BUILDING RUSSIAN CRUISERS.

[Special to the Melboukne " Age."] (Per steamer at tbe Bluff.) London, March 6. Tbe Russian Government hare given an order to America for building several war cruisers. March 8. It is rumored that Mr Gladstone will retire from office when the present difficulty with the Russian Government has been settled. (BY TfiLEGKAPH.) Wellington, March 16. In view of possible complications m Europe, the Government have arranged to have the cable open all night, as well as at the principal stations m New Zealand, ao that any important news may be circulated as speedily as possible. THE BRITISH COMMISSION. Wo have already stated the circumstances under which the British Commission for the delineation of the Afghan boundaries was appointed. As it is now playing such a prominent part m the complications a little more information as to the personnel of the Commission may be acceptable. Next to Sir Peter Lumsden comes Lieutenant-Colonel Ridgeway as Assistant Commissioner, the attaches being Captains Durand, Yate, and DeLassol; naturalist, Surgeon-Major Aitchison ; geologist, Dr Griesbach ; survey officers, Major Hill, Captains Gore and Talbot; intelligence officers, Captains Maitland and Peaoocke ; eßcort officers, Major Bax, Captain Heath, and Lieutenant Drummond. Eight Ressaldars and Subhadar majors of tbe Indian army were attached to it, and the escort consisted of 300 sabres of the Uth Bengal Luncera and 200 bayonets of the 20th Puujabees. It. started from Quettah about the 12th September, and performed the adventurous march to its destination already described m our columns. SIR PETER STARK LUMSDEN, X.C.8., C.S.I. The officer to whom such an onerous and responsible position has suddenly fallen m connection with the resistance of the aggressive designs of Russia is a son of the late Colonel Thomas Lumsden, C.8., of Belhelvie Lodge, Aberdeen, and was born m 1829. He was educated at Addiscombe, and m 1847 entered the Bengal Army. He became Captain and Major m 1861, Lieut.-Colonelin 1866, Colonel m 1870, and Major-General m 1881. He lisb seen a good deal of service, much of it of a nature calculated to specially qualify him for his present important post. He is, for example, thoroughly familiar with Afghanistan and the Afghans. He served on the N.W. frontier of India from 1851 to ISSS, and was engaged m numerous expeditions. In 1857 he was selected to go to Afghanistan on a political mission. In 1858 he was engaged m Central India m military expeditions, and two years later went to China as Assistant Quarter-master-General. He served with the B hutan Field Force m 1863, and as Quarter-master-General m India m 1868-72. In the latter year he was appointed Resident at the Court of Hyderabad. In 1874 he was promoted to the command of a brigade, and from that year till 1879 served as Adjutant-General of the army m India, with local rank as MajorGeneral. He became Chief of the Staff m 1879. General Lumsden is one of Her Majesty's Aides-de-Camp, and has the Indian, China and Mutiny medals, with clasps for the N.W. Frontier, Bhutan, Taku Forts, and Pekin. For his distinguished services ho was created C.S.I, m 1870, C.B. m 1873, and K.C.B. m 1879. NEW ZEALAND'S DANGERS. [Otago Daily Times.) The danger of an attack m case of war cannot possibly be estimated. It is vain, however, to comfort ourselves with the idea that the Russian navy will be blocked up m its ports m the Black Sea, the Baltic or the Pacific At least three cruisers m the Russian Pacific fleet are, according to a recent Pall Mall Gazette, faster than any English flian-of-war iii the Australian squadron, and the Pacific is a large ocean to play at hide-and-seek m. Moreover, it has to be remembered that Russia stood aloof from that clause of the Geneva Convention which abolished privateering, and that m 1878 she actually ordered and paid for the fitting-up on the Pacific Coast of America of four 15-knot unarmored cruisers. The great difficulty of the enemy would undoubtedly lie m the distance at which their vessels would have to operate from any coaling station. But it would be foolish to suppose that they would come over from America under steam. Until they got into dangerous quarters they would naturally sail, and economise their coal as much as possible. The Russian Pacific fleet is at least two-thirds as strong as the British. It has no commerce to defend, while the British fleet has to be m half-a-dozen places at a time, and to protect our shipping as far as possible. A stray coal ship overhauled, or any single successful descent on a minor port, would replenish the Russian bunkers. Nothing is clearer, as Sir William Jervois pointed out, than that we can expect little aid from the Imperial navy m case of an attack. It is very doubtful whether as many as two men-of-war could be spared to defend the whole of the New Zealand coasts, and all our shipping to boot. Any bombardment will be an affair of a very, few hours. There is absolutely no chance of an attempt to take permanent possession of any place. The tactics of the Russian cruisers would be pretty much those of highwaymen. It would be a case of " Your money or your life ! " and two or three Lours to decide. Dick Turpin was not m the habit of waiting till whoever answered m those daya to tho police could put m an appearance. It is upon our local dofences, and upon those alono, that wo must rely. We scarcely like to alarm people by digj cussing what should be done m cases which

are, after nil, only possibi'ities, but we think there ran be but one opinion as to !he position which this city should take up m case of a Russian cruiser appearing off the Ocean Beacli before the new guns oi'd^-red from Home can arrive. To yield to any demand for a rausom would be as impolitic as it would be degrading. It is evident that to pay up once would be equivalent to an invitation to the cruisers to " cut and come again." The snme cruiser might not come but there would not be the slightest reason why another should not. But material considerations are the least to be considered m such a case. To preserve our self-respect is the farst law of every community, as of every individual, and to submit to the Russian demands would be a humiliation and degradation worse than the destruction of the whole city. Better to pay a whole million to compensate individual citizens for damage to their <■ property than £100,000 indemnity to the enemy. And the extent of the damage which a hostile cruiser could do, firing from out of range of our three-mile guns, is at least questionable. The point of our recommendation that theso guns should be erected as speedily as possible is that, with the advanta b y .v our side of fully a mile m distance, and of fixity of position, an enemy would probably find it advisable to stand out to sea almost to the extent of his five-mile range. If we only had five-mile gune, as Sir William Jervoia recommended, we do not believe that there would be any danger of serious injury to the city, and with our three-mile guns put up we shall at least be m a very ' much better position than we are now.