EUROPEAN NEWS to 26th August.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 5, Issue 266, 31 October 1861, Page 3

EUROPEAN NEWS to 26th August.

(From our own Correspondent.)

London, August, 1861. / In almost every department of business ami politics dullness .;now. reigns.supreme. The prorogation of Parliament lias thinned the metropolis of-one important class in its population, and the fineness of the weather has,sent another, and much more numerous *■ one, on the scamper to watering-places in ' l ., England aml spas abroad. The migrat ion of. tourists, this year is much, more marked and extensive than last, as dullness of trade has left our commercial middle class with a good deal of time on their hands, and while the tendency to ramble is thus strengthened, Sol -ami Luna contribute the . brightest of their beams. In England we have really had a very fine summer. July gaye us perhaps too much moisture, hut August makes up for it by hot sunshine tempered by gentle breezes, and an occasional soft shower to refresh the green crops and pastures and lay the. city dust, //atvest prospects form at this season the one important topic with politicians, merchants, and I might add, divines. To Kegm at the beginning. 7’lie seed time, both tor the autuum sowing and the spring, was , unfavourable, ami much of. the grain was .destroyed at the outset. Up to the.beginning of April things looked rather ;,Fortunately, however, April proved favourable, May genial, and June proved magnificent.. July was. too wet, but not niuch barm was done, in England, except to potatoes, which showed .symptoms of. the old disease. August has been a fine settled month, and harvest operations are going on vigorously. The sum total of the accounts ithat reach us shows that wheat will'scarcely be an average crop in point of quantity, but will be of . very fine qualitybarley and -aqts .T» tc au aYOr , n 3 e > beand auVjF&'.e*--

cellent in most districts, though a failure in a few exceptional spots ; green crops generally very fine, .ami potatoes, though seriously injured here ami there, will be un..abundant crop if the weather continue dry. In Scotland and /reland, however, the crops appear to. have suffered much than ; with us, but being more buck want they have ample, .time to come round again. 1 bus you 'will see that: the promise- of the harvest is only moderately favourable, but compared with last year it is.posilively exhilarating. Under , these influences the markets are steadily drooping, the last averages’showing a price of 50s Sd the quarter for wheat, and 2557 d for oats, In fact, the'fall in the markets would'have been 'nUicli greater, but for an apprehended deficiency iu the French harvest, buyers from which country came into our markets lately, and bought very largely of the floating cargoes of American and Blue* Sea grain. This pressure is now over, and. every day we hear of- large breadths of grain being cut and boused;in the best, condition, The quality of the wheat being flue, it will do to mix with ourlast’ year’s wheat of inferior quality, large supplies of which are still in the country, ami could scarcely otherwise be put to use. In cQimeotioji with Jiarvests. this year, a curious hut very interesting question has just been mooted in France, It is' more immediately interesting to France, hut re hiiotely so to every agricultural country in the world. 7'lie apprehended deficiency iu the crops of France this year is mainly owing to the ravages of insects. These, with creeping things of all shapes, sizes, and colours, gifted iu scientific nomenclature with designations which may well make either British or Gallic rustic stand aghast, have in whole departments exhibited such omnivorous voracity as to recall the traditional, fame of the eastern locust. Farinaceous crops and crops leguminous, the apples of Normandy, the grapes of Burgundy and Charenle, the plums of Orleans and • the beet-root of the Nord, have all been devastated, in common with the grain crops, to the.extent of spoiling the promise of .even the fairest crops., All efforts have been tried in vain to keep in check the prolific exuberance of insect life. At length the real cause of this influx of worse than Egyptian plagues has dawned on the French scientific mind, and has found its way into thehalls of the legislature. For many years it has been the custom to wage deadly war against all sorts of birds—m>t merely birds of prey or game, but the tiniest - and most harmless of the feathered tribe, such as the robin and the sparrow. Partly owing to the comparative-scarcity of animal food, and partly to the culinary skill of the peo pie, birds which in- .England would-not be thought worth the trouble of picking, are hunted down and captured, all over France, with as much zest as are grpuse on Scottish moors or pheasants in English covers. During the shooting season a man will catch or destroy as many as 200 in the course of a day—2oo sucb birds as in. England are left to twitter unharmed throughout every stage of sparrowhood. The consequence lias naturally followed, that in many parts of the country,'the most familiar and homely birds have disappeared—have been either extirpated or scared to less murderous climes. The remarkable absence of feathered songsters in the woods and hedgerows of France the beautiful, has often struck me during my visits there, and this is the explanation of it. But not only are birds on the wing everywhere iu France doomed to destruction and the spit—birds in embryo experience a similar fate. Bird-nesting is carried on there with a perseverance and success suen as British juveniles have not yet rivalled. It is calculated that from eighty to a hundred millions of birds’ eggs are annually destroyed in France, and this wholesale destruction,, combined with the chasse of the feathered creatin es themselves, has produced the "result which might have been anticipated of making them literally ran aves in terris.

