BRITISH AND FOREIGN.

(Reoter's Special.) London, July 12th. Consols are unchanged at 100^. New Zealand securities are firm at present quotations, viz. : 5 per cent. 10 40 loan, 105£ ; 5 per cent. 1889 loan, 105 ; 4 per cent. 1879-1904 loan, 103. Adelaide wheat (ex warehouse) remains at 49a ; New Zealand (ex ship), at 48s ; and Adelaide flour (ex warehouse) at 34s 4d. Australian tallow— best beef is quoted at 359 6d, and best mutton at 375. Best Scotch pig-iron, No. 1 (free on board in the Clyde), has advanced to 48?. Galvanised iron, 26 gauge, is quoted a t £\*j — a n advance "of 10s — per ton. Best Sydney copra has declined to £13 10s. Mr W. Shaw, the Home Rule member for County Cork, has declined to accept a Beat on the Land Commission which is to be appointed under the provisions of the Irish Land Bill. July 13th. Tenders for the 4 per cent, loan of £1,000,000 for Queensland, which was issutd on the 6th instant, were opened to-day. The total amount offered is £1,250,000. Tenders at par will be allotted to the extent of 86 per cent, of the amount offered. Tenders above £100 will receive allotment in full. The Irish members are using every endeavour to prevent the passage of the clause of the Irish Land Bill providing for the making of grants to facilitate emigration. The debate continues. Telegrams are to hand from Bulgaria announcing that the new Parliament has passed a resolution accepting the demands of Prince Alexander for reform in the government of the country. The Prince'a conditions have been fully agreed to. July 14th. Telegrams from Sofia announce that Prince Alexander has issued a manifesto setting forth his future line of policy in the government of the Principality. It announces that steps will be taken to briiig about radical reforms in the public service. The National Assembly will be elected annually, and will meet to decide upon the budget and questions affecting the foreign relations of Bulgaria. Supreme control over the internal affairs of the State will, however, be invested solely in the Prince. Tn the House of Commons to-day the Irish Land Bill waß again under consideration in Committee. Clauses 25 and 26 were passed before the House rose, but the latter, providing for grants for emigration, met with further obstruction, and ■was only carried after the sitting had been protracted to an unusual length. In the course of the debate on the latter clause, the Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone censured the obstructionists in strong terms for their conduct, and stigmatised the tactics of the Parnellite party as calculated to degrade the proceedings of the House. July 15th. Consols have advanced $, and are quoted to-day at 103§. New Zealand 5 per cent. 10-40 loan reremains at 105t?; New Zealand 5 per cent. 1889 loan, 105 ; New Zealand 4£ per cent., 1879-1904 loan, 103. Adelaide wheat, ex warehouse, has fallen Is, and is quoted to-day at 48s ; New Zealand wheat, ex ship, remains at 48s ; Adelaide flour, ex warehouse, at 345. The total quantity of wheat afloat for Great Britain at this date is 1,720,000 quarters. Australian tallow has declined Is per cwt. Best beef is quoted at 34s 6d ; best mutton, 365. In the House of Commons to-day further progress was made in Committee with the Irish Land Bill. Clauses 27 to 34 were, after discussion, postponed, but clauses 35 to 42 were duly passed without amendment. A debate took place in the House of Lords to-day regarding the Transvaal settlement. In the course of the discussion Earl Kimberley, Secretary of State for the Colonies, announced that a certain force of British troops will remain in the Transvaal for the enforcement of the decision which may be arrived at by the Royal Commission now sitting. His Lordship further stated that if necessary a sub-Commission would be appointed to adjudicate on claims for compensation which may be put forward by those who remained loyal during the war, and that in the consideration of such claims the natives would not be overlooked. July 16 th. Arrived : Minnie Allen, barque, from Port Chalmers (April 14th). The National Bank of New Zealand have declared a dividend of 4 per cent. for the past half-year. £1000 {sic) is carried to the reserve fund. The weather in England during the past fortnight has been most extreme, the neat having been quite tropical. Many cases of sunstroke are reported as having occurred. July 18th. Agitation in favour of the Irish tenants, which was recently manifest amongst the Irish labouring classes in England, is now showing signs of revival. '_'L;- fjl . v.'if^ m:a. .^ r ". ~\ui>X fr. ra London July or,.'* f lOthj b-re f.o Lane) hy Ihv iio^otu-, aV.LsiKiifi. 1:—1 :— (Special to Melbourne aec-us.} Til? i'lxncii GiiAMEtneiit cl>t"m ; r.cd to maintain order in Tunia, and have ordered ''the mobiliHalion of a force of 100,000 men for ervice in Africa for thpee months. This tstep

