SUMMARY OF CURRENT EVENTS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume VI, Issue 424, 26 November 1856, Page 3

SUMMARY OF CURRENT EVENTS.

(From the European Times, August sth.) It was stated very confidently before Parliament adjourned that the Queen, when that event took place, would make si series of continental visits—would be the guest of the king of Prussia and the young King of Portugal, and on her return home would look in at Cork, with a'view' of inspecting the Lakes of Killamey. This'was the court gossip put forth with a kind of semi-official air, and there was a look of probability about it which induced belief; for a Prussian alliance with Victoria's eldest daughtei' is understood to be a settled point, and the juvenile monarch who rules in Lisbon is a favourite' with Prince Albert, and indeed a blood relation. But it now appears that the head of the State does not intend during the present year of grace to go beyond the limits of Great .Britain —that, in fact, when she moves from Osbornc, it will be to her home in the highlands of Scotland. The movements of Royalty largely influence that volatile thing called fashion, and in this view they arc always of more or less concern to an influential section of society.

The military reviews continue. Determining to keep up the martini spirit of the nation, the Queen has attended another review atAldershott, where infantry and cavalry to the number of 20,000 were present. The'manoeuvring of the soldiers was very line, but except to a favoured few, the whole a flair was a kind of sealed book. The spectators on foot' were not permitted to enter' the. charmed circle, were too far away to be able to appreciate the niceties of soldierly drill, and distance, instead of lending " enchantment to the view," obscured the " poetry of motion." There was one luxury, however, which went far to compensate the'sight-seekers

—the day was beautifully fine, the heavens smiled propitiously, and the glorious country around, rich in the treasures, of harvest, presented an appearance which delighted the eye and gladdened the heart. The present sovereign, it used to be said, was always favoured by the element—always had what was called "Queen's weather.'" But latterly the the elements have, been less propitious to "the head that wt^ars a crown," and it is pleasant to know, both lor the sake of the Queen's soldiers and the Queen herself, that her former good luck has returned.

A very important movement in favour of less labour and increased relaxation lias been originated in Manchester. It is already well known, that the half-holiday on Saturday, which commences at two o'clock, is confined at present to the warehousemen, clerks, and factory operatives of the city. The object of the new movement is to extend the same advantage 'to persons employed in retail establishments. A formidable objection was urged to this curtailment, and one which had much force in it, namely, that as Saturday is a market : day, and the day on which wages are paid to the operatives, the large retail establishments could not close at two in the afternoon without throwing the best part of their business into the hands of the very small shopkeepers, who would keep open to any hour at night to suit their own pockets, and it was added that some extensive retail shops received more money after two o'clock on Saturday than during the rest of the week. In order, therefore, to reduce the hours of labour with as little injury as possible, it was proposed that the halfholiday should be kept on Wednesday afternoon ; but to this proposition the majority of the meeting refused to agree. It was then arranged that steps, should be taken to urge a change of system on Saturday—such as the. payment of wages on the previous day, .and,, if necessary, changing the .market to some other day;—the strongest possible assurance of the sincerity of the movement on the part of those who have undertaken it.

Mr. Smith O'Brien has published a letter during the last few days, addressed to the editor of an Irish journal, in which he refers with gratitude to the efforts which have been made without his knowledge to procure his own unconditional release from captivity, so that he might once more return to his home. From this document, which is quite free from boast or fustian of any kind, we learn that no less than a hundred and forty members of parliament, of all political opinions, memorialised Lord Palmerston in the last session to grant this boon to Mr. O'Brien- —that one gentleman twice made a voyage round the, world in the hope of carrying him away —that the Canadian Parliament petitioned. for his restoration to Ireland ;. that in Van Dieman's Land all the colonists, without reference to country, treated him with the most considerate courtesy, —and that the warmth of his reception in the free colonies of Australia and in the United States penetrated him deeply. In conclusion he says : —" To all who have expressed or felt sympathy, I would willingly tender my acknowledgements ; and it is with this view that I address to you this letter, in the hope that it may obtain extended publicity." We announced recently that Mr. O'Brien had for the present declined to enter parliament, and to this determination he appears still to adhere. Experience, a bitter monitor, has evidently produced a strong impression on the mind of'Mr. Smith O'Brien.