Now what lias all. this led to ? . The French scientific mind, proceeding on a very wide induction of facts and comparison of natural laws, has arrived at this conclusion. Birds live on insects and worms ; destroy the birds,, and the insects and worms will be left to destroy the crops. It is true tlmt farmers all over the world have the notion tbut.it is chiefly the birds which help to pick < ff the corn ami other crops. But the result of wide-spread inquiries, elaborated with a systematic minuteness which is thoroughly French, goes to prove the very reverse, ami to show that birds very rarely, and to no great extent, injure grain crops, while-they ..can be easily scared from fields where they are. doing barm, but that what they really depend upon is the-multiplied varieties;-of. insect ' life, which man cannot, keep in cheek because in most eases he cannot even detect or reach them. On this point some of the evidence. prepared ami laid before the Councils General, by scientific agriculturists ami others in France, is very curious and interesting. It is stated, for instance, that Frederick the Great, of Prussia, once declared open war against the sparrow because it destroyed his favourite fruit, the cherry. But what was the consequence ? The sparrows left the country, but in their place the caterpillars entirely destroyed the crop, nut of cherries only, but of all sorts of fruit; and the great Frederick, not above admitting that he was in the wrong, was too glad to encourage the sparrows to come buck as the lesser evil of the two, and as the only 'effectual foes of the caterpillars. A-gaiu, a certain insect is found to lay 2000 eggs at a time, hut this prodigious fecundity is kept in check by the insignificant tomtit, one of which is ascertained to eat 200,000 of these very eggs yearly. The swallow is stillmore destructive of insect life; And by careful observation this bird is found to eat 543 insects in one day, eggs and all—a very tolerable swallow! On examination of a single sparrow’s nest in Paris, as im»ny _as 700 of the pairs of cockroaches’ wings were found, besides a vast variety of: other debris, showing the utility of the sparrow t6'keep in Check a,

