A NIHILIST MANIFESTO.

Waikato Times, Volume XXI, Issue 1745, 11 September 1883, Page 3

A NIHILIST MANIFESTO.

The most recent utterance of the Nihilists, the St Petersburg correspondent of the Standard says, is an epistle addressed " to Russian Revolutionists." It occupies twelve small pages, so poorly printed as to be in places undecipherable, and was wiitteu evidently some | time before the coronation, to which it does not allude. It speaks of the determination of the revolutionists to carry on the fight for " Land and Liberty," but acknowledges that they arc suffering from the loss of their best leaders and sorely disttessed for means which all " fellow citizens" are earnestly exhorted to furnish without delay. It admits that the murder of Alexander 11, was not received by the country at huge in the way that the assassins desired, but attributes this fact to malicious reports spread by Go\ eminent agents among the people, to the effect that this teirible deed was the work of the landed proprietors seeking to avenge their spoliation in favour of the peasants. The appeal is lengthy and on the whole feeble, and contains no definite programme of future action now generally speaking, any but vague reference to the past. The Government is accused of torturing political prisoners ; but the latter weakens its argument by laying stress on such natural facts as that Nihilists were taken through a certain town' on a cold day in prison dress ; that com icts who had escaped from the mines of Siberia were flogged on recapture ; that the woman KovalsUaya was shot for killing a gendarme who insulted her ; that Netchaeff is chained to the wall in the Alexa Ravine in the Fortress of St. Petersburg, &c. What strength there is in the arguments set forth lies in the undoubted accuracy of the statements that Russia is passing through a very critical period of her existence ; that the condition of the people is going from bad to worse, and that there is a very Audespread feeling of discontent with the donothing policy which has hitheito distinguished the k ign of Alexander 111. above those of any of his prodecessoi s. It is claimed, and not without an appearance of truth, thatautociacy lias been d lagged by the deeds of the "tcnoiists" to the edge of a precipice oaci* which it- must speedily disappear. The life of the picsent Emperor is not diiectly thieatcned ; but it is distinctly .stated that the assassination of his father was due to his obstinate inattention to the legitimate wants and wishes of his people ; and the policy which fosters the prejudices of the ignorant masses against the " intelligence " of the country is justly denounced It is declared that Russia is overnui at piesent with a Avholc army of spies, men and women of the A\orst characteis, who seek to ferret out those infected with " liberal " ide.is ; and theie can be no question that denunciations aic frequent, and, as must inevitably be the case, very often employ ed against innocent poisons to compass [• 11 vato and detestable ends. The document cuds w ith a reference to the war AVith Geunany which the Government is drifting towards, to the sure defeat and displace of Russia.

A c'OLOUKr.u blacksmith was shoeing a mule not long ngo, Avhcu the animal disengaged itsolt and diove ono of its hind feet against the negro's head with the foice of a battenng lam. A few days afterwards someone asked the owner if the blacksmith sustained seveie injuiics. <l I can't say he did," responded the in,m dejectedly ; " but the mulo goes on three legs," " Bwiolt), my adorable Angelina," observed a poetical swain, " how splendid, how magnificent, and how tmly gioiious, nature looks in her bloom ! The trees are filled with blossoms, the air resounded with the melodious singing of birds, the very wood is diessed in its gieenest of In cry, and the gorgeous plain is carpeted I with grass and innumerable flowers !" " Yes, dear Cliailes, I was just thinking of the very same thins. Those plants in particular that we see around us are dandelions ; and when they are gathered and put into a saucepan with a piece of good fat pork, they nuike the most delicious greens in the v/oild ! ' A Soivrof religions census given by the Local Government Board shows us how many churches and chapels there are in England. Of Anglican churches where maniages are prcfotmed there aie 14,573. For all other denominations, including the Irvingites, the Mormons, and the Jews, there are 21, 313 places of worship. The Independents ha\e 2(503 chapels, the Baptists 2243, the Original Connection of Wesleyans 6469, the Primitives 3523, the Methodist Free Church 1230. Tnere arc 127 Unitarian chapels, 34 Morawan, GO Jewish, 47 Mormon, 47 Irvingite, 271 Presbyfierian, 39 Swedenborgian, and 35 Countess of Huntingdon's Connection. Titk Antiquity of Max. — An inteiesting discovery, of much importance for geological and archaeological science, has recently been made in a coal mine at Bully-Gienny, in the French department of Pas-de-Calais. A new gallery was being pierced, when a cavern was broken into, which discovered the fossil remains of five human beings in a fair stafe ot preservation— a man, two women, and two children composed the group. The man measured about seven feet, the women six feet six and six feet, the children four feet and rather less than this. In addition, some fragments ot aims and utensils of petrified wood and of stone, with numerous remains of mammals and fish, were brought to light. A second subterranean chamber enclosed the remains of eleven human bodies of large size, several animals, and a large number of various objects, with some precious stones. The walls of the cave exhibited drawings representing men fighting with gigantic animals. Owing to the presence of carbonic anhydride a third and larger chamber, which appeared to be empty, v\ as not searched. Five of the petrified human remains will be exhibited at the mayoralty of Lens. The remainder of the bodies which have been brought to the surface are to be conveyed to Lille, there to await a thorough examination by the experts of the Facultfe dcs Sciences. Information has been telegraphed to the representatives of the Acad6mie dcs Sciences of Paris and to those of the British Museum. If the discovery be a real one, no doubt can be entertained of the value of the find, which would on the face of it seem to show that prehistoric man is anything but a myth. The British Army.— Sir Lin torn Simmons' statistics in regard to the Army do not show it to be in a very flourishing condition. At Home, according to Sir Lin torn, the Army is more than SOOO below its appointed strength, and at the end of the present year there will be a deficiency of between 15,000 and 16,000 men, which will be increased to between 25,000 aud 30,000 next year. The Brigade of Guards is nearly 1000 men below its strength. Crime is on the increase ; cases of violence to superiors and insubordination have increased since 1872 by 57 per cent in the Army at Home, and by 67 per cent in the Army abroad, and in the same period the number of men tried for being drunk on duty has more than doubled. The non-commis-sioned officers also have deteriorated in the last ten years, the record of cases of reduction to the ranks and imprisonment having nearly trebled at home and abroad. Sir Lintorn quotes the Inspec-tor-General of Recruiting to prove that there is a steady falling-off in the physical condition of persons who came forward as recruits. During the last three years those weighing less than 8 stone 8 pounds have been respectively, 96 131, and 174 per thousand, and those under 5 feet 6 inches in height, 302, 366, and 513 per thousand. In Egypt it would seem that the "boys" were of little service. When the expediticWwas ordered out, more than 450 men" were weeded out, from one single, Jbattajion. At Tel-el-Kebir ' thje ,men averaged 25 years 4 months /ola, 'with 5J years of BeVvice. For the march from Tel-el-Kebir to Zagaaig'old soldiers were employed who had 1 accompanied 'Sir JP. Roberts on -his inarch from 'Cabal, of CiH»d»haj\ - "<•'*■•;