ARRIVAL OF THE ENGLISH MAIL.

Waikato Times, Volume XXII, Issue 1834, 8 April 1884, Page 3

ARRIVAL OF THE ENGLISH MAIL.

The R.M.S.S. Australia, with the English and Foreign mails via San Francisco, arrived at Auckland, on Sunday e\ ening. From English and American files to hand, we compile the following :—: —

General Summary. Although the landing of British troops in Egypt, and their preparations for active and immediate hostilities, have naturally occupied public attention to a great extent, still the Egyptian question has been temporarily ovet shadowed by the cloud winch appeals to be gathering in the East. Russia — after taking Merv, and putting General Ignatieff in charge of Turkestan and of the administiation of all the Central Asian provinces — immediately turns to England, like the boy detected stealing apples, and says : " I didn't mean nothing." England, however, has diiected Sir Edward Thornton, Minister at St Petersburg, to ask for an immediate explanation, and what is more to the purpose, will reinforce all the garu&ons on the northwest of India and occup}' Kandahar. A military commission will also go to Herat, to examine the Afghanistan boundary lines and defenses. So the old Russian question is apparently renewed, and the Czar's pledge to stop at Merv may mean nothing, or very little ; probably nothing. Nervous persons in England must again have had their organisations shattered by the dynamite explosion at the Vic tona railway station in London. The ciy is, of comae, Fenians again, and, in the face of then many threats to blow up London, the theoiy is probably eoirect These wild, misguided wretches would see, if they could only reflect, that all they accomplish is to wieck a little piopeity, to scale harmless indi\ iduals fiom lidmg on certain railroads — the Metropolitan Undergiound, for instance— and to make theßntish feeling of hatied moie intense than pver. Tint they jeopardize their necks is the least part of the question, but there will be a terrible whole sale hanging over some dynamite conspiiacy yet. The new Speaker of the House of Commons, Aithnr Wellesley Peel, has entered on his duties to the general satisfaction of the Opposition, the Pamellites, and presumably the Liberals. Sir Heniy Brand, the retiring Speaker, it will be lemembeied, was especially distasteful to the Pamellites. In poor peiturbed Austiia a strong move in favour of American emigration is on foot, much to the disgust of the authoiities in the piovince of Gabcia. Socialist placards aie posted everywhere asking how long the Emperor is going to live. To which we icply modestly : "L'homme propose," &c. Americans will not forget that Mr Gladstone has unveiled the magnificent white maible statue of our late poet, Henry Wadswoith Longfellow, in Westminster Abbey. It is the woi k of the gieat sculptoi Brock, aud is said to be all that could be desiied. '1 he King of the Belgians is as evei deeply inteiested in the Congo country, and his latest act was to maintain >l Our Stanley " in command there, tlnough the Bmsscls International Association. While England, Fiance, Belgium, Poitugal and all the poweis to some extent, are taking little picks at the land of i\oiy and gold, an American is doing most of the exploring. Every now and then there is a little "Plon-plon" excitement in Paris, just laige enough to make royalist heaits lipple. The couiteous Pi nice Napoleon always expiesscs himself as touched by these lcumons of " their pacific and perfectly legal agitations, and after wedging in some allusion to his son, he geneially manages to state that it is impossible to scpai ate a Napoleon fiom the cause of his pcaple. Pooi Plon-plon ! The Mexican Ceutial Railioad Company has sent out woid that it will ceitamly have completed its line of mil, fiom the Rio Giando to the City of Mexico, by the end of Maich ; and that the foimal ceremonies to coinmcmoiate the opening of the line will be hold on May 3 next. No bulletins have been put forwtiid respecting the progress of work on other lines destined to link the two republics, and it is to this successful Boston company to whom honour is to bo given for first filling in the gap between Washington and the City of Mexico with 1 ails. — Bradstuets*. The banjo is no longer the fashionable instrument. Many women are now cultivating the lute and the Gieek harp, while the oigan has leplaced the piano in some diawiug rooms. Altogether the fickleness and change of fashion are more annoying than giatifying; it is of late scatcely e\ er an improvement. — American It has been decided that the Duke of Wellington's statue at H}dc Paik coiner shall not be bioken up, but will be removed to a site w hich has been selected for it, o\eilooking the North Camp, Aldeishot The road by which the statue will be conveyed Avill be somewhat cucuitou" in order to avoid weak budges, but the removal has been repoited to be practicable. It is understood that another statue of the Duke will be elected on the site of the old one. — Com t Cn culm . The demand for salt has been great all over the woild. India is beginning to respond to the equalization of duties. Theie has been a singular failure in the brine spiinjja, producing for the last four months the compulsory stoppage of many woiks. There is, howe\er, at Northwich, a considerably improved supply. The total expoits of salt for 18S3 were 1,157,169 tons, against 1,091,823 for 1884. Morocco. — The slave trade flourishes in African lands neaier to England than the Soudan is. In Tangier recently a Spanish newspaper states that a negiess of 17 was sold for §39 one of 23 for §42, another middle-aged, fot §33, and a girl of 11 for §37. Despatches from S. Paul, Minnesota, to March 12, say that the Fenians are moving actively in the Noith-wcstern States, with a view to taking advantage of the dissatisfaction in Manitoba, and foment tiouble in that patt of the Dominion of Canada. Several Fenian head-centres had assembled at a place called Fargo, and were taking counsel together with closed doors. All efforts of the newspapers to obtain reports of the proceedings were unavailing, but sufficient has leaked out to show that delegates had beeu sent to sound the people of Manitoba, and cases of arms had been stored at accessible points, to be ready in case the delegates reported there might be use for them. The leader of the affair is a man named Mcßride, head of the council at New Buffalo. Relations between Germany and the United States ha\e become strained on account of the resolutions of condolence on the death of Heir Lasker, introduced in Congress by Colonel Thomas 0. Chilton, sent to Bismarck, and by him returned to the source from whence they came, at the same time refusing to recognise the United States Minister, Sargent, at Berlin, as a medium of communication between the Governments. Ignorance of the relations existing between Lasker, a Radical member of the Reichstritch, aud Bismarck, was at the bottom of the whole affair. The Lasker resolutions were instigated by a brother of the deceased, a Jew broker, residing in Galveston, Texas, who had done Chilton several favours, which tho latter sought to repay in this way. It would have beeu quite as graceful for the Britisli House of Commons during the Confederate war, to have sent to Congress resolutions commending some of the Southern leaders. Bismarck's reasons for his action are published and are considered sound. The claim is made that high political principle was the basis of his action. The late British victory at Teb has proved that the Arabs are rfot to" be despised, for, though eventually beaten, they fought with desperate valour. We are of the opinion that the British Government has somewhat underrated the strength of the enemy, and will have