has been rendered imperative by the increasing gravity of the situation. In order to avoid any misapprehension as to the cause of these warlike preparations, the varoua European Cabinets are officially informed as to the action which the Government are about to tako, and of tho reasons which rondar the despatch of troopn necessaryAccording to the latest census returns the population of London now numbers nearly 4,000,000, showing an increase of half a million during tho last 10 years, Tho Court of Appeal has confirmed the sentences passed on Midhat Pasha and bis accomplices in the murder of (ha lato Sultan of Turkey. Lord Dufferin, the British minister at Conbfcsutiuoplo, has interceded on behalf of the condemned men. The Eight Hon. W. G. Baxter, M.P, for Dundee, will probably succeed Mr Grant-Duff as Under-secretary of State for the Colonies. The Monetary Conference, whose object was to promote an international mrtallic system, h?s been adjourned until April, 1882 Tha annual reviaw of troops at Aldcrshot was a brilliant success. The police have succeeded in arresting the supposed perpetrator of the horrible murder recently committed in a railway carriage on the Brighton line. The murderer, who wad arrested at Stepney, has acknowledged his identity with ih»t of th* man wivnietl by the police, but denies tattf, he is guJty of tho crime. Mr Pftraell has, on be'nal? of himself and fcho Trisb party, sent a telegraphic dispatch to Washington, exprfS^iug borr<.r at the attempt made on the life of President G<irfi(ld, and bo< in? f b<=> p<tf,ipnt,V life vu ''l! h# stp.*red. h> ih« Hotjio >>f Commons, in auxwer to a question by Mr W, C. B>rl»pe, one of the roembcra for Cornwall, Sir Chailus Dilke stated the Government bad no intention of a^kjug the Government of Chirm to restrict the emigration of Chinese fco New South Wales. Tho heat in England is unusually severe, especially in Londen. At the military roview at Aldershot four soldiers wero killed by sunstroke, and between 30 and 40 were affected with it, some of them seriously, July 4th and sth were fearfully hot in America, and numerous ewes of fatal sunstroke are reported from New York. The death is announced of the Rev. John Cumming, D.D., minister of the Scotch Church, Crown court, Covent Garden. He was author of several devotional and controversial works, and was 69 years of age. The grounds for believing the reported commutation of the capital sentences upon the murderers of the Sultan are incorrect. The Sultan is being besieged to spare the lives of Midhat and bis confederates. A shocking accident is reported^ to have occurred in a Catholic church iv Mexico. Oa a Sunday, while the congregation were assembled at divine service, the roof of the sacred edifice suddenly fell in, killing 50 persons. Large numbers were seriously injured. There is a large exodus of Jews from the southern districts of Russia, in consequence of Hae hostile and threatening attitude of the Russian population. The destination of tbe outgoing families is America. An insurrection is reported at Mecca. An encounter took place between Turkish soldiers and insurgents, in which the latter were successful. The loss on the part of the Turkish troops was 250 killed. Paris, July 12th. Telegrams (which, however, require confirmation) are to hand reporting that a large body of armed Arab tribes are marching from Tripoli to Sfax to assist the iusurgents there against the French. The latest news to hand from Tunis announces that the bombardment of Sfax by the French fleet continues, but the Arabs still hold out J July 13th. Intelligence has been received from Tripoli that several Turkish ironclads have arrived off the capital. The French warships in the same waters are watching the movements of the Turkish vessels. Telegrams have been received to-day from Tunis announcing that the revolt of the Arabs is spreading. The tribes at Gabes, a seaport in the gulf of the same name, on the Tunisian coast, have risen. The French and other European residents in the town have consequently taken refuge on board the shipping in port. . July 14th. The anniversary of the French Republic was celebrated to-day as a public holiday throughout the country. Festivities were organised in all parts of the city, and passed, off with great eclat. Telegrams are to hand to-day from Tripoli announcing that certain emissaries despatched by the French Government to the Governor-general of Tripoli bad been placed under arrest on their arrival at the capital. July 16th. Telegrams to hand from Tunis this morning report that the bombardment of Sfax continues, but the French have so far been unable to dislodge the Arabs. The latter still offer a firm resistance to the attempts on the part of the French vessels to land a storming party. Later. News has just been received that the French have been successful over the insurgent tribes at Sfax. Under cover of a heavy bombardment by the ships, a strong storming party effected a landing this morning. The Arabs offered a firm defence, but after heavy fighting they were at length driven back, and the French forces are now in full possession of the town. Don Carloa, tbe well-known claimant of the Throne of Spain, who has been residing in France since the termination of the Spanish Civil War, has been accused by the French Government of intriguing with the Legitimist party. He was arrested to-day, conducted to tho frontier, and forbidden to re-enter the country. July 17th. The latest intelligence regarding the battle preceding the capture of Sfax by the French states that the Arabs offered « pir !> «,' tJ n'Kb"< > n rosiftpnee i/> '•>'■» smU'hu.ij I'fii'ty, M"' i-'i^ictc'. on it a, hs". <\" S' 1 Liil-." 1 .', if' '0 wcawdccl. Tbo e'oy&^ome.r iaitul some (imu, &rd «lio muurgeiua -Ju not. give wa.y until ihey had sulloveu heavily. The French troops in occupation of Sfax have now been largely reinforced

from the squadron, and have taken up a strong position in and around the city in preparation for attacks by tho Arabs. Calcuita, July 14th. News has been reeved to day from Afghanistan reporting that Ayoub Khan in now at Ferrah city, about 130 miles south of Herat, supported by a large body of troops. The t\ meer'o forces are etill at Girishk, and it is expected that hostilities between tbe two armies will shortly commence. July lGfch. Ayoub Khan has left his camp at Ferrah, ard crossed the frontier into Indian territory. He is now at Hyderabad, in the province of Scinde. His motive for acting thus haa not yet transpired. Washington, July IGfch. This morning's bulletin reports that President Garfield progresses favourably. He is rapidly gaining strength, and hi 3 complete recovory now seems assured. San Francisco, July 15th. The Pacific Mail Oo.'s steamship City of .New York, which left Auckland on June 21st, with the homeward Australian and New Zealand mails, arrived here yesterday. .New York, July 16th. The weather throughout the Northern States of America has been intensely hot for some time past, Over 550 deaths from aunfltroko hare occurred since the extreme heat set in.