domestic pest. . Thus, though it is true that man more-value than many sparrows, it by no means follows that a sparrow has'no appreciable ■.'value," y/gain, the British farmer has no more destructive foe to contend with than the mouse; but • the white owl destroys these mice iu myriads, and intelligent farmers who have observed this fact- find their reward in protecting and encouraging the grave bird’, ’ Many such facts might’ be• given, but as • -concerns. France,.the practical result to which; the ventilation of the subject is likely to lead will he,.the effectual protection if birds at certain seasons fiom fowling-pieces, birdlime, nets, ami binl-nestirg. leaving them free to prey on wireworms, caterpillars,iflies and the thousand other ills that fields and vegetation are exposed to. Let me however leave agriculture'and its troubles, and pass by an easy transition from tlie plough to the loom. The prospects of.p.ur cotton supply are now all important, and unfortunately anything but client ing.". At this moment we have barely supplies in tlie country to last us till November, and very slight prospects- of any imports before then. The question becomes of overwhelming importance—what are we to do when November comes and our stocks are exhausted ? In ordinary seasons the new crop of cotton from the /Southern States of America would die ready for shipment, next month, but we now learn that not if bale will be shipped, not simply becansethei North will blockade the ports’of the South, hut because the South will hold back the supplies from the ports, with the object of starving the Northern manufacturing districts, aud compelling France and England to interfere for their- supply. 7'his game might be... very effectually defeated if rVe could eouilt on supplies from India or other quarters; hut as yet, unfortunately, all our efforts have becii of little avail for providing any accessions to our stock of .cotton tins'year. Jamaica is'doing "something, India is doing a g.eat deal, and a roving commission sent out by the Cotton Supply Association has visited Egypt, but all tli£se efforts are chiefly valuable for their after results ; what we want is immediate results, say in three months. Perhaps the most feasible grouud of hope is to be seen in tlie fact, that the blockade of the cotton ports will not likely be very effective, and that by aid of their privateers the Southerns may occasionally beat off the blockadin'/ ships; and allow a flotilla of cotton-laden vessels to get to sea. It is a tempting prospect for adveiituruus shipowners, as fabulous freights are sure to be realised. Y'hat the Southerns will gladly ship their cotton 1 have no doubt, for their needs are great, and they will not see it rot without au effort to turn it into gold. Some curious incidents connected with the blockade have come under my observation la ely. It appears that one article of which the Southerns stand greally in need is salt, their usual supplies from Liverpool, having been cut off. The price lias consequently risen to a prodigious height; Coincident with this, the supply of naval stores,"as it Is termed, that is rosin, turpentine, has accumulated at the port .of. Wilmington,"N. C.y till the stuff is •’fanning to waste, while the price in Eng and has risen nearly 100 per cent., \\ ilmington being the port from which we are chiefly supplied. Now,- putting these two facts together, a Scotch shipowner of whom 1 know something, is Idading a brig of his at Liverpool with salt on his own account.. The. master, a reliable man, clears his vessel for Newfoundland with the salt, bur. as the shrewd Caledonian naively remarks,. “ I ken Fin no gaun there,” and consequently, when he gets across the Atlantic, he will creep down the coast under shelter of Cape Hatteras, and watcli an opportunity* when the captain of the blockading ship is looking in the wrong direction, to sneak into the port of Wilmington. There, lie will sell the salt on his own terms, bring a cargo of naval stores, also on his own terms, and under cover of-the'night-he is confident of being able to elude the block-, ade and get out Acot free. Should lie succeed, his owner and'be will char a profit of many thousands of pounds ; should he fail, the loss of an old brig matters little.in these days of low freights and unproductive shipping. That this man’s estimate of tlie profit likely to accrue is by no means chimerical is seen by what, other vessels have actually done. A brig of 200 tons register lately entered tlie port of Liverpool with a cargo from Wilmington, the freight of which grossed nearly 30001— an enormous sum for so smalT a vessel aud so short a voyage. ;. In matters political and courtly I iiave little to. chronicle. The Queeu lias arrived in Dublin, and met with an enthusiujstic reception. Treason and discontent have slunk out of sight, and CeacL mile faijlihe is the cry, multiplied by a thousand echoes from very warm hearts. She is accompanied by Earl Granville and '/Sir Robert Peel, tlie new Secretary, who also has been very heartily welcomed, and who* in his devotion to Iri.-li interests, bids fair to be ip sis Hibernis Hibernior. The good folks of Dublin have no' reason to complain of a want of '• attention this season, for besides tlie visits of Royalty,; they have been lavoured with/ the sittings of the bociai Science Congress, under the Presidency oi Lord Brougham. v - 1 This “ old nian eloquent” in-the course of his introductory address, which' was about, omnibus rebus et quibusdam dliis, fell foul of tlie Pope and his rule in Italy, and thereby excited tlie wrath of I)r. Oulleiv the Eomish Archbishop of Dublin, who in: a somewhat whining pastoral address, de-x fended the Head of his Church. Ur. C. was right and he was wrong. He was;, right in vindicating the character of 'the Pope, who can scarcely be blamed so much as his advisers, but wholly wrong, in defending Papal rule in Rome. I saw some-, thing of it when I was there six years ago and speak feelingly on the subject. As for tlie doings of the great corn contractor aud tobacco monopolist, Cardinal. Aptonelli, really the Ids that-duty puddle is raked

up the better for the sensibilities of every honest inan. But' the Pope conies into courtwith clean hands, and personally is without reproach. Auvihg'this little fracas however, the local.science meetings were a signal li:cess, and one'of the most satisfactory fciit’fiies in tlie ' course of the proceediiigs i was the freedom and yet good temper with Which, sonic rather ticklish subjects, shell ' aS f '';d(lu'e< , ttuGi and the laws relating ,to marriage, were discussed hymen of antagonistic'opinions and faiths, including prfiMsofs of ’ the Catholic Univer : sity. . ■ - ..

