General News.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 227, 15 January 1876, Page 18

General News.

The vacant pedestal in the hall of the Reform Club is to be occupied by a bust of Charles James Fox. The death is announced of the Rev. William Edward Jelf, one of the most eminent members of the University of Oxford. A remarkable article—fish flour—has lately been introduced into the market. It is prepared from dried fish of first quality ; it is thoroughly desiccated, and then ground in a It is reported from Vienna that the Duke of Connaught has been betrothed to the Archduchess Marie Christine, daughter of the Archduke Karl Ferdinand. The rumor requires confirmation. At the layine of the foundation stone of a new church at Luton by the Duchess of Bedford, it was announced that the Duke of Bedford had sent a contribution of £IOOO to the building fund. Mr. William Talley, a solicitor lately practising in Windsor, who opposed Mr. Disraeli in Bucks at the last general election, has been convicted of an attempt to pervert the course of justice in a criminal trial, and sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment. Alderman Knight, while dealing with a case of felony by a boy at Guildhall on Saturday, complained of the great harm done by the circulation of tales of the " Jack Sheppard" type, and said magistrates ought to have the power to stop the publication of such abominable There are fo ir pensions in the "first-class" for political services of £2OOO each, and others in the second, third, and fourth classes. Mr. Disraeli enjoyed £2OOO a year to his appointment in March last year. The other first-class pensioners are Sir George Grey, Mr. Thomas Milner Gibson, and Mr. Spencer Walpole. The Alliance News has the pleasure to announce the adhesion and enrolment of another noble lord, the Marquis Townshend, who has now become a member of the Alliance. The Nexos adds, "We are informed that the noble Marquis has suppressed all public-houses upon his estates." A chess match has been arranged to take place in London early in the ensuing winter, between Mr. Blackburne, the noted blindfold player, and Herr Steinits, the winner of the first prize at the "Vienna International Tournament in 1873. The £13,000 recently subscribed for the erection- of a monument to the Viceroy of Egypt, will, says the School Board Chronicle, be used in a somewhat different direction. By the Khedive's own desire and instructions, the ■whole sum will be devoted to the establishment at Alexandria of a great public school, open to children of all nationalities and denominations. It appears from a Parliamentary return just issued that since the year 1.862, when flogging garotters was authorised, up to the present time, 2806 persons were convicted for offences punishable by flogging, and of that number only 339 were flogged. _ , The second great fete of the Foresters was held at the Alexandra Palace, at which about •30 000 persons, chiefly members of the order and their friends, were present. The profits :of the fete will be given to the funds of the •widows and orphans' fund of the London United District branch, George Marples, an ostler in the service of the Sheffield Carriage Company, has narrowly escaped a horrible death. He has had care of a pair of entire Flemish horses. On Saturday last he was putting corn in a manger, when one of the horses seized him by the arm, tossed him to the ceiling, and then dashed him to the ground. The animal then knelt upon him and was worrying him, when his cries for assistance were heard and he was rescued. His left leg and arm were broken, and he was otherwise frightfully injured. _ The following noblemen and gentlemen have been appointed Royal Commissioners to inquire into the operation of the laws of copyrightLord Stanhope, Lord Rosebery, Hon. R. Bourke,M.P; Sir H. Holland, Bart., M.P.; Sir J. Rose, Bart.; Sir C. Young Bart.; Sir Julius Benedict, Sir. Louis-Mallet 0.8 ; Sir Drummond Wolff, M.P.; Mr. Daldy, Mr ■ T. H Farrer, Mr. F. Herschell, M.P.; Mr. Jenkins, M.P.; Mr. Fitzjames Stephen, Q.C.; and Dr. William Smith. They will probably meet to take evidence in January next. One of the points that will be strongly urged upon the commissioners will be the necessity of protecting novels from unauthorised dramatisation. - % "A scene of much excitement occurred, says the Pall Mall Gazette, " at Halifax the other day, owing to the sale by public auction of a rocking-chair, a looking-glass, and a piece of cloth taken in distraint for vicar's rate. The «oods were sold in the Market-hall, and the bailiff and his assistant, when bringing them in, were ' received with loud hootmgs by a crowd of some hundreds of persons who had assembled in the hall and colonnades.' The goods were bought by a broker acting for the < Anti-Vicar's Rate Association, for the purpose of being restored to their owners The chair sold for 155., the looking-glass for 55., and the cloth for Is. per yard. At the conclusion of the sale the indignation of the populace was displayed in a manner removed but one step from the sublime. As the auctioneer was leaving the hall he was hooted through the street, and had to take refuge in an hotel. His father also was 'hustled about' by the crowd ; and, though a policeman held him by the coat-collar for protection, his hat was squashed on his head as he entered the hotel after his son. Other members of the auctioneer's family no doubt escaped punishment by the fortunate circumstance of their not being present. One remarkable phenomenon is mentioned with reference to this melancholy affair. The auctioneer, it is stated, when offering the goods for sale, felt his position so acutely that he 'blushed.' This is, we believe, the first instance on record of an auctioneer blushing."

