SPECIAL MAIL NEWS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5186, 5 November 1877, Page 3

SPECIAL MAIL NEWS.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) Auckland, Saturday. A Daily Telegraph despatch from Stanley says he arrived at the west coast of Africa after accomplishing, amid extreme perils and difficulties, the continuous navigation of the great stream of the Lualaba from Nyanza down to the mouth of the Congo, which is thus proved to be the same river. Stanley says there was much desperate fighting during the journey, the natives harassing his party day and night, and killing and wounding his people with poisoned arrows. His progress was impeded at one point by five great cataracts, to pass which he had to cut his way through thirteen miles of dense forest, frequently exchanging axes for rifles as they were attacked. “ Not until three of my men were killed,” writes Stanley, “did I desist from crying out that we were friends and offering clothesand he continues : “ For a distance of twelve miles the desperate fighting on this terrible river was maintained. This was the last save one of thirty-two battles on the Lualaba, which river, after changing its name scores of times, became known as we approached the Atlantic Ocean as the Kwango and the Zaire. The river runs through the great basin which lies between B. long. 26 deg. and E. long. 17 deg., and has an uninterrupted course over 1490 miles, with magnificent affluents, especially ou the southern side. Thence cleaving a broad belt of mountain between ths great basin and tbe Atlantic Ocean, it descends by about 30 feet fast and furious rapids to a great river between the Falls of Yellala and the Atlantic. Our losses were most severe, and my grief is still new over the loss of my last white assistant—a brave young Englishman, Francis Pooock—who was swept over the Falls of Massassa on June the 3rd last. On the same day I with seven men was almost drawn into the whirlpools of Mowa Falls, and six weeks later myself and the entire crew of the Lady Alice were swept over the furious Falls of Mbello, whence only by a miracle we escaped. My faithful young companion Kalulu is also among the lost.” Callao papers state that the Peruvian Government has instructed its representative in London to demand from her-Majesty’s Government satisfaction, first for the violation of her maritime territory, and secondly for an act of intervention, on the ground that the Husacar was the property of the Republic. Admiral Horsey’s attempt to destroy the rebel ironclad with a torpedo is described as an aggravation of the primary cause of offence. A terrible accident occurred oa the Volga on the evening of the 27th August. Two steamers ran foul of each other ; one of them sank almost immediately after the collision, when upwards of 200 passengers on board perished. The single scull race for £4OO and the championship of the Thames, on Oct. 6, from Putney to Mortlake, between Higgins and Boyd, was won by Higgins. The betting was 7 to 4 in favor of Boyd. The case against the four detectives of Scotland Yard and Froggatt, a solicitor, for being accomplices in the recent great turf frauds, is now proceeding, and continues to attract considerable public attention. Clark, one of tho inspectors who has been apprehended, as well as the othvrs—Meiklejohn, Palmer, and Druscovitch—has been over thirty years in the

public service. Much sympathy is felt for -the old man,“whose hair ia quite grey ; and on taking his place beside' the other detectives, they burst into tears. The evidence of Chief Inspector Williamson corroborated in almost every particular the evidence given by the convicts, and the case against them looks very bad. Sir James Ingham has intimated that he intends to commit them for trial. • The following is the manifesto which caused Gambetta’s re-arrest. He had issued it to the electors of the Twentieth Arrondiasement of Paris. He says “ Citizens, after four long months of excessive administrative pressure aud most deplorable proceedings relative to the official candidates, France at last speaks. She will say in a few days what she thinks of the men of the 16th of May, allies and protectors of the men of the 2nd of December, servants of Henry V., and agents of the Syllabus and the Pope, who are all sheltered under the patronage of the President, doubtless for the better protection of Republican institutions. France will say what she thinks of the personal policy of the chief of the State, and the aristocratic and retrograde pretensions of the De Broglie Cabinet ; of the unjustifiable dissolution of the Chamber of Deputies ; of the miserable war waged by Government against newspapers, hawkers, schoolmasters, and other defenceless victims of the projects and plots of this coalition of monarchists, who are preparing tor divisions to be followed in 1880 by a terrible crisis, and perhaps a revolution. France will pronounce on the policy inaugurated by the latter in dismissing a Republican Ministry, on the order of the day to the troops at Longohamps, the review on tbe Presidential message on the 19th of September, and that system of government which the chief executive power vindicates as right above tbe Constitution. France will declare for the Republic; she will say that she intends to make an end of the anarchy of the Dictatorship, and withdraw the nation as well as individuals definitely from clerical rule, and insure that the public forces shall never be employed except