Foreign- affairs' of interest are restricted to-lTiingary'-and the United Elates, though a word may be : ’d«Voted to Italy. The" hea<‘efi of Mraliau pruspepty is sorely darkened by troubles iir Naples. That portion of Fictor EmmauuePs dominions is over-run by brigands, partly consisting of genuine robbers r to the manner born, and partly of disbauded Romanists. These aided by disaffected priests aim nobles attached ;to the expelled monarch liaye been powerful" enough to jii'olong a state of irritation, dis-_ cord "and.Pconffision fatal to all material prosperity,; and" for’ want.of tliat the whole population UreMiow grumbling. General Cialditti.' has been appointed Governor and ail ilitii vyc chief,. And : under his vigorous rule chUfige" : for ‘rtlie better 'is - rapidly taking 'place. A" -'greaPpdeal 1 of, bad feeling; however; has been -exeited by the cruelties practised* loth'sides, -and to c- unteraet thiiJ-Victor 'Fniniamiel will visit Aaples in person next month in slate. T lie often repeated and often contradicted fiimpur of a coin pact on the part of' tlie ltaliaiTl’gbvernment to suneniler Sardinia to France in return for the cession of Dune has beeh agaiii revived / believe in tinexistence of this conij act, and that it ha-> as yet'be&n kept in : tlie background by the iiigli cbiitract-ing "parties, partly because it is feared that public opinion is iiot ripe for tlie stop,"-’and.jmainly because, in view of the stkoiig language used by I/ord John Russ&.Dwheir-'The questioii was mooted in the TlYmse bf Cofiimo/is, it. is not considered safe ) ? et to I; face hostility of tlie Englisht6'abihet. : Theie is no' ddiibt that an avowal * W i "t 1 te ‘-scht-me by 'th'e Emperor-of the French- at present would lead to an entire rupture of frieudly relations with Britain.. i-0 . :

