 6, and caused considerable loss. Twenty luggage trucks were burned —12 completely except the ironwork, and the other eight almost beyond repair. The trucks were loaded —ane contained about #I,OOO worth of cloth, and all the others contained valuable property.

A Russian newspaper publishes a letter from a German savant, engaged in ex ploring the plains of Troy, which will cause great excitement in archaeological circle?. While making some excavations near the village of Cyplax, this gentleman .came suddenly on the ruins of a cyclopeau wall about eight feet thick. The works were actively pushed on, and, from what has already been brought to light, the writer is convinced that he has at last discovered the remains of the famous palace of Priam. Indeed, he asserts that the part of the ruins, already uncovered exactly tallies with the description of the place given "by Homer in the Iliad. As soon as the works are sufficiently advanced he promises to publish a detailed memoir concerning this marvellous discovery.

Parliamentary papers respecting the establishment of Eesponsible Government at the Cape of Good Hope, and the withdrawal of troops from the colony, were 1 issued on June 13. Earl Granville, in reply to an address from the House of Assembly sent to him by Sir Philip Wodehouse, holds out no hope that Her Majesty's Government will sanction any further delay in the removal of the troops beyond that already determined upon, and he earnestly hopes that the Cape Parliament will address itself seriously to the task of placing the finances on a proper footing, and making further provision for the defence of the colony. The corpse of a man, since identified as James Bedstone, of Hamilton road, lower Norwood, was found on the London and Brighton Railway, about twenty yards from Gipsy Hill Station, on May 27. The face was entirely cut away. Deceased, who was twenty-three years of age, and a native of upper Norwood, is supposed to have crossed the line while in a state of semiunconsciousness during the night, on his return homeward, he having been to London to bid adieu to a brother who was about to sail for Canada.

On June 6, a pleasure yacht, with 14 persons on board, capsized a mile off Hastings. The two boatmen and six of the excursionists were picked up, but two of the latter died. The bodies of four have been recovered, but two are still missing.—A party were in a small pleasure sailing boat outside Eamsgate harbour on June 7, when a gust of wind upset the boat, which sank, and the whole party were thrown into the water. The accident was seen from the pier, and the harbor tug immediately put out to their assistance, but before its arrival two of the party had sunk to rise no more. Eight persons were rescued, four of whom were almost drowned, but by persevering efforts two were restored.

On June 7 a train containing 500 scholars and the friends of the Providence Place Church, Cleckheaton, left for Black pool, and proceeded as far as Phasington, about three miles beyond Blackburn. It reached this point at twenty minutes to eight, and nothing was observed then to be wrong. A mile nearer Preston a tire of one of the wheels suddenly snapped, and the carriage was dragged 300 yards. The defective tire was attached to the sixth carriage from the end, and the whole of the frame work was smashed to pieces. ,The passengers were turned completely topsy-turvy, and were rolled down the embankment into a Held, fcieven of the twenty escaped with slight scratches, the remaining thirteen were seriously hurt. Most of the injured people were members of the committee and their families, and others were from Heckmondwike. On June 7 a fearful accident occurred at the Alhambra Palace, Leicester Sqare. The spectacular ballet of '• Les Eleurs du Jardiu," in which a great number of coryphees take part, formed part of the programme. The opening portion of the ballet passed off successfully, but in one scene, in which the majority of the corps is placed on an elevated platform or ' trap,' the audience were horrified by seeing them suddenly precipated to the lower stage, and by hearing above the strains of the orchestra the crashing of timbers and the screams of wounded women. The curtain was immediately lowered, the performances suspended, and messengers despatched to the nearest police station for assistance. The police were promptly in attendance with stretchers, &c, when it was discovered that eleven of the coryphees had sustained injuries of a more or less serious nature, owing to the fall of the ' trap.' The majority of the sufferers were removed to their homes, and the remainder to the Charing Cross Hospital, where every attention was shown to them by the medical attendants. Only three or four of the accidents are of a serious nature, and in all the sufferers are progressing favorably.

The American Government has determined to rebuild Fort Sumter, in Charleston harbor, in order to preserve this relic of the opening of the late civil war. Although belonging to an obsolete style of fortification, the fort is to be restored to nearly its original condition, so. as thoroughly to recall the past. A dangerous accident occurred in Eichmond Park ou May 23. I '- worth was driving a coach and the park. On passing over of the hill the off sidt* leader commenced kicking j at that time one of the gentlemen (there being eight outside the coach) was blowing a horn. The otlier three horses became unmanageable, so much so, that they dashed into one of the trees, and here a frightful scene presented itself. The horses frightened by the cracking branches of the trees plunged so much that the coach was turned over, and the gentlemen outside were thrown in various directions, nearly all being stunned and frightfully injured, especially so Mx George lioddor,

j and Mr Allen. Mr Hodder received frac* Jturesof the skull and other frightful injuries ; and Mr Allen's leg was broken, and he also received a frightful cut across the fore lead. Mr Hodder was taken to the Richmond Infirmary. At first it was feared that there were no hopes of his recovery, but it has since been reported that there is a decided change for the better in Mr Hodder's chance of recovery. Mr Allen and the other sufferers are said to be doing well. Captain Harworth, who was driving the coach, was frightfully injured about the face by coming in contact with the branches of the trecj which was, a i<sW, ono. He also received a fracture *^;itneribs, and was removed to his house, as were the others who were considered able to stand the journey. On May 26 one of the most disastrous explosions that has occurred for years in the district took place at KMsgrove, Staffordshire. It appeared that the night hands employed at the bottom forge of Messrs. Kinnersley & Co.'s, Clough Hall Ironworks, left work about six o'clock, and were replaced by the day hands. Between the night and day " turns" preparations were being made in the furnaces fur the day turn to be commenced, and while this was going on one of the boilers exploded with terrible and fatal effect. The boiler was one of three which served two rows of puddling furnaces, and four of the furnaces. worked into it. It was about 15 feet long, and weighed about eight, tons. This was lifted from its bed and went into the air to a height of more than 100 feet, and fell within about 20 yards of its bed. In its descent it shattered the roof of the puddling furnaces, besides knocking down the greater portion of the massive roof of the forge. The brickwork round the boiler was of course shattered. The materials and the boiling water which escaped at the time of the explosion bad a very deadly effect. Three men William Latham, aged 34 j Benjamin Higgins, 54; and James Griffiths, 28—were killed instantaneously. Thomas Mainwaring, 20 ; Lack M'Tighe, 23 ; and Thomas Ashton, 43, died soon afterwards; and a seventh man, Wm. Rollins, died in the afternoon. Eleven others were injured, some of them dangerously.