iu the service ®f the law. I confidently declare that France, despite the manoeuvre against the freedom of her votes, will scorn official candidature and its agents, spurn Royalists, Csesarites, and clericals, all knaves and partisans of violence. She will condemn a Dictatorial policy, and leave the chief of the executive, who is transformed into a plebiscitary candidate, no alternative but to submit or resign. We ourselves, sure of the support of tbe country,' shall know how to make its will prevail over a powerless and incorrigible minority ; the union of all good Frenchman will keep us discreet, aud render us invincible for the country and the Republic.” General Grant, at the Lord Provost’s reception in Glasgow, said : “ Though I may not live to see a general settlement of national disputes byarbitration.it will not be very many years before that system of settlement will be adopted, and the immense standing armies that are depressing Europe by their great expense be disbanded. The arts of war will be almost forgotten in the general devotion of the people to the development of peaceful industries. I want to see, and believe I will see. Great Britain, the United States, and Canada joined with a common purpose iu the advancement of civilisation, and an invincible community of English-speaking nations that all the world besides could not conquer.” The following private letter has been written by a magistrate on an island called Paumbeu, India, to his brother iu Missouri : “Paumbeu, August 12, 1877, —I am so fearfully sick of this dreadful famine. People are dying of starvation all around, and it is out of one’s power to assist them. Returning from my morning ride one day this week I found a woman in the last stage of starvation, and although I procured sago and brandy for her, tha poor creature died. I am to hold a meeting this evening to start a private congee trust to relieve the necessities of some. Every day I give rice and money out of my own resources, but it is a heavy drain. Rice sells at 255. the bag of 1641b5., which last year could be bought at Bs,, and of course everything is dear iu proportion iu the vegetable line ; but cows, poultry, &c., are to be bought in the same place for nominal sums only. The people have nothing to feed them on, aud in some places there is actually a famine of water as well as of food. Grass is imported and pays for its conveyance. We feed about 3000 people daily, one meal a day, only giving but enough to keep them alive. We cannot afford to give more, as we shall have probably to feed them four months longer. Last month was a great festival time among the Hindoos, but owing to the famine no money came to the market, although there is a temple here which is frequented by devotees. Some times after landing on the shore they roll thewhole way (8 miles) to pay their devotions in one taleeg. 80,000 died of starvation in one month in our district, and 70,000 died in May. Is it not terrible ? You cannot imagine what scenes we in India hear and see daily. Can you fancy a woman boiling and eating her own baby? That occurred not many miles from here only last wfeek. When possible T superintend the giving of food, and have often seen mothers take their children’ashareandeatitthemselves; andl must add that I made it up to the poor little things, when possible, by giving them an extra allowance, as I feel that only the pangs of utter starvation would induce a mother to rob her own child; for although black in color they are not destitute of feeling.” WAR SUMMARY. The New York Times' special says the position of the Russians south of the Danube has not been improved by the receipt of reinforcements from St. Petersburg, and the campaign for this season at least is considered here to have come to an end. Even with the addition of the Imperial Guards, said to be 60,000 strong, we have not felt that the renewal of the assaults ou the Turkish stronghold at Plevna would result in anything but the disaster that has attended every attack hitherto made on that position. The latest advices represent them as retreating towards the Danube. The Turkish commander, who has displayed such vigilance throughout the Plevna campaign, and has eagerly watched indications of a retrograde movement, is endeavoring to out off the retreat. In this position of thetians-Danubian campaign the fate of the detached force in the Shipka Pass becomes interesting. Operations against this army are ■ prosecuted with vigor by the Turks. The rains, which completely paralyse operations in this region a 1 id in Asia, have set in with great violence on both sides of the Black Sea. It is not probable that the Turks can do any serious injury to the invading force. In the meantime complaint is made by the Russian officers against their commanders and staff, and great discontent prevails in the Russian lines. These complaints find their way back to Russia, andaddedtothestingofdefeat,and the exasperation of a fruitless campaign after such sacrifices, are spreading discontent there, and a feeling of resentment against the commanders, who are blamed tor the failure of the war. Fever is prevalent in the Czarewitoh’s army, and dysentery has increased very much with the bad weather. The spirits of the troops are unchanged. A Berlin correspondent states that a party of military surgeons on special leave, which departed for the Russian head-quarters, belong to some of the best regiments in the German army. There is already two feet of