Recent statistics show that there are in France 324 colleges, with 69,500 pupils. In addition to those public establishments there are 657 private institutions, providing for about 43,000 students, and 278 ecclesiastical ones with 34,000, the total being nearly 150,000. The low shores of Denmark and the adjoining islands have been visited with a disaster similar to that which lately befell those of Texas, though happily with far less serious results. Under the influence of a fierce east wind, the tide has risen to a great height in some of the towns, and one ship has been lost. Professor Newman, speaking at Hereford, strongly deprecated the English system of land tenure, and said that the laborer's tenure of land had always been found necessary to make a nation stronger and more united. He believed the remedy for the grievances of English agricultural laborers was to give them a tenure of the soil.

Here is an impressive tribute to the priceless blessino-s of protection, from the columns of the New York Tribune, a protectionist paper :—" Our consul at the port of San Juan, in Porto Rico, writes—l regret having to state that more than two-thirds of the imports to this port from the United States come in foreign bottoms, principally British. There is no direct communication with the United States from this port by steam vessels. All late dates and news are received via St. Thomas, once per month, by the Brazil mail steamers."

"Nothing," observes the Canadian News, "has reduced the cost of articles, especially articles of chemical manufacture, so much as the multiplication of bye-products from what had previously been waste ; and many of the methods by which this has been effected are very curious and ingenious. Among such curious utilising processesmay beinstanced that by which from the bones of the bullocks whose flesh fills the tins of the River Plate Pressure Meat-preserving Company is manufactured the gas by which the company's factory in South America is lighted. The works are very extensive, and 200 burners are supplied from these novel gasworks." The remote antiquity of many of the arts and manufactures, which the nations of Western Europe complacently believe to be of comparatively modern origin,. has received a curious illustration by a museum which has recently been opened at Nara, in Japan. It is thus described by the Pall Mall Gazette : " Nara, from a.d. 708 to 782 was the residence of the Mikados. In that year the Mikado, Kuammu, deposited all his treasures in the chief temple of the place, where they were secured in a sort of blockhouse, raised on pillars 10ft. high, careful-provision being made for ventilation. This storehouse was repaired from time to time whenever necessary, so that it is now to be seen exactly as it was 1100 years ago. It was also visited at intervals of 60 years, when the treasures were compared with an inventory. They now form the chief portion of the Nara exhibition. There are plain silver vessels of large size ; grotesque wooden masks, perhaps for actors ; swords, spears, the tattered remnants of banners, Chinese jade ornaments, inlaid work, court dresses, curious shoes with peaked toes, bronzes ; bricks of white clay, with hunting scenes or combats of animals in relief; common wicker trays, on which offerings of rice were made to the gods, valuable because the year and day of use is marked on each ; and a multitude of other articles which it would take a great space to enumerate. Perhaps the most puzzling object is a handsome glass vase with a colored'glass cover. The evidence of course is very strong, but it is difficult to credit that this vase is really 1100 years old. There are some other objects that excite incredulity, such as a collection of cakes, six inches in diameter, and of the form of a millstone with a hole in the centre. These are supposed to have been the Mikado's spare store of soap when he left Nara, and they are so ticketed by the exhibition commissioners."