The Hungarians have at length assumed ■an .attitude‘t»f o);en but passive hostility to Austria;' 7o tliis’eveiything Ims been tending as 1 warned y ; ou months ago. 7’lie ITungiir.ians refuse to ■■" sen- representatives to ’ tlie ' Tleichsfiit li "or general Parliament, till their-Taws of 1848 are re-established and an independent miiiistry granted them, with a national, amiy, and a taxation levied only by their own Diet.' It is hardly sinprising the Einpei'or of Austria should refuse this. He has'refused it; the Hungarians reiterated' their'demands in more decided language than before, and the Emperor than dissolved the H'iet.'//is next'- step will be to uissiiivti ; the ■comifats or local councils and -oolluctthe taxe's ’by force. A refusal to pay"tliFtaxei fs'biie aiiil the nrost effectual shape which, the ..passive-- reistance of the Ilngarians assunie’s, and Au,-.tria, bankrupt and at her wits’ einl to get money, ' finds it. almost as great expeuce to collect the taxes by force ’ as to do without '.them' altogether. '1 his game of armed coercion and dogged resistance cannot go on long without a collision., Austria’s difficulty is Hungary’s opportunity, and the first shot fired between Austria .and a foreign foe will see Hungary spring to arms. ... The. great event in the news from the United States is the battle and rout of Bull’s,.run. As, you will have long descriptions of it from’ tlie newspapers I I)e< -d say nothing of it except to note the tone of putjjc opinion here'bn the subject, and as a faitfiful chronicler 1 am bound to tell you that the. general feeling here is one of satistlie .Northerns have, received a 'drubbiiig. The circumstances of the fight, which the Yankees have dignified by-pjie..nnme of battle, are simply these. On the 21 st July, Geueral McDowell commanding the Federal troops attacked tlie rebel.army, which was strongly posted near a mountain pass called .Manassas Junction, and. after a. fight of several hours, at the commencement of which he obtained a slight success, he was repulsed, .and his troops, panic Stricken,-fled in disgraceful confusion back.-,.t0 Washington. So utter was the rout, .that the. fugitives -abandoned . provisions, guns, material of war-—everything in short that impeded, their headlong flight. The Confederate troops*.who were cominatpled by. General . Beauregard, assisted by .president Davis in person, could have marched into Washington and utterly destroyed any opposing, force, bad they not the,mselyes.j-been posilively scared by the extent, of their own success. A more ludicrous spectacle, and one at the same time more humiliating in a nation accustomed to (tin ifs‘vyith. yauutings of'their own valour atid virtues, was surely never witnessed—an army fleeing in reckless terror from, an eiiViny ; .afraid to pursue !. Ami it must lie recollected, this was in broad daylight, while ' the slaughter was compniratiycly trifling, only a few hundreds .on each side In li.is despatch General McDowell lets out a secret which slu ws the weakness of the Americans in the first requisites of a military; ..-force—patriotism and subordination. .He;states that on the very eve of the battle, three of his best 'drilled regiments claimed their, discharge on the ground tlmt the three montps...for'which, they had enlisted W'ere expired, and notwithstanding his re;motpstrances they positively left, marching off ip. the morning to the sound of the enepiy’s cannon whieii ceinmenced the engagt*ji/ent ! . After this, wliiit is to be thought of tlie 'vain"boasting in which the Northerns indulged as to'the valour aud patriotism of their citizen soldiers? It is to beTAiped this defeat will at all events teich them; a. little 1 modesty aud dispel Somewhat of that’ vapid and insolent bounce in the use of which they enjoyed an admitfed .'pr’e-eininence. In consequence of riffs*'defeat the" command of the Federal

army iri Virginia bti's''' ; bevflr,.cduforml .'ion., a; General. McClellan; df whom ' great’tilings are expocted. In fact, judging from .the language of the American., journals, one must suppose this officer emhbiiibs in his! single person ail the qualifications of ail 'the gn at pi-mmaiulcr.s' that ever lived, from //lexander. the Great fi<<\yn to ' W el!iligtnn.-

The only-man of emiiiencejwhomwe haVe lost since my last, is. the Dr. Villiers. He occupied a veiy’.important "position as an Evangelical' clergyman, aiid; lieiffg only 48 years of age, had to all appearance a long career of usefulness before him. He was a brother of Lord Clarendon, and of Mr. Charles Villiors the present President of the Poor Law .Board, and his son was quite lately mafrie'd i»‘ E£rl Russell’s eldest daughter. He is succeeded' in the see of Durham by Dr. Baring, Bishop of Gloucester, a divine of kindred theological views . The London election of which I wrote in my last was decided in favour of the .Liberal,. Mr. Wood; Lord Mayor Cubitt being defeated'by a majority of about COO. The Conservatives however, gained , a great victory in Soiith Lancashire, their candidate Mr. Charles Turner of Liverpool, being returned by over-jSOO.of a .majority. . ; ; ' -. • Our money market is' much easier,""the Bank' having reduced the ■ rate of discount to 4,t pci'; cent. The '.troublesomerwar with i your Maoris, makes us very savage. We seem never to be out of some.petty war or other. Public opinion is fast coming round to the point of leaving the military defence of our colonies entirely to ’ tlie colonists themselves, as the best judges of their own duties and requirements,',,.. I do not believe, for instance that we would tolerate another'*; Caffre war, and there does not seem a pin to choose between a Caffre and a Maori, By the time this roaches you, you will 1 have learned of the removal of Governor Browne to Tasmania ; great tilings -are expected- from Sir.. Geo;. Grey. iAmds creeping up slowly. Our. Indian securities have risen about 3.per cent within thelast. month. A terrible acddbnV happened yesterday to an excursion train on the Brighton railr way. A-collision took place in tunnel, and 23 persons were killed.