SUEZ MAIL NEWS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXIV, Issue 4325, 26 March 1884, Page 4

SUEZ MAIL NEWS.

Defeat of the French Ministry.

The French Ministry were defeated both in the Senate and the Chamber on Saturday, February 2. In tho former M. WaldeckRousseau's proposal to allow syndicates of various trades to meet together was opposed as dangerous, and was thrown out by 131 to 108. In th9,Chamb_D»fe_,,debate was resumed on the economic .polioy of the Government and the conditiorrtojithe working classes. After various speakers had been heard, an order oftho day, accepted by the Government, was adopted. M. Clemenceau then proposed tliatacommittfbeofinquiry should bo appointed. This was opposed by M. Ferry, but was carried against the Government by 254 to 249 votes. Tho " Daily News " correspondent says: "There is no talk of resignations. The semi-official prints say that the defeats raised no Cabinet question." Prussia and Poland. It may be remembered (writes the Berlin correspondent of the " Standard ")that one of the reasons assigned by Hcrr yon Gossler for refusing to advise the Emperor to grant a pardon to Archbishop Ledochowski, of Posen, was that an address had been drawn up last year congratulating Archbishop Ledochowski on his birthday, and demanding that he should be acknowledged as Primate of Poland. M. Jankovski, the editor of a Posen newspaper which published the address, was sentenced by the court of Posen to two years' imprisonment. Socialism in Berlin. Tho Socialist agitation in Berlin is again 'assuming threatening dimensions. Seven large workmen's meetings were held on February 3 in different quarters, and although, owing to the presence of a police commissioner at each meeting, the utterances were comparatively moderate, it is impossible to avoid a feeling of uneasiness at this revival when taken in connection with the agitation in Vienna. In only one caso did the police officer in attendance find it necessary to dissolve the assemblage, and that was where a speakor declared that the workmen were now so well organised that a repeal of the Socialist law would now be undesirable. Tho State of Siege at Vienna. Viknsa, Feb. 7.—The police have made a search at the lodgings of Stellmacher, the murderer of Detective Bloech, resulting in tho discovery of several dynamite bombs and seditious publications. The landlord of the apartments has beon arrested. The police have obtained further information tending to Implicate in tho murder of Police Cominissnryi Hubeck. Fresh expulsions of working men took place on the 4th and sth instant. __ovornl dynamite cartridges have recently been found in the streets, their owners having apparently thrown them away to escape detection. The police are proceeding with very great severity against political associations. Those societies which are, however, known to be of a non-political and lawful character, have been informed that they will not be molested. Some societies are required to present the authorities with summaries of the speeches thoy intend to be delivered at f;heir meetings. Cost of Eleotrlo Lighting. Some rather interesting information respecting, the cost of electric and gas lighting has been given in the columns of the "Engineer." An experiment was made with 200 Swan 18-candle lamps, four Burgin' dynamos, and one 12-horso semi-portable steam-engine. The estimated cost was -97 of a iarthing per candle per hour. Reckoning good gas at the rate of 4s 2d per 1,000 cubic feet, a light equal to 18 candles can be obtained at a cost of about a farthing per hour, so that the advantage in favour of electric lighting is very small. But, the " Engineer" points out, there are other items of expense which did not come into consideration in this experiment, and when these are taken into account tlie cost of supplying electric light by means of incandescent lamps will prove quito onefourth more than that of furnishing gaslight of equal power, though, through the medium of arc lamps, the expense would be only one-half of that of the incandescent system. This rather throws cold water upon tho expectations which had been formed of the electric light, though the "Engineer"is still confident asto the future of the electric system of lighting. A Curious Search. Tho Arcln-eological Society of Vienna (observes ;the "Spectator") intends, it is stated, to devote its surplus funds this year to a careful search in tho Gulf of Salamis for any relics of tho Greek and Persian galleys which sank there 2,364 years ago. The water is not deep, and with modern appliances the bottom of tho gulf can be very thoroughly explored. Metal articles will probably not have perished, and it is possible that a whole ship may have beon preserved by becoming imbedded in sand, as has happened to more than one ship ot the Vikings. Should the search prove successful, we would recommend to the Society a good, carelul search after Pharoah's chariots lying in the neck of the Gulf of Akabah. Or could not the " Anglo-Israeliteß," who believe the English people to be Jews, use their spare cash—they have plenty, for thoy aro most of them AngloIndians—in that exploration t They might find something that would support their theory—a prophetic tablet, for instance, written by Aaron, and bearing testimony to Lord Beacon-field; or, a square stone, with inscriptions showing that Moses established representative government, joint-stock banks, and trial by jury, and must, therefore, have been the first Englishman. That would not bo a whit more wonderful than some of their discoveries, and the chariot-wheels would be irresistible ovidonco. Distress In Paris. A discussion upon the distress in Paris has (says a London paper of February 2) boon going on In the Chamber all the week, the nominal subject being a proposal to advance £800,000 to aid the working men's committees, and no vote had been reached on Thursday. M. Clemenceau attributes the distress to over-taxation, extravagant expenditure, and want of liberty, but only demands a committee of inquiry. M.Ferry, on the other hand, attributes the fall of previous Republican Governments to their attempts to solve the problem of poverty, and maintains that the true policy is to allow combinations to sanction trades unions, to guarantee and assist benefit societies, and to " subsidise " insurance against acoident. He would not, however, make insurance peremptory, a saving remark, in which M. Olemenceau agreed. M. Ferry in the Chamber proposes nothing, and simply resists the credit; but he has sanctioned the introduction of a bill making inflammatory harangues, placards, ana articles offences, and restricting the right of meeting. He will also, it is said, order certain buildings, in order to relieve the masons, and perhaps support a proposal of tho municipality to raise a loan te build workmen's "cites," or Poabody buildings, in which the rooms will be let at low rates. The difficulty of this scheme is that workmen from the country are attracted by these tenements, and increase the crowd.