MAIL NEWS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXI, Issue 172, 24 July 1890, Page 3

MAIL NEWS.

(VIA SAN FRANCISCO.)

A FILIBUSTERING SCHEME,

The Washington Government has been advised by the Mexican Minister that an English Company has endeavoured to seize Lower California, through concessions made them by President .Diaz, and recommends thab its officials be banished the country on pain of death if they return, and thab thoir entire property be confiscated. The English Government, it is suggested, would demur to these summary proceedings, and two or three men-of-war off the coasb, sent to protect the Company, would no doubt lead to a reconsideration on the part of Mexico. AMr Scott is the general manager of the English Company ; and there is a report thab Glaus Sprockets is implicated in the scheme, but this he emphatically denies. The enemies of President Diaz, who are fomenting a revolution againsb him, are making capital oub of bhe affair.

CANADA.

In addition to tho shore batteries at Victoria, 8.C.. ibisproposed to fortify strongly several islands guarding the entrance to the harbour at Esquimalb.

THE NEWFOUNDLAND AFFAIR. The Island papers thab come to hand are filled with accounts of the St. George's B_p matter ; and tho editorial opinion is that the action of the French man-of-war, Indre, in removing the nets and lines of the English fishermen is tantamount to a declaration of war. The Indre arrived at Sydney, j Cape Breton, June sbh, and the commander is quite placid in regard to the matter. The rights of the French fishermen on the Newfoundland coasb were osbablished by the Treaty of Utrecht, made on the llth April, 1713, and have always been recognised. Ib has been the custom, according to the commander of the Indre, when natives occupied the fishing grounds to request British war-ships bo cause bhem to make room for the French, which has always been done. In this case there was no British warship to call on, so the French commander made the order direct. Not more than a dozen seines were removed from the Bay of St. George; The Frenchman says the whole rumpus is nothing but a political hullaballoo.

In the House of Commons, on June sth, the Foreign Secretary said that the official advices forwarded to the Government stated there had be6n no landing of French armed forces* The commander of the French ships requested the removal of certain nets in St. George's Bay, the request being justified. No threats had been used. The furious address of the Newfoundland Legislature to the Queen had not passed oa June 7fch, and may be modified considerably before that time. The excitement among the fishermen, however, continued to grow more and more intense. One meeting resolved that if the French disturbed their nets within the shore limits, to fire on them and take the consequences. The St. John's newspapers taunted the British naval officers, saying they ought to wear petticoats instead of breeches, and carry a lawn tennis raquet instead of a sword. While British men-of-war were in Newfoundland waters ostensibly for fishery protection, they in reality were there to bolster up the French claims to the fisheries, and to give the officers opportunity to play lawn tennis. The report of tbe captain of the steamship Harlow, which went to the Bay of St. George with a cargo of provisions, is published in the Halifax papers of June 15th. He was not .permitted to land any goods $fc the Bay, as the residents there refused to pay Customs dues, and proceeded up the coast,as far as Flower's Cove, where the people were found to be starving, reduced to such extreme want that they had nothing to eat bub rotten carcases of seals, and many were at the poinb of death when the Harlow arrived.

The Paris "Figaro" of June 19fch declares Salisbury will accept arbitration; that if France refuses he will repudiate the Treaty of Utrecht and open negotiations for a new treaty, giving the French, to a reasonable' extent, the cod and lobster fishing grounds, and the colonists exclusive rights on the coasts and banks. As the case stands at present Salisbury denies the right of the French to take tho lobster, which was unknown as a fish at the time the old treaty was concluded. Later intelligence from Newfoundland is to the effecb thab factory owners in St. George's Bay have combined to resist the modus vivendi, and the aspect of affairs is growing constantly graver. French warships are hovering closer than ever around Sb. George's Bay, and on the 18th June French and English fishermen had a serious fight at Broad Cove. Ib began in a quarrel over the fishing-grounds ; and the Frenchmen got the worst of it. There were many broken heads and bruised bodies, bub no fatalities, no firearms being used. Much ugly feeling exists against England, and as a straw to show the current, the Island authorities have made liberal concessions toward American fishermen in the way of facilities to obtain baib, and in reducing the price paid for it.

DUTY ON WOOL.

The National Woolgrowers at Galviston, Texas, adopted the following resolutions on June 12th : — Resolved. —An amendmenb to the McKinley Bill should be made by the Senate which shall provide substantially thab all foreign wools having any cross or admixture of merino or English blood, shall be classified so as to pay duties imposed upon class 1 or class 2 wool, according to the nature of the cross or admixture ; that the Secretary of the Treasury be required to remove all samples now in the Custom Houses of the United States for the purpose of classifying foreign wools for duty and to substitute'new samples in accordance with the principles above stated. (2) Resolved —Thab paragraph 383 in the McKinley Bill be amended by striking out the priviso contained therein, and paragraph 608 be changed by striking out the words " Russian casual;" that we earnestly recommend thab any further changes made in the McKinleyßillshallbeonlysuchaswill give the wool-growers of the United States protection on wool grown by American flock masters; thab we protest empbaticaliy againsb any law that will in terms or by implication permit wool to be im-. ported in any other than its natural condition as shorn from the sheep except as washed or scoured in unbroken fleeces,

THE DUTY ON COAL.