The following disquisition on shirts we find in the Philadelphia Herald :—" Any man who would steal a shirt, especially a clean one, should be strung up at the yard-arm," said Magistrate Devlin, as Frank Wilson appeared before him this morning. " Have you any idea of the trouble you may cause the owner if this happens to be his only rag ? Would you keep him from joining in the pleasures of the world,, and lie abed while his shirt is being made presentable. Suppose his mother-in-law should die, how would he attend the funeral? It would be highly improper to go to the funeral shirtless. ' Why, sir,' roared the magistrate, ' hanging is too good for you. You should be burned at the stake shirtless. If the shirt was dirty, then you were justified in taking it, but hereafter when you wish a shirt, be careful to inquire whether there is another one in the house. They are articles of necessity and luxury. So I will hold you in £SOO bail for court.'" ■ ; In concluding a leading article on protection, the Argus of the 22nd ultimo makes the following remarks : —" How England was brought to the verge of a revolution and ruined by protection is well known to many men now living, who were eye-witnesses of the appalling condition, both of the manufacturing operatives and of the farm laborers, prior to 1842, and may be readily learned from histories like that of Miss Martineau. But enough has been said, we trust, to show that this is something more than a political question. Protection strikes at the very root of national well-being. It engenders pauperism, with its concomitants of immorality and crime. It is industrial suicide, under the disguise of selfishness. It deludes the working man with specious promises of unattainable advantages, and ends by demoralising and destroying him. It is like opium-eating, for its victims must go on increasing their doses of the deleterious drug, until their vital powers succumb to its deadly influence. And, therefore, it is a subject upon which the silence of ministers of religion must be held to be perfectly inexcusable."

A translation of the " Pilgrim's Progress" has been issued by a native Japanese publisher. . .: A movement is on foot to raise, funds to purchase a set of tune-playing bells for St. Paul's Cathedral.

The Bristol Working Men'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 pontoon, which it is thought may prove of service in any attempt to raise the Vanguard. Mr. C. S. Allsopp, M.P., addressing the Salford Licensed Vctuallers' Association on Wednesday, advised the licensed victuallers to rest on their oars, as Parliament would not listen to another licensing Bill. He also recommended them to agitate for the consolidation of police and Excise regulations. The United States Circuit Court at Illinois has held that the translator of a play from the French is entitled to a copyright in a double sense as translator " and in the eye of the law as author," both by the statute and the common law. Thus the American translator of a play by Victor Hugo will be held in law to be the " author" of the play. The report of the National Education League, submitted to a meeting in Birmingham lately, expressed satisfaction that & distinct advance has been lately attained in the good-will of the people of England towards a national system of education, so that the prospect of obtaining a universal compulsory law at an early period is now most hopeful. The Rev. Dr. Hutton, Paisley, delivered an address at Selkirk on " Vaticanism and Voluntaryism,", in which he warmly commended the scheme for giving religious instruction apart from that taught in the board schools. ■ This scheme is being successfully carried out in the burgh by the Voluntary Committee, under whose auspices the lecture was delivered. The South Wales Daily Ncios prints a letter from Mrs. Crawshay upon " The Drama v. the Dram," Mrs. Crawshay says that some time ago the South Wales Daily News opened its columns to the discussion of the drama as a means of counteracting the pernicious influence of the dram. There were plenty who disputed the power of the drama to do this, but she feels more than ever convinced that this is its true and noble mission. After describing in elegant sentences the play of " All for Her," Mrs. Crawshay says :—" To-night I hope to enjoy this grand play for the third time, I. am thankful to say we do not see the execution. Surely such a play as this, if it were possible to put it before the masses of our people, who are drinking their hearts out because they have no innocent amusements, would deter many an incipient drunkard." ' A Central News telegram say3:—The New York Times gives an extraordinary statement respecting the Montana by passengers who sailed in her. They allege that her sailing was postponed that she might race the Egypt and Republic across the ocean ; that she encountered head winds and got flooded by heavy seas till there were seventeen feet of water in her hold ; and that the captain persisted on going on till the crew refused to go any further. The captain still persisted in his intention, and kept her laying-to for eighteen hours till the remonstrance of the passengers induced him to put back. This story, Messrs. Williams and Guion say, wants confirmation. ' '' The promoters of the new Roman Catholic Club, "The Tiara," which (says a London correspondent) I mentioned some months ago, are makino- great efforts to obtain members. One of the°attractions offered is "ahouse dinner of recherche character of six courses," which is to be provided for the very moderate sum of half-a-crown. Protestants will perhaps be forgiven a smile on reading this announcement m the prospectus, relative to the weekly fast of the church:—"The Friday fish dinner will include a choice selection of the fish in season, and will be a welcome and convenient boon to members." .New York papers give an account of a destructive explosion recently at Celluloid Works at Newark, New Jersey. Celluloid is described as a mixture of guncotton and camphor, constituting, when pressed and dried, a hard, elastic substance, susceptible of high polish, and so closely resembling ivory as to deceive skilful experts by its appearance. _ But it has this dangerous quality, that it will ignite instantly from the fire of even an ordinary match, and burn more rapidly and with more flame than a piece of sealing-wax. The Journal of Commerce reminds its readers that it mentioned some time ago that ladies' jewellery will sometimes be found to be made of celluloid, in imitation of coral, and that they ought to be informed of its ready inflammability. A letter in the Melbourne Argus of December 28 states, that " At the last University examination for the Degree in Arts, out of fifty candidates of the first year, forty-one were rejected —that is, nine passed, of whom three were up for the second or third time. . . . The University pass examination is a severe ordeal. Many break down under it. It is made so to exalt the University and elevate the tone of the High Schools. To attain these ends, do they immolate the scholar?" The writer's question is a very pertinent one indeed. It is possible to overdo a good thing even in strictness of University examinations. The following is an extract from a letter published by the Daily News, and written off Cape Dudley Diggess by Commander Markham, of H.M.S. Alert, to his brother, Mr. Clements R. Markham, on July 25 :—" What astonished me was the ice. I do not bebeve we encountered any of last year's ice, all that we came through having, in my mind, been formed this spring. Then what has become of the heavy ice? It must all have been blown far south by the late prevailing northerly winds! That this indicates an open season for us to the northward I have little doubt. We are all naturally much elated at our success so far, and quite count upon reaching 85 degs. without any serious check. In a week's time we ought to be on ' the Threshold of the Unknown