The Crimean report turns out as we thought it would—" a mockery, a delusion, and a snare." Everybody is excused, and nobody is to blame. That there should have been any sparring between the Judge Advocate in the House of Commons and Lord Lucan in the place above, was owing to the fiery impatience of the latter, who could not wait, and must disgorge his spleen. Had he been patient, his utmost wishes would have been satisfied. The following estimate which the leading London paper of the 25th forms of the report is a correct one : — " This extraordinary document fully realises the worst anticipations of those who saw in the whole proceedings merely a plan forsereeningmen whose conduct had been animadverted on by the army, the public, and finally by the Government commissioners dispatched for the purpose to the seat of war. ** * Each of the implicated officers is declared perfectly .blameless; the judgment of the commissioners is revised in every point; and, it is only.grudgingly allowed that they were not actuated by any malicious

feeling. If it were likely that the nation would attach the least importance to the verdict given, it mig^ht be contested by argument, by the recital of facts which everyone knows, and conclusions from which few would be likely to dissent." - rJ}he dinner which the Sultan gave' to- the Allied commanders, at Constantinople, was a very grand affair. Marshal Pelissier was present, but General Godrington was not. f He arrived from the Crimea too late to be entertained. During the dinner a terrific thunderstorm arose, which broke the windows of the dining-room and silenced the music. The superstitious Turks who were present drew the most melancholy conclusions from.this augury. "It suggested to many," says one.of the accounts, "the idea of Belshazzar's feast and the handwriting on the wall." The special correspondent of the . London" ' Times,' before taking a final leave, of the Crimea, has gone over some of the now celebrated spots, consecrated in all future time to history. In yesterday's impression of that paper, appears an .article.extending over, three columns, and .headed " The Alma Be-risited "-— an,, appropriate title, but. all the genius of. the gifted, writer cannot infuse life into a. deadcarcass—can hardly galvanise an extinct body. The stem realities of war. have been.so vividly before the public that all present interest in the places disappear, however, graphically conveyed, apart from the moving, panorama of actual events with which they were associated. It-will require the hand of- time to mellow the tints. A transition state like the present is unfavourable to romance,or poetry. ... - . .- 0 ;:: ■-;; The accounts from Vienna, which.arc. filtered through the. French newspapers, -._ , represent Austria as being alarmed, at the state«f ? Spain^ and, absorbed in the means o£ putting.dpwii any. demonstrations which may occur, in Italy... A most energetic Austrian General has replaced, the one in command of the duchy of It is added that the Austrian note .to Naples was more decided than we represented it last week. The other foreign news of the week posseses no interest. • The Viceroy of Egypt, Said. Pacha, gave a series of entertainments at his palace during. three days in the middle of last month, of the most superb description. Some of the letterwriters on the spot appear quite unable to rise ■ to the great theme, —a becoming description of this combination of European and Oriental, grandeur. In this case.figures beat fancy., and the bare announcement that the feasting cost - considerably more than £'100,000 is the best comment on the affair. . . . .... • The coronation of the Emperor Alexander at Moscow, which is impending, will also be rick in all that can please the eye, the ear, and the palate. The English aristocracy, are flocking to the scene in great numbers. Sir Robert Peel and his wife are already on the wing, the Marchioness of Stafford and other beauties. Earl Granville, our Ambassador Extraordinary, will be very imposing in his new state carriage, built for the occasion, together with five extra, carriages, and twenty horses —all of which have preceded him. The news from Spain shows that the Queen and O'Donnell have triumphed, and that the .. liberties of the country are for the present trampled underfoot. Order, we learn, reigns at Barcelona; Catalonia is in the hands of the Eoyal troops. The disarming of the national militia is everywhere going on. AH the provinces of Spain recognise the authority of the government.