The Collector of Customs at Portland, Oregon, has been informed by Assistant United States Treasurer that under the law he is only allowed to charge 20 cents for debenture certificates and 40 cents for bond when taken on tbe entry of bituminous coal for use as fuel on American vessels." Therefore his action in-collect-ing double these amountß is illegal, and he is ordered not to do so again. WAR TALK.

The London " Times " of Juno 3rd declares the order to dispatch an American cruiser to Behring Sea, marks too much of the first Napoleon in dealing with a weak statesman, and if the order is executed British men-o'-war must follow. We can only imagine, says that paper, Blame was induced to Withdraw from his apparent desire for a diplomatic settlement by pressure from Irish-Americans. The •''Times thinks England will agree to the close time for seals in the open sea, buti such arrangements musb be and cannot be imposed upon the world by American gunbotf-, at the bidding of Blame. There is a feelling among military people In Halifax, United States, that tbe presence

of the United States cruisers in Behrins? bea will eventually lead to trouble between America and England. A despatch from Victoria, British Columbia, aaye a full Victorian sealing fleet will enter Behring Sea to h_nt for seals, and take the chances of being overhauled oy a United States cruiser. The British warship Amphion will leave the dock at Jiisquimalt in a few days for a cruise, it ia belie red in Behring Sea. Exciting news is looked for from that quarter about the latter part of July. The Washington Government, according to a despatch, June 21st, says the President and Secretary of State have received positive assurances from Russia thab the latter stands prepared to make good its representations given at the time of the Alaskan purchase, that the Behring is a" closed sea, and if the United States desires the cooperation of Russia in enforcing this doctrine, she can have it. England contends that the sea is free and open to all, and will enforce these claims. Blame has practically taken this matter out of Minister Lincoln's hands, as though he wanted to handle it personally.

alien landlordism.

A Bi'lhaabeen reported to Congress from the Judiciary Committee to prohibit aliens from acquiring titla to or owning lauds within tho United States. The report accompanying tho Bill says tho Committee have ascertained- with reasonable certainty that certain noblemen of Europe, principally Englishmen, have acquired and now own in tho aggregate 21,000,000 acres of land in the United States, independent of tbe acreage owned by untitled aliens, the area of which cannot be precisely arrived at. The report mentions fche case of Mr Scully, who resides in England, and is a subjoct of Queen Victoria, who owns 90,000 acres in Illinois, from which ho receives a rental of §20,000 yearly, and spends the money in Europe ; also, the Schueley estate of about 2,000 acres within the city limits of Pittsburg, Pa., the rents of which reach §100,000 yearly. The Schueleys are subjects of the British Queen and reside m England. The Bill proposes to placo all aliens under the disabilities of a civil law as to all future attempts to acquire lands in the United States. In other words, the Bill is a declaration against absentee landlordism. It declares that all foreign-born persons who havo not been naturalised are incapable of taking titlo to lands anywhere within the United States, except a leasehold for not exceeding five years. It has no retro-active but prospective operation. It also contains a provision which will compel alien landowners to cease to be such, or to become citizens cf tho United States within ten years.

THE SILVER BILL

This measure is substantially aa follows : —Section 1 provides the unit of value in the United States shall be the dollar, and this may be coined of 41 2% grains standard silver, or 25 8-10 grains standard gold, said coins to be equally a legal tender for debts, public or private, and any owner of silver or gold bullion may deposit it in any mint in tbe United States to be formed into standard dollars or bars for his benefit, without charge, but it shall be lawful to refuse any deposit of less value than §100, or any bullion go base &a to be unsuitable for the operations of the mint. Sections 2, 3, 4, and 5 relate to gold and silver certificates, which shall bo of the denominations of not less than one nor moro than $100, and to be redeemable in coin of standard value, as well as receivable for all taxes and dues to the United States of every description, and shall be legal tender for payment of all debts, public and private. Tb« Bill, after being amended by tho Senate, passed that body on June 17th, and came back to tho House. The first vote taken was on the proposition to concur in the first section of the Senate Bill providing for the free coinage of silver. The proposition was defeated; and then the House, by a rising vote of 146 to 85, nonconcurred in all the remaining Senate amendments. The Bill now goes back to the Senate with a request that a conference committee be appointed. The fate of the Bill in the House is a great disappointment to the silver mining interest in the northwestern mountain States and the Pacific Coast States and territories.