to send out a considerably larger army before affairs in the Soudan are settled. Chinese Gordon's peace policy has bi ought forth its first fruit, and friendly Arabs have defeated and dispersed a large body of rebel troops which were marching on Khartoum. Although no man could better fulfil such an arduous task as propitiating and winning over to the Biitibh side, Arab Sheiks and their tolloweis, still, we fear that Gordon will, in many cases, be deceived by fair promises and falsp actions. The Arab character i-s full of duplicity and giecd. They aie accomplished liars and born theives, and treacheious to an almost incredible degree. The climate around ! Suakim, and on most of the branches of the Nile is not, as some suppose, so deadly to white troops. The heat and ague aie the two things to be guarded against. Turkey is huffed at the cold way in which she has been ignored in matteis relating to the Soudan, and through that astute diplomat Mustafa Pasha, has been sounding the European powers regarding Soudan, None of them seemed to care ahout moving in the matter, so Turkey has once more to fall back and make friends with England, to whose backing alone she owes her place upon the map ot Europe and recognition as (the remains of) a nation. A letter written by Morton Freeman, of England, owner of 25,000 cattle at Powder River, has created an excitement among the dressed beef men of Chicago, and tlnou»hout the West geneially. He -ays the English Government is intioducmg a bill for the put pose of making easy the shipments of herdeis for that country by way of Canada and the Lakes. "England," he sajs, "could take 3,000,000 head of cattle annually if the western States could supply that number." The London police are scoui ing London in search of d 3 uamite, w hich is said to be depr&ited in bags in diffeient parts of the metiopolis. The police are on the tracks of the men who caused the late explosions, and they are known to be liish Amen cans. England is determined to come to some undei standing with the United States Government with regard to the open 01 gani7ations of dynamite plots in New YoiU and other places, and we feel no doubt that some steps will be taken to stop, as far as possible, this dastardly business. The well known firm of Parker & Co., solicitors, of Bedford Row, London, has failed, and two of the membeis have absconded, having mi<*appropiiated their clients' title deeds. The liabilities of the | nun are said to be nearly §10,000.000. The dynamite wave, which is now sweeping over Europe, has made itself felt in Vienna. The anarchists are known to possess laige quantities of dynamite, and great uneasiness is felt m the Aiistmui capital. The police are making the niosl stiingent effoits to discover the possessors of the deadly compound, and to iineai th the manufactories. The Czar of the Russias is getting over the shock pioduced by the assassination of the late Chief ot Police, and has attended several reviews. The Czarina now attends balls every night, and dm cs in an open caniage through the streets of St. Peteisburg. The Gei man papers still continue to attack Saigent, and Bismarck shows no signs of relating at all in the Lasker matter. A late telegram has been received from Beilin, stating that Gen many, Fiance, and Austria were forming a league against England. This we regard as a nieie " canard" gotten up by some adventurous telegraphic correspondent, who was shoit of nnpoitant news. A new political paity has been foimcd in Germany, w inch is, a fusion of the Secessionists and the Ptogrpssionists. It is tailed the Geiman Libeial party, The object of the patty will no doubt be opposition to Bismatk ,«nd his cteatures in Reieh&tag, and one of its fiist acts to discuss the Chancellois action in the Lasker case. A letter, purporting to have been written by Hon. Judah P. Benjamin, befotc the Confedeiate war, urging that the Southern States declares allegiance to Great Biitain, has been unearthed by Tlmrlow Weed Baines. Benjamin, now in England, denies the authorship.

There will be a sale of Crown lands held by the Commissioner on Monday, the sth M.iy, .it the Crown L.inds office, Auckland, at 11 o'clock Messrs Qualtrough and White notify that they arc piepnred to supplj dailj small goods of the l)f>t quality Mi J b Buekland will hod a sale of draught horses from Napier at Cambridge ne\t Saturdaj.