snow! in the Shipka Pass. The troops are obliged; to ait in the frozen trenches ankle deep in mud. A correspondent of The Times writes : “ The question of the maintenance of the Russian army in Bulgaria during the winter is becoming an important one. I believe the supplies of food for man and beast now stocked in Roumania and Bulgaria would maintain 300,000 men through tho winter, and 160,000 men will be sufficient to hold the Russian positions during the season when the roads are practically impassable for military purposes, and the rest of the troops could be retired across the Danube until the spring. Tha _ question of getting supplies to the army is the chief one for consideration. The Danube is rarely frozen so as to prevent the passage of steamers ; hence the transportation across the river could he managed, and then if the largo cavalry forces were dismounted for the winter, a portion of tho horses of the cavalry, artillery, and transport trains could be organised into

immense trains of pack-horses. There would be sufficient to supply the troops with the necessaries of life. The necessary fuel is a greater difficulty to surmount. Underground barracks might be sufficient to keep the soldiers warm in connection with heavy fur or sheepskin coats, but for cooking purposes fuel is necessary. If the Russians can overcome the fuel difficulty they can winter in Bulgaria. Greece has sent a fresh despatch to her representative in London, pointing out that neither intimidation nor a coup de main against Greece can suppress Hellenic patriotism. An unjust attack against Greece by the Porte would infallibly cause an insurrection of the entire Hellenic people. The London Times says the end of the campaign must be near. It promises to be something like a drawn battle. The Powers will then attempt to avert another campaign by diplomatic interference. The Times prints this prominently. It is said that the Turkish soldiers have received strict orders not to fire at a Russian general, lest he should be killed or disabled, and replaced. A correspondent with General Keriloff, who commands the force which is endeavoring to prevent the revictualmeut of Plevna, says the first Turkish convoy which entered Plevna consisted of two thousand waggons. General Keriloff attempted to hold a point so near Plevna that Osman Pasha was able to send a force, which attacked him in the rear, and obliged him to withdraw and leave the road. Hpen retiring, General Keriloff left two . regiments of Cossacks at Btropal to watch the Sophia-road. Another convoy coming by a road unknown to the Russians, running alongside the Sophia-road, slipped through the fingers of the detachment, and on Monday was under the guns of Plevna before the Russians could attack it. A correspondent at Bucharest thus writes : “A day or two of rain made the roads almoft impassable—mud knee deep. The horses have eaten almost almost all the forage, and hay is very scarce at any price. Communication is daily becoming more difficulty. The Russian staff officers in front of Plevna express the utmost confidence that the place will fall into their hands. There is abundance of wheat and barley in Bulgaria and a very large crop of hay. It is most positively denied in official circles at Belgrade that Servia has already resolved upon warlike action. It is thought probable that the final action of-the Servian Government will mainly depend on the communication of the newly appointed Russian agent, just arrived.” Eight hundred rifles have been seized in Transylvania. The Chicago Times London special says the action of the Porte in sending Bashi-Bazouks to Thessaly is having an inflammatory effect. Greece is certain soonerorlater to be drawn into the war. Servian intervention is only a question of time. Uneasiness and agitation in Hungary are almost sure to result in action which will embroil the Austro-Hungarian Government with Russia. Germany is much excited over the Turkish atrocities. The opinion is gaining ground that if diplomacy cannot end the war this fall it will be almost sure to include all Europe. The opinion is gaining ground that diplomacy is powerless, and England is doomed to a final participation in the conflict. A Berlin correspondent of the Horning Post contradicts the story that Prince Bismarck told Lord Odo Russell that Germany would view the occupation of Constantinople by Russia with indifference. A great popular agitation is reported to prevail in Russia, the people are not only clamoring for a constitution, but openly expressing their opinion that the privileged and aristocratic classes of officers must immediately give‘way to the professional soldier, in order that a catastrophe may be avoided. The Berlin correspondent of the Morning Post says the financial position of the Russian Empire continues to alarm financiers. No limit is legally fixed to the issue of a paper currency, and it is stated that the new issue already amounts to about 900,000,000 roubles. The correspondent oi The Times says : “ A number of Russian railway companies have informed the Russian Government that they find it exceedingly difficult to fulfil their promises to the creditors, and continue the payment of interest on preference shares in gold. These shares being directly or indirectly guaranteed by the Russian Government to a total amount of about £2,000,000 sterling, placed at different times in Germany, were companies now authorised to pay in paper money half the capital invested would be lost.”