Region,' when our real work will commence ; hitherto it has all been child's play." In a postscript, added on July 26, the Commander says:—" I hope my next letter to you will say that we have achieved a grand and glorious triumph. Everything, including minimum sun spots, points to this year as being the one for Arctic exploration ; I hope it may prove so. The temperature of the surface water rose to-day (Monday) at 4 p.m. from 34 degs. to 40 p.m. What is the meaning of it ? Is there no more ice in our vicinity ? I believe we are going straight up Smith Sound without a check."

Palmerston, a township in North Australia, situated at one end of the great overland telegraph line, must be a pleasant place to live in. Though important news from all parts of the world passes through by wire daily, the telegraph operator is not of course permitted to divulge it, and the Palmerston people, " the world forgetting, " are by the world forgot, except once in ten weeks, when a steamer arrives and sails. The correspondent of the South Australian, Chronicle thus describes the place :—" The Palmerston people being tired of standing at their doors and gazing up and down the vacant streets, arranged, a few days ago, a little amusement in the shape of races. The attendance was good, considering the population (150). The weather was delightful (ly hot), and the ladies (12) graced the gathering with their attendance. All the horses came from a considerable distance (2000 mdes), and in doing their preKminary canters carried themselves with a bearing that seemed to say they thoroughly understood the vast changes of fortune which would be the result of their approaching struggle. Over £lO was bet on one occasion on the ground, but the bet was supposed to have been afterwards drawn. As the meeting was exclusively a gentlemen's meeting, not savoring in any way of the turf or ring character, nearly every gentleman rode his own horse, or was supposed to do so. The ground was in good condition, although a little parched, and the events were well contested. The whole affair passed off to the satisfaction of all present, except, perhaps, to Mr. J. Lewis, who seriously sprained his ankle, and to Mr. G. Stanway, who had his collar-bone dislocated. These little accidents, however, will occur at all meetings of the kind. No one would deny a Palmerstonian a day's pleasure occasionally if he can invent one, for in no part of the world is the British subject more likely to bring his lingering existence to a termination through ennui, dyspepsia, bilious fever, and liver complaint as in this misery-stricken brazen-clouded settlement of the Far North. No change, no excitement, no vessel entering the harbor, except the steamer every ten weeks ; the news of all the stirring events of the world pass through the town daily but no man knowing it, for the Argus eyes are on the wire, and the faith of the B. A. T. operator is inviolate. The smallest item of gossip is exchanged with satisfaction, and enlarged upon, and the doings, public and private, of every man carefully noted ; but all these form poor stimulants to sustain the spirits against pefspiration, prickly heat, and mosquitos. No ; Palmerston is not the place to which a young man would be sent to see life, and it is only fair that the inhabitants should have their races."